SBA at a glance

SCHOOL-BASED ASSESSMENT AT A GLANCE
 BACKGROUND
 WHAT IS SCHOOL-BASED ASSESSMENT ?
 WHY SBAs?
 HOW ARE SBAs DONE?
 FORMATS OF SBAs
 FUNCTIONS OF SBAs
 ADVANTAGES OF SBA
 ROLE OF THE TEACHER
 ROLE OF PARENTS
 SBA BEST PRACTICE

Background
The Caribbean Examinations Council
(CXC) has been offering examinations to
the English-speaking Caribbean countries
for over 35 years. From the inception,
most of CXC’s subjects, and later, all of
its examinations include a School Based
Assessment (SBA) component. The SBA
has generally been accepted as an excel-
lent form of assessment and many other
international examinations boards have
since followed CXC and introduced SBAs.
What is School Based Assessment?
The SBA is a set of assessment tasks/
assignments/projects conducted in the
school; these are carried out by the stu-
dent following guidelines provided by CXC
and assessed by the teacher using criteria
provided by CXC. The SBA contributes to
the candidate's learning and is a critical
element in teaching and learning.
Why SBAs?
The SBA is an integral part of CXC’s as-
sessment process. It is intended to assist
students in acquiring certain knowledge,
skills, and attitudes that are associated
with the subject. The activities for the
SBA are linked to the syllabus and form
part of the learning activities to enable
the student to achieve the objectives of
the syllabus.
How are SBAs done?
School Based Assessment forms part of what is referred to as continuous
or formative assessment. The SBA is not a one-shot assessment; it is an
iterative process in which the student benefits from constructive feedback
from the teacher.
The task/project used for the SBA is something that is relevant to the stu-
dent’s experience and reality. Normally, teachers would work with their
students to agree on an appropriate task/project which has some meaning
to the student. The student works on the assignment in stages and re-
ceives quality feedback from the teacher at each stage. Each stage allow
the student an opportunity to add to previous knowledge and to improve
on the previous draft. The final SBA submission should be the student’s
best work.
Formats of SBAs
The SBAs may be presented in a number of formats:
Portfolio Assessment Learning journals
Dramatic presentations Research assignments
Multimedia presentations Community projects
Laboratory activities including investigations Site visit/Field trip
Orals Case Studies
Sporting activities and event planning Designing/Composing
(TVET subjects)
Functions of SBAs
The SBA is regarded as good assessment practice, but what function does
it really serve? The following are some functions of SBA:
 provides opportunities for the teacher to gather data on student per-
formance over time.
 provides a more reliable assessment of the student by those who
know the students best - their subject teachers
 serves to motivate students by engaging them in meaningful activities
that are relevant to them;
 reinforces curriculum aims and good teaching practices;
 aligns assessment with curriculum and instruction;
 provides students with multiple opportunities to demonstrate their
competence;
 allows students to be active participants in the assessment process;
 gives credence and recognition to the teachers’ informed judgments
about students’ performance; and
 allows teachers to be critical leaders in the assessment process.

Advantages of the SBA
The SBA
 provides an opportunity to individ-
ualise a part of the curriculum to
meet the needs of students;
 facilitates feedback to the student
at various stages of the experi-
ence. This helps to build the self-
confidence of students as they
proceed with their studies;
 facilitates the development of the
critical skills and abilities empha-
sized by the subject and enhances
the validity of the examination on
which candidate performance is
reported;
 makes a significant and unique
contribution to both the develop-
ment of relevant skills and the
testing and rewarding of students
for the development of those
skills;
 caters to multiple intelligences as
various teaching and learning
strategies are utilised;
 provides students with skills need-
ed to function in everyday life; and
 provides multiple opportunities
and multiple ways to develop and
demonstrate knowledge, skills and
attitudes.
Role of the Teacher
Educators generally agree that the teacher is in the best position
to assess the student. Teachers are therefore very critical to the
SBA process and have some key roles to play. Apart from guiding
students with appropriate topic selection and developing detailed
criteria for assessing the selected tasks, teachers also:
 ensure the task selected for the SBA activity is related to given
syllabus objectives. This task should fit into the normal work
being done in the class;
 provide quality feedback to the students on their work and
allow them to revise their SBA based on the feedback;
 manage the SBA as part and parcel of the teaching and learn-
ing process;
 understand what SBA tasks are to be done and how they are
to be done;
 give students adequate opportunities to practice similar tasks;
 mark practical work according to SBA standards;
 be aware of the criteria being used in assessment; and
 assess assignments competently.
The significance of teachers’ involvement in SBAs is highlighted in
the comments made by students from some schools in the region
when asked for feedback about their teacher’s involvement with
their SBAs:
“Teachers gave constructive criticism.”
“Teachers paid attention to detail.”
“The teacher kept nudging us towards quality.”
“The teacher kept encouraging us to do well in the practical.”
“The teacher’s passion was contagious.”
Role of Parents
A significant portion of the work done for SBAs is done while the
student is at home, therefore parents play a key role in assisting
their children with researching and organising information.
Parents also provide guidance to students on topic selection, pro-
vide the resources for research at home, supply materials which
may be required, and host group work at their homes.
The important role parents, and in particular mothers play was
highlighted by students in the research on SBA Best Practices con-
ducted in 2008.
“There was encouragement from my mother.”
“I wanted to do well. I was also encouraged by my aunt.”

SBA Best Practice
A 2008 study commissioned by CXC entitled “The SBA Compo-
nent of the Caribbean Examinations Council CSEC Examination:
Examples of Best Practice in the Caribbean Region revealed
that while there are some challenges with SBAs, schools in the
region are achieving excellent results in SBAs.
The report revealed that schools with a positive culture en-
sured that SBA is programmed into the curriculum, so it is not
viewed as something additional in the syllabus.
Comments provided by principals on the links between the cur-
riculum in Spanish and the Spanish SBA, highlighted that in the
schools surveyed “there are positive and obvious attempts to
embed the SBA competencies in the school’s curriculum.”
Additionally, responses from the three departmental heads in
the schools surveyed, emphasized the importance of ensuring
that the SBA is fully integrated in the schools’ Spanish curricu-
lum.”
Based on feedback from teachers, CXC has reduced the num-
ber of SBAs required for particular subjects. This has reduced
the workload on both students and teachers without compro-
mising the quality of the assessment. The focus has been on
developing the particular skill which is not readily testable in
the written paper rather than the quantity of pieces of SBA
work required.
CARIBBEAN EXAMINATIONS COUNCIL
Prince Road,
Pine Plantation Road,
St Michael BB11091
Barbados
www.cxc.org

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