What Is Assessment
What Is Assessment
What is assessment?
Where do we want students to be at the end of a course or a program? And how will we know if they get there? Those two questions are at the heart of assessment. Although there is a lot of buzz about assessment these days, assessment itself is nothing new. If youve ever given an exam, led a discussion, or assigned a project and used what you discovered about student learning to refine your teaching youve engaged in assessment. Assessment is simply the process of collecting information about student learning and performance to improve education. At Carnegie Mellon, we believe that for assessment to be meaningful (not beancounting or teaching to the test!) it must be done thoughtfully and systematically. We also believe it should be driven by faculty so that the information gathered: Reflects the goals and values of particular disciplines Helps instructors refine their teaching practices and grow as educators Helps departments and programs refine their curriculum to prepare students for an evolving workplace
Assessment Basics
Assessment is a broad and rapidly growing field, with a strong theoretical and empirical base. However, you dont have to be an assessment expert to employ sound pra ctices to guide your teaching. Here we present the basic concepts you need to know to become more systematic in your assessment planning and implementation: Why should assessments, learning objectives, and instructional strategies be aligned? What is the difference between formative and summative assessment? What is the difference between assessment and grading? Glossary of terms.
Identify
Activities such as papers, exams, problem sets, class discussions, or concept maps that require students to:
summarize readings, films, or speeches compare and contrast two or more theories, events, or processes classify or categorize cases, elements, or events using established criteria paraphrase documents or speeches find or identify examples or illustrations of a concept or principle
Activities such as problem sets, performances, labs, prototyping, or simulations that require students to:
use procedures to solve or complete familiar or unfamiliar tasks determine which procedure(s) are most appropriate for a given task
Activities such as case studies, critiques, labs, papers, projects, debates, or concept maps that require students to:
discriminate or select relevant and irrelevant parts determine how elements function together determine bias, values, or underlying intent in presented material
Activities such as journals, diaries, critiques, problem sets, product reviews, or studies that require students to:
test, monitor, judge, or critique readings, performances, or products against established criteria or standards
Activities such as research projects, musical compositions, performances, essays, business plans, website designs, or set designs that require students to:
make, build, design or generate something new
This table does not list all possible examples of appropriate assessments. You can develop and use other assessments just make sure that they align with your learning objectives and instructional strategies!
Formative assessments are generally low stakes, which means that they have low or no point value. Examples of formative assessments include asking students to:
draw a concept map in class to represent their understanding of a topic submit one or two sentences identifying the main point of a lecture turn in a research proposal for early feedback
Summative assessment
The goal of summative assessment is to evaluate student learning at the end of an instructional unit by comparing it against some standard or benchmark. Summative assessments are often high stakes, which means that they have a high point value. Examples of summative assessments include:
a midterm exam a final project a paper a senior recital
Information from summative assessments can be used formatively when students or faculty use it to guide their efforts and activities in subsequent courses.
they are not always a reliable measure. Moreover, they may incorporate criteria such as attendance, participation, and effort that are not direct measures of learning. The goal of assessment is to improve student learning. Although grading can play a role in assessment, assessment also involves many ungraded measures of student learning (such as concept maps and CATS). Moreover, assessment goes beyond grading by systematically examining patterns of student learning across courses and programs and using this information to improve educational practices.
Concept Maps
Concept maps are graphical representations that can be used to reveal how students organize their knowledge about a concept or process. They include concepts, usually represented in enclosed circles or boxes, and relationships between concepts, indicated by a line connecting two concepts. Example [
Embedded Assessment
A means of gathering information about student learning that is integrated into the teaching-learning process. Results can be used to assess individual student performance or they can be aggregated to provide information about the course or program. can be formative or summative, quantitative or qualitative. Example: as part of a course, expecting each senior to complete a research paper that is graded for content and style, but is also assessed for advanced ability to locate and evaluate Webbased information (as part of a college-wide outcome to demonstrate information literacy).
External Assessment
Use of criteria (rubric) or an instrument developed by an individual or organization external to the one being assessed. This kind of assessment is usually summative, quantitative, and often high-stakes, such as the SAT or GRE exams.
Formative Assessment
Formative assessment refers to the gathering of information or data about student learning during a course or program that is used to guide improvements in teaching and learning. Formative assessment activities are usually low-stakes or no-stakes; they do not contribute substantially to the final evaluation or grade of the student or may not even be assessed at the individual student level. For example, posing a question in class and asking for a show of hands in support of different response options would be a formative assessment at the class level. Observing how many students responded incorrectly would be used to guide further teaching.
