the process and purpose of evaluation
TRANSCRIPT
EVALUATION:
What typically comes to mind first are grades.
Definition of evaluation:
It is the process of making overall judgment about
one's work or a whole school's work.
Purpose of evaluation:
Evaluation is used to generate grades and to promote
learning.
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3 BELIEFS OR ASSUMPTIONS THAT MAKE THE LINKS
BETWEEN GRADES AND LEARNING MORE THAN
WHAT THEY ARE:
1) Grades measure learning precisely:
it’s a complicated process because some kinds of learning can be
measured ,but higher order thinking skills are much more difficult to
assess.
1) Grades are objective measures of learning:
not true because some students get grades by influencing their human
evaluators.
1) Grades and evaluated assignments promote
learning:
They promote encounters with content, but whether those encounters
produce high quality learning experience is quite another question.
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GRADES AND RESULTS:
Grades open doors to so many future opportunities,
they powerfully motivate and influence student
behavior in some counterproductive ways.
Three examples:
1. Cheating.
2. Beliefs about ability.
3. Grade grubbing.
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HOW THE PURPOSE AND PROCESSES OF
EVALUATION CHANGE:
Change in Evaluation occurs on two fronts:
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Evaluation activities are
used in ways to
enhance their already
inherent potential to
promote learning.
Evaluation processes
are opened to students
in ways that give them
opportunities to develop
self and peer
assessment skills
ELEMENTS OF EVALUATION EXPERIENCES
THAT PROMOTE LEARNING:
We can build on the power of grades to motivate
students and connect these summative
assessments to content in two productive ways:
1st. Use the motivation that drives students to get
grades.
2nd. Maximize the encounters with content that occur
as a sequence of evaluation activities and strive to
shape those experiences so that they result in rich,
transformative learning experiences.
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BOTH GOALS CAN BE ACCOMPLISHED MAINLY
THROUGH FOUR PRODUCTIVE AREAS:
1) Focus on learning processes.
2) Reduce the stress and anxiety of evaluation
experiences.
3) Do not use evaluation to accomplish hidden
agendas.
4) Incorporate more formative feedback
mechanisms.
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1. FOCUS ON LEARNING PROCESSES:
Add elements to evaluative experiences that make
students aware of the learning processes involved.
Consider structures that make students mindful of
what and why they are doing it and expose them to
alternatives.
Use content to develop learning skills.
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2. REDUCE THE STRESS AND ANXIETY OF
EVALUATION EXPERIENCES:
Study: students rated 34 potential stressors. the top
include :the number of assignments, taking exams
and receiving low grades on them.
Ways to prepare students and reduce anxiety:
Exam reviews using authentic, bona-fide test questions.
Access to samples.
Extra credit or assignments.
Redo papers or exams.
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3. DO NOT USE EVALUATION TO ACCOMPLISH
HIDDEN AGENDAS:
Like querying the students about content from an
earlier part of the course, “remember when we
talked about …..?”
The hidden agenda here involves organizing
content around exam events.
To show class how much she knows or how difficult
the content is (success is seen in terms of ability
not effort).
To establish the reputation for rigor.
To see how far students can take content
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4. INCORPORATE MORE FORMATIVE
FEEDBACK MECHANISMS:
Include feedback that aims to improve next
performance.
Return a set of papers with careful and complete
comments.
Separate the two (grade and comments).
Constructive feedback: toward the performance not the person
including language that describes more than it evaluates
Shouldn’t overload the receiver
Its effectiveness is enhanced if its immediate and well timed.
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Successful implementation of these changes in evaluation purpose and processes can be accomplished by:
1-Redesigning
2-Refocusing
3- Better connectional activities series of instructional activities and assignments
Using an Exam to promote learning
• A Series of activities that enhance the learning potiential of
exams can be in corported into this common evaluation event.
• Green (1997) builds this into something more elaborate
thoughtful and detailed, she has each individual students for
credit generate one test questions.
• She takes this question without answer and put them in library
and uses them for about 75 percent of the exam.
some faculty do not
believe that they should devote a
class session to review ; that
leaves less time for covering the
content , and they see reviewing
as basically a student
responsibility
THE REVIEW PERIOD
1. We can use the group exam experience or
some variation of them consider some simple
changes that make and better learning mainly
by alleviating anxiety and building
confidence.
another way to relieve anxiety and promote
learning are extra credit questions or redo
mechanisms.
Using the exam itself better
• There are many other options, I have a
colleague who leaves one question blank
and lets student write that questions- they
are instructed to write a question they
expected to see on the exam but Is not
there and one that are prepared to answer.
