Despite three decades of advances in information and communications technology (ICT) and a generation of research on cognition and new pedagogical strategies, the field of assessment has not progressed much beyond paper-andpencil item-based tests. Research has shown these instruments are not valid measures of sophisticated intellectual performances. Simply using technology to deliver automated versions of item-based tests does not realize the full power of ICT to innovate in assessment via providing rich experiences that enable observing and analyzing student performances. To illustrate this approach, we describe our early research on using immersive technologies to develop virtual performance assessments. (Keywords: Assessment, technology, virtual worlds, science inquiry).