Individual Assessment
Uses the individual student, and his/her learning, as the level of analysis. Can be quantitative or qualitative, formative or summative, standards-based or value added, and used for improvement. Most of the student assessment conducted in higher education is focused on the individual. Student test scores, improvement in writing during a course, or a students improvement presentation skills over their undergraduate career are all examples of individual assessment.
Institutional Assessment
Uses the institution as the level of analysis. The assessment can be quantitative or qualitative, formative or summative, standards-based or value added, and used for improvement or for accountability. Ideally, institution-wide goals and objectives would serve as a basis for the assessment. For example, to measure the institutional goal of developing collaboration skills, an instructor and peer assessment tool could be used to measure how well seniors across the institution work in multi-cultural teams.
Local Assessment
Means and methods that are developed by an institution's faculty based on their teaching approaches, students, and learning goals. An example would be an English Departments construction and use of a writing rubric to assess incoming freshmens writing samples, which might then be used assign students to appropriate writing courses, or might be compared to senior writing samples to get a measure of valueadded.
Program Assessment
Uses the department or program as the level of analysis. Can be quantitative or qualitative, formative or summative, standards-based or value added, and used for improvement or for accountability. Ideally, program goals and objectives would serve as a basis for the assessment. Example: How well can senior engineering students apply engineering concepts and skills to solve an engineering problem? This might be assessed through a capstone project, by combining performance data from multiple senior level courses, collecting ratings from internship employers, etc. If a goal is to assess value added, some comparison of the performance to newly declared majors would be included.
Qualitative Assessment
Collects data that does not lend itself to quantitative methods but rather to interpretive criteria (see the first example under "standards").
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Quantitative Assessment
Collects data that can be analyzed using quantitative methods (see "assessment for accountability" for an example).
Rubric
A rubric is a scoring tool that explicitly represents the performance expectations for an assignment or piece of work. A rubric divides the assigned work into component parts and provides clear descriptions of the characteristics of the work associated with each component, at varying levels of mastery. Rubrics can be used for a wide array of assignments: papers, projects, oral presentations, artistic performances, group projects, etc. Rubrics can be used as scoring or grading guides, to provide formative feedback to support and guide ongoing learning efforts, or both.
Standards
Standards refer to an established level of accomplishment that all students are expected to meet or exceed. Standards do not imply standardization of a program or of testing. Performance or learning standards may be met through multiple pathways and demonstrated in various ways. For example, instruction designed to meet a standard for verbal foreign language competency may include classroom conversations, one-onone interactions with a TA, or the use of computer software. Assessing competence may be done by carrying on a conversation about daily activities or a common scenario, such as eating in a restaurant, or using a standardized test, using a rubric or grading key to score correct grammar and comprehensible pronunciation.
Summative Assessment
The gathering of information at the conclusion of a course, program, or undergraduate career to improve learning or to meet accountability demands. When used for improvement, impacts the next cohort of students taking the course or program. Examples: examining student final exams in a course to see if certain specific areas of the curriculum were understood less well than others; analyzing senior projects for the ability to integrate across disciplines.
Value Added
The increase in learning that occurs during a course, program, or undergraduate education. Can either focus on the individual student (how much better a student can write, for example, at the end than at the beginning) or on a cohort of students (whether senior papers demonstrate more sophisticated writing skills-in the aggregate-than freshmen papers). To measure value-added a baseline measurement is needed for
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comparison. The baseline measure can be from the same sample of students (longitudinal design) or from a different sample (cross-sectional). Adapted from Assessment Glossary compiled by American Public University System, 2005 http://www.apus.edu/Learning-OutcomesAssessment/Resources/Glossary/Assessment-Glossary.htm
your class. Your assessment can include tasks or questions that test students capabilities in these areas.
The feedback from this assessment can help you calibrate your course appropriately or direct students to supplemental materials that can help them address weaknesses in their existing skills or knowledge. The advantage of a self-assessment is that it is relatively easy to construct and score. The potential disadvantage of this method is that students may not be able to accurately assess their abilities. However, accuracy improves when the response options clearly differentiate both types and levels of knowledge.
Examples of questions with possible closed responses: How familiar are you with "Karnaugh maps"?
1. 2. 3. 4. I have never heard of them or I have heard of them but don't know what they are. I have some idea what they are, but don't know when or how to use them. I have a clear idea what they are, but haven't used them. I can explain what they are and what they do, and I have used them.
