Introduction

Lesson planning, which involves decisions about the pedagogical dimensions, is often
viewed as a key aspect of teaching a successful lesson. During the planning phase, the
teacher makes decisions about goals, activities, resources, timing, grouping, and other
aspects of the lesson. Even though a lesson may have already been planned, a teacher
will still need to make decisions that relate to the needs of his/her specific class,
adopting the lesson from the book in different ways to make it better suit the class.

In this context, this article sheds light on the high importance of lesson plans in
teaching.

Evaluation is a part of life. Even in small things like which dress to wear for work, what
gift to buy or when to cross the road, evaluation has to be made. In education,
evaluation is all the more important because only through evaluation a teacher can judge
the growth and development of students, the changes taking place in their behaviour, the
progress they are making in the class and also the effectiveness of their own teaching in
the class. Thus, evaluation has been an integral part of any teaching and learning
situation. In fact, evaluation plays a pivotal role in deciding what the learners learn and
what the teachers teach. It exerts an overwhelming influence on our system of
education. The National Curriculum Framework for School Education, 2000, observes,
"Teaching for successful learning cannot occur without high quality evaluation." The
quality of any educational system is, thus, directly linked with the quality of evaluation
(Mamta, 1988).

This unit will help the teachers to have an idea of the concept of evaluation, types of
evaluation, purpose of evaluation, principles of evaluation and characteristics of a good
evaluation programme which in turn will enable them to design a good evaluation
programme for their classes and utilize evaluation nieaningfully.
Planning a lesson

Planning a lesson is an art of combining several different elements into a cohesive and
coherent whole so that a lesson has an identity that students can recognize, work within,
and react to. A lesson plan is a step-by-step guide that helps teachers in maintaining a
standard teaching pattern and does not let the class deviate from the topic. It also
provides teachers with learning objectives, quality questions, supplies, and activities
(Pachina, 2019). These accounts reveal that a lesson plan is a teacher’s daily guide for
how will be taught in the classroom, what students need to learn, and how learning will
be measured.

Ur (1996) states that a lesson plan is a type of organized events which are concerned
with learning as their main objective, involve the participation of learners and teachers,
and are limited and pre-scheduled as regards time, place, content, and membership.
Furthermore, Ur views planning lesson as a crucial activity for foreseeing classroom
and a tool that can be questioned after all. A lesson plan does not lose value after
classes, it can still be a helpful subject of analysis. Teachers will often question and
examine factors that arose during classes to determine how far the lesson plan could
have failed to help.

While according to Hamer (1991), planning a lesson is a psychological matter. The

teacher already has an idea of what and how they will do during classes and what
difficulties might arise during lesson. Despite the fact, it is still reasonable to assume
that a lesson plan is not an exact picture of what will happen in the classroom.
Eventually a good teacher will not focus on carefully following lesson plan but
effectively responding to the actual classroom reality, one of the biggest challenges
teachers face. He also mentions that the proper lesson planning helps to empower
teachers’ identity anticipating potential problems rather than depending upon hastily
scribbled notes.

Therefore, it is, as explained above, important to think carefully about as many aspects
as thinkable before going to class, that is, whilst planning lessons. Apart from what we
think should be appropriate to teach our students or what has been included in the
syllabus, it is just as important as that to match the contents with the pupils and their
needs. Therefore planning a daily lesson is the end result of a complete planning process
that includes the yearly, term, and unit plans.
Lesson Plans in Class

Teachers draw their lesson plans in which they think forward about the content and how
pupils might respond to it and select strategies and remedial activities in case pupils
have difficulties. At that stage teachers have a lot to take into account so that everything
has been dealt with in advance. However, as one might say, theory generally fails to
cover the reality. This is now the time when lesson plan takes its place and teacher faces
the real situation wherein, as highlighted previously, will decide if they ignore
unpredicted scenarios and move on with the plan or forget the plan and tackle them and
try to get learning back.

It is, however, recommendable that the teacher deal with whatsoever the room might
abruptly bring on in order to recover normal environment and get learning back, as
Hamer (1991 p. 365), states "Planning a lesson is not the same as scripting a lesson.
Lessons are not plays where students and their teacher have to remember and reproduce
words in a pre-ordained sequence. Nor are they like western classical music where all
the notes have to be played exactly as they are written".

The teacher is therefore challenged to be focused on effectively responding to

unforeseen cases during lesson and not on limitedly following the lesson plan. The
lesson plan is not a sacred instrument that cannot be violated. As far as achieving lesson
aims is concerned, the teacher can modify it several ways on condition that by the end
students will have acquired and learned the material reproductively.

