Assessment of learning outcomes in vocational education is required not only to measure students’ mastery of knowledge, but also their ability to integrate skills, work attitudes, and the context of the business and industrial world. In line with the demands of 21st-century learning and the implementation of the Merdeka Curriculum, this study aims
to analyze the implementation of end-of-semester learning outcome assessment based on collaborative projects, identify constraints in its implementation, and describe students’
responses to the application of this assessment in Grade XI of the Digital Business
Expertise Program at SMKN 1 Ponorogo.
This research employed a qualitative approach with a case study design. Data were collected through observation, interviews, documentation, and questionnaires administered to students. Data analysis was conducted through data reduction, data display, and conclusion drawing, applying source and technique triangulation to ensure data validity.
The findings indicate that the collaborative project-based end-of-semester assessment has shifted the assessment paradigm from conventional assessment toward authentic assessment oriented to students’ real performance. Cross-subject collaborative projects in the form of developing real business proposals were able to holistically represent academic achievement, vocational competencies, as well as students’ work attitudes and collaboration skills. The identified constraints included limited instructional time, group work dynamics that were not yet fully balanced, and students’ varying levels of understanding of the assessment rubric. However, these constraints were adaptive in nature and did not diminish the substantive success of the assessment model implementation. Overall, students’ responses to the collaborative project-based assessment were positive. Students perceived this assessment as more meaningful, contextual, and relevant to the world of work compared to written test-based assessments, and as capable of enhancing active engagement, learning motivation, and collaboration skills. Therefore, collaborative project-based assessment represents a relevant and promising assessment approach for vocational high schools (SMK) in supporting the achievement of students’ academic and vocational competencies.