Types of Assessments
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1. formative assessment
1.1. Pros
1.1.1. Gives the teacher feedback on how much the students are learning
1.1.2. "Low-Stakes" for students
1.1.3. Allows both teacher and students to consider what they have learned and what they need to improve
1.2. Cons
1.2.1. Teachers may confuse activities like exit tickets or using clickers for formative assessment; when FA is an ongoing process, not an event. If the teacher does not adjust their instruction based on the results of formative assessments, then they are not really using formative assessment.
1.3. Of / For Learning?
1.3.1. "for" - assists both teachers and students
1.4. Example
1.4.1. Making a collage or poster to demonstrate understanding of a concept or event
2. summative assessment
2.1. Cons
2.1.1. May cause teachers to "teach to the test."
2.1.2. not always the most accurate reflection of learning
2.2. Pros
2.2.1. provide motivation for students to study and pay attention in class
2.2.2. provide good insight to teachers into what students know / can do
2.3. Of / For Learning?
2.3.1. "of" - explicitly tests what students have learned; an of how well students have learned
2.4. Example
2.4.1. Mid-Term / Final Exams
2.4.2. Literacy tests
2.4.3. College Entrance exams
3. authentic / performance-based assessment
3.1. Cons
3.1.1. high cost of implementation and questionable validity and reliability are significant barriers to large-scale implementation
3.1.2. not able to test as much material as multiple-choice tests in the same amount of time
3.1.3. there may be variation in scoring among different raters (reliability issues)
3.2. Pros
3.2.1. provide teachers with more detailed information than standard multiple-choice tests
3.2.2. performance assessments yield a more complete picture of students’ abilities and weaknesses
3.2.3. promote active engagement both in learning and in demonstrating what had been learned
3.3. Of / For Learning?
3.3.1. can be a formative or summative assessment (both "of" and "for")
3.4. Example
4. high-stakes assessments
4.1. Cons
4.1.1. May limit what can be measured.
4.1.2. Unlikely to completely measure or assess the specific goals and objectives of a program, department, or institution.
4.1.3. Summative data only (no formative evaluation)
4.1.4. Results unlikely to have direct implications for program improvement or individual student progress
4.1.5. Results highly susceptible to misinterpretation/misuse both within and outside the institution
4.1.6. If used repeatedly, there is a concern that faculty may teach to the exam as is done with certain AP high school courses.
4.2. Pros
4.2.1. Can be adopted and implemented quickly
4.2.2. Reduce/eliminate faculty time demands in instrument development and grading (i.e., relatively low “frontloading” and “backloading” effort)
4.2.3. Objective scoring
4.2.4. May be beneficial or required in instances where state or national standards exist for the discipline or profession.
4.2.5. Very valuable for benchmarking and cross-institutional comparison studies.
4.3. Of / For Learning?
4.3.1. "of" - formal, consists of a score or grades, checks what has been learned to date
4.4. Example
4.4.1. AP tests, SAT, ACT
5. portfolio assessment
5.1. Pros
5.1.1. Can be used to view learning and development longitudinally (e.g. samples of student writing over time can be collected), which is most valid and useful perspective.
5.1.2. Multiple components of a curriculum can be measured (e.g., writing, critical thinking, research skills) at the same time.
5.1.3. Samples in a portfolio are more likely than test results to reflect student ability when pre-planning, input from others, and similar opportunities common to most work settings are available (which increases generalizability/external validity of results).
5.1.4. Economical in terms of student time and effort, since no separate “assessment administration” time is required.
5.1.5. Greater faculty control over interpretation and use of results.
5.1.6. Results are more likely to be meaningful at all levels (i.e., the individual student, program, or institution) and can be used for diagnostic/prescriptive purposes as well.
5.1.7. Avoids or minimizes “test anxiety” and other “one shot” measurement problems.
5.1.8. Increases student participation (e.g., selection, revision, evaluation) in the assessment process.
5.2. Cons
5.2.1. Costly in terms of evaluator time and effort.
5.2.2. Management of the collection and grading process, including the establishment of reliable and valid grading criteria, is likely to be challenging.
5.2.3. Security concerns may arise as to whether submitted samples are the students’ own work, or adhere to other measurement criteria.
5.3. Of / For Learning?
5.3.1. can be used to show a students progress over time ("of") or to provide the students with a reference of their previous "best" work
5.4. Example
5.4.1. Showcase portfolios: Showcase portfolios highlight the best products over a particular time period or course. For example, a showcase portfolio in a composition class may include the best examples of different writing genres, such as an essay, a poem, a short story, a biographical piece, or a literary analysis
6. self-assessment
6.1. Cons
6.1.1. Potentially increases lecturer workload by needing to brief students on the process as well as on-going guidance on performing self evaluation.
6.1.2. Self evaluation has a risk of being perceived as a process of presenting inflated grades and being unreliable.
6.1.3. Self-assessment assignments can take more time.
6.1.4. Students feel ill equipped to undertake the assessment.
6.1.5. helps students gain understanding of the concepts of quality
6.2. Pros
6.2.1. Encourages student involvement and responsibility.
6.2.2. Encourages students to reflect on their role and contribution to the process of the group work.
6.2.3. Allows students to see and reflect on their peers’ assessment of their contribution.
6.2.4. Focuses on the development of student’s judgment skills.
6.2.5. helps students gain understanding of the concepts of quality
6.2.6. provides a foundation for lifelong learning; and improves learning in the course being studied
6.3. Of / For Learning?
6.3.1. "for" - focuses on improvement; student is involved in assessment process
6.4. Example
6.4.1. Asking students what they learned in class
6.4.2. Asking students to predict their test scores for different parts of the test
7. peer assessment
7.1. Cons
7.1.1. The process has a degree of risk with respect to reliability of grades as peer pressure to apply elevated grades or friendships may influence the assessment, though this can be
7.1.2. reduced if students can submit their assessments independent of the group.
7.1.3. Students will have a tendency to award everyone the same mark.
7.1.4. Students feel ill equipped to undertake the assessment.
7.1.5. Students may be reluctant to make judgements regarding their peers.
7.1.6. At the other extreme students may be discriminated against if students ‘gang up’ against one group member.
7.2. Pros
7.2.1. Agreed marking criteria means there can be little confusion about assignment outcomes and expectations.
7.2.2. Encourages student involvement and responsibility.
7.2.3. Encourages students to reflect on their role and contribution to the process of the group work
7.2.4. Focuses on the development of student’s judgment skills.
7.2.5. Students are involved in the process and are encouraged to take part ownership of this process
7.2.6. Provides more relevant feedback to students as it is generated by their peers.
7.2.7. It is considered fair by some students, because each student is judged on their own contribution
7.2.8. When operating successfully can reduce a lecturer's marking load.
7.2.9. Can help reduce the ‘free rider’ problem as students are aware that their contribution will be graded by their peers
7.3. Of / For Learning?
7.3.1. "for" - focused on improvement
7.4. Example
7.4.1. Assessing how well someone performed as part of a team for group projects
7.4.2. Assessing peers' presentations using a rubric
8. diagnostic assessment
8.1. Cons
8.1.1. Some students may be poor test takers or may not take the test seriously
8.1.2. the test may be poorly designed and not a good measure of what students are capable of
8.2. Pros
8.2.1. Teacher gets a good idea of what students are capable of
8.2.2. Teacher can know the students' background knowledge
8.3. Of / For Learning?
8.3.1. "Of" - checks what has been learned to date.
8.4. Example
8.4.1. a test given before the course begins
8.4.2. language proficiency tests as an entrance requirement for level placement