Importantance of lesson planning and why planning

Language teachers ask themselves why they should bother writing plans for every
lesson. Some teachers write down their elaborated daily lesson plan while others may go
without any written plan. After getting graduations, many teachers give up writing
lesson plans. However, each teacher enters a classroom with some sort of planning.
Lesson plan helps language teachers think about the lesson in advance to resolve
problems and difficulties, to provide a structure for a lesson, to provide a ‘map’ for the
teachers to follow, and to provide a record of what has been taught, to ensure the teacher
has anticipated potential problems and how to ever come them, to ensure the teacher has
all the materials and equipment they need. A lesson plan is for promoting teacher’s
creativity, confidence, organize thoughts, foster high-quality teaching, and helps to
gather authentic resources (Pachia, 2019).

In connection with the importance of the lesson plan, Richards and Renandya (2004)
concede that the success with which a teacher conducts a lesson is often thought to
depend on the effectiveness with which the lesson was planned. A lesson plan is a sign
of the professionalism of a teacher. It makes us consider their teaching situation and
students. In the same connection, Farrell (1964), cited in Richards and Renandya (2004)
concedes the importance of a lesson plan with this example;

“Would you fall me, please which way I ought to go from here?” Asked Alice”, “[t]hat
depends a good deal on which you want to get to,” said the Cheshire cat
(as quoted in Richards & Renandya, 2004, p. 30).

A lesson plan is valued not only in physical presence classes but equally important in
online classes for providing resources and tools, bring possible changes in the subject
matter, enhance technological skills for classroom presentation and preparation (Pereira,
2019). Here are the insights from these reviews of a lesson plan in English language
teaching:
 A plan can help the teacher think about content, materials, sequencing, timing,
and activities.
 A plan provides security in the form of a map in the sometimes unpredictable
atmosphere of a classroom.
 A plan is a log of what has been taught.
 A plan can help a substitute to smoothly take over a class when the teacher
cannot teach.
 The lesson plan also benefits students because it takes into account the different
backgrounds, interests, learning styles, and abilities of the students in one class.
 A plan gives the teacher such different ideas as what to teach, whom to teach,
where to teach, when to teach, why to teach, and how to teach.
 A teacher can feel relaxed and comfortable if he/she has entered the classroom
with the lesson plan.
 The teacher can satisfy the head teacher and can guide the newcomer teacher
with the help of a lesson plan.
 It can substitute to smoothly take over a class when the teacher cannot teach.
  It gives the teacher ideas about his limitations on teaching
 It makes the teacher capable of evaluating the course, students, and himself

From all these discourses, it is derived that a teacher has to plan lessons for both,
internal and external reasons. Teachers plan for internal reasons to feel more confident,
to learn the subject matter better, to run the lesson smoothly, to assimilate the problem
before they happen as well as to present the lesson systematically. And the teachers plan
the lesson for external reasons to satisfy the expectation of the head teacher or to guide
the newly entered teacher if needed.

Furthermore, from all the things mentioned above, it can be derived that lesson plan
helps the teacher to prepare the lesson and helps to decide exactly what they will do and
how they will do it.

Lesson plan background elements

As teachers represent their ideas about the lesson, there are special elements that should
be consistent or information that should always appear on the lesson plan, according to
Jeremy Hamer (1991)

 Aims (objectives of the lesson)

 Class description (what grade, how many male/female students, time length)

 Assumptions (what we assume students may know or can do)

 Skill and language focus (what language and skills students are going to be
focusing on)

 Timetable fit (we need to say where the lesson fits in a sequence of classes-
what happens before and after it.)

 Potential learner problems and possible solutions (anticipated difficulties and

possible solutions)

What do we need to know in lesson planning?

 The age/ level/ needs of the students and what students already know
  The time available
 The aim of the whole lesson
 What teachers and students do at each stage?
 About the languages, we need to teach (use, meaning, form, pronunciation, etc.)
 What materials/ aids and equipment teacher will need?
 What’s the aim of the lesson?
 How to set objectives?

Evaluating Lesson effectiveness

As pointed out above, accomplishing the lesson in the classroom is not actually the last
thing teachers ought to do; now is time to think over the lesson in a way of evaluation.
This is the final part of daily lesson planning that happens after the teaching has ended,
and the teacher then evaluates the success or failure of the lesson. A teacher who wishes
to improve the curriculum, organization, and instruction should daily evaluate the
lesson. Evaluating lesson plans helps the teachers improve their practice, develop strong
reflection habits and meet the needs of the learners in front of them (Streans, 2021).