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For each of the following Shakespearean plays, place a check mark in the cell if it describes your experience.
Play Have Read it Have seen a performance live Have seen a TV or Have written a collegemovie production level paper on it
CATs are meant to provide immediate feedback about the entire classs level of understanding, not individual students. The instructor can use this feedback to inform instruction, such as speeding up or slowing the pace of a lecture or explicitly addressing areas of confusion.
Muddiest Point
This is similar to the Minute Paper but focuses on areas of confusion. Ask your students, What was the muddiest point in (todays lecture, the reading, the homework)? Give them one to two minutes to write and collect their responses.
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Directed Paraphrasing
Select an important theory, concept, or argument that students have studied in some depth and identify a real audience to whom your students should be able to explain this material in their own words (e.g., a grants review board, a city council member, a vice president making a related decision). Provide guidelines about the length and purpose of the paraphrased explanation.
Applications Cards
Identify a concept or principle your students are studying and ask students to come up with one to three applications of the principle from everyday experience, current news events, or their knowledge of particular organizations or systems discussed in the course.
Plan how you will analyze students responses, such as grouping them into the categories good understanding, some misunderstanding, or significant misunderstanding. After using a CAT, communicate the results to the students so that they know you learned from the assessment and so that they can identify specific difficulties of their own.
From Angelo, Thomas A., & Cross, K. Patricia. (1993). Classroom Assessment Techniques: A Handbook for College Teachers. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
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asking students to predict the outcome of an event (e.g., What would happen in this experiment? How would changing one variable affect others?) asking students to apply rules or principles to new situations (e.g., Which concept is relevant here? How would you apply it?) asking students to solve a problem using a known equation or select a procedure to complete a new task (e.g., What procedure would be appropriate to solve this problem?) The following question stems are used frequently in concept test questions: Which of the following best describes Which is the best method for If the value of X was changed to Which of the following is the best explanation for Which of the following is another example of What is the major problem with What would happen if When possible, incorrect answers (distractors) should be designed to reveal common errors or misconceptions. Example 1: Mechanics (pdf) This link contains sample items from the Mechanics Baseline Test (Hestenes & Wells, 1992). Example 2: Statics (pdf) This link contains sample items from a Statics Inventory developed by Paul Steif, Carnegie Mellon. Example 3: Chemistry This links to the Journal of Chemistry Educations site, which contains a library of conceptual questions in different scientific areas.
Creating Assignments
Here are some general suggestions and questions to consider when creating assignments. There are also many other resources in print and on the web that provide examples of interesting, discipline-specific assignment ideas.
exercise their imaginations while also accomplishing the learning objectives of the course (Walvoord & Anderson, 1989, p. 25).
Double-check alignment.
After creating your assignments, go back to your learning objectives and make sure there is still a good match between what you want students to learn and what you are asking them to do. If you find a mismatch, you will need to adjust either the assignments or the learning objectives. For instance, if your goal is for students to be able to analyze and evaluate texts, but your assignments only ask them to summarize texts, you would need to add an analytical and evaluative dimension to some assignments or rethink your learning objectives.
Consider sequencing.
Think about how to order your assignments so that they build skills in a logical sequence. Ideally, assignments that require the most synthesis of skills and knowledge should come later in the semester, preceded by smaller assignments that build these skills incrementally. For example, if an instructors final assignment is a resea rch project that requires students to evaluate a technological solution to an environmental problem, earlier assignments should reinforce component skills, including the ability to identify and discuss key environmental issues, apply evaluative criteria, and find appropriate research sources.
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Check feasibility.
Is the workload you have in mind reasonable for your students? Is the grading burden manageable for you? Sometimes there are ways to reduce workload (whether for you or for students) without compromising learning objectives. For example, if a primary objective in assigning a project is for students to identify an interesting engineering problem and do some preliminary research on it, it might be reasonable to require students to submit a project proposal and annotated bibliography rather than a fully developed report. If your learning objectives are clear, you will see where corners can be cut without sacrificing educational quality.
Creating Exams
How can you design fair, yet challenging, exams that accurately gauge student learning? Here are some general guidelines. There are also many resources, in print and on the web, that offer strategies for designing particular kinds of exams, such as multiple-choice.
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Think about how long it will take students to complete the exam.
When students are under time pressure, they may make mistakes that have nothing to do with the extent of their learning. Thus, unless your goal is to assess how students perform under time pressure, it is important to design exams that can be reasonably completed in the time allotted. One way to determine how long an exam will take students to complete is to take it yourself and allow students triple the time it took you or reduce the length or difficulty of the exam.
