Assessing and Evaluating for Learning/Aligning and Designing Assessment module

=Aligning and Designing Assessment=

In the last module you were asked to explore key values of assessment.

Assessment must be: and
 * valid
 * reliable
 * practicable
 * fair
 * transparent
 * relevant

Has this been your experience of assessment? Did you share your stories on the Moodle discussion board?

The language of assessment
One aspect of assessment that becomes critical to the outcome is the use of language and how that is interpreted. You may have a particular understanding of the terminology used but the students may not take the same meaning from those words.

It is useful to check that there is a common understanding between the person being assessed and the assessor.

=Designing Assessment= "Defining key learning goals for the major is the essential first step in the assessment process." (Wright,B. 2004) In this quote Barbara Wright is talking about the need for clear learning outcomes. In many institutions these are already clearly defined in programme documents

Wright continues by stating “Goals should focus on what is truly important, not just what can be readily measured, and include skills and attitudes as well as knowledge. Goals should be expressed in three dimensions: 1) what we want students to learn; 2) how well we want them to perform; and 3) their development over time. Goals should represent the highest ambitions of the program, not just minimum standards.” (2004, para 4)

An important part of designing assessment is considering what level of thinking you want the learner to demonstrate. This influences your choice of instruction words and assessment activity.

Reminder

Key elements in assessment design include:
 * Consideration of how the assessment provides evidence that the learning outcomes have been met
 * The level of thinking expected
 * The choice of instruction words
 * The choice of tool (which you will explore in more depth in the next module)

Cultural Diversity and Assessment
Key values of assessment include fairness and relevance. When exploring these values it is also important to consider learners needs and cultural diversity.

Culture can be defined as...

culture (WAY OF LIFE) noun [C or U] the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time:
 * youth/working-class culture
 * She's studying modern Japanese language and culture.


 * (from Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary)

Using the above definition, consideration of cultural diversity can encompass a very broad range of possibilities.

The following link to Cultural Diversity Resources will take you to a page that will continue to develop with a range of resources. Hopefully you will find something among them that has relevance to your own context.

Link to the Discussion Board - Cultural Diversity in Assessment