Pros and Cons of Assessments free essay sample

Pros and Cons of Assessment Assessments are an everyday occurrence in classrooms around the world. There are many different types of assessments, which generally fall into formal and informal. There are advantages and disadvantages to both. The major importance is selecting the right assessment. It is up to the teacher to decide what information is needed and how that information is collected. Formal Assessments Formal assessments are a way of observing and recording information in a highly structured manner. It typically requires a large amount of preparation and training. There are many different forms of formal assessments to choose from. Two examples are standards based test and national norm-referenced test. Standards Based Test Standards based test are used to measure students’ and schools’ progress in reaching standards put forth by the state. Many students take a multiple choice test, towards the end of the school year, which assesses many things, including reading comprehension and grammar. We will write a custom essay sample on Pros and Cons of Assessments or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page One of the positive advantages of this type of assessment is the accountability factor. All teachers must make an adequate attempt to teach the information needed for the students to show success. Standards are typically provided for each grade level, so students know what they need to learn for the following year. Students and schools are also able to gauge their progress with other schools throughout the country. Standards based tests are known for their reliability. There is very little room for error and has a standardized grading system. The standards based tests insure that curriculum for that grade level is being taught, no matter where the test is given in the country. Now with this being said, a disadvantage to this test is that low economic status is not taken into consideration. Another disadvantage is that teachers are not ‘allowed’ to teach to the test. However teachers feel that they need to focus on preparing the students for the test because it does have such high stakes. This need to prepare the students for the test keeps the teachers from teaching the real stuff’. According to Center of Assessment and Evaluation of Student Learning (CAESL), â€Å"Testing in our nation’s schools is on the rise†¦the pressure for education to be â€Å"accountable† has intensified (2004). The test is high staked and the stress of it does not allow the students to problem solve or think outside of the box. In the end, it does not truly represent whether the students have fully grasped the concepts. National Norm-Referenced Test National Norm-Referenced tests are used to gauge the learning of basic skills. This typically takes place at different intervals throughout the school year. These tests are still highly structured and scripted; however unlike the standards based test it is very quick. They are given in the same format each time, so the students know what is expected of them. Immediate results are accessible. This tells the teacher whether that student is on grade level. If the student is not on grade level, the norm-referenced tests helps to ensure the right interventions are implemented to get the student where they need to be. A few down sides to norm-referenced tests are it is timed and there are no accommodations allowed. Some students, including myself, do not do well with timed tests; it puts more pressure on an already stressful situation. There are times when students need help understanding the format and when following the script provided, this is not allowed. While having a script is helpful for administering the assessment, it does not allow for student frustrations. Informal Assessments While formal assessments are always in the minds of teachers when preparing lessons, informal assessments are used, on a day to day basis. Informal assessments are a way of observing, measuring, and recording data with a lot less structure. With informal assessments, they are less data driven and allow the focus to be more on content and comprehension. Informal assessments are typically teacher generated. Informal assessments could be as simple as observations and conferencing to a little more detail like in checklists. â€Å"Informal formative assessment can take place in any student-teacher interaction† (Ruiz-Primo amp; Furtak, 2004). Typically informal assessments do not involve a lot of prior preparations. Some informal assessments that I personally use on a consistent basis are checklists, observation, portfolios and clickers: Checklists The one that I use most frequently are checklists. I use checklists for every subject at every point in the school day. In a special education class with numerous staff members, it can be difficult to ensure that data is being collected thoroughly. In our classroom, we use checklists to track behaviors, to ensure that students are meeting their IEP goals, knowledge of their sight words, that they are completing their work, and last but not least are the students grasping the concept that is being taught. The quickness and easiness to use the checklists are a major advantage. Another advantage is that teachers are able to have results quickly. With these quick results, teachers can address the issues being observed instantly. A disadvantage is that different people may interpret the checklists in different ways. This can lead to confusion on what needs to truly be addressed. Another disadvantage is that with certain areas to watch for, other areas might be overlooked. Observations Observations are one of the easiest forms informal assessments. Observations can be done anytime and anywhere. They are quick and easy. They help to gauge student engagement and whether or not they are grasping the concept being taught. Teachers can use observations to help know if they need to change the lesson because it is too easy or too hard. This can lead to scaffolding. Another advantage is that they give instant feedback. Observations are great when students are working in groups or independently. A disadvantage is that students are sometimes aware of being observed and can wait to exhibit behaviors when the teacher’s attention is directed elsewhere. This leads to the observations being somewhat unreliable. Another disadvantage is bias. Nobody wants to admit it, but certain students can just pull the teacher’s attention to them. This limits the observations of the classroom to just a few. Sometimes students are having trouble with a concept but do not know how to ask or accept help appropriately. This leads to behaviors, which then leads to the whole class’s learning being disrupted. Clickers Clickers are an interactive educational device that is great to use in this day and age of technology, to change of the dull of assessments. Clickers are great to use to ensure participation by all students. It is a game format which peek students’ interests. Teachers have instant data for what topics are accomplished and which topics need further expansion upon. This is also great for the shy students. Every student is anonymous because they have a number not their name. While this is great for the shy students, the down side of the numbers is that when someone has not answered, students start looking around and eventually they figure out who has what number. Also, even with numbers students feel rushed to answer because they see others around them have answered. This leads to the guessing factor. The largest downside for clickers is the cost. Many districts do not have the budget to purchase the technology devices. Portfolios Portfolios â€Å"can be used as an authentic assessment tool in the classroom, or as a method to showcase your [students’] accomplishments† (Pearson, 2013). It is a great way to display students’ work throughout the year. The major advantages for portfolios are that it allows showing growth and shows strengths and weaknesses. It is also allows student-teacher exchange, if the students are involved in the selection of the work being displayed. Some disadvantages are that portfolios can be time consuming, it can space consuming, and can be a bit of a headache to ensure that the students are collecting work. If they do not collect the work, then there will not be anything to show. It is very important that the teacher sets clear guidelines of expectations and reminds the students throughout the year. There are many different ways to assess students. We, as teachers, assess daily whether it is formally or informally. It is imperative that we first decide what we want to assess and then pick the proper way to record the data that we are collecting. Center of Assessment and Evaluation of Students Learning. (2004). What parents should know about test types. Retrieved on March 3,2013 from http://www. caesl. org/briefs/Brief1. pdf Pearson Education. (2013). Portfolios. Retrieved on March 13, 2013 from http://www. teachervision. fen. com/assessment/teaching-methods/20153. html Ruiz-Primo, M. A. , amp; Furtak, E. M. (2004, April). Informal formative assessment of students understanding of scientific inquiry. Paper presented at the AERA Annual Meeting Symposium, Assessment for Reform-Based Science Teaching amp; Learning, Stanford University, Stanford.