Assessment for Learning

Assessment for

Learner

Independence

Thoughtful use of a variety of

assessment practices in the classroom

can help students develop increasing

autonomy as learners:

• involving students in the construction

of learning targets, and in the formal

and informal assessment of their

progress (Clarke, Timperley and

Hattie).

• providing exemplars, or very clear

criteria for success (McGee and

Fraser 2008).

• opportunities to assess progress

through specific activities, and in

general, with input from self, peer

and teacher assessment.

This assessment can then be used to generate the next

learning step, or locate gaps between the work completed

and the success criteria.

I am an independent learner in my daily life and I use all of

these techniques to further my skills. I taught myself to sew by

finding suitable exemplars and having in mind the success

criteria for each item I created. I used critical self-assessment

and sought opinion from peers to find the gaps in my

knowledge and ‘next step’ projects to further my abilities.

Assessment as a Great Motivator

Positive feedback after assessment, knowing how to improve and having clear direction for what learning steps to take next is a truly motivating force. This can take many forms:

• Visual evidence of assessed achievement such as progress charts, displayed work or written comments.

• Verbal comments, presentation to the class for peer assessment.

• Affirmative comments and a supportive classroom environment positively promote ‘next step’ learning.

While visiting at my homeschool I have been involved in many aspects of classroom lessons and management. The teacher has taken the time to critically analyse my actions, and has provided me with verbal feedback that is both positive, and also shows me where there are gaps. This has allowed me to continually make adjustments to what I am doing, and has motivated me to continue to learn and improve

Fair AssessmentAssessment must be fair to give the teacher an accurate understanding of her students’ achievement. For assessment to be fair students must know what the success criteria consist of. Students must all have had access to learning material, and the means of assessment itself must not disadvantage anyone taking part. Assessment must also be valid and measure the learning that has taken place (McGee and Fraser).

While at University I had a lecturer who was a notoriously

difficult marker. We were given a question, but no

rubric, nor did he provide feedback with the grade. Not

knowing the success criteria meant that the grades felt

arbitrary and could not be relied on for an accurate

measure of our understanding of the subject.

Formative Assessment as a

Learner-Centered Tool

By making formative assessment central to classroom practices educators have the ability to carry out lessons that are relevant to the specific needs of their students (McGee and Fraser).

• Formative assessment focuses on the learner’s individual strengths, and shows areas which need improvement (Clarke, Timperley and Hattie).

• Formative assessment allows teachers to focus on how well students are learning and can make responsive adjustments to pedagogy (McGee and Fraser).

• Teachers can use assessment to recognise all forms of achievement and set individual targets (Clarke et al).

Individual assessment can be made

using observation and interaction with

the student as they work. It can also be

made by a comparison of students’

work against the achievement

objectives and standards.

Formative Assessment Monitors Progress

Rather than using only summative assessment to measure

final achievement, it is more beneficial to monitor the progress

of students before and during learning programmes. This

allows the teacher to identify students who are not achieving

well, and to monitor her own teaching. This can be done by

comparing students’ work against national standards, using

classroom observations to clarify students’ learning and the

teacher’s efficacy, and listening to feedback from parents, and

other staff (Clarke et al.)

Formative

Assessment for

Raising Self-

Esteem

Formative Assessment to Raise Self-

Esteem

Self-esteem is one of the key factors in student achievement.

Success builds upon success, and formative assessment can support

this. For students who are struggling with an area of work, formative

assessment can provide positive feedback for what has been

achieved, raising self-esteem and providing motivation (Clarke et al).

Feed forward shows students the steps they need to take while

allowing them to continue to work towards their target, with self-

esteem in tact.

Assessment of this kind is often verbal when the teacher is viewing

students as they are on task. It must be relevant and authentic to

really make an impact on a learner’s self-esteem, and it must be

based on the task, and the progress the student is making towards the

target, and not directed at the student (Clarke et al.).

References

Clarke, S., Timperley, H., and

Hattie, J., (2006), Unlocking Formative

Assessment, Hodder Education, Auckland, New

Zealand

McGee, C., and Fraser, D., (2008), The

Professional Practice of

Teaching, Cengage, Melbourne, Australia

http://assessment.tki.org.nz/Assessment-in-the-

classroom/Assessment-for-learning-in-

principle/Principles-of-assessment-for-learning