CLASSROOM ASSESSMENT

STRATEGIES
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What is Assessment?
• Assessment is a broad and continuous
process of collecting, synthesizing and
interpreting information that uses
specific tools and procedures aimed at
identifying the impact of school
programs and curricula on students’
learning in cognitive, affective, and
psychomotor terms.
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What is assessment?
• Not the same as testing!
• An ongoing process to ensure that the course/class
objectives and goals are met.
• A process, not a product.
• A test is a form of assessment. (Brown, 2004, p. 5)
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Informal and Formal Assessment

• Informal assessment can take a number of forms:
• unplanned comments, verbal feedback to students, observing
students perform a task or work in small groups, and so on.
• Formal assessment are exercises or procedures which
are:
• systematic
• give students and teachers an appraisal of students’ achievement
such as tests.
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Testing
• Testing is a formal,
systematic
procedure for
gathering
information.
• Testing methods
include paper-and-
pencil tests,
portfolios, projects
and observations.
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Measurement
• The process of
quantifying or
assigning a number
to a performance or
trait.
• Example: A
numerical score on
a quiz, such as
“Hamza got 19 out
of 20 items correct
on the test.”
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Evaluation

• The process of
judging the
quality or value of
a performance or
a course of
action, such as
the quality of a
student’s essay.
 Norm and Criterion-referenced tests
• Norm-referenced test
• standardized tests (college board, TOEFL, GRE)
• Place test-takers on a mathematical continuum in rank order
• Criterion-referenced tests
• give test-takers feedback on specific objectives (“criterea”)
• test objectives of a course
• known as “instructional value”

Evaluation Types
• Criterion-referenced evaluation -- student performance is
assessed against a set of predetermined standards
• Norm-referenced evaluation -- student performance is
assessed relative to the other students
Evaluation Types
• Criterion-referenced evaluation -- student performance is
assessed against a set of predetermined standards
• Norm-referenced evaluation -- student performance is
assessed relative to the other students
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Purposes of Assessment
• The overriding purpose of all
assessment is to gather information to
facilitate effective decision making!
• Provides information that helps
teachers
1. Evaluate student learning
2. Evaluate instructional effectiveness
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Purposes of Assessment: Student Progress

• Communicate learning
expectations
• Allow teachers to monitor student
progress and promote growth
• Allow teachers to gain information
about student needs strengths and
needs
• Provide feedback on student
learning
• Motivate and focus students’
attention and effort
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Purposes of Assessment: Student

Achievement

• Allow students to demonstrate

achievement
• Allow teachers to evaluate student
achievement
• Allow teachers and parents to
recognize accomplishments
• Provide practice applying
knowledge and skills
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Purposes of Assessment: Instruction

• Allow teachers to use student data to make
instructional decisions, re-teach as appropriate,
and improve instruction (Provide a basis for
instructional placemen and Inform and guide
instruction
• Allow teachers, schools, and districts to evaluate
and modify programs
• Provide a basis for evaluation for the purpose of:
• Grading
• Promotion/graduation
• Program admission/selection
• Accountability
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Assessment Standards
1. Assessment should reflect content that all
students need to know
2. Assessment should enhance learning
• Assessment should measure student attainment of
instructional objectives
3. Assessment should promote equity
• Should be based on the premise that all students have
a right to equal access to content
• Should reflect fairness, justice, and equality for all
students … regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, or
socioeconomic status.
4. Assessment should be an open process
5. Assessment should be a coherent process
• Evaluation questions and criteria should be aligned
with goals and objectives of the program, unit, and
lesson
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Phases of Assessment: Three Types

Early Assessment (Pre-

Assessment)

Formative Assessment
(Assessment FOR Learning)

Summative Assessment
(Assessment OF Learning)
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Pre- Assessment: Early Assessment