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groups
dynamics
and
the
Gauge what various group members have contributed to the group (e.g., effort, participation, cooperativeness, accessibility, communication skills) by asking team members to complete an evaluation form for group processes. This is not a foolproof strategy (students may feel social pressure to cover for one another). However, when combined with other factors promoting individual accountability, it can provide you with important information about the dynamics within groups and the contributions of individual members. If you are gathering feedback from external clients for example, in the context of public reviews of students performances or creations this feedback can also be incorporated into your assessment of group work. Feedback from external clients can address product (e.g., Does it work?, Is it an effective design?) or process (e.g., the groups ability to communicate effectively, respond appropriately, or meet deadlines) and can be incorporated formally or informally into the group grade.
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Grading Methods for Group Work Instructor and student options for assessing group work. Example of Group and Self-Assessment Tool (download .pdf | download .doc)
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Shared Group Grade The group submits one product and all group members receive the same grade, regardless of individual contribution.
Group Average Grade Individual submissions (allocated tasks or individual reports) are scored individually. The group members each receive the averageof these individual scores.
Individual Grade - Allocated task Each student completes an allocated task that contributes to the final group product and gets the marks for that task
a relatively objective way of ensuring individual participation may provide additional motivation to students potential to reward outstanding performance
Individual Grade - Individual report Each student writes and submits an individual report based on the group's work on the task/project
Individual Grade - Examination Exam questions specifically target the group projects, and can only be answered by students who have been thoroughly involved in the project
may increase motivation to learn from the group project including learning from the other members of the group
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easy to implement may motivate students to contribute more negotiation skills become part of the learning process potential to reward outstanding performance may be perceived as fairer than shared or average group mark alone
open to subjective evaluation by friends may lead to conflict may foster competition and therefore be counterproductive to team work students may not have the skills necessary for the required negotiation
Peer Evaluation - random marker, using criteria, moderated Assessment items are anonymously completed by students who identify whether their peer has met the assessment criteria and awards a grade These grades are moderated by instructor and rating sheets returned to student.
helps clarify criteria for assessment encourages sense of involvement and responsibility assists students to develop skills in independent judgement increases feedback to students random allocation addresses potential friendship and other influences on assessment provides experience to careers where peer judgement occurs
time may have to be invested in teaching students to evaluate each other instructor moderation is time consuming
From Winchester-Seeto, T. (April, 2002). Assessment of collaborative work collaboration versus assessment. Invited paper presented at the Annual Uniserve Science Symposium, The University of Sydney
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Rubrics can be used to provide feedback to students on diverse types of assignments, from papers, projects, and oral presentations to artistic performances and group projects.
Examples of Rubrics
Here we are providing a sample set of rubrics designed by faculty at Carnegie Mellon and other institutions. Although your particular field of study or type of assessment may not be represented, viewing a rubric that is designed for a similar assessment may give you ideas for the kinds of criteria, descriptions, and performance levels you use on your own rubric.
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Paper
Example 1: Philosophy Paper This rubric was designed for student papers in a range of courses in philosophy (Carnegie Mellon). Example 2: Psychology Assignment Short, concept application homework assignment in cognitive psychology (Carnegie Mellon). Example 3: Anthropology Writing Assignments This rubric was designed for a series of short writing assignments in anthropology (Carnegie Mellon). Example 4: History Research Paper. This rubric was designed for essays and research papers in history (Carnegie Mellon).
Projects
Example 1: Capstone Project in Design This rubric describes the components and standards of performance from the research phase to the final presentation for a senior capstone project in design (Carnegie Mellon). Example 2: Engineering Design Project This rubric describes performance standards for three aspects of a team project: research and design, communication, and team work.
Oral Presentations
Example 1: Oral Exam This rubric describes a set of components and standards for assessing performance on an oral exam in an upper-division course in history (Carnegie Mellon). Example 2: Oral Communication This rubric is adapted from Huba and Freed, 2000. Example 3: Group Presentations This rubric describes a set of components and standards for assessing group presentations in history (Carnegie Mellon).
Class Participation/Contributions
Example 1: Discussion Class This rubric assesses the quality of student contributions to class discussions. This is appropriate for an undergraduate-level course (Carnegie Mellon). Example 2: Advanced Seminar This rubric is designed for assessing discussion performance in an advanced undergraduate or graduate seminar.
