In the education field, assessment and evaluation are means to measure individual learning or performance. Although both are used in the finding out outcomes, it should be noted that assessment differs from evaluation. Straight (2002) established the differences between the two using seven dimensions.
These include timing, focus of measurement, relationship between administrator and recipient, findings, modifiability, standards of measurement, and relation between objects. On timing, Straight considers assessment to be formative while evaluation is summative.This means that assessment is an ongoing measure as learning takes place while evaluation is done with finality in order to gauge quality. On focus of measurement, assessment is considered as process-oriented whereas evaluation is product oriented.
This implies that assessment is concerned on the process of learning while evaluation is focused on the amount of learning that took place. As regards relationship between administrator and recipient, assessment is viewed as reflective while evaluation is prescriptive.This means that assessment gives importance on the strength and weaknesses of a learning process while evaluation focuses on solutions to remedy problems. In terms of findings, assessment is considered diagnostic while evaluation is judgmental. This presents the idea that assessment is concerned with progress and improvement while evaluation relies only on the output and does not suggest room for improvement.
On modifiability of criteria, Straight claims that assessment is flexible while evaluation is fixed.This also means that assessment is dependent on some considerations and may be revised accordingly while evaluation has established criteria that are non-negotiable. As regards standards of measurement, assessment is seen to be absolute, while evaluation is comparative. This sees assessment as a way to strive for ideal outcomes, while evaluation considers specific standards.
In terms of relationship between objects, assessment is viewed as cooperative while evaluation is comparative. Given the above, we may say that choosing the appropriate kind of measurement that relates well with the situation is important.Some aspects to be considered include the nature of the material or situation to be assessed or evaluated, and the variables that affect measurement. The Markbook Web site (2007) recommends that assessment has two meanings. First, it refers to a specific instrument of measure. Second, it likewise refers to the process of designing instruments and using them to a general appraisal data regarding learner’s progress.
The same source recommends that assessment is a specific measurement carried out during collection of achievement data while evaluation is done when determining the meaning of the body of collected data.As such, assessment occurs while learning is taking place. This may be formal or informal, while evaluation is done after instruction to gauge how much the students have learned. In line with this, assessment is said to be formal or informal.
For instance, while the teacher conducts teaching, she performs an assessment of the students’ oral or written progress. This can be done through observation, listening, and deducing dialogues of students. The ways by which students speak, whether they mumble or speak eloquently are parts of assessment. However, evaluation requires much professional judgment.
It is not enough listen to a student’s recitation to have an evaluation of their speaking ability, but criteria should be set, and questions should be framed according to the target output. For instance, if the focus is to evaluate students’ poetry reading skills, the evaluation situation should be set, and students should be informed of criteria to be used for evaluation, in order to have them prepared for it. On the one hand, when assessing students’ ability to read poems, the teacher can pick any poem and ask the students to recite impromptu in class.On the other hand, when evaluating their ability to recite poems, it is needed to familiarize students with the poem, and give specific criterion the teacher would look for during the evaluation.
As regards the importance of assessment and evaluation, both are important to emphasize and encourage learning or growth. Moreover, these measurements are important in order to find out the effectiveness of a certain program of instruction. It supports the idea whether a program should be revised, retained, or replaced. Specifically, assessments may be given before, during, or after a unit of instruction.Assessments given before a unit of instruction are meant to measure stored knowledge or schema before the intervention occurs.
These may be in the form of oral or written tests, questionnaire, checklist, or simply eliciting directly what students know about a subject matter. In addition to measuring schema, assessments before instruction are also given to find out students’ readiness and attitude in learning. This guides the teacher to structure lessons applying strategies that fit the kind of learners involved in the learning process. As mentioned above, assessments may likewise be given during instruction.
These serve as ways to find out whether students are learning, and progress is being achieved. Examples of these include quizzes, recitation, individual and group activities. Aside from measuring students’ progress, these also help the teacher decide whether additional activities are needed to strengthen learning of a concept or skill. They also identify weaknesses of a certain procedure for modification in the future. Overall, assessments given during instruction are very important to guide both the teacher and students to achieve lesson objectives.
Assessments given after instruction are administered to measure learning the amount of learning gained. These may be in the form of written tests, recitation, or culminating activities such as class performance, or field assignments like research, essays, etc. In the case of pre- and posttests, the teacher can secure a definite measure of students’ learning evident in students’ scores. While posttests are a good way to measure students’ progress, they are not enough to measure insights and application skills. As such, teachers are recommended to design assessments which likewise measure application of theories and concepts learned.These assessments will be discussed later under current assessment trends.
As an important tool to measure learning and performance, assessments should be made an integral part of one’s teaching. Teachers must perform assessments accordingly, and explain their purpose to students. Discussing the importance of assessment procedures to students will make them value the assessment similarly. It is imperative for teachers to explain to students the goals of a certain assessment before engaging students in such. This way, students will feel the responsibility they share with the teacher in recording their performance.
As stated in Southwest Educational Development Laboratory Web site (2001), conscious effort to keep track of student learning should be available before, during, and after instruction. Assessments are an essential part of teaching for they provide evidence of teacher performance. Exercises, quizzes, and other forms of assessment give a record of what a teacher has taught. Similarly, they provide evidence of student learning. Keeping track of students’ understanding of the lesson through tests, projects, etc.
allow them to gauge their own performance, and keep them interested to learn more.As abovementioned, teachers can make assessments an integral part of their teaching by discussing with the students the purpose of conducting them, and making outcomes of assessment a tool to commend, inspire, and inform students of how well they performed. An ideal classroom assessment is one that creates a positive view of gauging learning, where students feel their part and actively respond to the assessment tool. In order to achieve this, teachers should vary their assessment tools, and choose those which arouse students’ interest.There are four types of assessment widely used today. The first of which is Diagnostic Assessment.
