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Charlette Encomienda ED 408 Classroom Assessment Philosophy of Assessment Teachers can teach but that does not mean that students will learn. t is a common mista!e for teachers to thin! that teachin" students will always result in students learnin" somethin" new and that is why assessment is so important. Assessment has many purposes# but to be more specific# some purposes of assessment are to "ather or obtain e$idence to show that students ha$e achie$ed the "oals%desired results# to moti$ate students# and to be aware of students& dispositions. Assessment can also help impro$e instruction and address the needs of di$erse learners. The main purpose of assessment is to "ather e$idence of students& learnin" and to ma!e sure that the desired results ha$e been met. Teachers cannot 'ust relyin" on teachin". To ma!e sure that students are learnin" and attainin" information# they need to be assessed. Assessments are $ital in students& learnin" process because it "i$es students the opportunity to share what they !now about each sub'ect area. t reinforces students& !nowled"e and helps students re$isit e$erythin" that they ha$e learned within a span of a day# wee!s# or months. Assessments that assess students on their learnin" are "raded are the results are also used to help the teacher determine whether the lessons and learnin" e(periences pro$ided# helped the students understand the curricula. f most to all students perform poorly on the assessment# it means that the desired results ha$e not been met and that the method of teachin" was not effecti$e. )ecause of this# the teacher and the students must re$isit the curricula to"ether and find effecti$e ways that will help the students reach the desired results. Another purpose of assessment is to help moti$ate students and help them "ain confidence in themsel$es by ha$in" them be a part of their own academic process. t is often

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called assessment for learnin". The process of assessment for learnin" is not only used to chec! for understandin"# it is used to increase it# +,ti""ins - Chappuis# *01*.. Teachers must state the learnin" tar"et+s. clearly in a way that students are able to comprehend and must also pro$ide e(amples of what it may loo! li!e to ha$e achie$ed the learnin" tar"et+s.. These learnin" tar"ets should be presented to the students early on in year or unit so that students will !now what is e(pected of them. Pro$idin" students the opportunity to assess themsel$es will "i$e students an idea of where they are in their learnin" process# how close they are to attainin" their "oals# and what steps are needed in order for them to achie$e their "oal# +,ti""ins - Chappuis# *01*.. /a$in" students be a part of their own academic success will help boost their confidence in themsel$es because they will be ones who will complete the steps needed in order to achie$e their "oals and because they&ll be able to see the "rowth in themsel$es. Pro$idin" students with an assessment does not always mean that these assessments need to be "raded. Aside from assessin" students on curricula# assessin" student dispositions will help the student and the teacher to become aware of their o$erall feel of a sub'ect or topic. ,tudents could feel unsure about their !nowled"e of a topic or they could feel confident. Assessin" dispositions will help the teacher with instruction by creatin" a lesson or unit with his%her students& feelin"s in mind. )y bein" aware of students dispositions# one of a teacher&s "oal should be to teach an unfa$orable sub'ect in a way that will ha$e students become comfortable and confident in that particular sub'ect area. Assessment plays a hu"e part in impro$in" instruction. 0or e(ample# if the results of the assessments aren&t positi$e is it the students& fault or the teacher&s1 2ne way to loo! at it is that the instruction and teachin" methods presented to the students did not wor! effecti$ely. )y

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loo!in" o$er the assessment results# teachers will be able to twea! their lesson plans and teachin" methods in areas needed so that students are able to understand the curricula better. 4ot only can assessment help with instruction# it can also help the needs of di$erse learners. t is "uaranteed that all of your students in a class learn the best in different ways. 5nowin" this# teachers need to pro$ide different !inds of assessment that cater to different learners. 0or e(ample# if a 6uestion was posed to the students that re6uired an answer# instead of 'ust writin" a prompt# students can create a son"# $ideo# poem# etc. to answer the 6uestion. /owe$er# to ma!e sure that the desired results are bein" assessed in the different assessments presented to the students# there must be a rubric. That way# each assessment is assessin" the ri"ht thin"s and each assessment pro$ide e6ual opportunity for students to present their !nowled"e. 2$erall# assessment is $ital in the learnin" process and in teachin". Assessin" students on what they !now and "atherin" solid e$idence is 'ust as important as teachin" students. Teachin" and assessin" "o hand in hand which means that you can present one thin" to your students without doin" the other. Assessment pro$ides teachers with insi"ht on how well the students are doin" at obtainin" and interpretin" the !nowled"e and it also pro$ides insi"ht on how to impro$e instruction.

7eferences ,ti""ins# 7.# - Chappius# 8. +*01*.. An introduction to student9in$ol$ed assessment for learnin". +:th ed... )oston# ;A< Pearson Education nc.

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=i""ins# >.# - ;cTi"he# 8. +*00:.. ?nderstandin" by desi"n. +*nd ed... 4ew 8ersey < Pearson Education nc.