The Role of Assessment in Teaching and Learning

Vocabulary flashcards covering the concepts, principles, types, and modern trends of educational assessment, testing, measurement, and evaluation.

Test (APA, AERA, and NCME Definition)

A set of tasks or questions intended to elicit a specific type of behaviour when presented under standardized conditions and to yield a score with desirable psychometric properties.

Measurement

The act of assigning numbers to phenomena, functioning in education as a process where an individual's traits or characteristics are measured and assigned numerical values to gather data on 'what is.'

Assessment

The process of describing, gathering, recording, scoring, and interpreting information about student learning to make informed educational decisions regarding learners.

Assessment (Rowntree's Definition)

A human encounter in which an individual interacts with another directly or indirectly with the goal of obtaining and interpreting information about their knowledge, understanding, abilities, and attitudes.

Evaluation

The process of making value judgements based on criteria and evidence by comparing measured information against specified standards to establish whether performance is good, appropriate, or valid.

Diagnostic Assessment

A pre-instructional evaluation administered at the start of a lesson or unit to assess learner readiness and background knowledge in order to guide remedial action or enrichment placement.

Exceptionality Assessment

An evaluation conducted to identify learners who diverge physically, mentally, emotionally, or behaviorally from the typical population to determine eligibility for special education or interventions.

Certification Assessment

An assessment designed to award credentials or certificates (such as the SPM examination) by converting marks into grades to select candidates for tertiary education, scholarships, or employment.

Placement Assessment

An assessment used to stream or assign students to specific academic tracks (such as arts or science streams) or ability-based class groups according to aptitude and achievement.

Assessment Alignment Principle

The general principle requiring assessment methods and tasks to be directly synchronized with classroom instructional strategies and taught cognitive levels.

Formative Assessment

An ongoing, action-oriented, low-stakes assessment conducted during instruction to provide immediate evidence of student learning and inform instructional improvements without formal grading.

Summative Assessment

A comprehensive, high-stakes evaluation administered at the conclusion of an instructional phase or program to verify cumulative learning, ensure accountability, and assign final grades.

Robert Stake's Soup Analogy

The analogy distinguishing assessment purposes: when the cook tastes the soup, it is formative assessment; when the guests taste the soup, it is summative assessment.

Norm-Referenced Test

A test designed to rank and classify learners along a performance continuum by comparing an individual's score against the scores of a representative norm group.

Criterion-Referenced Test

A test that assesses an individual's performance against predetermined educational criteria or standards to determine what specific knowledge or skills a learner can or cannot execute.

Process-Based Assessment

A contemporary assessment orientation that treats the understanding of learning processes as being at least equal in importance to product-based factual recall.

Student-Centred Learning Outcomes

Explicit target statements articulating what learners will be able to do, which have superseded traditional teacher-oriented instructional objectives.