Between authenticity and cognitive demand: Finding a balance in designing a video-based simulation in the context of mathematics teacher education

A key challenge for teachers is the on-the-fly assessment of student learning. Video-based simulations may provide a tool for measuring assessment skills and a basis for learning environments in teacher education. Based on the framework for teaching practice by Grossman et al. (2009), considerations for designing video-based simulations that balance authenticity and cognitive demand are derived. Results show that participants perceived the developed simulation as authentic, were mostly able to rank students according to their overall mathematical argumentation skills and showed potential for learning in their detailed assessment of students. Thus, results indicate the internal validity of the video-based simulation.