LESSON 3: Performance Assessment

Intended Learning Outcome:

1. Analyze the nature and the essential characteristics of performance – based

assessment; and
2. Design and develop performance tasks using the Goal, Role, Audience, Situation,
Products, Standards (GRASPS) model;

Introduction

It takes a village to educate a child . Traditional testing cannot measure several skills directly.
Skills requiring the demonstration of students’ understanding by creating an answer, carrying
performance, or producing a product which involves independent, judgement, critical thinking
and decision – making are best assessed with a performance test. During the Assessment of
Learning 1, we define education as a “drawing out process” opposing the previous notion of
teachers as the infallible giver of knowledge and students as passive recipients. The shift from
the traditional input-based education (IBE) to Outcomes-based education (OBE) enables clarity
of focus about outcomes; linking all planning, teaching and assessment towards the effects;
consistent, high expectations of success; and expanded opportunity. Thus, performance
assessment is a form of authentic, evidence-based student-centered learning.

Preliminary Questions

Most of the time, teachers relied on paper and pencil test, which measures knowledge and
understanding, not the learners ability to carry out the performance. With OBE implementation
in which students carry out activities or produce product, consider the following questions before
we proceed to our lesson.

1. What are the commonly used objective type of tests most of your teachers employ? List
as many as you can.

2. Choose three emoticons which best describe your mood when your teacher is always
using paper and pencil test.

3. How can teachers help learners not to get bored in everyday lessons? To make them
prepared for life outside school?

4. In your perception, describe the meaning, nature and

characteristics of performance based assessment using this
graphic organizer.

PERFORMANCE
BASED
ASSESSMENT

Performance-Based assessment is when the teacher observes and makes a judgment about
the student’s demonstration of a skill or competency in creating a product, constructing a
response, or making a presentation (McMillan, 2007). In this assessment, the emphasis is on
the students’ ability to perform tasks by producing their own authentic work with their
knowledge and skills.
Performance-Based assessment (PBA) s an alternative form of assessment that moves away
from traditional paper-and-pencil tests (Ferman, 2005). It involves students producing a project,
whether oral, written, individual or group performance. The students are engaged in creating a
final project that exhibits an understanding of concepts they have learning. Watch this video on
Why we should use Performance-Based Assessment.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yYcGO1Izs-U
instead, multiple performances and solutions to problems
 that
may
be

judged to be excellent. Performance products are outputs produced by the students that
provide concrete examples of their knowledge and understanding of the subject matter. These
performances allow them to demonstrate what they have learned, which may be useful beyond
schools' four walls. Process-oriented assessments provide insights into the students’ critical
thinking, logic, and reasoning skills. These will lead them to independent learning and set goals
for future use.

Three features of genuine performances assessments (Popham, 2011)

• Multiple evaluation criteria. The student’s performance must be judged using more than
one evaluation criterion.
• Pre-specified quality standards . Each of the evaluating criteria on which a student’s
performance is to be judged is clearly explicated in advance of judging the quality of the
students’ performance.
• Judgemental appraisal. Unlike the scoring of selected-response tests in which electronic
computers and scanning machines can, once programmed, carry on without the need
of humankind, genuine performance assessments depend on human judgements to
determine how acceptable a students’ performance really is.

Types of Performance Tasks

The main objective of performance task is to capture all the learning targets which shall
be aligned to the teaching and learning objectives, activities and assessment. Thus, the focus of
performance-based assessment is the final output that must be developed or completed. These
could be in form of problem-solving, demonstration, tasks and other authentic experiences that
would influence the thinking processes, skills and products required from performance tasks.
Below are some performance-based assessment tasks (Musial, 2009):

1. Solving a problem
2. Completing an inquiry
3. Determining a position
4. Demonstration task
5. Developing exhibits
6. Presentation tasks
7. Capstone Performances

With the different types of performance tasks, the teacher may decide what and when materials
should be used, specifies the instruction for performance, describes the kinds of outcomes
toward which students should work, tells the students they are being assessed, and give
students opportunities to prepare themselves for the assessment. Performance tasks on the
other hand can be performed also in a typical and natural setting, which give students
opportunity to perform particular activity which the teacher would like to assess.

