ASSESSMENT FOR LEARNING IN CLASSROOM

ASSESSMENT FOR LEARNING IN CLASSROOM

Learning is a relatively permanent change in, or acquisition of knowledge, understanding or behavior. There are three ways of learning, they’re Transmission, Reception and Construction.

Student Evaluation in Transmission Reception ( Behaviorist ) Model of Education

Reception is model of learning where there is transmission of knowledge from the external source (for example, teacher) to the receiver (students). So, learning here is being taught. The teacher gives students the concept and knowledge while students are only receiving it purely.

Transmission is Sending & Receiving messages, knowledge, signals. Which includes no scope for creativity, Rigidity and Generally method of teaching is Lecture Method.

Behaviorism Theory of Learning “ Teachers must learn how to teach … they need only to be taught more effective ways of teaching.” -B. F. Skinner By: Brittaney

Behaviorism assumes that a learner is essentially passive, responding to environmental stimuli. It Believes that When born our mind is ‘tabula rasa’ (a blank slate) , and behavior is shaped by positive and negative reinforcement. Behaviorism is primarily concerned with observable behavior, as opposed to internal events like thinking and emotion. Observable (i.e. external) behavior can be objectively and scientifically measured. Internal events, such as thinking should be explained through behavioral terms (or eliminated altogether).

Assessment in Behaviorist Model of Education

            Here the importance is to assess how much students where receiving the information transmitted by the teacher. Knowledge transmission cannot be evaluated. But indirect methods can be used to assess attention or emotional states. Here teacher can assess only the success of teaching process. In this more weightage is given to knowledge level and understanding level of attainment of objectives. Traditional bloom’s taxonomy is the base for assessment. In this assessment is summative in nature.

Drawbacks of Assessment in Behaviorist Model of Education

§  Assessment is only about the success of teaching process.

§  Students are passive listeners so proper assessment of achievement is not possible.

§  Less importance to psychological aspects of learner.

§  More importance to the product achieved by the students.

§  No weightage to the mental process of learners.

§  No continues assessment of the learner.

§  Less importance to co-scholastic achievements.

Student Evaluation in Constructivist  Model of Education

Formalization of the theory of constructivism is generally attributed to jean piaget, who articulated mechanisms by which knowledge is internalized by learners. He suggested that through processes of accommodation and assimilation, individuals construct new knowledge from their experiences. “ Teaching is not about filling up the pail, it is about lighting a fire” Constructivism: focuses on knowledge construction .It is a theory of knowledge that argues that humans generate knowledge and meaning from an interaction between their experiences and their ideas. Constructivism is a theory of knowledge  that argues that humans generate knowledge and meaning from an interaction between their experiences and their ideas. It has influenced a number of disciplines, including psychology, sociology, education and the history of science.

When individuals assimilate, they incorporate the new experience into an already existing framework without changing that framework. This may occur when individuals’ experiences are aligned with their internal representations of the world, but may also occur as a failure to change a faulty understanding; for example, they may not notice events, may misunderstand input from others, or may decide that an event is a fluke and is therefore unimportant as information about the world. In contrast, when individuals’ experiences contradict their internal representations, they may change their perceptions of the experiences to fit their internal representations.

According to the theory, accommodation is the process of reframing one’s mental representation of the external world to fit new experiences. Accommodation can be understood as the mechanism by which failure leads to learning: when we act on the expectation that the world operates in one way and it violates our expectations, we often fail, but by accommodating this new experience and reframing our model of the way the world works, we learn from the experience of failure, or others’ failure.

It is important to note that constructivism is not a particular pedagogy. In fact, constructivism is a theory describing how learning happens, regardless of whether learners are using their experiences to understand a lecture or following the instructions for building a model airplane. In both cases, the theory of constructivism suggests that learners construct knowledge out of their experiences.

