Assessment serves a distinct and purposeful role in education. Its primary goal should not be to simply point out gaps in a learner’s knowledge but rather to guide and support the learning process itself. One of the most crucial purposes of assessment is to determine which processes meet the learner’s individual needs.
Thinking About Constructivist Theory
To achieve this, I would recall Selwyn’s discussion on Jerome Bruner’s Constructivist Theory because learning, “is not simply a technical business of well managed information processing” (Selwyn, 2011). With this I could facilitate a holistic learning development that goes beyond traditional educational boundaries. My young learners, and their learning journeys, remain tantamount to planning when I think of assessments. As a result, I can determine which areas require the most attention and design interventions accordingly. This process remains dynamic, allowing for iterative adaptation based on assessment outcomes. Cultivating this approach means that assessment of my young learners becomes more than a moment of judgment. It offers learners a chance to reflect on their performance, embrace failure as part of their growth, and use feedback to improve continuously. Failure, in this context, is not something to be avoided, but a valuable tool that fosters critical thinking, skill mastery, and deeper understanding. With each cycle of feedback and adaptation, my learners can progressively build on their skills and move closer to mastery.
Thinking About Behaviorism theory
Unfortunately, I have witnessed the use of assessments to highlight what a learner does not know, reducing them to tools of deficit identification. It is as if there was no connection between assessment and instruction. When Shepard, (2000) discussed the division between assessment and instruction, it brought memories of my own experiences with this separation. Years ago, during an undergraduate film class, the assessment was focused on memorization of filming details instead of the connections I formed throughout my studies. Today, I am reminded that the behaviorism theory of learning is the research that was predominantly utilized during my experience in undergraduate school.
Undermining the Integrity of Assessments
In today’s educational landscape, assessments have been adapted for use in the Big Business of education. They are now used as data points, influencing budgetary and policy decisions. This undermines the integrity of assessments and fails to acknowledge the individual needs of students. Assessments should center on fostering development and mastery, not on bolstering or reducing budgets. They should serve as meaningful tools for promoting deeper learning, rather than being reduced to transactional data points in a system prioritizing financial and structural considerations over educational growth.
Final Thoughts
To recap my introduction, the distinct purpose of assessment is to guide and support learning, not to serve as mere data points for educational conglomerates.
References
Buckingham, A (2024, September 8). AssessmentCEP813. [video]. https://angeliabuckingham.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/AssessmentCEP813.mp4
Selwyn, N. (2011). Education and technology: Key issues and debates. Continuum International Publishing.
Shepard, L. A. (2000). The role of assessment in a learning culture. Educational Researcher, 29(7), 4-14.
