Ііі. Function and types of primary school learning assessment

The function of primary school learning assessments is to establish how much a particular child or group of children is learning. Classroom-based assessments, like teacher-administered tests and assignments given to the students, can assess an individual student's learning progress. Larger testing groups, like CSAP and the results aggregated in the NAEP, can help to establish how groups of students are progressing in certain subject areas, like mathematics, writing, geography and history.

Primary school learning assessments can contain different features, depending on whether they are designed for individual assessment or for the assessment of larger groups of students. Teachers trying to evaluate how much the students have learned can be creative with tests and learning assessments. Anything from individual interviews-asking a student questions about the material and evaluating the responses-to formal written exams-like spelling exams-can give a teacher a good sense of how a child is progressing. Assessing larger groups of students usually involves multiple-choice examinations, to facilitate machine grading, and short written essays [3, 25].

There are many types of primary school learning assessments. One way of defining the types of assessments is to look at them as either formal or informal assessments. Formal assessments include tests, assignments and homework. Informal assessments include a teacher asking questions in class or talking with students about material previously presented. Teachers in a class have the most flexibility with selecting the type of assessment. Assessing larger groups of children almost always requires the application of formal educational assessments [4, 73].

It is important for a teacher to assess how each student is progressing. Understanding where a particular child is having trouble or falling behind allows a teacher to adjust teaching styles and to provide additional help to a particular student who is having trouble in particular areas.

This definition provides us with the opportunity to look at another two types of assessment:

• assessment of learning

• assessment for learning.

Assessment of learning looks at a student’s level of performance on a specific task or at the end of a unit of teaching and learning. The information we gain from this kind of assessment can be used for reporting.

When deciding on a level of achievement, we need to make on balance judgements that best fit. For example: ‘This piece of work demonstrates strengths here and weaknesses here, but on balance, it fits best into this judgement. An on-balance judgement does not just focus on a single piece of work.

We also need to understand the context of a standards framework, specifically, content and performance standards.

Assessment for learning should occur as a regular part of teaching and learning The information we gain from assessment activities should be used to shape our future teaching and learning processes [5, 59].

We should remember that assessment for learning is an essential and integrated part of the teaching and learning process that reflects a belief that all students can improve. It helps students understand and recognize the standards they are aiming for. It also provides feedback that helps them understand the next steps in learning and to plan how to achieve them.

So, what do we mean by assessment? It is the process of identifying, gathering and interpreting information about students’ learning. The central purpose of assessment is to provide information on student achievement and progress and set the direction for ongoing teaching and learning.