It is always advisable to stop and think after giving a lesson in order to make sure it was
a good time for both students and teachers and that the lesson objectives were achieved.
However, this evaluation should have reflective purposes as Ur (1999 p.219) explains:

This is not to indulge in self-congratulation or vain regrets, but in order to

have a basis for your own learning from reflection on experience; this lesson
was unsatisfactory, what could I have done to improve it? Or: this lesson
was good, what was it exactly that made it so?

Evaluation criteria

In this context, Ur (1996) concedes that it is important to think after teaching a lesson
and ask whether it was a good one or not and why. She has presented the following
criteria for evaluating the effectiveness of the lesson plan:

 The learners were active all the time

 The learners were attentive all the time

 The learners enjoyed themselves, were motivated

  The class seemed to be learning the material well

 The lesson went according to plan

 The language was used communicatively throughout

 The learners were engaging with the foreign language throughout.

Similarly, Streans (2021) presents the three questions that the teachers ask themselves to
evaluate the effectiveness of a good lesson plan:

o What went well in this lesson, and why?

o What went badly in this lesson, and why?
o Did I meet my objectives in this lesson? Why or why not?

Apart from these criteria, the teacher may ask the following questions to his/her students
to evaluate his/her lesson:

 What do you think today’s lesson was about?

 What part was easy?
 What part was difficult?
 What changes would you suggest the teacher make?

Models and stages of lesson planning

Lesson planning is a systematic process. It is guided by the principle of establishing a

clear aim. There are several approaches to lesson planning.

Yinger (1980) develops an alternative model in which planning takes place in the stages
(Richards & Renandya, 2004, p. 31).

 The first stage consists of problem conception in which planning starts with a
discovery cycle of the integration of the teacher’s goals, knowledge, and
experience.
 The second stage sees the problem formulated and a solution achieved.
 The third stage involves implementing the plan along with its evaluation.

In a similar connection, Tickoo (2007) has schematized the following ways as the stages
of lesson planning:
 a. adequate preparation
b. good review and formation of objectives
c. aids and equipment
d. smooth preparation
e. rich opportunities for pupil participation
f. good summary and closure (pp.219-227)

Moreover, Shrum and Glisan (1994, as cited in Farrel, in Richard & Renandya, 2004,
p.33) also pointed out the five stages model of lesson plan including teacher’s role and
students’ role:

Lesson plan structure

Lesson phase Role of teacher Role of students

i. Perspective (Opening) - Asks what ss have learned in the previous lesson.

Previews new lesson Tell what they’ve learned previously. Respond to preview.
ii. Simulation - Prepares students for new activity Presents attention grabberRelate
the activity to their lives Respond to attention grabber.
iii. Instruction/Participation - Present activity, checks for understanding, encourages
involvement, do activity, show understanding, interact with others.
iv. Closure - Asks what students have learned, previews future lessons, tell what
they have learned, give input on future lessons.
v. Follow up - Presents other activities to reinforce the same concepts, presents an
opportunity for interaction, do new activities, interact with others.

Concept of Evaluation of the teaching and learning process

One of the reasons for the problems regarding evaluation is that several school teachers
are not aware of the concept of evaluation, what is involved in the process of evaluation
and how to utilize results fruitfully. This unawareness of some teachers has led them to
test their students in a haphazard manner in both internal and external examinations.
The situation requires that the teachers must be well trained in all the aspects of
evaluation in order to improve the quality of education (Gronlund, 1981).
Meaning of Evaluation

According to Srivastava (1989), evaluation has a wide meaning. It goes beyond

measurement. It involves measurements, comparisons, assessments, value judgements
on which certain decisions can be adapted to optimise and activate the areas under
evaluation. Evaluation is a systematic review of the value or characteristics of a
process, an action plan (program) or an object. Evaluation is part of a decision-making
process. It includes issuing an opinion on value by systematically collecting and
analysing information about it in relation to certain criteria.

