Faculty of Educational Sciences

School of English Pedagogy

PIN 420 Taller de Integración de Competencias Comunicativas
Prof. Carmen J.Briceño S. – Prof. Evelyn Díaz I.

QUESTIONS FOR READING 1:

WHAT IS ASSESSMENT?

1. At the beginning of the text, the author states that by looking into the assessment procedures
within an educational system we can find out what student qualities and achievements are more
valued as well as what they are required to do in order to succeed. In your opinion, what
achievements and qualities are highly valued in the Chilean system?

2. What does the author imply when stating that assessment defines the de facto curriculum?

3. What issues are there regarding existing literature in assessment?

4. Think about the Chilean education system and its assessment practices. How would you describe
them? Would you say they are similar or different to other countries in Latin America and the rest of
the world?

5. Why is assessment seen as a human encounter?

6. Provide an example of what you would consider informal assessment and formal assessment in a
classroom (different from the ones in the text).

7. Explain the difference between assessment and marking/grading.

8. What is the meaning of the following statement: “assessment can be descriptive without becoming
judgemental”?

9. Describe the difference between formative and summative assessment.

10. On page 9, what is your understanding of Questions of Responsibility?

11. Consider the five dimensions of assessment presented by the author, which of these would you
consider as the most relevant in the process of assessment? Why?

12. Once you have finished reading, define the concepts of assessment and evaluation in your own
words.

13. After reading this chapter, which idea(s) did you find worth giving more thought to?