This essay on assessment focuses on many misconceptions surrounding the topic and

how teachers can effectively structure assessments in their classroom to benefit students. Duke

first makes an important distinction between assessment and feedback, and explains that these

two terms can be misused or mislabeled in academia. Assessment, put simply is “finding out”,

whereas feedback is “communicating what you’ve found out”.

There is very often a high level of importance put on assessments and finding out what

students have learned. These tests have become sources of stress for students, with very few

opportunities for them to show what they have learned beforehand and thus, each test holds a

high level of power over a students grade and their perceived academic performance. While

assessments are necessary and important for determining what student learning has occurred

throughout the instruction period, Duke places an emphasis on frequent, and informal

assessments to gain this information. This will put less pressure on the student during each

assessment and ensure that there are many opportunities for teachers to provide effective

feedback that will help them progress.

Too often, there is an overwhelming and unnecessary stress placed on these academic

tests from the teachers and administrator’s side. This can be explained by the pressure they feel

to have students perform highly on these tests, which can be a determining factor in how funds

are distributed to different school districts and across programs. Duke argues that this pressure

can be lessened by allocating more school instruction time to practicing. This will give students

the opportunity to demonstrate what they know and are able to do independently every time they

meet with you. They should be so frequent that they become synonymous with regular

instruction. By having students use the information and skills that they’re working to master by

applying them in contexts in which they have not been explicitly taught, they will become more
confident in their knowledge and abilities. Teachers will also gain a better understanding of what

the students have learned and how well prepared they are for a more formal assessment.