Assessment in Constructivist  Model of Education

Constructivism is often associated with pedagogic approaches that promote active learning , or learning by doing. The view of the learner changed from that of a recipient of knowledge to that of a constructor of knowledge, an autonomous learner with metacognitive skills for controlling his or her cognitive process during learning. Learning involves selecting relevant information and interpreting it through one’s existing knowledge. Accordingly, the teacher becomes a participant with the learner in the process of shared cognition, that is, in the process of constructing meaning in a given situation. Concerning instruction, the focus changed from the curriculum to the cognition of the student. Thus, instruction is geared toward helping the student to develop learning and thinking strategies that are appropriate for working within various subject domains. Correspondingly, assessment is qualitative rather than quantitative, determining how the student structures and process knowledge rather than how much is learned. Continuous and comprehensive assessment is one of the main strategy in constructivist learning. In this assessment is formative rather than summative. Weightage to learning objectives in the assessment is given based on the revised blooms taxonomy.

Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation (CCE)

Continuous and comprehensive evaluation is a process of assessment, mandated by the Right to Education Act, of India. This approach to assessment has been introduced by state governments in India, as well as by the Central Board of Secondary Education in India. The main aim of CCE is to evaluate every aspect of the child during their presence at the school. This is believed to help reduce the pressure on the child during/before examinations as the student will have to sit for multiple tests throughout the year, of which no test or the syllabus covered will be repeated at the end of the year, whatsoever. The CCE method is claimed to bring enormous changes from the traditional chalk and talk method of teaching, provided it is implemented accurately.

As a part of this new system, student's marks will be replaced by grades which will be evaluated through a series of curricular and extra-curricular evaluations along with academics. The aim is to decrease the workload on the student by means of continuous evaluation by taking number of small tests throughout the year in place of single test at the end of the academic program. Only Grades are awarded to students based on work experience skills, dexterity, innovation, steadiness, teamwork, public speaking, behavior, etc. to evaluate and present an overall measure of the student's ability. This helps the students who are not good in academics to show their talent in other fields such as arts, humanities, sports, music, athletics, and also helps to motivate the students who have a thirst of knowledge.

Objectives of CCE

1.         To help for developing cognitive , psychomotor and affective skills.

2.       To give emphasis on thought process and de-emphasis on memorization.

3.       To make evaluation an integral part of teaching learning process.

4.       To use evaluation for improvement of student’s achievement and teaching strategies.

5.       To use evaluation as a quality control device to increase standard of performance.

6.       To make the teaching learning process a student centered one.

Characteristics of CCE 

§  Teachers evaluate students in day-to-day basis and use the feedback for improvement in teaching – learning process.

§  Teachers can use varieties of evaluation methods over and above the written tests.

§   Students can be assessed in both scholastic and co-scholastic areas.

§   Evaluation is done throughout the year and therefore it is expected to provide more reliable evidence of students’ progress.

§   CCE encourages the students in forming good study habits.

§   The feedback provided by CCE can be effectively used in remedial teaching to slow learners.

Advantages of Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation (CCE)

CCE is child-centric and views each learner as unique. This evaluation system aims to build on the individual child’s abilities, progress and development. That the child should not feel burdened during the learning years, CCE made formative and summative assessments mandatory in all CBSE schools. The learner thus was also benefitted by having to focus on only a small part of the entire syllabus designed for an academic year.

Assessment of Projects

 Assessment plays a major role in education. A key role of assessment is the diagnostic process—by establishing what students have learned, it is possible to plan what students need to learn in the future. Project work is a method of allowing students to use what they have learned in statistics classes in a practical context. It is this practical application of projects that make them such a useful part of the learning process.

Although project work may look easy, a brief introduction with this way of working will show how demanding it really is for both teachers and students. Students must make connections between one piece of learning with another. They have to transfer the skills acquired in statistics to other areas such as science and geography, and vice-versa. They have to familiarise themselves with a wide range of information. This is much more demanding than learning one isolated fact after another. Integrated work of this kind is often the best preparation for higher education and future employment. Project work allows students to connect various pieces of knowledge together that suits a solution to a chosen problem. Through the following steps we can assess the project work of students.