The word evaluation is often confused with testing and measurement. Therefore, many
times teachers who give a test to the students, think that they are evaluating the
achievement of the students. Testing is only a technique to collect evidence regarding
pupil behaviour. Measurement on the other hand, is limited to quantitative description
of the pupil behaviour. Evaluation is a more comprehensive term which includes testing
and measurement and also qualitative description of the pupil behaviour. It also includes
value judgment regarding the worth or desirability of the behaviour measured or
assessed. Therefore, Gronlund (1981) has indicated this relationship in the following
equation :

Evaluation = quantitative description of pupils (measurement)

+ value judgment

Evaluation = qualitative description of pupils (non-measurement)

+ value judgment

Thus, evaluation may not be based on measurement alone but it goes beyond the simple
quantitative score. For example, if a child gets 60 marks in an English language test, it
alone does not tell us whether their achievement is satisfactory or not. It is only when
we compare this mark of 60 percent with the marks obtained by other children in the
class or with certain criteria laid down in advance, or with the child's own marks in
previous tests, we are able to judge or evaluate whether his/her achievement in English
is satisfactory or not. Thus, a students' achievement may be viewed at three different
levels:

1. Self-referenced: how the student is progressing with reference to himself/herself

2. Criterion-referenced: how the student is progressing with reference to the criteria
set by the teacher.

3. Norm-referenced: how the student is progressing with reference to his/her peer

group.

Evaluation has been defined by various educationists in different ways.

The term evaluation conveys several meanings. The definition of the word itself,
according to the Webster Dictionary (2017), evaluation is estimation or determining the
value of something. So, these processes are used in the field of education very often to
test the quality of teaching and learning processes. That is done to let the educational
institutes find out what more can be done to improve the education offered by those
educational institutes.

Some definitions were found cited in article of 'The Journal of Educational Research'
authorized by L.L Boykin (1958) :

 According to James M. Bradfield : Evaluation is the assignment of symbols to

phenomenon, in order to characterize the worth or value of a phenomenon,
usually with reference to some cultural or scientific standards.
 According to Hanna komorowska : Evaluation is the process of gathering and
interpreting evidence on change in the behaviour of all students as they progress
through school.
 Thorndike and Hegan :The term evaluation is closely related to measurement. It
is in some respect, inclusive including informal and intuitive judgement of
pupil’s progress. Evaluation is describing something in term of selected
attributes and judging the degree of acceptability or suitability of that which has
been described.
 Norman E. Gronlund and Robert L. Linn : Evaluation is a systematic process of
collecting, analysing and interpreting information to determine the extent to
which pupil’s are achievement instructional objectives.

Tyler (1450, as cited in the book of Gronlund, 1981) defined evaluation as "a systematic
process of determining the extent to which educational objectives are achieved by
pupils". This definition indicates that evaluation is a systematic process, and it omits the
casual, informal or uncontrolled observation of the pupils. The definition also implies
that objectives of education have to be identified in advance. Without predetermined
objectives, it is not possible to judge the progress, growth and development of students.

Thus evaluation is a systematic process of collecting evidence about students' progress

and achievement in both cognitive and non-cognitive areas of learning on the basis of
which judgments are formed and decisions are made. It has the following three
components:

 Information gathering
 Information processing
 Judgment forming and decision making

Evaluation is not always the end of a course. We not only want to know whether a
student has developed a certain ability stated in the educational objectives or not but we
also need to know about the progress during the course of teaching and learning. Thus,
it is a continuous process. Well-run classes and effective programs are those that can
demonstrate the achievement of results, results are derived from good management,
good management is based on good decision making, good decision making depends on
good information, good information requires good data and careful analysis of the data.
These are all critical elements of evaluation (Gronlund, 1981).

Therefore we can say that; Evaluation adds the ingredient of value judgement to
assessment.

1) It is concerned with the application of its findings and implies some

judgement of the effectiveness, social utility or desirability of a product,
process or progress in terms of carefully defined and agreed upon
objectives or values.
2) Evaluation often includes recommendations for constructive action.
Thus, evaluation is a qualitative measure of the prevailing situation.
3) It calls for evidence of effectiveness, suitability, or goodness of the
programme.

Evaluation in teaching and learning process

Evaluation is an important component of the teaching-learning process, it helps teachers
and learners to improve teaching and learning. It is a continuous process not a periodic
exercise, as it helps in forming the values of judgement, educational status, or
achievement of students. In one form or the other evaluation is inevitable in teaching-
learning, as in all fields of activity of education judgements need to be made. It is an
integral part of any teaching and learning programme, whenever a question is asked and
answered evaluation takes place. Thus, both teaching and evaluation overlap and merge
into each other. In fact, it is not possible to have teaching and learning without
evaluation. Hence, it is desirable that teachers must acquire knowledge and
understanding about the various aspects of evaluation and its application in classrooms
(Srivastava, 1989).

