Harlen (2005) Teachers' summative practices and assessment for learning - tensions and synergies
Assessment for learning vs assessment of learning (formative vs summative) → +ve & -ve
↑ teachers' judgements in summative assessment
Summative assesment → 'some seriously detrimental effects'
BUT ∴ issues with reliability and validity
Assessment systems shld be planned and implemented enabling evidence of sts' ongoing learning to be used formatively and summatively.
Intro
Summative assesment → internal (record keeping, choosing course, parents' meetinsgs) / external (certification, vocational, employment, FE/HE)HIGH STAKES → pressure → learning experience and assessment
Impact of Summative Assessment on Teaching and the Curriculum
High stakes testing → focus on test content, repeated practice tests, training sts to answer test Qs, & transmission style teaching ↓ formative assessment↑ Test scores ↓ achievement
Gordon Rees (1997) - teachers can train students to pass any test, even those intended to assess higher thinking skills.
Kellaghan et al. (1996:53) threat to test validity
Black and Wiliam (1998) achievement can be raised without teaching to the test. Formative assessment requires lots of support and courage ↑ learner-oriented ↓ test-oriented
Impact of Summative Assessment on Student Motivation
Direct impact = ↓ anxiety, ↓ self-esteem. Indirect = teacher & curriculumMOTIVATION includes aspects relating to learning, incl. self-esteem, self-regulation, interest, effort, self-efficacy, and a person’s sense of themself as a learner.
Harlen and Deakin Crick (2002) Main findings:
- Ts resort to transmission style teaching;
- High stakes test become rationale classroom focus / dominate ts' own assessment interactions;
- Repeated practice test ↑ low self-image of lower-achieving learners;
- Sts misinterpret teachers intentions ↑ summative assessment;
- ↑ test anxiety;
- Judgemental feedback may influence sts' views;
- Teacher collegiality;
- Emphasis on evaluation & selectivity produces sts with strong extrinsic orientation towards grades and social status.
- explaining to sts the purpose of tests and involve them in decisions about tests;
- use assessment to convey sense of progress in their learning to students;
- provide explanations to sts about the purpose of tests & other assessments of their learning;
- provide feedback that helps further learning;
- develop sts’ self-assessment skills & their use of criteria relating to learning, rather than test performance.
- use wider range of indicators of school performance;
- more valid approach to tracking standards at national level - sample testing sts;
- more valid info about individual st performance required;
- more use of teachers' judgements.
Issues and opportunities of using Teachers' assessment for summative purposes
Issues
+ve potential advantages - Ts make judgements about Sts attainment in the course through normal interactions → attainment across full range of activities and goals = broader and fuller account than tests. This info can be used to help learning. ∴ more open and collaborative approach to summative assessment → learning goals rather than performance goals.This practice already evident in Queensland and Sweden - Ts' judgements used for assessment on which important decisions for students are based.
-ve arguments against - unreliability and bias. Additional work required when considering external use → external moderation procedures. Requiements of moderation wld constrain ts' use of full range of evidence available e.g. ephemeral evidence.
Harlen (2004a, 2004b)
Summative assessment = The process by which teachers gather evidence in a planned and systematic way in order to draw inferences about their students’ learning, based on their professional judgement, and to report at a particular time on their students’ achievements.
Dependability - the interdependence between the concepts of reliability and validity means that increasing one tends to decrease the other.
>Is that so???
= a combination of the two, defined in this instance as the extent to which reliability is optimized while ensuring validity.
MAIN FINDINGS***
Opportunities
- Importance of non-judgmental feedback to help stst know where they are in relation to learning goals;
- Need for teachers to share with sts the reasons for, and goals of, assessment;
- the value to Ts of using assessment to learn more about sts and to reflect;
- less emphasis on comparisons among sts & more on individual development;
- help sts to take responsibility for their learning & work towards learning goals rather than performance goals;
Using summative assessment to help learning
Let sts know where they are in their learning - self-assessment and feedback / teacher and peers.Relies on sts knowing the goals and the quality criteris used in assessing it.
T uses feedback to adjust teaching, create materials and provide opportunities for learning.
Dependibility of assessment is enhanced when Ts have thorough understanding of goals and of the nature of progression towards them.
→ Schools being able to make own work plans
→ Regular paticipation in moderation
→ Time and respect for professionalism of Ts
Three main ways of