Criterias for Assessing Projects

Assessing the effort put by a learner in the conduction of project based learning is not an easy task. We can use the following basic criterias for assessing their output;

I. Research skills:   it includes the assessment of their involvement in following elements ;

Selection of topic

Framing objectives and hypotheses

Preparation of tools and techniques

Implementation of study and data collection

Analysis of collected Data and its interpretation

Participation in discussion

Creativity (thinks of new/next experiments/new ideas)

Initiative

Interest in his/her work

Critical thinking

Professional conduct

Communication/sociability/time management/teamwork

II. Written report

Process of writing

Appropriateness of language

Language: spelling, grammar, not unnecessarily lengthy

Response to suggestions

Report defence during evaluation

Initiative/independence

Theoretical background

Presentation of results: clarity of tables, figures

Depth and critical analysis

Structure and line of reasoning

Foundation of conclusions

Use of references

Time management/lay out/completeness

III. Oral presentation

i. Composition and design

The content of the presentation should meet the requirements of the written report

Clarity of slides

Order of components

ii. Professional attitude

Response to questions and remarks

iii. Presentation technique

Use of language

Use of slides

Use of voice

ASSESSING OF SEMINAR

            Seminar in class room is a socialized way of expression of contents. It is defined as the sessions that provide the opportunity for students to engage in discussion of a particular topic . It helps to explore the content in more detail that might be covered in classrooms. It may be implemented in class rooms on a small size basis or at large level. The following points must be remembered while assessing the seminar of students;

1) When assessing written work consider the following points:

§  Depth of understanding of basic concepts and issues

§  Relevance to the assignment title or question

§  Logical organisation and linking of ideas (coherence)

§  Personal evaluation of issues under discussion and/or application of a descriptive framework to data

§  Analysis, including originality of examples used; or originality of narrative / poetic structure in creative work

§  Knowledge of the relevant contexts of the subject

§  Critical use of secondary material

§  Clarity of expression

§  Accuracy of grammar and punctuation 

§  Systematic and standardised in-text and bibliographical references

§   Final copy presentation and layout .

2) When assessing presentations consider the following points

§  Engagement of audience

§  Use of appropriate supporting materials/technology (OHP, Slides, PowerPoint, handouts, audio, video etc.)

§  Indicative references for use of secondary material (e.g. on PowerPoint or handout.

§  Time-keeping

§  In the case of group presentations, group cohesion and appropriate distribution of roles.

Assessment Through Portfolio

Student portfolios are a collection of evidence, prepared by the student and evaluated by the faculty member, to demonstrate mastery, comprehension, application, and synthesis of a given set of concepts. To create a high quality portfolio, students must organize, synthesize, and clearly describe their achievements and effectively communicate what they have learned. Portfolio assessment strategies provide a structure for long-duration, in-depth assignments. The use of portfolios transfers much of the responsibility of demonstrating mastery of concepts from the professor to the student.

The overall goal of the preparation of a portfolio is for the learner to demonstrate and provide evidence that he or she has mastered a given set of learning objectives. More than just thick folders containing student work, portfolios are typically personalized, long-term representations of a student’s own efforts and achievements. Whereas multiple-choice tests are designed to determine what the student doesn’t know, portfolio assessments emphasize what the student does know.

Some suggest that portfolios are not really assessments at all because they are just collections of previously completed assessments. But, if we consider assessing as gathering of information about someone or something for a purpose, then a portfolio is a type of assessment. Sometimes the portfolio is also evaluated or graded, but that is not necessary to be considered an assessment.

Furthermore, in the more thoughtful portfolio assignments, students are asked to reflect on their work, to engage in self-assessment and goal-setting. Those are two of the most authentic skills students need to develop to successfully manage in the real world. Research has found that students in classes that emphasize improvement, progress, effort and the process of learning rather than grades and normative performance are more likely to use a variety of learning strategies and have a more positive attitude toward learning. Yet in education we have shortchanged the process of learning in favor of the products of learning. Students are not regularly asked to examine how they succeeded or failed or improved on a task or to set goals for future work; the final product and evaluation of it receives the bulk of the attention in many classrooms. Consequently, students are not developing the metacognitive skills that will enable them to reflect upon and make adjustments in their learning in school and beyond.

