"The Ten Assessment Commandments"

Introduction

        Assessment is the process of collecting and interpreting the students’ learning outcomes. Allen (2004) stated that assessment involves the use of empirical data on student learning to refine programs and improve student learning. In the same view, Erwin (1991) in his book Assessing Student Learning and Development: A Guide to the Principles, Goals, and Methods of Determining College Outcomes also defined assessment as a systematic basis for making inferences about the learning and development of students.  It is the process of defining, selecting, designing, collecting, analyzing, interpreting, and using information to increase students’ learning and development. In this perspective, teachers as the one who has the direct contact to students must master effective and high-quality assessment principles and procedures.

        McMillan (2000) mentioned that while several authors have argued that there are a number of "essential" assessment concepts, principles, techniques, and procedures that teachers and administrators need to know about, there continues to be relatively little emphasis on assessment in the preparation of, or professional development of, teachers and administrators (Stiggins, 2000). In addition to the warnings of many authors, professional standards for assessment skills of teachers and administrators should be established. In line with this, there are established Standards for Teacher Competence in Educational Assessment of Students (1990) and a framework of assessment tasks for administrators (Impara & Plake, 1996), the Code of Professional Responsibilities in Educational Measurement (1995), the Code of Fair Testing Practices (1988), and the new edition of Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing (1999).

          This article will talk about the ten test commandments that a teacher should not forget when assessing. The validation is integrated by different insights of authors regarding the good assessment practices. The commandments are as follows:

1. Do not be Bias.

           Arguably, the most important change in the recently published Standards is an entire new major section entitled "Fairness in Testing." The Standards presents four views of fairness: as absence of bias (e.g., offensiveness and unfair penalization), as equitable treatment, as equality in outcomes, and as opportunity to learn. It includes entire chapters on the rights and responsibilities of test takers, testing individuals of diverse linguistic backgrounds, and testing individuals with disabilities or special needs. Two additional areas are also important:

• Student knowledge of learning targets and the nature of the assessments prior to instruction (e.g., knowing what will be tested, how it will be graded, scoring criteria, anchors, exemplars, and examples of performance)
• Student prerequisite knowledge and skills, including test-taking skills.

          Consequently, professional judgment is the foundation for assessment and, as such, is needed to properly understand and use all aspects of assessment. The measurement of student performance may seem "objective" with such practices as machine scoring and multiple-choice test items, but even these approaches are based on professional assumptions and values. Whether that judgment occurs in constructing test questions, scoring essays, creating rubrics, grading participation, combining scores, or interpreting standardized test scores, the essence of the process is making professional interpretations and decisions. Understanding this principle helps teachers and administrators realize the importance of their own judgments and those of others in evaluating the quality of assessment and the meaning of the results. (McMillan, 2000).

2. Do not Stereotype.

  

        Peterson (2010) stated that stereotyping is when you make generalizations or assumptions about a person based on his or her membership in a group. We don’t know that the person who is new to that course maybe the one who will excel. For example, in an entrance exam most of the people will be confident that those people who got high scores will also achieve high grades in their studies (Pantao, 2015). But in reality, this scenario is not applicable at all times because there are factors that affect any situation.

             In the same vein, teachers must not stereotype when doing assessments. He or she should have fair treatment and professional judgments towards the students.  

3. Do not Plagiarize. 

 

          Plagiarism is an illegal form of copying. It means taking another person’s work (without asking) and calling it your own. Sometimes plagiarism can be accidental or intentional. Copying one sentence word-for-word without “quotations” is also plagiarism. 

             As cited from englishclub.com, in formulating a test or assessment, teachers should not plagiarize because of the following reasons:

·         It is unfair to the author.

·         You will not learn anything.

·         You will get a bad reputation with teachers and other learners.

·         You could get kicked out of school/ institution.

·         You will lower your chances of getting into another schools.

             Lastly, plagiarism instantly kill all credibility and dignity especially when it involves teacher’s performance. Whether you hand it to another person, or post it in your blog, plagiarism is against the law in most nations. Aside from losing your credibility and dignity, you will face some harsh disciplinary consequences if you are caught plagiarizing.  
 

4. Do not use single type of assessment.

             

              In formulating a test or assessment, teachers should always incorporate varied types on how to assess student’s learning. McMillan (2000) said “Assessment that is fair, leading to valid inferences with a minimum of error, is a series of measures that show student understanding through multiple methods”. A complete picture of what students understand and can do is put together in pieces comprised by different approaches to assessment. The overall performance of a student should not only base on a single test score, wherein some educators at the local level seem determined to violate this principle. There is a need to understand the entire range of assessment techniques and methods to deeply grasp what really the students has learned. However, we should always remember and realize that each has limitations. 

5.  Do not use words or group of words that

 

        

          The emergence of varied cultures in the classroom context should be taken into account by teachers, specifically in formulating tests. Teachers at any cost should be culturally-sensitive. According to Mary Beth Klotz and Andrea Canter in their book entitled “Culturally Competent Assessment and Consultation”, school professionals having culturally competent practices in assessing students is definitely relevant in improving the academic outcomes for all the students and essential in reducing achievement gaps and disproportionate placement of the minority students. They further argued that it is important to understand the cultural and linguistic diversity of the community where the school environment is located. Identifying the cultural groups that is present in the school should first be obtained by the school personnel in order to meet the different educational needs of the individual students. 

