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Module 011: Assessment of Learning

At the end of this module, you are expected to:

1. Cognitive: Demonstrate an understanding of key concepts about
assessment for Learning and Assessment as Learning.
2. Affective: Enrich a successful awareness in the key concepts about
assessment for Learning and Assessment as Learning.
3. Psychomotor: Able to formulate own summative assessment.

Assessment of Learning
Assessment of learning refers to strategies designed to confirm what students
know, demonstrate whether or not they have met curriculum outcomes or the
goals of their individualized programs, or to certify proficiency and make
decisions about students’ future programs or placements. It is designed to
provide evidence of achievement to parents, other educators, the students
themselves, and sometimes to outside groups (e.g., employers, other
educational institutions) (https://www.edu.gov.mb.ca).
Assessment of learning is the assessment that becomes public and results in
statements or symbols about how well students are learning. It often
contributes to pivotal decisions that will affect students’ futures. It is
important, then, that the underlying logic and measurement of assessment of
learning be credible and defensible.
Teachers’ Roles in Assessment of Learning
Because the consequences of assessment of learning are often far-reaching
and affect students seriously, teachers have the responsibility of reporting
student learning accurately and fairly, based on evidence obtained from a
variety of contexts and applications. Effective assessment of learning requires
that teachers provide (https://www.edu.gov.mb.ca):
• a rationale for undertaking a particular assessment of learning at a
particular point in time
• clear descriptions of the intended learning
• processes that make it possible for students to demonstrate their
competence and skill
• a range of alternative mechanisms for assessing the same outcomes
• public and defensible reference points for making judgements
• transparent approaches to interpretation
• descriptions of the assessment process
• strategies for recourse in the event of disagreement about the decisions

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With the help of their teachers, students can look forward to assessment of
learning tasks as occasions to show their competence, as well as the depth and
breadth of their learning.

Planning Assessment of Learning

Why am I assessing?
The purpose of assessment of learning is to measure, certify, and report the
level of students’ learning, so that reasonable decisions can be made about
students.
There are many potential users of the information
(https://www.edu.gov.mb.ca):
• teachers (who can use the information to communicate with parents
about their children’s proficiency and progress)
• parents and students (who can use the results for making educational
and vocational decisions)
• potential employers and post-secondary institutions (who can use the
information to make decisions about hiring or acceptance)
• principals, district or divisional administrators, and teachers (who can
use the information to review and revise programming)
What am I assessing?
Assessment of learning requires the collection and interpretation of
information about students’ accomplishments in important curricular areas,
in ways that represent the nature and complexity of the intended learning.
Because genuine learning for understanding is much more than just
recognition or recall of facts or algorithms, assessment of learning tasks needs
to enable students to show the complexity of their understanding. Students
need to be able to apply key concepts, knowledge, skills, and attitudes in ways
that are authentic and consistent with current thinking in the knowledge
domain (https://www.edu.gov.mb.ca).
How can I ensure quality in this assessment process?
Assessment of learning needs to be very carefully constructed so that the
information upon which decisions are made is of the highest quality.
Assessment of learning is designed to be summative, and to produce
defensible and accurate descriptions of student competence in relation to
defined outcomes and, occasionally, in relation to other students’ assessment
results. Certification of students’ proficiency should be based on a rigorous,
reliable, valid, and equitable process of assessment and evaluation.

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Reliability
Reliability in assessment of learning depends on how accurate, consistent,
fair, and free from bias and distortion the assessment is. Teachers might
ask themselves:
• Do I have enough information about the learning of this particular
student to make a definitive statement?
• Was the information collected in a way that gives all students an equal
chance to show their learning?
• Would another teacher arrive at the same conclusion?
• Would I make the same decision if I considered this information at
another time or in another way?
Reference Points
Typically, the reference points for assessment of learning are the learning
outcomes as identified in the curriculum that make up the course of study.
Assessment tasks include measures of these learning outcomes, and a
student’s performance is interpreted and reported in relation to these
learning outcomes.
In some situations where selection decisions need to be made for limited
positions (e.g., university entrance, scholarships, employment
opportunities), assessment of learning results are used to rank students.
In such norm-referenced situations, what is being measured needs to be
clear, and the way it is being measured needs to be transparent to anyone
who might use the assessment results.
Validity
Because assessment of learning results in statements about students’
proficiency in wide areas of study, assessment of learning tasks must
reflect the key knowledge, concepts, skills, and dispositions set out in the
curriculum, and the statements and inferences that emerge must be upheld
by the evidence collected.
Record-Keeping
Whichever approaches teachers choose for assessment of learning, it is
their records that provide details about the quality of the measurement.
Detailed records of the various components of the assessment of learning
are essential, with a description of what each component measures, with
what accuracy and against what criteria and reference points, and should
include supporting evidence related to the outcomes as justification.
When teachers keep records that are detailed and descriptive, they are in
an excellent position to provide meaningful reports to parents and others.
Merely a symbolic representation of a student’s accomplishments (e.g., a
letter grade or percentage) is inadequate. Reports to parents and others
should identify the intended learning that the report covers, the