Both teaching and evaluation are based on the instructional objectives which provide
direction to them. Instructional objectives are those desirable behaviours which are to be
developed in students. It is for achieving the instructional objectives that instruction is
provided and it is to see whether the instructional objectives have been achieved and to
what extent, that the evaluation is made. The interrelationship of objectives,
instructional process or the learning experience and evaluation in a programme of
teaching can be expressed more clearly through the following diagram:

Instructional Objectives

Learning Experience or the

instruction provided Evaluation

The above diagram illustrates that the three components of teaching and learning
constitute an integrated network in which each component depends on the other. Thus,
through evaluation, the teacher not only assesses as to how far the student has achieved
the objectives of teaching but also judges the effectiveness of the learning experiences,
methodologies, means and the materials used for achieving those objectives (Gronlund,
1981).

Types of Evaluation
According to Gronlund (1990) / Bloom (1970), there are many types of Evaluation in
education. These include Formative, Summative, Placement and Diagnostic Evaluation.

1 Formative Evaluation

The evaluation which is done during the teaching–learning process to assess the
ongoing termed formation of knowledge and understanding of students is called as
formative evaluation. It answers the following pertinent questions regarding the process
and product of teaching and learning:

• Whether the objectives of teaching a particular topic or content or course or

curriculum are being achieved?

• Whether student’s cognitive, affective and psychomotor domains are forming

properly?

• Whether learners’ scholastic and non-scholastic areas of personality are developing

properly?

• Learners’ progress is satisfactory or not?

• Whether the predetermined objectives of any on-going educational program are being
fulfilled?

The formative evaluation is a monitoring type of evaluation which is used to monitor

the progress of students during the class, course or session. After Formative Evaluation,
feedback is given to students, so that they can proceed accordingly. The Formative
Evaluation is aimed at improving the quality of teaching-learning process.

2. Placement Evaluation

Through placement evaluation, the entry behaviour of the student is assessed. In this
case, the students are given admission to new courses according to their intelligence,
attitude, motivation, aptitude etc. This type of evaluation questions

• Does the student possess the knowledge and skills needed to begin the planned
instruction?

• To what extent has the student already developed the understanding and skills that are
the goals of the planned instruction
• To what extent do the student’s interests, work habits and personality characteristics
indicate that one mode of instruction might be better than other?

The goals of placement assessment are to determine for each student the position in the
instructional sequence and the mode of instruction that is most beneficial, for example,
the B.Ed. entrance test is conducted to give admission to the students in B.Ed. course.
This type of evaluation is called ‘placement evaluation’

3. Diagnostic Evaluation

It is concerned with the persistent learning difficulties that are left unresolved by the
corrective prescriptions of formative assessment. It aims at identifying or diagnosing the
weaknesses of students in a given course of instruction. Diagnostic evaluation involves
the use of specially prepared diagnostic tests and various observational techniques. The
aim of diagnostic assessment is to determine the causes of persistent learning problems
of students and to formulate a plan for remedial action. When a teacher finds that in
spite of the use of various alternative methods and techniques, the student still faces
learning difficulties, he takes recourse to a detailed Diagnosis. This type of Evaluation
includes vision tests, hearing tests and other tests used to determine how the student
approaches a reading assignment, as well as it examines whether the student relies on
pictures, sound, context clues, skip over unfamiliar

4. Summative Evaluation

As the name indicates, summative evaluation is done at the end of a course semester ,or
a class or topic. It is meant to evaluate the quality of the final product and to find out the
extent to which the instructional objectives have been achieved

No remedial teaching is given after summative evaluation. The process of certification

is done on the basis of the results of summative evaluation. Results of this Evaluation
reflect the effectiveness of the curriculum transaction process. Important examples of
summative evaluations are annual exams, semester end exams and terminal exams. This
is much more concerned with judging about the final product The important tools of
summative evaluation are achievement test, rating scales project evaluation by experts,
interviews, viva-voce examination, etc. The characteristic features of summative
evaluation are as follows:
• This evaluation is conducted at the end of a topic, class, chapter, unit or course of
instruction

• Evaluation results give the final progress of the students in a class, in a topic, in a unit,
in a course or in any educational programme

• Summative Evaluation results are used for preparing merit list, finalizing position,
taking decisions of pass/fail/promotion and awarding degrees or diplomas.

Function of Evaluation

Jahanian (2012) sees evaluation as the process by which an educational and training
procedure is compared with its predetermined goals to find out their fulfillment.

