Student Assessments

Student Assessments

1. Authentic

   • Definition: an assessment that resembles application of skills and knowledge that would be used in a real-life scenario. Advantages/Disadvantages:  Students have the opportunity to  - demonstrate what they know in an authentic situation - focus more on the learning process and build on prior knowledge - practice skills they will use throughout their lives Authentic assessments may take more time than some other forms of assessments.
   • Ex:
     • Example: students demonstrate their ability to write a business letter, through writing to the director of the school about how to improve the pick-up/drop-off procedure before and after school.

2. Formative

   • Definition: the student is given feedback about what they did well, with evidence about why they have been assessed as such. They are also given feedback about what they did not do so well on and how they can improve their work. Advantages/Disadvantages:  Students have the opportunity to  - learn about their strengths and weaknesses - learn from their mistakes- learn to receive constructive feedback - focus more on the learning process and less on the gradesStudents are sometimes too focused on the grade itself and do not pay attention to written feedback. Formative assessments can take longer to assess, because the teacher must give more feedback, instead of simply writing a number or a letter on the assignment.
   • Ex:
     • Example: Immediately when the student completes their presentation of the daily text and finishes leading the class discussion, the teacher provides feedback to the student on a note card. The notecard has three stars and two check marks. Next to the stars, the teacher writes three things the student did well. Next to the check marks, the teacher writes two things the student can improve next time.

3. Summative

   • Definition: the assignment or test given at the end of a unit or module used to assess whether or not the student has met all standards and learning targets for the module.  Advantages/Disadvantages:  Students have the opportunity to  - demonstrate all that they have learned in that unit Teachers may find information easier to grade and analyze. Students tend to focus less on the learning process and more on the gradesStudents sometimes feel pressured by summative assessments and do not perform well, leaving the teacher with an inaccurate assessment of their ability. 
   • Ex:
     • Example: at the end of the unit, students will write a newspaper article, describing all of the main events from the chapter, their relation to each other, and the reasons why a constitution needed to be written.

4. Portfolio

   • Definition: a compilation of assignments, student reflections, teacher conference notes, and other exemplar work produced by the student. Advantages/Disadvantages:  Students have the opportunity to  - demonstrate what they know and can do in a variety of subjects, using different media - become more involved in their work and their progress toward their learning goalsTeachers and students need more time to select pieces for the portfolio. There may be questions about whether the portfolio should be a digital or a hard copy. 
   • Ex:
     • Example: the student meets with the teacher to compile a portfolio of their work throughout the semester. Work is chosen from at least half of the units covered, with various types of media used.

5. Diagnostic

   • Definition: a pre-test used to assess students' prior knowledge, skills, strengths, and weaknesses on a given topic, before the unit begins. Advantages/Disadvantages:  Students have the opportunity to  - demonstrate what they know so that the teacher can focus the lesson plans for the audience  - focus more on the learning process and build on prior knowledge Students sometimes feel discouraged when they do not know the answers to the questions on a diagnostic test. This can negatively impact their learning.
   • Ex:
     • Example: Students respond to questions about the role of government officials and challenges they may face in the decision-making process. Information gathered from the assessment informs teaching of the unit.

6. Self-Assessment

   • Definition: students evaluate their own work, often using a rubric provided by the teacher.  Advantages/Disadvantages:  Students have the opportunity to  - learn from their own mistakes without the pressure of another person grading their work - learn to critique their own work and make improvements - focus more on the learning process and less on the grades Students who have not understood the assignment or the concepts addressed may not benefit from self assessment. They may need more help from peers or the teacher. If the teacher does not then assess the work after the initial self assessment, valuable information could be lost.
   • Ex:
     • Example: the student uses a rubric provided by the teacher to evaluate their own essay. After checking for content, structure, and grammar, the student scores themselves and gives specific reasons for their scoring.

7. Peer-Assessment

   • Definition: peers evaluate each other's work, often using a rubric provided by the teacher.  Advantages/Disadvantages:  Students have the opportunity to  - learn from each other's work  - learn to give and receive constructive feedback  - focus more on the learning process and less on the grades Students are sometimes self-conscious about their work and only want the teacher to review it. If the teacher does not then assess the work after the initial peer assessment, valuable information could be lost.
   • Ex:
     • Example: students review each other's final autobiography projects, score them according to the rubric provided by the teacher, and include three stars and two check marks.

8. Performance-Based

   • Definition: a real-world situation in which students demonstrate the skills and knowledge they have acquired and can apply to complete the assignment. Advantages/Disadvantages:  Students have the opportunity to  - demonstrate what they know in an authentic situation - focus more on the learning process and build on prior knowledge - practice skills they will use throughout their lives Performance-based assessments can take more time to set up and execute, especially when teachers first start implementing them. 
   • Ex:
     • Example: students are given note cards with their character descriptions. Each student plays a different politician in the decision-making process and finally the voting process. They apply their knowledge of the historical events and the positions of the different states and politicians to conduct a historically accurate debate.

9. High-Stakes

   • Definition: a test (SAT, LSAT, GRE, PRAXIS) where the results hold serious consequences for the test-taker. For example, low SAT scores could mean that a student is not accepted to their dream college. Advantages/Disadvantages:  Students have the opportunity to  - demonstrate what they know in relation to widely-used standards Students and teachers may focus on scores more than they focus on the learning process. High-stakes tests often do not include real-world scenarios. Students often will not apply skills required for these tests in real life.
   • Ex:
     • Example: students take the MAPs test, covering different subject areas.