This type of assessment is used to determine a learner’s level of achievement at the beginning instruction. For example, a teacher of literacy would conduct a diagnostic assessment of the students in order to assess their readiness for instruction. If the teacher finds out that they are not yet prepared, adjustments could be made before the instruction begins. Another reason for conducting diagnostic tests is to find out barriers that may arise during instruction.
Through assessment of students’ skills and attitude, a teacher would be able to address certain needs, or pattern the teaching approach according to students’ learning behaviors. In addition, recording learning before instruction would help find out specific learning progress that occurred after the instruction. Although this type of assessment is helpful before instruction takes place, it should not be considered part of the learning process, but a measurement of variables that need to be strengthened. Furthermore, using diagnostic assessment, the teacher may be informed of some skills or knowledge already known to students.In such case, duplication or redundancy of teaching will be avoided, therefore saving time of both the teacher and the students.
Another type of assessment is the formative assessment. This type of assessment provides learners feedback and direction regarding improvement of learning. Again, scores gained during formative assessment should not form part of the overall final grade of the students. It is conducted so that students may have an opportunity to experiment, ask questions, take necessary risks, receive analytical feedback, and get a good grasp of how well they understand learning concepts.
Examples of this in a language course include conducting outside interviews to find out if students learned the skills applied in conducting an interview. Another one is conducting a panel discussion or debate in class. In these activities, the opinion of the students is not the focus, but their application of skills needed to conduct the said activities. Group spelling tests, take home assignments, and other group dynamics are considered part of formative assessment.
The third type of assessment is called the summative assessment. This form of assessment measures achievement relative to the objectives of a course.Summative tests, unit test/assignment, and culminating performance are some examples of summative assessment. Unlike the former two, the summative assessment significantly shows the learning progress of students. As such, it is significantly considered when giving the final grade.
The fourth type of assessment is the self-assessment and peer assessment. These assessments encourage learners to accurately judge their own output. Students should be taught to assess their own progress in order for them to realize the need for improvement.Also this type of measurement serves as a powerful feedback tool to make them realize the importance of learning and the dedication that they should put in their performance. Furthermore, self and peer assessments help enhance evaluation and critical thinking skills, which are both very important in making life decisions.
While this type of assessment has positive outcomes, it also has drawbacks. For instance, when teachers ask students to evaluate their own performance, students who have high regard for themselves tend to overlook their weaknesses while some of those who have less confidence would rate themselves fairly.Considering this, the teacher should first lay down the criteria students would use in their self-evaluation, and ensure that students understand clearly the purpose of the assessment. Peter Ewell (1998), one of the foremost authorities on outcomes assessment, summarized the current trends in assessment. The author claims that assessment is an essential requirement for colleges and universities.
It is used as a tool to gauge not only learning but teaching as well. At present, assessment has become more practical, as it prioritizes practical application of knowledge, rather than gauging quantity of knowledge itself.Tests have become more complex and motivating, as multiple choice questions are replaced by essays and problem solving. Moreover, tests nowadays demonstrate creativity of students in fulfilling tasks. Additionally, today’s assessments have become multi-faceted as they involve other aspects that relate to the learning environment.
They now include the impact of the entire environment of the students, and require students to consider learning from outside. Some assessments ask students to conduct field research, interviews, forums, community service, or Internet-based activities.According to Brown, Bull & Pendleburry (as cited in UCD Web site), over the last 20 years or so, there have been major changes in assessment practices. One of these changes includes written exams being replaced by a more continuous assessment such as research or coursework. Another is the option given to students to choose topics of their interest.
Professors have become more lenient in terms of making students decide which activity to work on. Another trend is asking students to work in groups instead of individually, and shifting from product-based to process-based. Other assessment trends involve the use of technology.Many teachers nowadays incorporate the use of the computer to assess student performance.
Computer-assisted instruction, for instance, should likewise use the computer to administer summative tests or skills application. However, the use of the computer in administering knowledge-based tests is limited. Tests programmed with ready made answers can only cover multiple-choice items, fill in the blanks, or true or false. Therefore, additional assessment tools should be used to cover critical or application skills. Other technological devices utilized nowadays include videos, digital cameras, or PDAs.
Teachers who wish to capture the exact evidence of student performance, especially those that show their talents use videos or other hand-held devices. These devices delineate evidences that are neglected when using pencil tests. In addition to these electronic devices, many teachers nowadays use student portfolios and project evaluations to assess the complexity of student learning (SEDL Web site, 2001). Considering assessment as an essential part of the teaching-learning process, it is imperative that every teacher obtains knowledge of its nature, forms, and importance.
As such, it is the role of teachers and would-be teachers to develop a good understanding of assessment, and to find ways to vary assessment tools. In order to ensure that future teachers gain a comprehensive understanding of assessment, teachers should provide activities such as research on this topic. Furthermore, in pursuit of the most applicable assessment tool, teachers and future teachers should be engaged in experimenting other ways of assessing learning. The role of assessment to record, improve, and inspire student learning has been realized by education professionals. That is why continuous effort to improve has been underway.
Nowadays, assessments are more reflective of students’ holistic learning than before. They are seen to value not just what students have memorized but what they have understood and analyzed as regards the course’s lessons. Assessments are very important to record progress of students, but more than achieving a high mark, assessments play a vital role in making the students realize the value of their learning, and how such learning can be applied to one’s life and career in the future. Assessments not only help teachers gauge student learning, but also assists students to value what they have learned.Referenceshttp://www.sedl.org/scimath/compass/v02n02/assessment.htmlhttp://www.teachervision.fen.com/assessment/new-teacher/48353.html