Educational evaluation plays a vital role in the teaching-learning experiences. It is an

integral part of the instructional programs. It provides information on the basis of which
many decisions are taken. Its functions with respect to teaching and learning can be in
the following categories:

 Placement Functions: Educational evaluation studies and pinpoints the entry

behaviuor of in all learning endeavours, gives room for specialized learners'
instruction, and enhances individualization of instruction;
 Instructional Functions: assists teachers in planning, developing teaching
techniques to adopt; improve teachers’ instructional delivery and classroom
interaction for effective teaching learning transactions; and in the long run, the
curriculum is improved upon;
 Diagnostic Functions: In diagnosing the weakness in a class teacher, school
programs, syllabus/curriculum, and learners; recommending
remedial/intervention programs for weak learners; in guidance and counselling
of learners so as to keep them on the right track for better performance and
learning output;
 Predictive functions: For identifying the latent aptitudes and capabilities of
learners and teachers; foretell the chances of success available to learners as well
as the teacher; facilitates learners choice of career as evident from their general
academic performance;
  Administrative Functions: selection and adoption of the right/better policies and
judgment; assigning learners in their classes/convenient groups, determining the
criteria for learners appraisal and promotion, deciding the best tests and testing
procedure for learners at one time or the other, for teachers’ appraisal, promotion
and training programs, efficient school planning, management, and policies
implementation;
 Guidance Functions: Assists parents, teachers, and school administrators in
noting learners' learning pace, lapses, and how these can be rectified; prepares
the teachers with the needed tools and information vital for learners' personal,
vocational and educational advancement;
 Motivation Functions: Educational evaluation tends to motivate all players in
the education/school setting;
 Development Functions: Educational evaluation pilots and enhances teaching
and learning processes, teaching styles/methodologies, attainment of set
educational and school goals as well as the general development of the sector;
 Research Functions: data/vital information is provided through educational
evaluation. This spurs all stakeholders in the education setting to go into further
research (mainly action research) aimed at strengthening the sector.
 Communication Functions: Educational evaluation allows for smooth
communication among learners, their peers, teachers, school owners and
administrators, education boards and ministries, etc.

Role of Evaluation
Evaluation plays an enormous role in the teaching-learning process. In learning, it
contributes to formulation of objectives, designing of learning experiences and
assessment of learner performance. Besides this, it is very useful to bring improvement
in teaching and curriculum. It provides accountability to the society, parents, and to the
education system. Let us discuss its uses briefly (Gronlund, 1966).

i) Teaching: Evaluation is concerned with assessing the effectiveness of teaching,

teaching strategies, methods and techniques. It provides feedback to the teachers about
their teaching and the learners about their learning.
ii) Curriculum: The improvement in courses curricula, texts and teaching materials is
brought about with the help of evaluation.
iii) Society: Evaluation provides accountability to society in terms of the demands and
Learning Process requirements of the employment market.

iv) Parents: Evaluation mainly manifests itself in a perceived need for regular reporting
to parents.

In brief, evaluation is a very important requirement for the education system. It fulfills
various purposes in systems of education like quality control in education,
selection/entrance to a higher grade or tertiary level. It also helps one to take decisions
about success in specific future activities and provides Functions to further studies and
occupation. Some of the educationists view evaluation virtually synonymous with what
was previously defined as learner appraisal, but evaluation has an expanded role. It
plays an effective role in questioning or challenging the objectives (ibid)

Purposes of Evaluation

According to Ogunniyi (1984), educational evaluation is carried out from time to time
for the following purposes:

(i) to determine the relative effectiveness of the programme in terms of students’

behavioural output;

(ii) to make reliable decisions about educational planning;

(iii) to ascertain the worth of time, energy and resources invested in a programme;

(iv) to identify students’ growth or lack of growth in acquiring desirable knowledge,

skills, attitudes and societal values;

(v) to help teachers determine the effectiveness of their teaching techniques and learning
materials;

(vi) to help motivate students to want to learn more as they discover their progress or
lack of progress in given tasks;

(vii) to encourage students to develop a sense of discipline and systematic study habits;

(viii) to provide educational administrators with adequate information about teachers’

effectiveness and school need;
(ix) to acquaint parents or guardians with their children’s performances;

(x) to identify problems that might hinder or prevent the achievement of set goals;

(xi) to predict the general trend in the development of the teaching-learning process;

(xii) to ensure an economical and efficient management of scarce resources;

(xiii) to provide an objective basis for determining the promotion of students from one
class to another as well as the award of certificates;

(xiv) to provide a just basis for determining at what level of education the possessor of a
certificate should enter a career.

