Introduction to the Study of Student Assessment
Student Assessment in CanadaStudent evaluation is an integral component of the teaching and learning process. It involves the collection and interpretation of information in a systematic fashion, crucial to effective decision-making and essential for a successful learning environment. The process of evaluation is a complex one and requires the collection of information for a variety of purposes ranging from student level, for diagnosis and reporting, to classroom and school levels intended for instructional and program planning. Given such a wide range of purposes, there is an implicit need for the corresponding selection of instruments and designs. For rather than a single event held at only one level of the system, student and program evaluation should be designed for various levels of the system and administered within a context leading either to confirmation of current practice or to direction for change.
In planning to meet the purposes just discussed, a variety of arguments relative to curriculum quality and student learning patterns can be insightful in looking at the relationship between assessment and the teachinglearning process. It is contended that there is no question that testing, assessment, and evaluation programs contribute to individual growth and to the maximization of individual potential. Increasing awareness of the significance of assessments places evaluation within the core of the educational process and as Forsyth, Jolliffe, and Stevens (1995) argue, evaluation should “never be an afterthought” (p.9). Passing informed judgment on the curriculum, the learning and teaching process, and programs is a process of making sense of where schools, teachers, and students stand. Thus, assessment becomes a central feature of the teaching and learning environment.
Critics of practice in this area sometimes focus only at one end of a broad spectrum. At one extreme some contend that teachers cannot be trusted and therefore all examinations intended for grading purposes should be externally developed and administered. At the other extreme, others condemn the use of standardized tests and program wide assessments. An example of the latter position is documented in Standardized Testing – Undermining Equity in Education (Froese, 1999). Froese claims that,
Although standardized tests may be useful for sorting and ranking students, they are inadequate in assessing student learning and development (p. 5).
In contrast to this position, Shanker (1996) contends there is a critical need for national standards to ensure high levels of achievement and to determine how successful educational reforms have been. In an address to the Second Education Summit in Palisades, New York he stated the following,
High academic standards are what parents, teachers and the public want; support for this is overwhelming. Standards also happen to work. Without them, not much else is going to make a difference in student achievement.
National standards represent a real opportunity for public schools to turn themselves around and win back the confidence of the people we serve. If we can agree on what we want students to learn, we can focus our energies, ideas and resources on helping them achieve. Without standards, we have no clear focus and no way to determine which reform ideas and programs really work.
Source: Al Shanker, President, American Federation of Teachers (1996), Second Education Summit, Palisades, NY
Shanker’s call for standards implies a need for some objective way to determine whether or not they are being met. Standardized tests are the most effective measures to ensure that it is done in an accurate and unbiased way.
Reasons to Assess and Evaluate
It may be helpful to review a number of reasons why we should assess and evaluate prior to establishing a case for multiple measures to use for a variety of purposes. Among these are the following: to inform decision-making, to motivate change, to describe the effectiveness of educational programs, for accountability, and for purposes of certification and promotion. A brief discussion of these reasons follows:
» Testing informs decision-making
Educational tests have the ability to detect reading difficulties, to assess levels of achievement and to identify problem-solving abilities. Teachers use test results to group students or identify areas that need reinforcement or remediation. For example, diagnostic tests often provide a basis for assigning students to various programs, whether it is for students with disabilities, English-language learners, or underachieving students (Heubert & Hauser, 1999). In such cases, testing is used to provide educational opportunities through programs that will benefit the students. Alongside the objectivity of testing is the ability of the tests to discriminate among learners and to provide direction for designing programs to match a learnerês strengths and weaknesses.
» Testing motivates change
Assessment results may be viewed as a way to influence individuals involved in the development of learning events and those supporting them to take action. Students who know they are to be tested will do more studying and learn more than would otherwise be the case. As well, teachers and even parents get involved in preparing tshirt printing students for the test. The promise of reward or the threat of sanction will ensure change. Tests results inform practice and in this way become a strategy for instructional improvement. As a consequence, setting standards that define what teachers should teach, what students should learn, and holding educators and teachers responsible for meeting these standards is important. The role played by assessment in educational change should be explored not only in terms of its results and products but also by looking at assessment as a process. As a result, answers to the following questions are legitimate expectations. In what ways might the results be used in improving the school system? How can assessment information direct instructional management?
» Assessment describes the effectiveness of educational programs
Tests conducted at the start of the implementation of a particular educational program and after an intervention was made will provide information indicative of the effectiveness of that program. In turn, this set of information might contribute to making adjustments to the program, thus making the program more functional. National assessments (e.g., SAIP in Canada, NAEP in the United States, and APU in wedding photographer Leeds England and Wales) and international assessments (e.g., SIMS, SISS and TIMSS) serve to inform the public about how schools and students are performing over time and how they compare with schools in other jurisdictions.
» Testing acts as a mechanism for accountability
Assessment results can carry consequences such as accountability, fund ing, technical assistance, or loss of acceleration. One aspect of accountability is providing information to the public. The public is expected to act on the information derived from the tests and to provide interventions that will improve educational quality and student achievement. Conducting national assessments serves to ensure that society is investing in those who have the potential of contributing to the society. Despite debates over standardized tests (see Phelps, 1999), they are rendered significant for their reliability and validity in measuring studentsê achievement.
» Testing is used for purposes of certification and promotion
Historically, examinations have been effective in terms of their objectivity as a selection mechanism and in ensuring fairness to individuals. Tracking, promotion, and graduation are èhigh stakesê decisions involved in large-scale achievement tests (Heubert & Hauser, 1999). These tests place a student in schools, programs, and classes based on their achievement levels. As well, they indicate whether a button badges student will be promoted to the next grade or whether a student will receive a high school diploma. Heubert and Hauser propose that the “value of tests should also be weighed against the use of other information in making high stakes decisions about students”.
» Looking beyond the testing process
The task of coming to a decision about the progress of a learner can be difficult and problematic for people making judgments. While tests may be used to diagnose learning problems, it is possible that remedial programs proposed may result from misinterpretation. Unless certain conditions are met, it is possible that assumptions about learners may be unfair and make no sense at all. Therefore it is essential that appropriate information is collected from a variety of sources and that results are interpreted within an appropriate context.
Even if we can learn something valid about what is happening, assessment information alone does not tell us how or why it is happening and what to do about it. Broadfoot (1996), Cambourne and Turbill (1994), and Woodward (1994) recommend the need to include qualitative data in the evaluation process. If one purpose of giving tests is to benefit the individual learner, considerable attention is paid not only to the elements of testing: averages, norms, groups, and standard deviations, but also to the recipients of whatever decisions will be made as an aftermath of the testing process.
A responsibility exists to regard the learner as more than a score and to propose programs that will accommodate a learner’s potential based on the interpretation of results from a variety of different measures. Learners and learning will benefit most when information is sought and questions are asked.