Portfolios provide an excellent vehicle for consideration of process and the development of related skills. So, portfolios are frequently included with other types of authentic assessments because they move away from telling a student's story though test scores and, instead, focus on a meaningful collection of student performance and meaningful reflection and evaluation of that work.

Evaluation refers to the act of making a judgment about something. Grading takes that process one step further by assigning a grade to that judgment. Evaluation may be sufficient for a portfolio assignment. What is (are) the purpose(s) of the portfolio? If the purpose is to demonstrate growth, the teacher could make judgments about the evidence of progress and provide those judgments as feedback to the student or make note of them for her own records. Similarly, the student could self-assess progress shown or not shown, goals met or not met. No grade needs to be assigned. On the other hand, the work within the portfolio and the process of assembling and reflecting upon the portfolio may comprise such a significant portion of a student's work in a grade or class that the teacher deems it appropriate to assign a value to it and incorporate it into the student's final grade. Alternatively, some teachers assign grades because they believe without grades there would not be sufficient incentive for some students to complete the portfolio. Some portfolios are assessed simply on whether or not the portfolio was completed. Teachers assess the entire package: the selected samples of student work as well as the reflection, organization and presentation of the portfolio.

GRADING SYSTEM

Fundamentally grade is a score. When students level of performance are classified into a few classificatory unit using letter grades , the system of assessment is called grading system. Grading in education is the process of applying standardized measurements of varying levels of achievement in a course. Grading system is primarily a method of communicating the measure of achievement. Another way the grade point average (GPA) can be determined is through extra curricular activities. Grades can be assigned as letters (generally A through F), as a range (for example 1 to 6), as a percentage of a total number of questions answered correctly, or as a number out of a possible total (for example out of 20 or 100).

Types of Grading

            There is mainly two types of  grading , direct and indirect grading.

Direct Grading

            Here particular grades are assigned to answers of each individual questions on the basis of its quality judged by the evaluator. The grade point average will then have to be evaluated for obtaining the overall grade of the student.

Indirect Grading

            It is the process of giving grades through marks. In this procedure marks are awarded as usual . The conversion of marks into grade is based on two view points. Two types of indirect grading are absolute grading and relative grading.

            In absolute grading some fixed range of scores is determined in advance for each grade. On the basis of this the score obtained by a candidate in a subject is converted to grades. It is a type of criterion based grading.

            In relative grading the grade range is not fixed in advance. It can carry in turn with the relative position of the candidates .

Functions of Grading and Reporting Systems

Improve students’ learning by:

·        clarifying instructional objectives for them

·        showing students’ strengths & weaknesses

·        providing information on personal-social development

·        enhancing students’ motivation (e.g., short-term goals)

·        indicating where teaching might be modified

Reports to parents/guardians

·        Communicates objectives to parents, so they can help promote learning

·        Communicates how well objectives being met, so parents can better plan

Administrative and guidance uses

·        Help decide promotion, graduation, honors, athletic eligibility

·        Report achievement to other schools or to employers

·        Provide input for realistic educational, vocational, and personal counseling

Advantages of Grading System

·        The New Scheme of Grading has been introduced with the aim that :

·        It will minimize misclassification of students on the basis of marks.

·        It will eliminate unhealthy competition among high achievers.

·        It will reduce societal pressure and will provide the learner with more flexibility.

·        It will lead to a focus on a better learning environment Operational

·        It will facilitate joyful and stress free learning.

TYPES OF ASSESSMENT

PRACTICE BASED ASSESSMENT :

Constructivist and naturalistic classroom environments give more opportunity for developing practical abilities than behaviorist classrooms.  Assessing student learning in the practice setting is one of the most sophisticated and complex forms of activity. Assessment needs to include evaluation of skill (technical, psychomotor and interpersonal), attitudes and insights, and reasoning. Continuous and comprehensive evaluation techniques are used mainly for assessing learners piratical skills. Importance is given for assessing the practical capability to complete tasks in real life situations. Some examples of practice based assessment are, structured clinical examinations, performance in viva, simulated practice scenario, project works, preparation of presentations, etc

EVIDENCE BASED ASSESSMENT :

Evaluating student achievement of expected learning outcomes should be treated as evidence-based assessment. It means teachers assessing the students about the achievement of learning outcomes based some evidences. The evidence may be achievement score on particular examination, report submitted after completion of research, the solution founded after completion of experiments, etc.

