1. Performance Based
1.1. Advantages and Disadvantages
1.1.1. Advantage: Instruction is modified to include practical applications of skills and to incorporate an understanding and connection of content with skills.
1.1.2. Disadvantage: Performance assessments are not standardized and include fewer questions. The evaluation criteria therefore can be more subjective.
1.2. Assessment for learning or of learning
1.2.1. Performance based assessment can be used for learning and of learning. Students are assessed on integration of knowledge which can help the teacher grasp the students understanding before, during and after learning.
1.3. Example
1.3.1. Group projects that have students work together on a problem that includes planning, research, discussions and a final presentation.
1.4. Refrences
1.4.1. Project Appleseed, the National Campaign for Public School Improvement (2014) Retrieved from: http://www.projectappleseed.org/#!assessment/cwvf
2. Summative
2.1. Advantages and Disadvantages
2.1.1. Advantages: Summative assessments provide the teacher with quantitative data that can help improve instruction.
2.1.2. Disadvantages: These assessments are usually standardized and do not take into account individual learning preferences, cultural or linguistic differences.
2.2. Assessment for learning or of learning
2.2.1. Summative assessments are used to have an estimate of the students learning. These assessments can also be used to help guide instruction in order to target individual needs depending on the scores.
2.3. Example
2.3.1. An example of summative assessments are standardized tests such as the MAP test administered twice or three times a year to all students.
2.4. References
2.4.1. Smart Tutor, Education Programs (2013) Retrieved from http://thinkonline.smarttutor.com/diagnostic-formative-summative-assessments-whats-the-difference/
3. Diagnostic
3.1. Advantages and Disadvantages
3.1.1. Advantages: Diagnostic assessments are used to aid in creating lesson plans, differentiated instruction and pacing.
3.1.2. Disadvantages: Diagnostic assessments take valuable time that can be used for instruction. They can also cause misconceptions due to language or cultural backgrounds.
3.2. Assessment for learning
3.2.1. Diagnostic Assessments are provided to assess a students knowledge before they begin a program of instruction. This assessment can later be used to verify progress.
3.3. Example
3.3.1. Diagnostic assessment for Spelling using the program Words Their Way
3.4. References
3.4.1. Smart Tutor, Education Programs (2013) http://thinkonline.smarttutor.com/diagnostic-formative-summative-assessments-whats-the-difference/
3.4.2. Victoria State Government, Education and Training (2013) http://www.education.vic.gov.au/school/principals/participation/Pages/reengagediagnostic.aspx
4. High-Stakes
4.1. Advantages and Disadvantages
4.1.1. Advantages: Education policy can be determined or improved based on the use of data produced by high stakes assessments. Good teachers can be held accountable and education systems can be systematized or reformed.
4.1.2. Disadvantages: Often demoralizes teachers and students that do not perform well, leading to more negative outcomes. High stakes tests have a tendency towards discrimination because social, linguistic and cultural differences are not taken into consideration.
4.2. Assessment for learning or of learning
4.2.1. High stakes assessments can be used for learning and of learning. Assessment for learning outcomes can be used to produce education reform that targets lower performing schools to improve student achievement. Assessment of learning outcomes can be used to verify that students are ready to advance to a higher level.
4.3. Example
4.3.1. No Child Left Behind standardized tests are an example of High-Stakes testing in the US.
4.4. Refrences
4.4.1. The Glossary of Education Reform (2014) Retrieved from: http://edglossary.org/high-stakes-testing/
5. Formative
5.1. Advantages and Disadvantages
5.1.1. Advantage: Formative assessments are good for guiding instruction and help the teacher figure out if a lesson was understood or needs reteaching.
5.1.2. Disadvantage: Formative assessments can be time consuming and give individual data that can be hard to target.
5.2. Assessment for learning or of learning
5.2.1. Formative assessments can be used for learning and of learning. The teacher uses the assessment during learning to evaluate what the next steps should be and also after to see if there was learning in the form of tests or homework.
5.3. Example
5.3.1. An example of formative assessment is 'conferencing' where the teacher provides individual feedback to the student after they have shared their work with them.