Principles of Evaluation

Here are some principles to be considered for a classroom summarised from Kellaghan
and Stufflebean (2003):

 Effective evaluation is a continuous, on-going process. Much more than

determining the outcome of learning, it is rather a way of gauging learning over
time. Learning and evaluation are never completed; they are always evolving
and developing.
 A variety of evaluative tools is necessary to provide the most accurate
assessment of students' learning and progress. Dependence on one type of tool to
the exclusion of others deprives students of valuable learning opportunities and
robs you of measures that help both students and the overall program grow;
 Evaluation must be a collaborative activity between teachers and students.
Students must be able to assume an active role in evaluation so they can begin to
develop individual responsibilities for development and self-monitoring;
 Evaluation needs to be authentic. It must be based on the natural activities and
processes students do both in the classroom and in their everyday lives. For
example, relying solely on formalized testing procedures might send a signal to
children that learning is simply a search for “right answers.”

Need and importance of Evaluation

According to Gronlund (1966), Evaluation is inevitable in teaching-learning process. It

is as inevitable in classroom teaching as it is in all fields of activity when judgements
need to be made, however simple or complex the consideration involved. All of us are
well aware, that during the course of a school day, teachers, principals and other school
personnel make many decisions about students and help them to make many decisions
for themselves. Effective decision making process involves evaluation. For example, the
division of students into various categories, or ranks within the total group, involves
measurement of their achievement and interpretation of these. The need of evaluation is
so intrinsic to the teaching-learning situation that even hasty consideration seems to
indicate the advantages of a systematic use of planned evaluation. Evaluation helps
teachers to make better evaluative judgements. All of us are aware that we carry out
activities in various aspects of teaching-learning process like:
a) fulfill classroom objectives
b) diagnose learning difficulties of students
c) determine readiness for new learning experiences
d) form students' classroom groups for special activities

e) assist students in their problems of adjustment

f) prepare reports of pupils' progress.

In all these activities, we cannot escape making evaluative judgements. Decisions must
be made and action must be taken. The more accurately we judge our pupils, the more
effective we will be in directing their learning. The understanding of the principles and
procedures of evaluation is very much needed in making more intelligent decisions in
directing pupils progress towards, worthwhile educational goals (Gronlumd, 1966).

Characteristics of a good evaluation

The meaning, types and purpose of evaluation lead us to arrive at the following
characteristics of a good evaluation programme in schools stated by Gronlund (1981).

Evaluation is an Objective-based Process

In school we are interested in knowing about the development of the students'

personality and their educational achievements. These are reflected in terms of intended
learning outcomes or the instructional objectives. In order to be meaningful, all
evaluation in school must be geared to these instructional objectives. It is instructional
objectives which provide direction to both teaching and evaluation. It is for achieving
the instructional objectives that the instruction is given and it is to see whether the
instructional objectives have been achieved and to what extent, that the evaluation is
made. The selection of evaluation techniques and tools is also based on the objectives to
be evaluated.

Evaluation is a Continuous Process

Since growth is a continuous process, the teacher must remain cognizant of the changes
'that take place from time to time. Continuous evaluation is, therefore, essential for
getting reliable evidence about pupils' growth and development. To serve this purpose
evaluation needs to be integrated with teaching. Unless it is inbuilt with the teaching
and learning process, it cannot help in diagnosing pupils' difficulties and provide
opportunities for remedial teaching. Improvement in learning is not possible without
continuous evaluation. So, evaluation should not be considered as an end-of-the-course
activity,

Evaluation is a Comprehensive Process

The pupils have different dimensions of growth - intellectual, emotional and physical.
These aspects are represented in the form of different objectives. Unless evaluation
provides information on all the aspects, it cannot be considered comprehensive enough,
Thus a good evaluation programme should evaluate be the scholastic and non-scholastic
aspects of pupil growth.
Apart from evaluating all possible objectives, comprehensive evaluation involves the
use of multiple tools and technique to procure information on different aspects of
personality growth. These include not only written tests but oral tests, observation
technique, interviews, practical tests, rating scales, inventories, schedules, profiles, etc.

Evaluation is a Cooperative process

Since comprehensive evaluation seeks evidence on all the aspects of pupil development,
the teacher alone cannot get all the evidence required about his/her growth. To collect
evidence regarding social relationships, emotional behaviour, initiative, scientific
attitudes, social attitudes, likes and dislikes, etc. collaboration of the pupil, his/her peers,
parents, other teachers and all those who watch him/her grow and develop is required.
Therefore, for a good evaluation programme, cooperation of different individuals and
agencies is necessary.