PERFORMANCE BASED ASSESSMENT :

            Knowing how to do something is measured by performance tests such as portfolios, exhibitions and demonstrations. Performance tests or assessments provide greater realism of task that traditional test like pen and paper tests but are very time consuming. It can provide greater motivation for students by making learning more meaningful and clarifying goals. Performance assessment require students to actively demonstrate what they know. There is a big difference in answering questions on how to give a speech or presentation than actually giving one.

Performance assessment may be used for diagnostic purposes. Information provided at the beginning of the course may help decide where to start or what needs special attention. To improve the results of performance assessment criterias that are being judged must be clear and defined. Instructions must also be clear and complete. Records must be done as soon as possible after the performance and the evaluation form must be relevant and easy to use. Also the use of portfolios and student participation can contribute to the improvement of performance assessments.
            Performance assessment is an excellent way of determining whether pupils have mastered the outcome/s. In other words it provides for realism of a task and increase makes such as task complicated or complex, therefore it shows whether pupils understood the concepts taught. It is a skillful assessment for challenging ones cognitive skills.

Benefits of Performance Assessment

Performance assessment is an excellent indicator to display a child’s true potential and ability. Benefits of Performance Assessments  are ;

§  They systematically document what children know and can do based on activities they engage in on a daily basis in their classrooms. In addition, performance assessment evaluates thinking skills such as analysis, synthesis, evaluation, and interpretation of facts and ideas — skills which standardized tests generally avoid. 

§  They are flexible enough to permit teachers to assess each child's progress using information obtained from ongoing classroom interactions with materials and peers. In other words, they permit an individualized approach to assessing abilities and performance. 

§  They are a means for improving instruction, allowing teachers to plan a comprehensive, developmentally oriented curriculum based on their knowledge of each child. 

§  They provide valuable, in-depth information for parents, administrators, and other policy makers.

§  They put responsibility for monitoring what children are learning — and what teachers are teaching — in the hands of teachers. 

EXAMINATION BASED ASSESSMENT

Assessment of learner’s performance with the support of different forms of test or examination is known as examination based assessment.A test or examination (informally, exam) is an assessment intended to measure a test-taker's knowledge, skill, aptitude, physical fitness, or classification in many other topics.  A test may be administered verbally, on paper, on a computer, or in a confined area that requires a test taker to physically perform a set of skills. Tests vary in style, rigor and requirements. For example, in a closed book test, a test taker is often required to rely upon memory to respond to specific items whereas in an open book test, a test taker may use one or more supplementary tools such as a reference book or calculator when responding to an item. A test may be administered formally or informally and with the help of standardised and non-standardised tests.

A standardized test is any test that is administered and scored in a consistent manner to ensure legal defensibility. Standardized tests are often used in education, professional certification, psychology , the military, and many other fields. A non-standardized test is usually flexible in scope and format, variable in difficulty and significance. Since these tests are usually developed by individual instructors, the format and difficulty of these tests may not be widely adopted or used by other instructors or institutions. A non-standardized test may be used to determine the proficiency level of students, to motivate students to study, and to provide feedback to students.

Written tests are tests that are administered on paper or on a computer. A test taker who takes a written test could respond to specific items by writing or typing within a given space of the test or on a separate form or document. The responses of test taker will give evidence for the achievement of students. So examination based assessment is common form of assessment prevailing in all countries.

