Page 80 - Learning to Learn

READING EXPERIENCE 4: SELF -ASSESSMENT: THE ENGINE OF SELF-GROWTH
80 L EARNING TO LEARN: BECOMING A SELF-GROWER
Measurement, Evaluation, and Assessment
Consider the following scenario to help you distinguish between measurement, evaluation, and assessment.
Assume you took a 20-question multiple-choice exam. You receive your exam back and see that you
answered 17 out of the 20 questions correctly. Your instructor has marked the letter grade “B” next to
your score of 85%.
In order to determine the score of 85%, your instructor needed to come to a decision, or perform a
measurement, to determine whether each individual answer was right or wrong. After determining which
answers were correct, your overall performance on the exam was graded or evaluated against a set standard
or grading scale used by your instructor. In other words, the instructor used the results of the measurement
(17 out of 20 possible, or 85%) to make an evaluation (give you a grade) of your performance on the exam.
However, simply receiving a score of 85% and a letter grade of “B” does not help you understand why you
knew the answers to 17 of the questions or why you got the answers correct! Nor does knowing your grade
help you figure out how to change your study methods in order to get more answers correct the next time.
An evaluation doesn’t lead to improvement...this is where assessment really bridges the gap.
Suppose when grading your exam, your instructor wrote comments such as, “you listened well in class”
next to a correct answer, or “read the long-worded questions more carefully, slow down the next time” next
to an incorrect answer. By assessing your performance on the exam, your instructor identified strengths as
well as areas for improvement. This type of assessment feedback gives you the information you need in
order to adjust your study methods or learning habits, so you can improve your performance on the next
exam. Note that in assigning a grade, your instructor has also evaluated your work.
Let’s summarize our discussion up to this point.
Measurements are data, information, decisions, observations, or opinions that are collected or obtained
during a performance. Measurements represent the information that is used to make both assessments and
evaluations.
Evaluation uses a measurement for the purpose of categorizing or judging. Examples include a boxer who
is weighed prior to a fight to make sure he or she is within the proper weight class, or a person who wants
to be an airline pilot who has his or her eyesight evaluated to determine eligibility into a pilot program,or
David’s coach, who can tell him exactly how fast he ran in yesterday’s wind sprints.
Assessment is quite different from evaluation although measurement is also necessary for assessment.
Assessment is not carried out in order to categorize or to judge, but rather to improve the quality of a
performance. This is why areas for improvement are not “faults” or “flaws” in a performance, but areas
where performance can be strengthened. A strong assessment will include an action plan for how that can
be done.
Let’s examine these ideas by looking at David’s performance both as an athlete and as a student.
David’s soccer coach can assess and evaluate David’s performance on the field. In order to
do so, the coach must collect information about his performance (first-hand observations
about his passing and dribbling ability, his ability to work well with teammates, etc.).
Then his coach can give assessment feedback by providing strengths (“your ability to
pass equally well with both left and right feet is a real asset for the team”) and areas
for improvement (“you need to remember to work with teammates behind you who may be in an open
position when you’re driving down field”). An evaluation can be made about David’s readiness to play
first-string and start the game on Saturday based on whether his performance meets or exceeds certain
pre-established criteria.
David the athlete