Professional Teacher Assessment Identity

Educational assessment seeks to evaluate students knowledge and understanding of

concepts being taught and is vital to an excellent educational program. It is through
assessment that I, as a teacher, will communicate my expectations, priorities and values to
my students. Any individual will master a concept or skill much more rapidly if he or she
receives feedback about the accuracy of what they have done. In this way, learning
becomes a cycle of activity, timely and informative feedback, revision and practice and
finally, mastery. Assessments, then, are sources of feedback rather than learning paradigms
that emphasise results or outcomes. Kivunja (2015) argues that the integration of
assessment, teaching and learning forms a basis for effective pedagogical practice, and
highlights the role that assessment plays in a quality learning environment. This quality
learning environment should be one which promotes student-centred activities, opportunities
for student self-direction, engagement with performance-based tasks and high but realistic
behavioural and scholastic expectations. I agree that these expectations may be
collaboratively developed between the students, teacher, and school community, in order to
give students a sense of ownership over their learning (Queensland Department of
Education, Training Employment and Early Childhood [Queensland DETEEC], as cited in
Kivunja, 2015, p. 52). In this environment, a transmission approach, whereby students
simply reproduce information that they have passively received from the teacher or
textbooks (Readman & Allen, 2014) is inappropriate. Rather, more formative assessment is
appropriate, in order for me to monitor and identify students' learning progress and needs.

Designing assessment to gather evidence on the degree to which students have realised
specific outcomes can be purposeful if curriculum standards are held at the forefront when
designing learning opportunities. Assessment should be informed and shaped by the
objectives that guide the design of each learning experience. When designing lesson plans, I
will ensure that my objectives relate to the Victorian Teaching Professional Code of Conduct,
as well as the needs of the students and the requirements of the curriculum. Incorporating
student

interests

and

ascertaining

developmental

levels,

prior

knowledge,

any

misconceptions and specific learning needs is vital to planning for teaching (Woolfolk &
Margetts, 2013). Learning is essentially a process of interpreting new information by
applying existing knowledge and understanding to new experiences and concepts (Wiggins
& McTighe, 2011). Without the required background knowledge, students cannot build on
their current knowledge to learn new things, and academic content is not likely to hold any
meaning (Killen, 2005). Ascertaining prior knowledge, developing objectives based on
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intended learning and planning learning experiences that will allow students to realise these
objectives is known as constructive alignment. Using this approach to construct a body of
knowledge and beliefs heightens the likelihood that students will achieve the goals that they
have been set (Readman & Allen, 2014).

Marking students according to the level of accomplishment attained at the end of a unit of
work, or summative assessment, has its place in reporting on learning, so that parents and
future teachers can understand a child's progress in relation to institution, district or national
standards. Principle 1.6 of the Victorian Teaching Professional Code of Conduct, that
"Teachers maintain a professional relationship with parents (guardians and caregivers)"
(Victorian Institute of Teaching [VIT], 2015) places me in a professional relationship with the
parents of my students and the Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership
(AITSL) Standard 5.5 requires that I report on student learning (AITSL, 2014). How though,
does a mark or grade actually inform future teaching and learning? Feedback should be
immediate in order to be truly effective (Brookhart, 2008). In my teaching, I will use
summative assessment in order to report to parents, and enable me to monitor the quality of
my teaching programs in relation to student outcomes, however I find that my personal
philosophy aligns more with a formative approach to assessment.

Formative assessment should incorporate a variety of methods, including observation, openended questioning, checklists, project work, posing problems, practical reports and role
plays (Woolfolk & Margetts, 2013). As a teacher, this kind of monitoring will enable me to
interpret student data which will assist with my own planning, enabling me to cater to
students with a variety of understandings, skills, perceptions, attitudes and diverse learning
styles, and direct my teaching towards identified strengths and weaknesses. Using formative
assessment will also enable me to give meaningful feedback (Westwood, 2013) as per
AITSL Standard 5.2, focusing students on the process of learning, rather than the bestowal
of a mark, at which point Wiliam (as cited in Readman & Allen, 2014, p. 17) argues that
comments and feedback are greatly reduced in value, as students focus on the mark and not
the learning that has, and still needs to take place.

Practices such as assessment and reporting influence students' and society's learning
priorities and attitudes (Duchesne et al, 2013). In the current era of standards and
accountability, the use of formal testing has increased, if anything, however another of the
problems with this is that these tests tend to require good reading comprehension and
writing ability, which immediately disadvantages any students who struggle with literacy for
any reason, including physical, behavioural or cognitive disabilities, or those who speak
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English as a second language (Westwood, 2013). Planning for diversity aligns with Principle
1.1 of the Victorian Teaching Professional Code of Conduct, that "Teachers provide
opportunities for all students to learn" (VIT, 2015). This includes acknowledging that cultures
differ in their perceptions of what constitutes intelligence, and that students' understandings
about learning is reflective of the cultural practices to which they are accustomed. This is
important to me, as one of the cornerstones of my personal teaching philosophy is equity of
educational opportunity for every child. Teachers and schools often convey the beliefs and
practices of the mainstream culture, even without deliberately intending to do so, for
example, by expecting students to be aware of the implicit rules of interaction within the
classroom. Students who are unused to these, or who may use alternative forms of
communication that are not recognised by the teacher, may thus be placed at a
disadvantage (Duchesne et al, 2013). It is a requirement of AITSL that teachers meet their
professional ethics and responsibilities through the provision of an inclusive learning
environment that caters to all students (AITSL, 2014).

A short time ago, 'assessment' to me meant testing or summative assessment, the

attainment of a good mark in order to validate work I had done. However, I valued this
validation more than the learning itself, which is probably due to the environment in which I
was taught as a child. Too much of my own primary education was formal test-based; I
worked hard for ticks and stars and stickers, which, while motivating for a student like me
who was awarded these relatively often, did not teach me to value learning for learning's
sake, nor was I in any way involved in the construction of my own learning environment.
Greenfield and Suzuki's argument (as cited in Duchesne, McMaugh, Bochner, & Krause,
2013, p. 382) that evaluation and reward based on individual achievement creates
competitive tendencies amongst students rings true, as thus was my own experience. These
competitive tendencies may be reinforced by norm-referenced assessment and reporting
procedures that compare individuals and detract from the creation of a supportive,
collaborative environment.

I think I had assessment and reporting somewhat mixed up, namely, that I considered the
main purpose of assessment to be for reporting, and I didn't really see the benefit of that to
students. However, the principles for assessment as defined by the Victoria State
Government Department of Education and Training (Victoria DET) clearly state that the key
purpose of assessment is to better student performance through an understanding of how
students learn, the clear setting of goals and objectives, attention to outcomes and
processes, the provision of constructive feedback and its use as an integral component of
unit design (Victoria DET, 2016). I now believe strongly that the formative uses of
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assessment are the most important tools in teaching. I believe that students learn best in a
setting that supports their interests and encourages them to instigate their own learning. I
want my students to be able to see assessment as something positive, not something to be
feared or something that causes constant disheartenment. I want them to see it as a process
of helping them to learn and achieve goals they set for themselves, rather than a tool for
comparing them to other students and showing up their failures. My goal for assessment is
that it will uncover each student's potential for learning, and identify the behavioural and
educational interventions that will give the student the best opportunity to realise this
potential.