PRACTICES OF ASSESSMENT

Dialogue

The term dialogue derives from the Greek term di-a-logos, an exploration of dialogues in Greek philosophy is a necessary start. According to Hamilton (2002) etymologically, dialogue does not denote two people speaking with each other (the conventional use in English). Rather the Greek prefix di means ‘through’, thus explaining why diaphanous means ‘see-through’. Logos has a dual meaning. It can mean rationality but also communication or discourse. It can then be suggested that the combination of dia and logos means “reasoning-through” and the dual meaning of the term logos allows us to establish a link between reasoning and  communication. It seems therefore justifiable to propose that Di-a-logos signifies reasoning through interaction in a communicative manner and hence proposing that the emergence of rationality is mediated “through” interaction is one of its constitutive characteristics.

In psychological terms, dialogue incorporates activities aimed at shared knowledge construction; in sociological terms, dialogue is akin to interactive action, enabling learners to greater participation in society; in literary terms dialogue may entail interactive processes which open the reader to other perspectives and broaden the reader’s conceptual horizon to enter into the dimension of the writer’s intentionality. All of these activities necessitate, at least in some degree, the achievement of shared meaning.

Education is widely believed to have the power to shape society, and therefore it is not surprising that sociologists have a special interest in educational practices. Relationships in society often are an amplified version of the teaching and learning relationship. It is important at this point to clarify the connection between education and democracy with the view to argue that the infusion of dialogue in education entails a democratisation of educational practices.

Dialogue has been described as a method, a process, an activity, an ethical relation, a model of cognition, a semiotic exchange and a praxis. Its conceptualization varies greatly in terms of definition and function . Pedagogical dialogue is in first place a way of being rather than a method in the process of learning. This entails the establishment of relations that foster mutuality, respect for difference, trust, reciprocity and shared –but not forced to converge -understanding through the means available in a particular context of practice.  Dialogue should be infused in all educational practices, including assessment.

The connection between assessment and dialogue is not straightforward. Assessment and dialogue may be seen as antithetical in some quarters. Pedagogical dialogue and educational practice are activities necessarily situated in specific educational contexts. Therefore the contextual dimension of such practices plays an important role in their reconceptualization. More specifically it also argues that pedagogical dialogue can offer a productive theoretical basis for re-conceiving the interaction between assessors and assessees in educational assessment in order to maximise students’ development -both educational and personal. Dialogue and learning are both processes. Therefore the association of dialogue with assessment should lead to reframing assessment as a process. So through dialogue or interaction between teacher and students we can assess the student’s performance.

Feedback Through Marking

             Providing relevant and timely feedback to pupils, both orally and in writing, brings positive behaviours in pupils. Marking intends to serve the purposes of valuing pupils’ learning, helping to diagnose areas for development or next steps, and evaluating how well the learning task has been understood. Marking should be a process of creating a dialogue with the learner, through which feedback can be exchanged and questions asked; the learner is actively involved in the process.

Marking And Feedback Strategies To Be Used In Schools

The following strategies can be used to mark, assess and provide feedback:

1. Verbal Feedback

This means an adult having direct contact with a child to discuss work that has been completed. It is particularly appropriate with younger, less able or less confident children. Verbal feedback will be the main strategy being used in the Foundation Stage. A discussion should be accompanied by the appropriate marking code symbol in the child’s book or remark to serve as a permanent record for the child, teacher and parent. In some cases it may be helpful to add a record of the time taken and context in which the work was done.

2. Success Criteria Checklist

Success Criteria checklists can be used in all subjects and may include columns for self/peer assessment and teacher assessment. These should be differentiated where appropriate.

3. Peer Marking

Children are encouraged to support each other and feedback on learning and achievement. Children should be given the opportunity to act as response partners and pair mark work. Children should be trained to do this and ground rules set and displayed. Children should be able to first point out things that they like then suggest ways to improve the piece but only against the learning objective or success criteria. The pairing of children should be on ability or trust.

4. Quality feedback comments.

Personalized quality feedback comments should be used frequently in all subject areas to extend learning and must be differentiated appropriately. When marking, teachers will be looking for opportunities to extend children’s learning either by clarification or providing prompts. All work should be marked in green pen and written comments should reflect the school’s handwriting style.

5. Marking codes

It is imperative that any marking codes are used consistently across the school so that there is no misunderstanding from the child’s point of view as to what is expected of them.