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assessment methods used to gather the supporting information, and the

criteria used to make the judgement.
How can I use the information from this assessment?
Feedback to Students
Because assessment of learning comes most often at the end of a unit
or learning cycle, feedback to students has a less obvious effect on
student learning than assessment for learning and assessment as
learning. Nevertheless, students do rely on their marks and on
teachers’ comments as indicators of their level of success, and to make
decisions about their future learning endeavors.
Differentiating Learning
In assessment of learning, differentiation occurs in the assessment
itself. It would make little sense to ask a near-sighted person to
demonstrate driving proficiency without glasses. When the driver uses
glasses, it is possible for the examiner to get an accurate picture of the
driver’s ability, and to certify him or her as proficient. In much the same
way, differentiation in assessment of learning requires that the
necessary accommodations be in place that allow students to make the
particular learning visible. Multiple forms of assessment offer multiple
pathways for making student learning transparent to the teacher. A
particular curriculum outcome requirement, such as an understanding
of the social studies notion of conflict, for example, might be
demonstrated through visual, oral, dramatic, or written
representations. As long as writing were not an explicit component of
the outcome, students who have difficulties with written language, for
example, would then have the same opportunity to demonstrate their
learning as other students.
Although assessment of learning does not always lead teachers to
differentiate instruction or resources, it has a profound effect on the
placement and promotion of students and, consequently, on the nature
and differentiation of the future instruction and programming that
students receive. Therefore, assessment results need to be accurate
and detailed enough to allow for wise recommendations.
Reporting
There are many possible approaches to reporting student proficiency.
Reporting assessment of learning needs to be appropriate for the
audiences for whom it is intended, and should provide all of the
information necessary for them to make reasoned decisions.
Regardless of the form of the reporting, however, it should be honest,
fair, and provide sufficient detail and contextual information so that it
can be clearly understood. Traditional reporting, which relies only on a
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student’s average score, provides little information about that

student’s skill development or knowledge. One alternate mechanism,
which recognizes many forms of success and provides a profile of a
student’s level of performance on an emergent-proficient continuum,
is the parent- student-teacher conference. This forum provides parents
with a great deal of information, and reinforces students’ responsibility
for their learning.

Summative Assessment
This takes place at the end of a large chunk of learning, with the results being
primarily for the teacher's or school's use. Results may take time to be
returned to the student/parent, feedback to the student is usually very limited,
and the student usually has no opportunity to be reassessed. Thus, Summative
Assessment tends to have the least impact on improving an individual
student's understanding or performance. Students/parents can use the results
of Summative Assessments to see where the student's performance lies
compared to either a standard (MEAP/MME) or to a group of students (usually
a grade-level group, such as all 6th graders nationally, such as Iowa Tests or
ACT). Teachers/schools can use these assessments to identify strengths and
weaknesses of curriculum and instruction, with improvements affecting the
next year's/term's students (https://www.monroeisd.us).
Examples: Standardized testing (MEAP, MME, ACT, WorkKeys, Terra Nova,
etc.); Final exams; Major cumulative projects, research projects, and
performances.

References and Supplementary Materials

Books and Journals

1. Corpuz, B. (2010). Field study 2: Experiencing the teaching - learning process.
Quezon City: Lorimar Publishing.
2. Paez, A.R. and Serrano, E.D. (2015). Principles of Teaching 1. Cubao, Quezon City:
Adriana Publishing Co., Inc.
Online Supplementary Reading Materials
1. monroeisd.us/departments/curriculum/instructionalservices/assessment/type
sofassessment/
2. https://cambridge-community.org.uk/professional-
development/gswafl/index.html
3. https://www.edu.gov.mb.ca/k12/assess/wncp/section2.pdf

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