My take on the types of assessment

1. I knew starting to study this topic that there was more to assessment than just exams/tests, but I was
not aware of the different kinds of assessment and the whole process a student goes through.
Assessment involves measurement and throughout all forms of education, we are constantly
thinking about a number or a grade. My understanding of measurement is when you know the
assessment is valid because it measures what it is supposed to measure. For example, the phrasing
of a question could have an impact on how the question is answered. Assessment for learning is the
process the student goes through, it is focused on the learning and development of the child, similar
to Formative assessment, Assessment of learning is a superficial understanding of what someone
knows similar to Summative assessment (Eggleston. M, 2016). I had an idea of Formative and
Summative assessment because we had slightly touched on this area the previous year in another
module. Therefore it was familiar and we were building on what we knew already. I believed
Formative assessment was, for example, class tests, essays, quick fire games etcetera. This sort of
assessment was there to give the teacher some sort of indication into how the child was performing.
Formative and Summative assessment complement one another to benefit the needs of the child and
to cater for different learning styles. Summative assessment is all about that one exam, for example,
the junior cert at the end of a three-year course
(http://www.cmu.edu/teaching/assessment/howto/basics/formative-summative.html).
When I was in school we had Drumcondra tests and Micro T tests, I never realised until I studied
this topic how they worked or what the point of these tests were. Standardisation requires lots of
samples from schools all over the country, for example this gave them feedback and an indication of
how students of a certain age should be performing. From around the ages of 4-18, children/young
adults base their work or performance on a number. Ten out of ten in a spelling test is the best three
out of ten would not be very good, as well as 85 in secondary school is classed as an A, the best
grade you can get. This was the case outside school as well. For example I took ballet lessons for
years and when we were doing exams 85 or above was a distinction, again the best grade you could
get. Differs to theory tet college etc.
Different areas of Assessment and Evaluation. The focus is on the Assessment for learning approach
and the combination of Assessment methods. I discuss Self-assessment in primary schools, I
thought Self-assessment was children reflecting and assessing themselves, for example correcting
their own work or trying to figure out answers for questions without the teachers help. After this
activity, I realised there was a lot more to it. The child has to take greater responsibility in what they
are learning, they learn more independently because they are understanding where they went wrong,
and the areas they are stronger and or weaker in. For Self-assessment the child needs to make
mistakes to understand the process and to feel confident about what they are learning. This way
they will recognise where they went wrong and know how to fix it (NCCA, Assessment in the
Primary School Curriculum, Guidelines for Schools- google books). The other methods of AFL are,
Conferencing, Concept Mapping, and Portfolios. They all have a link in one way or another, for
example, Self-assessment and Portfolios highlight understanding things the child is good at and
what they know, these will be included in the portfolio and through self-assessment, the child will
figure this out. Self-assessment is also linked to Conferencing because there is a discussion between
teachers, students and parents and the ability of the student. They will discuss difficulties the
student may be having. The student will also understand and be confident in their mistakes due to
Self-assessment. Also in relation to this, Concept Mapping will allow teachers to understand how
much the student knows and where they are at work wise. It is a representation of ideas and what
the student knows.