Self & Peer Assessment

            Self-assessment is a process of formative assessment during which students reflect on and evaluate the quality of their work and their learning, judge the degree to which they reflect explicitly stated goals or criteria, identify strengths and weaknesses in their work, and revise accordingly. According to Boud (1995), all assessment including self-assessment comprises two main elements: making decisions about the standards of performance expected and then making judgments about the quality of the performance in relation to these standards.  Students should be involved in establishing the criteria for judgment as well as in evaluating their own work . Regardless of the ways in which the criteria are set up, students need to be absolutely clear about the standards of work to which they are aspiring, and if possible, have practice in thinking about sample work in relation to these criteria.

Need for Self Assessment

§  Self-evaluation builds on a natural tendency to check out the progress of one‟s own learning.

§  Further learning is only possible after the recognition of what needs to be learned.

§  If a student can identify his/her learning progress, this may motivate further learning.

§  Self-evaluation encourages reflection on one‟s own learning.

§  Self-assessment can promote learner responsibility and independence.

§  Self-assessment tasks encourage student ownership of the learning.

§  Self-assessment tasks shift the focus from something imposed by someone else to a potential partnership.

§  Self-assessment emphasizes the formative aspects of assessment.

§  Self-assessment encourages a focus on process.

§  Self-assessment can accommodate diversity of learners‟ readiness, experience and backgrounds.

§  Self-assessment practices align well with the shift in the higher education literature from a focus on teacher performance to an emphasis on student learning.

Peer Assessment  

There are many variants of peer assessment, but essentially it involves students providing feedback to other students on the quality of their work. In some instances, the practice of peer feedback will include the assigning of a grade, but this is widely recognized to be a process that is fraught with difficulties.  “Peer assessment requires students to provide either feedback or grades (or both) to their peers on a product or a performance, based on the criteria of excellence for that product or event which students may have been involved in determining”. Peer learning builds on a process that is part of our development from the earliest years of life .

Use of Peer Assessment

§  Peer feedback can encourage collaborative learning through interchange about what constitutes good work.

§  If the course wants to promote peer learning and collaboration in other ways, then the assessment tasks need to align with this. It is also important to recognize the extra work that peer learning activities may require from students through the assessment.

§  Students can help each other to make sense of the gaps in their learning and understanding and to get a more sophisticated grasp of the learning process.

§  The conversation around the assessment process is enhanced. Research evidence indicates that peer feedback can be used very effectively in the development of students‟ writing skills.

§  Students engaged in commentary on the work of others can heighten their own capacity for judgment and making intellectual choices.

§  Students receiving feedback from their peers can get a wider range of ideas about their work to promote development and improvement.

§  Peer evaluation helps to lessen the power imbalance between teachers and students and can enhance the students‟ status in the learning process.

§  The focus of peer feedback can be on process, encouraging students to clarify, review and edit their ideas.

§  It is possible to give immediate feedback, so formative learning can be enhanced. Peer assessment processes can help students learn how to receive and give feedback which is an important part of most work contexts.

§  Peer assessment aligns with the notion that an important part of the learning process is gradually understanding and articulating the values and standards of a “community of practice” .

Formative use of summative assessment

Summative assessment (assessment of learning) is the assessment that involves an evaluation of student achievement resulting in a grade or a certification. Both formative assessment (assessment for learning) and summative assessment have vital roles to play in the education of students, and although on the surface they may not seem to have much in common, there are identified ways they can work together to improve student learning. Making formative use of summative assessment means using information derived from summative assessment to improve future student performance.

 For the teacher it involves:

·         providing a range of assessment tasks and opportunities to make certain that a range of student learning styles are catered for

·         teaching students to prepare more efficiently for summative assessment by making use of knowledge about themselves as learners

·         making use of the results of summative assessment so that learning is emphasised.

For the student it involves:

·         developing the ability to identify 'where I am now' and 'where I need to be'… and to prepare for summative assessment accordingly

·         recognising that summative assessment experiences are an opportunity for further learning and a chance to improve future .