Principles of Performance Assessment

 A well-designed performance assessment helps the students to see the connections

between the knowledge, skills, and abilities they have learned from the classroom, including
the experiences which help them to construct their own meaning and knowledge.

The first step in designing performance-based assessment is to define the purpose of

assessment. Defining the purpose and target provides information on what students need to
perform in a task given. By identifying the purpose, teachers are able to easily identify the
weaknesses and strengths of the students’ performance. Purpose must be specified at the
beginning of the process so that proper kinds of performance criteria and scoring procedures
can be established. Five questions to Consider in determining competencies:

• What important cognitive skills/attributes do I want my students to develop? •

What social and affective skills or attributes do I want my students to develop? •
What metacognitive skills do I want my students to develop?
• What types of problems do I want my students to be able to solve?
• What concepts and principles do I want my students be able to apply?

Teachers should select the abovementioned targets which can be assessed by

performance which fits to the plan along with assessment techniques to be utilized for
measuring other complex skills and performances.

In defining the purpose of assessment, learning targets must be carefully identified and
taken in consideration. Four types of learning targets (McMillan, 2007)

• Deep understanding. Involve students’ meaningfully in hands-on activities for extended

period of time so that their understanding is rich and more extensive than what can be
achieved in conventional instruction.
• Reasoning. Students are given a problem to solve or are asked to make a decision or
other outcome.
• Skills. In addition to logical and reasoning skills, students are required to demonstrate
communication, presentation and other psychomotor skills – the physical action
required for a given tasks.
• Products. Are completed works, such as term papers, projects, and other assignments in
which students use their knowledge and skills.
Strengths and Limitations
 As we explored the nature of performance assessment and examined the different
types of assessment tasks, several authorities discussed the advantages of performance

assessments over the other assessments.

Strength

1. Performance assessment clearly identifies and clarifies learning targets. 2. Performance

assessment allows students to exhibit their own skills, talents, and expertise.
3. Performance assessment advocates constructive principle of learning. 4. Performance
assessment uses a variety of approaches to student evaluation. 5. Performance
assessment allows the teachers to explore the main goal and processes of teaching and
learning process.

Limitations

Though performance assessments offer several advantages over traditional objective

assessment procedures, they have some distinct limitations as well.
 1. Development of high quality performance assessment is a tedious process. 2.
Performance assessment requires a considerable amount of time to administer. 3.
Performance assessment takes a great deal of time to score.
4. Performance tasks score may have lower reliability.
5. Performance task completion may be discouraging to less able students.

Further Readings on Performance-Based assessment.

https://www.geneseo.edu/sites/default/files/sites/education/p12resources-performance-based
assessment.pdf

https://www.slideshare.net/RichardAllenSantos/performance-based-assessment-58515426
Group Task
Task 1: Make a slogan that would describe performance-based assessment. Share it with your
classmates. (Time allotted for brainstorming is 5 minutes)
Task 2: List down five activities which are considered as performance-based outputs. From the
list you have made, what do you think are the competencies to be accomplished? What
assessment procedures should be done? Use the table below as guide.
Activities Competencies Assessment Procedure/s

Note: If synchronous, assign break out rooms for students to collaborate. If asynchronous,
encourage students to work with others virtually through their convenient communication
modality.
Individual Task
As a teacher education student, think of a subject you plan to teach and make a
specific workable tasks which are applicable to online/distant learning situation based on the
identified types of performance tasks. Use below template.
Types of Performance Tasks Performance Task to Description
be Undertaken

Solving a Problem

Completing an Inquiry

Determining a Position

Demonstration Task

Developing Exhibits

Presentation Task
Capstone Performances

Republic of the Philippines

CEBU TECHNOLOGICAL
UNIVERSITY

Performance Assessment
Name: _____________________________________________ Section: _______________

Write down the Plus – Minus – Interesting Points of Performance – Based

Assessment.
Plus Minus Interesting

Example: Clarifies the Requires a considerable To what extent does

meaning of complex time to construct, Performance-based
learning targets in complete and score. assessment measure
authentic situation. the level of
authenticity?