Evaluation is a Dynamic Process

Evaluation is based on instructional objectives but at the same time it helps us to judge
whether those objectives are appropriate for a particular group of students. Similarly,
though evaluation is based on learning experience provided in the class, it provides
evidence as to the effectiveness of that learning experience. Thus, evaluation keeps
validating the whole teaching-learning process through regular feedback. A good
evaluation programme brings in dynamism and leads to continuous improvement in the
educational process.

Evaluation is a Decision Making Process

At every step of the teaching-learning process appraisal is necessary. Before the

instruction is started, it is necessary to determine the entry behaviour of students to
decide the strategies, learning material and even appropriate objectives of teaching.

During instruction, continuous evaluation needs to be done of the pupils' intellectual,

emotional and physical growth to take timely decisions regarding various remediation
or enrichment programmes. The diagnostic and formative evaluation have to go hand in
hand for this purpose.

At the end of the session, summative evaluation needs to be made to classify, grade,
promote and certify students. Thus, evaluation helps the teachers to make judgments
and take decisions at different stages in a pupil's educational career.

If the school keeps the above aspects of evaluation in mind, there is no doubt that it will
lead to bringing about qualitative improvement in education. The schools, which carry
out improved evaluation practices, may really prove to be effective schools.

Assessment Instrument

According to Docktor and K. Heller (2009)There is no shortage of class assessment

tools for teachers to make use of. Many assessment tools are available to help teachers
design classroom instruction and enable their learners to improve the process of
learning.
Assessment rubrics

A rubric is an assessment tool used to clearly state what is expected from the learner. It
contains a coherent set of criteria (dimensions on which performance is rated), matched
with descriptors (tasks or skills being measured) and levels of performance expected
(rating scale).

Rubrics can be used for pre-assessment to clarify expectations and grading methods, for
assessment to help evaluators focused and objectively assess the learners on the pre-
defined expectations and for post-assessment to give learners a clear explanation of their
results. Assessment becomes more objective, consistent, defendable and efficient.
Rubrics support learners’ self-reflection and self-assessment as well as communication
between teacher and learners.

Student portfolio

A student portfolio is a systematic collection of learner work and related material that
depicts a learner's activities, accomplishments and achievements in one or more
subjects. Portfolios allow for competence-based assessment by measuring the learner’s
growth and development. Learners develop a sense of ownership about their portfolios
and understand where they made progress and where improvement is needed. Contents
of a learner's portfolio may vary with the level of the learner and the types of
assignments given in class. Some examples are:

Self - assessment

Learners become better learners when they deliberately think about what they are
learning and how they are learning it. In this kind of reflection, learners step back from
the learning process to reflect on their learning strategies and their progress as learners.
This encourages learners to become independent learners and increases their motivation.

Peer - assessment

One way for learners to internalise the characteristics of quality work is by evaluating
the work of their peers. Peer-assessment involves learners reciprocally evaluating each
other’s work. To do this, they must have a clear understanding of what they are looking
for in their peers’ work. Evaluating peers’ work enhances the evaluators’ own learning
and self-confidence. Peer-assessment empowers learners to take responsibility and
manage their own learning and develop life-long assessment skills. It also enhances
learners’ learning through knowledge sharing and encourages them to engage with
course material more deeply.
Execution

• Identify activities for which learners might benefit from peer feedback.
• Design guidelines or rubrics with clearly defined tasks for the reviewer.
• During in-class peer review sessions, give directions and time limits and
discuss with learners the rubrics’ criteria.
Conclusion

A lesson plan, which is a roadmap in taking the students along the desired path, is an
integral part of the teaching-learning process.teachers can be flexible to plan lessons in
their way, always keeping in mind the yearly, term, and unit plans. A clear plan will
maximize the output with minimum confusion of what is expected of the students, thus
making classroom management easier. Moreover, a lesson plan does not necessarily
have to be a detailed script that contains the plan of every interaction with students in
the classroom. It should preferably have a general overview of the aims and objectives
of the course, the plan of teaching and learning activities of the course, and the activities
planned to check the students’ understanding. The driving force behind lesson planning
is the motivation for teachers while creating creativity and excitement among students;
this is what keeps a teacher moving ahead.

Same as Planning a lesson, evaluation is an important aspect of any educational system.

It is a systematic process carried out in the classroom or school for providing
information for taking important decisions, A teacher should be well versed with the
concept of evaluation and procedures used for evaluation in order to make her/ his
teaching more purposeful and effective. The teacher should know what are the
objectives that are to be tested, what techniques and assessment tools are to be used for
testing them most appropriately and how to use evaluation for taking decisions. Hence it
can be concluded that evaluation is a comprehensive term and is very much needed for
effective teaching-learning process.

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