Things to Consider When Creating Assessments

At the end of a section of learning, it’s time for the teacher to create an assessment. This could be the
end of a unit or chapter, a summative assessment needs to be created. Instruction is over, and we need
to see what the student knows and has retained.

Where should a teacher start? The first question that should always be asked is, “Do I even need an
assessment?” This may seem like a crazy question. “If I don’t give a test, what will I put in the
gradebook?” But if we stop to think about it, not all learning is created equally. In the mind of a student,
if something is tested, it matters because it is for a grade. So as teachers, if we test everything equally,
we are sending the message that everything matters to the same degree.

I would contend that most teachers don’t believe this. Does having the correct verb tense matter as
much as knowing what a gerund is? Is the ability to solve an equation equal to the ability to find the area
of a circle? So, before we give a test just because the chapter is over, make sure to self-assess what
really needs mastered—and therefore assessed.

1. Measuring Students’ Knowledge

If a test is needed, what’s the next step? I would recommend not just pulling out the end-of-unit test
from the textbook series and giving it to the students. These assessments are a good starting point, but
they probably aren’t going to meet the needs of the students. To use them as a starting point, go
through the assessment and measure the cognitive level of each question. Most of the time, we find
that the majority of the questions are at a basic recall or knowledge level—this is particularly true of
multiple-choice questions. Even some of the short-answer questions on a test don’t really expect
students to analyze or evaluate at a higher cognitive level.

Next, see how hard (or easy) it’s going to be for the student to correctly guess the answer. This means
that some questions are much easier for students to guess a right answer (think true/false vs. essay
response). Most teachers are not assessment gurus who know the ins and out of the psychometrics that
test makers use to create nationally normed assessments, but that is okay. Teachers don’t have to be
rocket scientists to figure out that if too many questions can be guessed on, the data isn’t very reliable.
A few multiple-choice questions are okay in a test, but if that is all the test is composed of, we might not
achieve the goal of measuring what the students really know.

2. Creating Your Assessment

If a test is required and a teacher feels they have a reliable handle on the questions being asked, here
are a few other things to think about:

• How long will the students need to finish the assessment?

This question is very practical, and it does make a big difference. If students need more than one
class, will the data be reliable? And is it worth sacrificing the instructional time to do all that assessing?
There is no right answer to this, but these are reflective questions the teacher should ask.
• How much time will you have for grading?

Again, this is very practical, but there is a reality to the workload of a teacher. Essays are probably
the best way to gather authentic information about student learning, but unless a teacher has a great
deal of time to provide good feedback, essay tests can be fairly impractical. With that said, essay tests
are critical for students to be able to complete. To compose while thinking is a higher-level skill that is
needed in the postsecondary world. If students are accustomed to only multiple-choice tests, they will
struggle with this in college and beyond. Make sure there is time for grading, but don’t cheat the
students by only ever giving assessments that are quick to grade.

• Could using technology help either of these time issues?

This is probably one of the most critical questions that doesn't get asked. There are some great tools
for collecting feedback from students quickly, and many of these can be used for summative
assessments at the end of learning. Take for example the MimioVote™ formative assessment system,
which is great for quick formative assessments. This can also be a time-saver for teachers who need to
give a summative assessment, but would like to be efficient with their time and grading.

Conclusion;

By reviewing all of these concepts, which teachers should really do for any assessment they give, data
will be better and both the teacher and student will know if the instruction has created retention in the
information presented.

The most basic thing to remember for using formative assessment effectively is it's "a multistep process"
and not a particular tool. It must be planned, it must generate evidence, and it must lead to an
instantaneous adjustment of teaching and learning strategies.

Things to Remember for Using Formative Assessment Effectively

Here's how to use formative assessment effectively.

Using formative assessment effectively in our classrooms is one of the best ways we can help our
students thrive. For our modern learners (or for any learner), formative assessment fits much better
with student needs. It also better compliments the teaching and learning outcomes schools have in
place.

According to W. James Popham, in his book Transformative Assessment:

"Formative assessment is given credit for gains in student learning, amongst the largest ever reported
for educational interventions."

We all know that formative assessment is often contrasted with summative assessment. Formative
assessment takes place throughout instruction. It's an observation, a snapshot of where one is at a given
moment in time. This snapshot helps us to adjust both our learning as students and our instruction as
teachers. In a nutshell, when we're using formative assessment effectively we're addressing 3 questions:
Where am I going?

Where am I now?

How will I get there from here?

*Digging Deeper

W. James Popham takes formative assessment to the next level by clarifying and expanding its
definition. In doing so he's giving us some real points to consider when using formative assessment
effectively. Popham starts by citing the formal definition by a group of professionals called FAST SCASS.
He expands that definition with the following caveats:

• Planned process—Popham warns, "An educator who refers to "a formative test" has not quite
grasped the concept, because there's no such thing. There are tests that can be used as part of the
multistep formative assessment process, but each of those tests is only a part of the process."

• Assessment-elicited evidence—The aim of assessment is to garner "evidence of the student's' current

level of mastery with respect to certain skills or bodies of knowledge."

• Teachers' instructional adjustments—"It's worth stressing that because the formative assessment
process deals with ongoing instruction, any teacher-made modifications in instructional activities must
focus on students' mastery of the curricular aims currently being pursued. It's not a matter of looking at
test data and deciding to try a new approach next time; it's a matter of doing something different (or
differently) now." In other words, adjustment happens in real time in the classroom.

• Students' learning tactic adjustments—Students also take a look at assessment evidence and adjust
their learning strategies as needed. Says Popham: "The decisions to adjust or not to adjust, and the
decisions about the nature of any adjustments (the what and the how) need to be made on the spot or
almost on the spot—when there's still instructional and learning time available."

Prepared by:

LOLITA B. MENDOZA