See also "Examples and Tools" section of this site for more rubrics.
One-on-one teaching consultations Classroom observations Student focus groups Course representatives
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Sample Forms
Here we provide examples of early course evaluations for instructors and TAs. In addition, the Eberly Center can provide you with assistance in developing your own form.
Form for Instructors: PDF format MS Word format Form for TA's: PDF format MS Word format
fundamental respect for students role in making the class work. Here is a suggested process for discussing this feedback with your class: Select three to five issues that you want to report to the class. Balance the issues so that you present both positive feedback and areas for improvement. If you plan to make changes based on the feedback, explain the changes and the rationale behind them. If possible, enlist students help in your efforts (e.g., if they reported that you talk too fast or too softly, ask them to indicate with a hand signal or some other sign when they cannot follow or hear). If you decide not to make changes in an area students identified as problematic, explain why the changes are not possible or why it is important to do it the way you are currently doing it. Maintain a positive tone throughout the discussion. It is important not to seem defensive, angry, or over-apologetic because these reactions can undermine students perceived value of future evaluations.
includes the identities of those with whom we work, the information they share with us, and the data we gather on their behalf from classroom observations and interactions with TAs and students. Documented for faculty and graduate student purposes alone: We provide written feedback to the instructors with whom we consult that summarizes and documents the consultation process. We do not write letters of support for reappointment, promotion, or tenure, but faculty can choose to use our documentation as they see fit.
Classroom Observations
Having a colleague observe your classroom can be a useful way to get immediate feedback about your strengths and weaknesses as an instructor, as well as concrete, contextualized suggestions for improvement. The Eberly Center provides this service to any faculty member or graduate student at Carnegie Mellon, regardless of experience level. The feedback we provide is strictly for you: we ensure strict confidentiality. To ensure that observations are as productive as possible, we recommend that you meet with an Eberly consultant before the first classroom observation to: discuss the goals of the course discuss the goals of the particular class being observed talk about any particular concerns or requirements you have regarding the observation share relevant course materials discuss specific aspects of your teaching you would like the observer to provide feedback on You should also meet with the consultant again after the observation to go over feedback, ask questions, discuss applicable strategies, and (if the class was videotaped) review and discuss the videotape together. You can request follow-up observations as well.
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Course Representatives
One way to monitor your effectiveness as a teacher is to ask a student to serve as a student representative or ombuds(wo)man. The representatives role is to communicate student concerns and feedback anonymously to you. The student you ask to play this role should be someone you consider trustworthy who is respected by classmates (one option is to ask the class to choose their own representative.) Explain that the representatives responsibility will be strictly to synthesize and share students concerns anonymously, but that he or she is free to decline the responsibility. The role should be strictly voluntary. When you have chosen your course representative, let other students know that you welcome their feedback, which they can convey to you directly or channel to their representative, who will share it anonymously with you. You can then meet or correspond periodically with the course representative to collect student feedback. In larger classes, you might want to designate a team of student representatives who can synthesize the experiences of students in different recitation sections in their feedback to you.
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Assignments and Exams Performance Rubrics for 95820Production Management Assignment, Heinz Performance Rubrics for 95821Production Management Assignment, Heinz Assessing the Effectiveness of using Multi-Media for Case-based Learning, H&SS MORE...
Comprehension Checks Using a Clicker System and Concept Questions to Assess Student Understanding During Class, H&SS Using Quizzes and Clickers for Assessing Students Understanding of Concepts in Real Time
Group Process Assessments Weighted Peer Evaluation for Group Project, Heinz
Pre-/Post-Tests Performance Criteria Rubric for Assessing Project Work, CFA Forms for Evaluating Student Projects, CFA Rubrics for Assessing Student's Writing, CFA Rubrics for Assessing Student Participation, CFA MORE... Pre & Post Tests for Assessing the Effectiveness of an Argument Mapping Tool for Teaching, H&SS Pre-/Post-Test for Technology for Global Development Course, H&SS
Prior Knowledge Assessments Survey for Assessing Students Motivation, Confidence, and Goals for Writing, H&SS Quizzes and Item Analysis to Inform Teaching and Learning, MCS Surveys of Student Learning Goals, Tepper
Reflective Assessments Process Books for Assessing How Students Think About Design, CFA Rubric for Developing Student SelfAssessment Skills, CFA Journals to Monitor Student Thinking in Statistics, H&SS Reading Reflection Exercise to Prepare for Class Discussion, H&SS
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