Assessment of Student Learning

Techniques for the classroom assessment of student learning include a variety of feedback and discussion methods. The purpose of these is to try to gauge the actual progress of the student and the quality of the learning process. Also known as Classroom Research/Action Research, techniques of classroom assessment of student learning are tools designed to present an accurate picture of the quality of student learning, for teachers.

This is a non curricular process, and the Information gathered by these tools is not used for the purposes of grading or evaluation. The real use of these tools is to facilitate a dialogue between the students and the teacher body about the quality of the learning process, and possible ways of improving it, providing teachers as well as students with  an in process source of information about how the students are learning the intended knowledge in the curriculum.

Assessment of student learning is based on three basic questions. What are the essential skills and knowledge that the curriculum is trying to impart to the students, how it is possible to find out whether the students are learning what is intended, and, finally, how, if at all, it is possible to help the students to learn better. The process is based on the premise that students need to get feedback; that they must evaluate the quality of their learning frequently; and, most importantly, that they can help improve the strength of the instruction imparted to them.

However, just testing one isolated skill or retained fact does not measure capabilities effectively. An accurate evaluation of a person’s learning requires an assessment method that examines collective abilities. Authentic assessment is such a method, and presents real-world challenges as tests that require students to apply relevant skills and knowledge.

Another method for the assessment of student learning is called the portfolio assessment, and it analyses a body of student work which can be used to judge student performance over time. It considers a full range of work, from math to literature. In some cases, these student portfolios may even serve as a replacement for a high school diploma or a transcript.