Page 81 - Learning to Learn

LEARNING TO LEARN: BECOMING A SELF -GROWER 81
EXPERIENCE 4: S ELF-ASSESSMENT : THE ENGINE OF SELF -GROWTH READING
David’s Freshman Composition instructor can both assess and evaluate David’s
work. His instructor first needs to take some measurements by collecting
information about David (first-hand observations about his class participation,
reviewing preliminary drafts of his paper, etc.). Then his professor could give
assessment feedback by providing strengths (“you have used excellent and
comprehensive sources in your bibliography”) and areas for improvement (“you pose a complex,
interesting question in your paper’s introduction, but you need to use more evidence to support your
idea”). An evaluation could then be made about whether to give David a grade of “A,” “B,” or “C,”
based on whether his performance meets or exceeds certain pre-established criteria.
David the student
The table below identifies learning skills associated with assessment.
Table 1 Assessment Skills
Developing an Assessment Conducting an Assessment Reporting an Assessment
setting criteria
assuring validity
assuring completeness
creating a measurement
system
introspecting
reflecting
applying criteria
measuring against a standard
presenting feedback
complimenting
accepting feedback
When studying for an exam by using good assessment techniques, you can discover ways to study more
effectively and, at the same time, determine your level of understanding. You could make lists of concepts
you need to learn more thoroughly, and those you know you understand. Students who do well in college
are almost always strong self-assessors. They are able to analyze their work and understand their strengths,
and what they need to improve, so that as they continue to strengthen their performance, the evidence of
their performance (exams, papers, presentations) also increases in quality.
Which Is It?
Though there are critical differences between assessment and evaluation, they do share some things
in common (most notably the use of criteria and measurement). It is also surprisingly easy to start out
intending to perform an assessment and end up performing an evaluation.
Akey distinction to remember is that the point
of assessment is to improve quality,
while the point of evaluation is to
judge quality. If you keep that in
mind, you’ll probably be able
to distinguish assessment from
evaluation. But let’s give it a
try...look at the list of sentences
and phrases that follow and try to
decide if each is assessment-oriented
or evaluative.
is ongoing
is positive
is individualized
is valuable
provides feedback
SII Assessment Evaluation
provides closure
is judgmental
is applied against
standards
shows shortfalls
require criteria
use measurement
Both