We Need More Assessment, Not Less

Did I get your attention? If so, then this is worth your time:

Here's a radical idea: We need more assessment, not less.

Seem crazy? Substitute feedback for assessment, and you'll better understand what I mean. The point of assessment in education is to advance learning, not to merely audit absorption of facts. That's true whether we're talking about that fourth-period pop quiz, the school play, or the state test. No one ever mastered a complicated idea or skill the first -- or fifth -- time. To reach any genuine standard, we need lots of trials, errors, and adjustments based on feedback.

Think of assessment, then, as information for improving.

I really like that last sentence. I'd really like to change assessment at AHS to focus on improving, not evaluating. What do you think are some ways we could work on that?

Tags:

• assessment