Module 3 Understanding assessment for learning

Reasons for assessment

Listen to five different teachers talk about why they think assessment is important. As you listen, put the paraphrased statements in the order that you hear each teacher talk about them.
Speaker 1: assessments give me valuable information about where my learners are in their learning progress, and it can affect what I will cover next. They help me decide if my teaching has been effective and what to review. I see tests as an assessment of my teaching as much as an assessment on what they are learning.
Speaker 2: I think assessments give learners a sense of accomplishment, a kind of motivation to see how much they are learning.
Speaker 3: I think that, by doing assessments, my learners are encouraged to review material that we've covered. Some of them say they learn the most right before an assessment.
Speaker 4: when I have graded assessments, we spend time doing feedback. I believe this really helps them, maybe even more than the assessment itself.
Speaker 5: I need to show my school administration that i'm reaching the course aims, and I think assessments are the best way to do that.

Testing vs assessment

Testing	Assessment
The results may give an overall score or grade A way to check what has been learned	Provides information for improving teaching and learning A way to check how learning is going May not be graded

It’s important to see assessment as a tool to help you plan your teaching. Also, remember that assessment is a measure of progress, not just achievement (how much they know). For example, a learner getting a low score may still have made good progress, even if their level is not at the standard they need to be at.

So what's the difference between testing and assessment? Look at this definition of assessment: the methods or tools that educators use to evaluate, measure and document the readiness, progress and educational needs of learners Assessment is a broad term. It is a process that checks how learning is going. It is an interactive process, and not necessarily graded. As you can see in this image, testing is just one way of formally assessing learning. Tests tend to be an end examination or series of questions/tasks that check what has been learned. It often provides an overall score or grade.

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  You're going look at a number of different assessment types throughout this module. Can you think of any that could fill those other spaces in the mind map on the board? Write down your ideas.
  

Types of assessment 1