Apprenticeship Assessment Tool Development to Improve the Competitiveness of Fashion Design Graduates

Abstract

The performance of Fashion Design students during apprenticeship is commonly assessed using the letter grading system (A, A-, B +, B, B-, C +, C, D, and E). This form of assessment is considered irrelevant to the demands of the current job market. Graduates are required to have high competitiveness. Apprenticeship is a training program that offers hands-on experience and adds value to graduates. However, such an assessment cannot create a significant beneficial impact on generating competitive graduates. This research and development (R&D) project followed the ADDIE model with its five phases, such as analysis, design, development, implementation, and evaluation. This research aimed at developing an apprenticeship assessment instrument as an attempt to improve the competitiveness of graduates. In addition to the letter grades for transcript purposes, a form of narrative assessment was developed to describe student performance accurately during the apprenticeship. Experts validated the assessment tool, and the Fashion Design students tested the tools.