Assessment Essentials: What Educators Need to Know

 

 

Assessment is integral to teaching and learning. It is an essential component of education that helps educators, students, and administrators understand the effectiveness of teaching and learning. Assessment results provide information about adult learners’ strengths and weaknesses, areas needing improvement, and learners’ achievements related to learning objectives and standards. When done well, the assessment also provides information about teaching effectiveness, the relevance of instruction to learners, and what should be modified for future instruction (Hill, 2020). In all settings, assessment is not an empty exercise. Still, it provides valuable information about what adult learners know, what they are learning, and what needs to happen next to facilitate continued learning (Hill, 2020).

 

Purposes of Assessment

Assessment has several interrelated purposes: identifying and communicating learning goals and outcomes, helping students achieve these goals through activities that promote active, engaged learning, and analyzing, reporting, and reflecting on results that lead to continued improvement. Information gained from assessments can be used to inform learners of how well they are doing and what learning strategies they could use to facilitate improvement. At the same time, instructors can learn from assessments to identify ways that their lessons can be improved to meet the needs of their students better.

 

Principles of Assessment

Principles of assessment articulated by people recognized for their expertise include (Hutchings et al., 2012):

1. Assessment works best when educators understand adult learning as multidimensional, integrated with daily life and work, and revealed in performance over time.
2. Assessment functions best when programs have well-defined, explicit objectives.
3. Assessment requires consideration of desired outcomes and learning experiences that lead to the outcomes.
4. Assessment is most effective when it occurs regularly rather than sporadically.
5. Assessment makes a difference when it starts with practical concerns and sheds light on issues that matter to adult learners.
6. Assessment is more apt to foster improvement when integrated with societal and workplace conditions promoting change.

 

Assessment Planning

Figure 1 contains an Assessment Planning Cycle that integrates instructional lessons and assessments. It represents an iterative process used consistently to promote effective teaching and learning.

 

Figure 1: The Assessment Planning Cycle

 

 

Both instructional lessons and assessments should be aligned with learning objectives. That means that planning instruction and assessments should be conducted simultaneously.

 

1. Align Lesson Objectives with Digital Literacy Competencies

• Define clear and measurable learning objectives for the lesson.
• The learning activities and outcomes should be directly tied to enhancing students' digital skills.

 

2. Incorporate Digital Literacy Skills and Assessments into Lesson

• Design lesson plans that explicitly incorporate digital literacy skills.
• Select appropriate technologies, digital tools, and online resources.
• Identify learning assessments linked to digital literacy competencies.

 

3. Implement Lesson

• Facilitate activities that encourage the use of digital skills.
• Provide opportunities to practice these skills in a real-world context.

 

4. Assess Learners' Proficiency Toward Competencies

• Assess students' proficiency in the targeted digital literacy competencies.
• Use formal tests and assignments for observations and self-assessments.

 

5. Link Learner Competency to Job Placement

• Link the acquired digital literacy competencies to potential job placements or career paths.
• Verify that the curriculum is aligned with industry standards.

 

By following these steps, educators can create a structured and effective teaching and learning process that supports student growth and achievement of digital literacy skills. Each step builds upon the previous one, leading to a comprehensive cycle of instruction, assessment, and feedback that promotes adult learning.

 

References

Hill, L. H. (Ed.) (2020). Assessment, evaluation, and accountability in adult education. Stylus.

Hutchings, P., Ewell, P., & Banta, T. (2012). AAHE principles of good practice. Aging nicely. National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment. Available https://www.learningoutcomesassessment.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/Viewpoint-Hutchings-EwellBanta.pdf