Philosophy of Assessment

Fan Feng
February 20th, 2017

Introduction

Assessment is a valuable part of teaching and learning. Having well-designed assessments can

help students learn and engage in different ways. There are various types of assessment, such as

interactive notebook, reflective journals, in-class assignments and many more. By understanding

different types of assessment, teachers can create learning plans and provide completely valid,

reliable picture of a students ability and progress in learning. As a next generation educator, my

goal is to create balanced and flexible assessments to improve learning for all students. Also, I

seek to inspire students to discover their potential; I want to use different assessment approaches

to improve students learning.

1. Assessment for Learning

Assessment for learning is all about being supportive, we give assessment day by day, moment

by moment. (Gregory, Cameron, and Davies 1997) It is important to provide descriptive

feedback to students so that they can improve their learning. We engage students in all classroom

assessments to support their learning. This type of approach informs teachers whether or not

students have met the learning outcomes, and it helps teachers to set their next goal.

1.1 Before assessment

Assessment serves different purposes at different times: it may be used to find out what students

already know and can do (Cooper 2007). Before we provide formative or summative

assessment, we should assess students prior knowledge (Diagnostic testing) and thoughts toward

certain topics allows the teacher to plan for the class. We need to understand students knowledge
before we teach and impact our students, we should know what the students' needs before

making teaching plans.

1.2 Formative Assessment

Formative assessment serves as a tool for teachers to give feedback to students based on their

diagnostic assessment, and it also works as an instructional checklist for teachers. In my

teaching, I plan to implement many different types of formative assessment, especially in Math

and Science education. I will offer students different options such as group projects and real-life

questions to show their understanding. Many interesting scenarios can be used. One example is

clothing store sales." Students are responsible for helping the store manager analyze the sales

and make a decision on staffing and inventory. (Jensen 2013) This is an example of a real-life

situation. Students will be allowed time to work individually or with a partner to discuss the

given questions. By offering different types of assignments, students will learn to take chances

and that mistakes are part of learning.

1.3 Feedback

No matter what kind of evaluation we give to our students, providing useful feedback is

extremely important; it can impact motivation. I believe, as teachers, we can affect our students,

as what we do and what we say has a significant influence on them. Teachers should provide

thoughtful feedback to guide the learning process but do it in such a way that it gives students

some control over their learning. (Shepard 2000) We need be sensitive to the individual needs of

our students, so feedback should be given promptly, and should be in a one-on-one conference if

possible, or non-verbally in written form. We should first recall, ponder on what students did

well and did not do so well in the assessment; giving positive comments, help students build

confidence toward learning. The next step is to use this information for suggestions and ideas for
further study. Then after offering ideas for improvement, teachers should show students what

success looks like. This encourages students to raise to a higher degree or purpose.

1.4 Peer-evaluation & Self-evaluation

I believe group work can be successful when we involve our students in the assessment process.

Students will be able to develop critical thinking skills to make reflections on others work, and

doing peer-evaluation will increase student responsibility and autonomy. Students will develop a

deeper understanding of the skill or process. As teachers, we need to encourage our students to

reflect on their role and contribute to their group work. Teachers should use peer-evaluation as an

opportunity to help students to develop judgment and critical thinking skills. Similarly, when the

teacher asks students to assess their learning; it encourages them to be responsible. However, I

will first prepare my students for self and peer evaluation by ensuring that they understand my

expectations and what is required when providing feedback for themselves and to their peers. I

will assist students to develop criteria that matches our learning outcomes.

2. Assessment of Learning

Students will have the summative assessment at the end of the semester or the end of the year.

This will be an evaluation to measure how well the instructional objectives have been met, and it

is also a way to get a clear picture of what our students have achieved. It is usually presented in a

formal report at the end of the school year and summarizes information into marks, grades,

scores. I believe having a summative assessment in Math and Science is critical, and it can be

stressful for students. Therefore, I believe it is important to offer students assessments that are

not controlled by the clock, but students can have as much time as they can to finish their

assessment. Also, Summative assessment should not rely too heavily on paper and pencil tests; it

should involve technology and differentiated ways of testing in the assessment.

 3. Standardized Testing

I believe there are many advantages and disadvantages of standardized testing. It guides teachers

and set a standard for teachers and students; they can get information on how they measure up to

the rest of the country. Also, standardized testing is not biased, it is highly subjective, and it

allows teachers to evaluate the comprehension and knowledge level of students. I will use this

method in my teaching, but I will help my students to prepare for the standardized tests.

Conclusion

Overall, student-centered assessment will help teachers make differences in students lives. It

evaluates and reflects what students and educators have achieved, and it also is a valuable tool

for making the connection with students and informing the teachers practice.
 References

Cooper, D. (2007). Talk about assessment: Strategies and tools to improve learning.

Nelson/Thomson, Canada Ltd., Toronto.

Gregory, K., Cameron, C. & Davies, A. (1997). Setting and Using Criteria. Merville, BC:

Connections Publishing.

Jensen, J. Students as Mathematics Consultants? Mathematics Teacher. Vol 106, No. 8 April

2013. P.608-613

Shepard, L. A. (2000). The role of assessment in a learning culture [Electronic version].

Educational Researcher, 29 (7). 4-14. 32