07/04/2006
Classroom Assessment and Individual Differences in Learners and Learning
In education, assessment is needed for different purposes. There are two kinds of classroom assessment. The first one is Formative Assessment which is ungraded testing used before or during instruction to aid in planning and diagnosis. The second one is Summative Assessment which summarizes students' accomplishments. Learning is supported by frequent testing using cumulative questions that ask students to apply and integrate knowledge. There are two kinds of traditional testing that are Objective Test(multiple-choice, true/false, fill-in and matching items) and Essay Test. Authentic assessment test skills and abilities as they would be applied in real-life situations. Portfolio and Exhibition are the two examples of authentic assessment. Portfolio is a collection of the student's work in an area, showing growth, self-reflection and achievement. Exhibiton is a performance test or demonstration of learning that is public and usually takes an extended time to prepare. Mastery Learning is that most students can attain a high level of learning capability if instruction is approached sensitively and systematically, if students are helped when and where they have learning difficulties, if they are given sufficient time to achieve mastery and if there is some clear criterion of what constitutes mastery. In this model of school learning, the central focus of the research on the effects of particular strategies of teaching-learning rather than on the characteristics of the teacher or the characteristics of the students. One way of approaching a minimal-error system in the process of schooling is likely that a systematic way of identifying and correcting errors in group instruction and individual learning. In this theory, there are three variables which are Cognitive Entry Behaviors, Affective Entry Characteristics and Quality of Instruction. The learning outcomes in this theory are; 1.Level and Type of Achievement 2.Rate of Learning 3.Affective Outcomes. Also there are two basic assumptions in this theory. The first one is that the history of the learner is at the core of school learning. The second one is that modifications are possible in the entry characteristics of the individual, in the instruction for the learner or in both. To conclude, modern societies no longer can content themselves with the selection of talent; they must find the means for developing talent.
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Although educational assessment and evaluation make up an integral part of the teaching-learning processes, they must be viewed as tools that reinforce learning experiences. In other words, assessment and evaluation should be implemented for the purpose of learning and not necessarily for talent searching. Your article clearly cries out the concern to consider each student as possessing the potential to significantly develop in different areas of life as long as they are given the opportunity and time to do so. Cognitive scaffolding also helps students to obtain support (on a progressive manner) to achieve excellence in their pursuit for developing talents/skills. Education and all that it encompasses should 'develop' and not 'select' (some) and 'reject' (some others).
Posted by: Edward Roy Krishnan | 07/05/2006
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