Assessment Philosophy

Sarah Hillier

Assessment For Success

Albert Einstein once said, Everything that can be counted does not necessarily
count; everything that counts cannot necessarily be counted. I had heard this quote
before entering my Bachelor of Education degree but it has never had quite as much
meaning to me until I considered it in the context of assessment. I believe that Einstein,
perhaps unbeknownst to him, highlights a very important aspect of assessment that until
recently had not been exploited in the everyday classroom. In my view, assessment must
be thought of as a valuable tool that has the ability to enhance learning among students
rather than an obligatory step or action that is meant to generate a mark. I believe that a
balanced and varied approach to assessment is necessary to reflect the true abilities and
knowledge of students in any classroom.
Balanced Assessment
In my future classroom, I will incorporate balanced assessment practices. I
believe that it is imperative that teachers employ both formative and summative
assessment in a balanced, but not always equal, fashion. It is important to consider the
purpose behind an assessment and not just create an assignment or test to generate a mark
for a given student. Balanced assessment practices are of immense benefit to both
students and teachers alike. For teachers, it helps facilitate an understanding of whether
or not the methods employed in teaching a certain lesson or unit was in fact effective. If
the assessment reflects a below average level of understanding among students, it may be
time to try a different strategy for conveying the topic or subject matter. If a summative
assessment is the only form of assessment for a given unit and it is administered once all
learning has supposedly taken place, there is no time left for teachers to gain insight into
how the students are actually interpreting the material and adapt their teaching methods
accordingly. Incorporating formative assessment into a unit of study will give this
necessary feedback and contribute to overall student learning in the classroom. Creating
a balanced assessment plan, such as the aforementioned, is imperative to both teacher and
student success in the classroom. Assessment and instruction are truly inseparable
because effective assessment informs learning and benefits all involved in the learning
process.
Creating Personalized Assessments
In addition to balanced assessment, I believe that it is also important to assess
students in a variety of ways. If students are assessed using the same tools or rubrics
repeatedly, it is possible that they may be able to learn how to complete the assessment
successfully but not necessarily learn the material or skills taught. This same case can be
made against standardized tests (Kohn, 2000). While some standardized assessments are
essential to the growth of the public education system as a whole, I believe that students
are more likely to succeed when given personalized assessments. I do not suggest that

teachers create a unique test for each individual student, but rather create an assessment
that best suits the needs of his or her students based on his or her own professional
judgment and profound knowledge of the students strengths and weaknesses. While
useful for decision makers, there are a lot of aspects of student knowledge that cannot be
measured on a standardized test when it comes to student performance and abilities
(Kohn, 2000). This is why I believe that, as a teacher, it is so important to create
assessments with ones students in mind. Learning from an assessment and student
success should be the ultimate goals. Not numeric representations of their abilities.
The Power of Self and Peer-Assessment
I feel that self and peer-assessment are two very powerful tools when
implemented correctly in the classroom. In order for students to grow as learners, a
certain amount of introspection can go a long way. Self-assessment allows students to
reflect on and evaluate their work and develop the necessary skills to control their own
learning processes (Elder, 2010). While the argument exists that self-assessment is lost
upon young elementary-aged children, it has been shown to increase students overall
self-efficacy and understanding of what is required of them in a classroom setting (Elder,
2010). Peer-assessment helps students to develop a similar skill set to that of selfassessment but rather results from the examination of the work of other students in the
class. When implemented correctly, and therefore effectively, peer-assessment can help
students come to recognize the components and qualities of work that meets or exceeds
the standards determined for a specific assessment (Topping, 2009). It teaches students
how to both give and receive constructive feedback from their equals, their peers (Black
et al., 2004). Both self and peer-assessment have the potential to lead to greater student
engagement in the classroom and an intrinsic motivation to do the best work that they can
do. Black et al. state Students will invest effort in a task only if they believe they can
achieve something. (2004). As teachers we can offer as many extrinsic rewards as we
would like stickers, special classroom roles, treats - it doesnt matter. We wont always
be there to push and guide our students to do the best work that they can do. I believe that
we, as teachers, have a responsibility to foster the growth of intrinsic motivation in our
students at every given opportunity. Classroom practices like self and peer-assessment
can guide students to becoming more autonomous and self-directed learners.
The Key to Learning: Feedback
Effective feedback is one of the most powerful tools that a teacher can employ to
motivate his or her students. When administered correctly, feedback can have a greater
effect on student achievement than grades themselves (Black et al., 2004). When students
receive constructive and task-based feedback on the amount of effort or time they put into
an assignment, the likelihood that they will be motivated to exert the same amount of
effort on subsequent assignments in greater than those students praised simply for their
intelligence (Muller & Dweck, 1998). It is for this reason that I strongly believe that
feedback given to students regarding any task should make reference to the amount of
work, time or effort they put into it and not how intelligent they are based on the mark
that he or she received. This is also why I believe that students should be given the

opportunity to re-take or re-do assignments on which he or she feels that they did not do
their best work. I am fully aware that students in my future classroom will be coming
from a multitude of environments, some of which may be non-conducive to completing
academic tasks or unsupportive of academic endeavors. A very powerful quote that I
believe speaks to this issue comes from an article by Wormeli: Curriculum goals dont
require that every individual reaches the same level of proficiency on the same day, only
that every student achieves the goal. (2011). I believe that students will learn more by
re-doing unsatisfactory assignments than the supposed lesson learned by receiving a zero.
Giving students the opportunity to re-do an assignment or assessment increases learning
when administered correctly (Wormeli, 2011). Simply having students complete the same
test they got 25% on the day before would not teach then anything they have not had
time to learn from their mistakes. Making a study plan with the student or having them
complete an alternate but equal form of assessment would contribute to overall learning.
Furthermore, simply assigning a zero would be of no benefit to the student because
ultimately he or she has not met the curriculum outcomes nor have they learned how to
prevent it from happening in the future.
Assessment is one of the largest and most important responsibilities placed on a
teacher. As a beginning teacher, I feel that I have a very good idea of what I would like
my assessment plan to look like in my future classroom. I would be nave to think that
having a plan means that I will be prepared to any and all situations that might arise, but I
know that I will be able to rise to the occasion regardless of the situation. The needs of
the student must always come before the need to assign a grade. The purpose of
assessment is to apprise, enhance and increase learning not to suppress it. By creating
an informed and balanced approach to assessment, I believe that I will be able to send my
future students into the world with the confidence and skills they will need to succeed
not just inside the classroom but also outside of it.

Works Cited
Black, P., Harrison, C., Lee, C., Marshall, B., & William, D. (2004). Working Inside The
Black Box: Assessment for Learning in the Classroom. Phi Delta Kappan, 86(1),
8-21.
Elder, A. (2010). Childrens self-assessment of their school work in elementary school.
Education 3-13: International Journal of Primary, Elementary and Early Years
Education, 38(1), 5-11.
Kohn, A. (2000). The case against standardized testing: Raising the scores, ruining the
schools. Portsmouth, New Hampshire: Heinemann.
Muller, C.M., & Dweck, C.S. (1998). Praise for Intelligence Can Undermine Childrens
Motivation and Performance. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology,
75(1), 33-52.
Topping, K. (2009). Peer Assessment. Theory Into Practice, 48, 20-27.
Wormeli, R. (2011). Redos and Retakes Done Right. Educational Leadership, 69(3),
22-26