• The purpose of pre-assessment is to provides
teachers with general information about students’
characteristics
• Includes observations of student: Behavior,
academic work and level, attitude, relationships, etc.
• It is used to determine what students know about a
topic before it is taught.
• Pre-assessment will help the teacher determine
flexible grouping patterns.
• Also called “Placement”
• Measure entry performance or readiness
• May include cognitive, affective, and psycho-motor
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Pre- Assessment: Early Assessment

• Checklist Products and

• Pre-test Work Samples
• Student • Standardized
Discussions Test Data
• Student • Teacher
Demonstrations Observation
• Student • Writing Samples
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Formative Assessment

• Assessm
ents FOR
learning
happens
while
learning is
still
underway.
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Formative Assessment

• Formative Assessment is a
process used by teachers and
students during instruction that
provides feedback to adjust
ongoing teaching and learning to
improve students’ achievement of
intended instructional outcomes.
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Goals of Formative Assessment

• To diagnose student needs
• To plan the next steps in instruction
• To provide students with feedback they
can use to improve the quality of their
work
• To help students see and feel how they
are in control of their journey to success
• To actively involve all students in the
teaching/learning process.
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What It Looks Like?

• Teaching -
Learning
Process.
• On-going, day-
to-day classroom
assessment.
• Formal &
Informal.
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Tools of Formative Assessment

Formal Informal
Homework, Quizzes Class discussions
and/or tests – graded
Teacher – student
or non-graded
dialogues
Writing assignments
w/descriptive Observations
feedback Student groups
Presentations, Self- and peer-
speeches, etc.
assessments
Directed questions
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Formative Assessment Strategies:

Checking for Understanding

DO’s and DON’Ts

• DON’T ask yes/no questions and phrases like
"Does this make sense?"
• DO ask pointed questions.
• DO ask students to summarize or paraphrase
important concepts and instructions and “explain
it in your own words.”
• DON’T let students off the hook as you ask the
question. Call on a student to answer AFTER
you ask the question!
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Formative Assessment Strategies:

Checking for Understanding
Strategies
• Students reveal answers on their
whiteboards by raising them to show the
teacher their work.
• The teacher walks around the room and
checks individual or group work.
• Recitation (Teacher Question/Student
Response) of random students.
• Teacher asks students to raise hands or
thumbs up/thumbs down if they obtained/did
not obtain correct answer.
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Formative Assessment Strategies:

Checking for Understanding
Strategies
• Teacher collects end-of-class summary on note
cards – must turn in to exit classroom
• Homework and quizzes
• Teacher reviews drafts of essays, stories, papers
• Peer check and explain
• OTHERS?
• REMEMBER: If students didn’t understand, the
teacher needs to re-teach the material!
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Purposes of Homework

To help students
To extend student
review, apply, and To help them
exploration of topics
integrate what has prepare for the next
more fully than class
been learned in class session
time permits
class

Help students gain

To help students
skills in self-directed To help teachers and
develop mastery by
learning and using students assess
practicing what they
resources such as their understanding
have learned
reference materials
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Amount of Homework to Assign

• Middle school students: 20-50
minutes per day
• High school students: 60-90 minutes
per day
• Remember that:
Good students complete homework
easier and more quickly than poorer
students
Homework can frustrate students and
cause stress
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Ways to Assign Homework

• Daily or weekly;
posted or printed
• Textbook,
published
worksheets,
teacher-created
worksheets,
projects, games,
open-ended
activities.
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Ways to Review Homework

• Students/teacher put all problems on board
• Volunteers/teacher put hardest problems on
board
• Teacher uses overhead or handout of
answers with student participation
• Students/teacher reads correct answers,
students check papers and ask questions as
needed
• Students compare solutions in small groups,
asking for help as needed.
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Ways to Submit Homework

• Students hand in
papers each day
• Students do all
problems in a
notebook and
turn it in at the
end of the week.
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SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENT
• Summative
Assessments
are given
periodically to
determine at
a particular
point in time
what students
know and do
not know.
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GOALS OF SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENT

