EDFD307: Educational Assessment

A number of assessment tasks are designed for year 10 students for Mathematics class. Summative assessments such as end of unit tests were mainly asked to the students. These assignments measured the students understanding of the interrelationship of mathematical concepts such as; factorising & expanding and measurement. Students are expected to elaborate on investigating and determining the areas, volumes and surface areas of composite solids (VCAA, 2013), estimating and measuring with metric units, conversion of units, solving problems involving surface area and volume for a range of prisms, cylinders and composite solids. Students were given a specific time-frame (one or two classes, depending on the test) for the short answer and multiple choice/ analysis task questions, and two days for the take home project. Calculators were allowed for the multiple choice/ analysis task questions, but were not allowed for the short answer section. Observations by walking around the room to see if students are on the right track, handing out takehome tests, writing feedback after end of unit tests, presenting worksheets in class to examine how the students are progressing and student record keeping help students better understand their own learning (formative assessment). This process engages students, and also beyond a grade, it enables to see where they started and the progress they are making towards the learning goal.

Targeted curriculum areas include; using authentic situations to apply knowledge and understanding of surface area and volume, factorising and expanding algebraic expressions, using a range of strategies to solve equations (VCAA, 2013). Students also use digital technology to construct and manipulate geometric shapes and objects. The curriculum anticipates that schools will ensure all students benefit from access to the power of mathematical reasoning and learn to apply their mathematical understanding creatively and efficiently (VCAA, 2013).

Historically, a major role of assessment has been to detect and highlight differences in student learning in order to rank students according to their achievement. Such assessment experiences have produced winners and losers (Stiggins, 2007). Some students build upon this and succeed in their life as they grow; others fail early and often failing farther and farther behind. One of the main missions for teachers is to embrace a new vision of assessment that can tap the wellspring of confidence, motivation, and learning potential that resides within every student (Stiggins, 2007). If

we look at the assessment from the students point of view, both assessment winners and assessment losers experience assessment practices in vastly different ways. To allow all students to experience the productive emotional dynamics of winning, we need to move from exclusive reliance on assessments that verify learning to the use of assessments that support learning- that is, assessments for learning (Stiggins, 2007).

Assessment for learning turns assessment into a teaching and learning process that enhances (instead of just monitoring) student learning. Black & William (1998) suggest that by consistently applying the principles of assessment for learning, we can produce impressive gains in student achievement, especially for struggling learners. Assessment for learning begins when teachers share achievement targets with students, presenting those expectations in student-friendly language

accompanied by examples of exemplary student work. Then frequent selfassessments provide students (and teachers) with continual access to descriptive feedback in amounts they can manage effectively without being overwhelmed. Also as students get proficient, they learn to create their own descriptive feedback and set goals for what comes next on their journey (Stiggins, 2007). It is important for students on a losing streak who say feedback is criticism, it hurts to set goals in learning and seek to achieve ways that determine how to do better the next time. Assessments should take account of the importance of learner motivation. Comparison with others who have been more successful is unlikely to motivate learners. It can also lead to their withdrawing from the learning process in areas where they have been made to feel they are no good (Assessment Reform Group, 2002). At this stage students think that I just cant do this again, Nothing I try seems to work, Public failure is embarrassing and these actions lead to self -defeat, denial of responsibility, high stress, no feelings of success; no reward, inability to adapt, yielding quickly to defeat (Stiggins, 2007) and so on

There are at least two important ways to obtain excellence in both assessment of and assessment for learning. First, we must expand the criteria by which we evaluate the quality of our assessments. We must understand that assessment is not only the test scores dependability, it also must be about the scores effect on the learner. Even if most valid and reliable assessments causing student to give up, it shouldnt be counted as high quality. High quality assessments encourage further learning. Second, we must abandon the limiting belief that adults represent the most important assessment consumers or data based decision makers in schools. Students

thoughts and actions regarding assessment results are at least as important as those of adults (Stiggins, 2007).

The link of formative assessment to self- assessment is inevitable. Formative assessment is most productive when students are trained in self-assessment so that they can understand the purposes of their learning and grasp what they need to do to achieve (Black & William, 1988). In self-assessment process, each student evaluates his or her own progress or performance. Students attain the I can statement; it can be used by teachers at the end of the class to ask students t o complete I can statements. This also indicates if there is a need for review, more practice, or a reframing of the content. Research has shown that using self-assessment with students can positively effect self-efficacy and intrinsic motivation levels in students (Rolheiser & Ross, 2003). Assessment as learning (formative) occurs when students reflect on and monitor their progress to inform their future learning goals.

One of the issues in presenting assessments is to prepare higher order thinking tasks, instead of long and confusing questions. Higher-order thinking by students involves the transformation of information and ideas. This transformation occurs when students combine facts and ideas and synthesise, generalise, explain, hypothesise or arrive at some conclusion or interpretation (Department of Education, 2002). A student who really understands can explain, interpret, apply, sees in perspective, demonstrates empathy and reveals self-knowledge (Wiggins & McTighe, 1998). Other assessment issues include reliability, validity, authenticity and manageability. For a test to be reliable, it also needs to be valid.

To conclude, formative and summative assessment tasks were designed to increase students learning potential, confidence and motivation. Teachers need to know and understand their students progress and difficulties with learning so that they can adapt their own work to meet students needs (Black & William, 1998). Assessment for learning is about eliciting that productive response to assessment results from students every time. It can produce winning streaks for all students (Stiggins, 2007).

Reference:

Assessment Reform Group, (2002), Assessment for Learning;10 Principles, Research-based principles to guide classroom practice.

Black, P., & William, D. (1998). Assessment and classroom learning. Educational Assessment: Principles, Policy, and Practice, 5(1), (pp. 7-74).

Black, P., & William, D. (1998). Inside the Black Box; Raising Standards Through Classroom Assessment: Principles, Policy, and Practice, 5(1), (pp. 139 -148).

Black, P., & William, D. (1988). Phi Delta Kappan, Bloomington: Oct. 1998. Vol. 80, Iss.2; SSN/ISBN:00317217t.

Department of Education, (2002), (pp. 1), Queensland, Australia.

Rolheiser, C., Ross, J., (2003), Student Self-Evaluation: What Research Says and What Practice Shows. Stiggins, R., (2007). Assessment Through the Students Eyes. Educational Leadership. 64(8), (pp. 22-26), Portland.

Wiggins, G., McTighe, J., (1998), Understanding by Design, (pp. 66-67).