TRISHA JANE BLANTUCAS
MAED-Eng
SCHOLARLY ESSAY ON THE IMPORTANCE OF ASSESSMENT
According to Martha L.A Stassen et al, assessment is the systematic collection
and analysis of information to improve student learning. Through student assessment,
teachers will be able to monitor and measure the effectiveness of their strategies in
teaching. Assessment results will help the teachers incorporate effective teaching
strategies into the system, and revise ineffective ones in order to make tailored-fit
activities to cater variety of learners’ needs and interests.
Assessment has become the heart of the teaching-learning process. It does not
just help the learners, but it also provides great benefit to the teachers as it quantifies
their success and helps them determine whether the learners have gained sufficient
knowledge in a certain subject area.
A variety of techniques, approaches and strategies can be used to assess
student learning; it can be informal, formative or summative. In order to develop
learners’ critical thinking skills, reasoning, and reflection, a teacher must be flexible
at all times.
According to Dr. Chris Stabile, “effective teachers are great at being flexible”.
This line reminds me and all other teachers that in order for us to obtain a reliable and
a valid assessment result, we must know how to make adjustments in our approaches
to a variety of learners. First of all, we must conduct Multiple Intellegence Test to
find out the learning styles of our learners. From there, we will be able to generate
different strategies which can meet students’ interest and needs.
“His/her class always makes loud noises” A common comment an English
teacher receives. I believe that learning should not just be meaningful, but also fun.
Academic noise is a lot better than a class with full of passive learners. Personally, I
always try to integrate different fun and engaging activities during my English lessons,
allowing them to present ideas in a way they are comfortable with such as having role
plays, presenting a poem, singing a song, games, and other activities related to a
certain topic. I also assess learners’ understanding by looking at how they respond to
questions, worksheets and other materials. It was not as easy as I thought it would be,
but seeing my learners having fun and at the same time learning can relieve the
exhaustion every after classes.
My ideas on assessment is still a “work in progress”, because as stated above,
“effective teachers are great at being flexible”. We should be open to newer ideas and
newer ways to hone our crafts. As they say, “Once a teacher, always a learner”. My
ideas and my passion for teaching and assessing student learning will continuously
grow, and as I share my passion to my learners, they will also develop positivity and
enthusiasm for learning and lastly, build a strong foundation for life-long learning.