 A summative assessment/ evaluation is
designed to:
Provide information
Make judgments about student achievement at
the end of A sequence of instruction, (E.G., Final
drafts/attempts, tests, exam, assignments,
projects, performances)
It is a mean to determine a student’s mastery
and understanding of information, skills,
concepts, or processes.
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Summative Assessment Strategies

Unit Test

Performance Task

Product/Exhibit

Demonstration

Portfolio Review
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Summative Assessment Strategies

Traditional Assessments
Class work
Homework
Tests, Quizzes, Examinations
Participation
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Summative Assessment Strategies

Student Products
Journals
Written Explanations
Individual/Team
Projects/Investigations
Portfolios
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Summative Assessment Strategies

Teacher Generated
Open-Ended Questions
Observations and Checklists
Interviews and Oral Responses
Performance Assessment
Student Self-Assessment
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The Assessment–Instruction Process

Pre – Assessment
“finding out”

Summative Formative
Assessment Assessment
“checking in” “feedback”
“making sure” “student involvement”
Assessment Instruments
Pre-assessment Formative (ongoing) Summative (final)
(diagnostic)

Pretests Quizzes Teacher-made test

Observations Discussions Portfolios
Journals/logs Assignments Projects
Discussions Projects Standardized tests
Questionnaires Observations
Interviews Portfolios
Journal logs
Standardized tests
Important tips in Assessment
• Match your assessment to your class and
students
• Help your students learn from their assessments

• Use other types of assessments in addition to

multiple choice quizzes/tests
• Use assessment to motivate students!
ADMINISTRATION OF TEST

• Test setting should be quiet, well lighted,

properly heated, odor-free, spacious, and
comfortable
• Students should face the same direction and
be spaced out
• May want to consider parallel tests if testing
more than one class; difficult and time
consuming to construct similar exams that
test the same content
MARKING, MARKING SCHEME
• Introduction
• Mark schemes are used to ensure consistence and
fairness
• Provide indication of the nature and range of candidates’
responses worthy of credit.
• Set criteria for allocating marks to candidates’ responses.
The mark schemes’ instructions.
• Assessment Objectives:
• Marking scheme must be tailored under objective of the
test or examination.
• The objective of the test will guide on what to be
examined and at what depth
• Again the objective will ensure that the test and test
answer measure the what is supposed to measure
Marking schemes ensures that the
examinations are marked consistently and
fairly.

Provide markers with an indication of the

nature and range of candidates’ responses
likely to be worthy of credit.

Set out criteria which they should apply in

allocating marks to candidates’ responses.

The mark schemes should be read in

conjunction with these general marking
instructions.
Quality of candidates’ responses

In marking the examination papers,

 Emphasis is on looking for a quality of response

reflecting the level of competence expected to be
exhibited by a students.
Flexibility in marking

Mark schemes are not intended to be totally

prescriptive. However, comprehensive

No mark scheme can cover all the responses which

candidates may produce.
- When confronted with unanticipated
answers, professional judgment should
highly be exercised to assess the validity
of answers.

- If an answer is particularly
problematic, then examiners should seek
the guidance of the Supervising Examiner.
Positive Marking

• Encourage positive marking

• Giving appropriate credit for what
• candidates know or can do rather
• than penalizing candidates for
• errors or omissions.
Alternative Assessment Options
• Self and peer-assessments
• Oral production-student self-checklist, peer checklist,
offering and receiving holistic rating of an oral
presentation
• Listening comprehension- listening to TV or radio
broadcasts and checking comprehension with a partner
• Writing-revising work on your own, peer-editing
• Reading- reading textbook passages followed by self-
check comprehension questions, self-assessment of
reading habits(page 416, Brown, 2001)
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Remember:

As teachers assess their

students, students also
continuously assess their
teachers.

How will you want to be assessed

as a teacher?