          

           The principal also plays an important role in imposing the core values and school wide goals necessary to ensure that all professionals in the school are culturally competent in their interaction with the students to be familiar with the words or group of words, somewhat offending that should not be included in formulating the tests. These words may hurt them in one way or another and may decrease their motivation to learn.  Lastly, the school environment should reflect the diversity of the student population.  

6.   Do not use words that cannot be easily understood.

 

            The degree of difficulty of words to be used in the tests must match the students’ level of analysis. It is significant for teachers to employ this principle. If teachers failed to do so, students may probably get low scores and can cause confusion among them. Using words that are scholarly constructed should be avoided. Teacher should always consider the capability of his pupils. Lastly, they must have practicality when it comes to constructing tests items in order for the pupils to have higher achievement gains.

7.   Do not use assessment approaches that are not feasible and not efficient.

           Teachers and school administrators have limited time and resources. Consideration must be given to the efficiency of different approaches to assessment, balancing needs to implement methods required to provide a full understanding with the time needed to develop and implement the methods, and score results. Teacher skills and knowledge are important to consider, as well as the level of support and resources (McMillan, 2000). If teachers failed to do so, the assessment approaches may just be a waste of time.

 

8.   Do not construct a test without considering pupils’ special needs.

           

          Teachers at all times must know the special needs especially the pupils with disabilities. They should separate the test of these pupils from the other pupils.

            In this perspective, formative assessment is a powerful instrument for planning differentiated instruction for pupils with various special needs and various learning levels (WestEd, 2013). Harlen (2007) stressed that inclusive assessment should be put into practice by educational practitioners. This approach will significantly address the problems regarding pupil's specials needs. This concern is in line with the concept of Assessment for Learning. Teachers who may experience pupils with braille, hearing and vision impairments and etc. must formulate separate assessment strategies and tests.

 

9.   Do not use types of assessments that are not familiar to the students.

               

            It is important that the students are familiar with the type of tests the teachers used. The teacher should practice his/her students in taking a test so that they will be familiar with the directions on how to answer to the given test. It is unfair for the students when they take a certain type of test they never encountered before. The students will be confused and might get a low score. If that happens, it will reflect on the teacher whether he/she is effective or not. Teachers must do consider the test- taking skills of the students. 

10.   Do not conduct a test unless checked by the test evaluators.

 

         

                     

           If the scale is reliable it tells you the same weight every time you step on it as       long as your weight has not actually changed. However, if the scale is not working properly, this number may not be your actual weight. If that is the case, this is an example of a scale that is reliable, or consistent, but not valid. For the scale to be valid and reliable, not only does it need to tell you the same weight every time you step on the scale, but it also has to measure your actual weight. 

          

             Switching back to testing. the situation is essentially the same. A test can be reliable, meaning that the test-takers will get the same score no matter when or where they take it, within reason of course. But that doesn't mean that it is valid or measuring what it is supposed to measure. 

             In conducting an assessment, teacher should consider consulting his/her test to test evaluators to examine whether the test made is valid and reliable to be conducted to the students. In the area of writing assessment, researchers have “…struggled with the development of methods able to produce a reliable and valid means of directly assessing writing quality” (Huot, 1990).

            Evaluating the reliability and validity of any assessment is necessary and fundamental component for its future effectiveness. Emphasising the paramount importance of developing and implementing writing assessments that reliably measure written narrative skill Muenz, Ouchi, and Cole (1999) argue that “…examiners should not feel comfortable assessing an individual's writing ability using tests with poor reliability and low validity” (1999).

              Charney points out that “…valid writing assessment should be sensitive to a writer's true abilities” (1984). Evidence for content validity is established by investigating whether the test items actually correspond to the content area they are supposed to represent and can be determined using expert judgement and item analysis (Rosnow & Rosenthal, 2002). 

             Therefore, it is important for the test to be evaluated first before conducting it to the test takers to ensure the validity and reliability of the test made is appropriate to be used. Also, ensures that the test will measure the learner’s competence and teaching strategy effectiveness.

References:

Allen, Mary J. (2004). Assessing Academic Programs in Higher Education, Anker Publishing Company, Inc.

Canter, A. & Klotz, M. B. (ND). Culturally Competent Assessment and Consultation

Erwin, T. (1991). Assessing Student Learning and Development: A Guide to the Principles, Goals, and Methods of Determining College Outcomes, Jossey-Bass Inc.

Impara, J. C., & Plake, B. S. (1996). Professional development in student assessment for educational administrators. Educational Measurement: Issues and Practice, 15(2), 14-19.

The fundamentals of effective assessment (2012). In Assessing learning in Australian Universities. Retrieved Ocotber 24, 2015 from http://www.cshe.unimelb.edu.au/assessinglearning/07/

McMillan, James H. (2000). Fundamental assessment principles for teachers and school administrators. Practical Assessment, Research & Evaluation, 7(8). Retrieved October 24, 2015 from http://PAREonline.net/getvn.asp?v=7&n=8

Standards for teacher competence in educational assessment of students. (1990). American Federation of Teachers, National Council on Measurement in Education, National Education Association. Available: http://www.unl.edu/buros/article3.html

Standards for educational and psychological testing (1999). Washington, DC: American Educational Research Association, American Psychological Association, National Council on Measurement in Education.

 

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