5.4. References
5.4.1. Smart Tutor, Education Programs (2013) Retrieved from http://thinkonline.smarttutor.com/diagnostic-formative-summative-assessments-whats-the-difference/
6. Portfolio
6.1. Advantages and Disadvantages
6.1.1. Advantages: A portfolio uses the students work over time to demonstrate achievement. Students can monitor their improvements or look for ways to develop their work by taking ownership over it.
6.1.2. Disadvantages: Teachers might find them hard to assess because portfolios are very subjective.
6.2. Assessment for learning or of learning
6.2.1. Portfolios can be used to assess students for learning and of learning. Teachers use the work in the student portfolios to evaluate their own teaching and what needs to be addressed for each student. Teachers can also assess the student portfolios to verify if the student has developed the necessary skills to proceed.
6.3. Example
6.3.1. Portfolios that include multiple examples of the students work assembled over the course of time.
6.4. Refrences
6.4.1. Cox Janelle, 5 Steps to building a student portfolio. Retrieved from: http://k6educators.about.com/od/GradingStudents/a/5-Steps-To-Building-A-Student-Portfolio.htm
7. Authentic
7.1. Advantages and Disadvantages
7.1.1. Advantage: incorporates the student in the assessment process and helps students see themselves as active participants, who are working on a task relevant to real life circumstances.
7.1.2. Disadvantage: assessment scores can be too subjective, putting in jeopardy test validity and relying heavily on the teachers opinion.
7.2. Assessment for learning or of learning
7.2.1. Authentic assessment can be used for learning because it is viewed as a process to build real knowledge that is relevant to the student and society. It can also be used as assessment of learning to examine student learning as they apply knowledge acquired to solve problems.
7.3. Example
7.3.1. "Authentic" Assessment at School of the Future: Edutopia
7.4. Refrences
7.4.1. Donges, Catherine, Demand Media, What Are the Advantages of Authentic Assessment Over Standardized Testing? (2016) Retrieved from: http://education.seattlepi.com/advantages-authentic-assessment-over-standardized-testing-2893.html
7.4.2. Mueller, John. Authentic Assessment Toolbox (2014) Retrieved from: http://jfmueller.faculty.noctrl.edu/toolbox/whatisit.htm
8. Self Assessment
8.1. Advantages and Disadvantages
8.1.1. Advantage: self assessment can help students evaluate their own learning and encourage them to auto reflect on what parts of the learning they can grasp. It's also a quick indicator to help the teacher understand which students need individualized attention in order to achieve the learning.
8.1.2. Disadvantaged: Self-assessment is not always accurate and should be very highly monitored by the teacher. Students might believe they understand a concept when they don't so it is important for the teacher to keep this in mind.
8.2. Assessment for learning or of learning
8.2.1. Self-assessments can be used for learning and of learning. Teachers require students to self-assess themselves during and after instruction and they can use that data to improve instruction.
8.3. Example
8.3.1. An example of self-assessment I use constantly in my classroom is thumbs up/thumbs down/thumbs in the middle to show comprehension during instruction.
8.4. References
8.4.1. Education Week, Students 'Self-Assess' Their Way to Learning (2016) Retrieved from: http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2015/11/11/students-self-assess-their-way-to-learning.html
9. Peer Assessment
9.1. Advantages and Disadvantages
9.1.1. Advantages: Often times helps students reflect on and reevaluate their own work while they feel a sense of responsibility and autonomy. Helps build respectful classroom community.
9.1.2. Disadvantages: Assessment is not objective. Students can also often rush through the process and find all work acceptable or disregard content specific feedback.
9.2. Assessment for learning
9.2.1. Peer assessment works well as part of learning. It reinforces the concepts learned and helps the teacher assess if the student can think critically. The teacher can use outcomes of the assessment to know more about both the student conducting the assessment and the student that created the work.
9.3. Example
9.3.1. In second grade we use peer assessment as part of every writing unit in our Writers Workshop. Here is an example students explaining what it entails.
9.4. References
9.4.1. Dr A. Mark Langan and Dr C. Philip Wheater (2003) Learning and Teaching in Action. Retrieved from: http://www.celt.mmu.ac.uk/ltia/issue4/langanwheater.shtml