Consider how exam results should be reviewed. Most important of all consider having a debriefing
session and making it longer than the last of minutes of class
What is self assessment?
is simply a matter of having students identify strengths and weaknesses in their own work and revise accordingly.
What is self assessment? Effective self-assessment involves students
comparing their work to clear standards and generating feedback for themselves about where they need to make improvements.
What is self assessment?it is a tool that can promote learning if it is
used while the learning is taking place.
after students self-assess and revise their work, they can turn it in for grade.
What is not self-assessment?
self-assessment is not a process by which students determine their own grades. It is about promoting learning and achievement. Self-assessment is not something that happens after an assignment is complete and students are ready to turn it in for a final grade.
How can I use self-assessment with my students?
• There are three key steps for effective self-assessment:
Clear performance
targets
Checking progress
toward the targets
revision
What is not self-assessment?
self-assessment is not a process by which students determine their own grades. It is about promoting learning and achievement. Self-assessment is not something that happens after an assignment is complete and students are ready to turn it in for a final grade.
1- clear performance targets:
students must have clear targets to work toward. In other words, students must know what counts !
clear criteria for assignments that will be graded should be made available to students before work on the task begins.
the assessment criteria can be created by the teacher or co-created with students. The criteria can be arranged in a simple checklist or in a rubric.
2-Checking progress toward the targets:
Once students know the performance targets (step 1), they create a draft of the assignment, compare the draft to the targets, and identify areas of strength and areas for improvement.
3-revision:
using the self-generated feedback from step 2, students revise their draft, trying to close the gaps between their work and the targets.
this step is crucial. If students do not have the chance to revise and improve their work, and possibly their grades, they are unlikely to take the self-assessment process seriously.
An example of a writing rubric with three criteria and
four levels of gradation
Highlycompetent
competent Approaching competent
Not yet
1-ideas and content
The paper clearlystates an opinionand gives3 clear,detailed reasons insupport of it. Opposing views are addressed.
An opinion is given.One reason may be unclear or lack detail. Opposing views are mentioned.
An opinion is given. The reasons given tend to be weaker or inaccurate. May
get off topic.
The opinion and support for it is buried, confused and unclear.
2- organization The paper has an interestingbeginning, developed middle and satisfyingconclusion in an order that makes sense. Paragraphs are indented, have topic and closingsentences and main idea.
The paper has a beginning, middle and end in an order that makes sense. Paragraphs are indented; some have topic and closing sentences.
The paper has an attempt at a beginning and ending. Some ideas may seem out of order. Some problems with paragraphs
There is no real beginning or ending. The idea seem loosely strung together. No paragraph formatting.
3-word choice
Participation:
How students establish the participation policy?
Students set concrete participation goals for themselves.
They select these goals based on an analysis of how they currently participate and what participation skills they next need to develop.
Portfolio:
The construction of a portfolio or collection of work selected and organized by the student is one of the oldest and most effective activity to develop student self-assessment skills.
E.g. to assemble your five best drawings, ten strongest paragraphs.
If the portfolio assignment includes a written justification for the work selected, self-assessment skills develop even more.
Peer assessment: ‘’group work’
Advocates of cooperative learning believe strongly that any group work needs to retain individual accountability. In other words, grades are measures of individual mastery an should never be assigned to a whole group.
Some faculty divide group grads into parts. ”how”
Group work:
Everyone in the group performed equally.
- Is it true? Or
- it should be that?
Contributions in group need to be measured against a set of criteria. If students are new to this process, you might to want to start by providing the criteria, derived from general information about effective group members.
As students become more experienced and comfortable with the process, let the groups identify their own criteria. They need to do this at the start so that the criteria clarify expectations before the group starts working together.
You can enhance peer assessment within groups by involving groups in assessment tasks related to the work of other groups. “ the same problem”
They compare and contrast their solution with those of other groups.
Questions that arise when the purpose and processes of
evaluation change:
The most important question is the ethical one.
Should students have any involvement in the actual grading process?
The pressure for grades makes it impossible for students in entry-level courses to grade their own work reliably. But it opens the door for student self-assessment in upper-division courses.
Giving constructive feedback:
Constructive feedback is information-specific, issue-focused , and based on observations.
Be direct when delivering your message. “to the point”.
Avoid “need to” phrases, which send implied messages that something did not go well.
Be sincere and avoid giving mixed messages.
Giving constructive feedback:
In positive feedback situations, express appreciation.
In negative feedback situations, express concern.
Give the feedback person-to-person, not through messengers of technology.
State observation, not interpretations.