Classroom Assessment
Chapter 15 pag 548.( Educational
Psychology, Elliot S. et al, Mcgraw Hill)
Moises Morel Rosario - 2019-30-1-0057
Complete the activities.
1. Explain the two general functions for assessment.
Promote Learning.​ Perhaps the most important function of assessment is to increase
learning. Students learn significantly more in classrooms that integrate assessment and
instruction effectively (McGlinchey & Hixson, 2004; Stiggins, 2005). The first way in which
classroom assessments promote learning is by providing teachers with a mechanism for
reflecting on the effectiveness of their instructional methods.
Increase Motivation.​ The second reason for assessments is to motivate students to learn.
Students are more motivated to learn when they are made aware that their learning will be
assessed than when they are simply told to learn the material (Frederiksen, 1984; Halpin &
Halpin, 1982). However, only well-designed classroom assessments will promote students’
motivation to learn (Black, Harrison, Lee, Marshall, & Wiliam, 2004).
2. Difference between pretest and diagnostic test.
Pretest​ is a formative test for assessing students’ knowledge, readiness, and abilities.
Diagnostic​ test is a test to determine students’ areas of weakness.
3. List what are good moments to test.
Give students a test on the material soon after they learn it, then retest on the material later.
Also we can give test frequently because t encourages the retentions of information and
appears to be more effective.
4. What are cumulative questions?
Cumulative questions ask students to apply information learned in previous units to solve
new problem. The adjective cumulative describes the total amount of something when it's all
added together. The exam does not contain all elements from the start of the course.
to cumulate means to add into one.
5. Enumerate the types of objective testing.
An objective test is a test that has right or wrong answers and so can be marked objectively.
The main types are: (1) Matching Test, (2) Multiple Choice Test, (3) True False Tests, (4)
Correct/Incorrect Test, (5) Simple Recall Test, (6) Best Answer Test, (7) Completion Test,
and (8) Classification Test.
6. What are authentic assessments?
Authentic assess​ments ask students to use skills and knowledge to solve problems in the
same manner as if they were completing real-world tasks. It test skills as if they would
applied in real life situations. It help students analyze what they’ve learned and apply it their
own experience.
7. Describe authentic assessment approaches and how to evaluate them.
Diagnostic Testing
This testing is used to “diagnose” what skills a student has demonstrated proficiency on. Diagnostic
testing often measures for student misconceptions or where students are in stages along a
progression, such as by grade level, of concepts, or skills.
Formative Assessments
Formative assessment is often viewed as more of a natural part of the teaching and learning process.
It can include strategies such as observations, having students read out loud, and asking students
questions in class, as well as the use of different types of tools, like digital games.
Summative Assessments
Summative assessments are used as a checkpoint at the end of the year or course to assess how
much content students learned overall.
Benchmark or Interim Testing
This testing is used throughout the school year often to check whether students have mastered a unit
of instruction.
8. What would be the best approach for:
-Managing failure at school.
Failure should be avoided in school, but is not that easy. (Margaret Clifford 1990-1991)
conclude that failure can have both positive and negative effects depending on the situation
and the personality of the students involved. It is time for educators to replace easy success
with challenge. We must encourage students to reach beyond their intellectual grasp and
allow them the privilege of learning from mistakes.
-Giving feedback.
Another important use of assessments is to serve as feedback to students about their
progress in learning. To maintain their motiva​tion, students need feedback-preferably on a
frequent basis-about their progress, includ​ing about what they are doing right and wrong and
how to change (Bardine, 1999). With feedback, students can chart their progress and gain
additional motivation as they move nearer their goals. The more explicit and detailed this
feedback-as long as it is construc​tive-the better.
- Grading
Grading means translating descriptive assessment information into letters, numbers,
or other marks that indicate the quality of a student’s learning or performance.
Grading is carried out to communicate meaningful information about a student’s
learning and achievement (Green & Johnson, 2010). In this process, grades serve four
basic purposes (Airasian & Russell, 2008):
Grading purposes include a
​ dministrative​ (help determine students’ class rank, credits);
informational​ (communicate with parents, teachers, students); ​motivational​ (students’ desire
for higher grades); and ​guidance​ (select appropriate courses and levels for students).