| Why Consider Assessment and Evaluation | Focuses of Evaluation | Phases of the Evaluation Process | Suggested Assessment Techniques | Evaluation in Information Processing |
How students are acquiring the abilities and skills of Information Processing is as important as actual student accomplishment in the determination of grades. Students should be prepared for their assessment and evaluation. Teachers should take time to explain the process clearly.
Students should be encouraged to be involved in their own assessment and evaluation. They may set standards of accomplishment and practise self- and peer-assessment.
A broader range of attributes needs to be assessed and evaluated than has been considered in the past.
In Student Evaluation: A Teacher Handbook (Saskatchewan Education, 1991) assessment and evaluation are defined. Assessment is a preliminary phase. In this phase, various techniques are used to gather information about student progress. Evaluation is the weighing of assessment information against some standard (such as a curriculum learning objective) to make a judgment. This may then lead to other decisions and action by the teacher, student, or parent.
There are three main types of student evaluation: formative, summative, and diagnostic. Formative evaluation is an ongoing classroom process that keeps students and educators informed of students' progress. The main purpose of formative evaluation is to improve instruction. This type of evaluation helps teachers understand the degree to which students are learning the course material and the extent to which their knowledge, understandings, skills, and attitudes are developing. Students are provided direction for future learning and are encouraged to take responsibility for their own progress.
Summative evaluation occurs most often at the end of the unit of study. Its primary purpose is to determine what has been learned over a period
of time, to summarize student progress, and to report on progress to students, parents, and educators.
Seldom are evaluations strictly formative or summative. However, it is important that teachers make clear to students the purpose of assessments and whether they will later be used summatively.
Diagnostic evaluation usually occurs at the beginning of the school year or before a unit of instruction. Its main purposes are to identify students who lack prerequisite knowledge, understanding, or skills, so that remedial help can be arranged; to identify gifted learners to ensure they are being sufficiently challenged; and to identify student interests. Teachers conduct all three types of evaluation during the course of the school year.
| Why Consider Assessment and Evaluation | Focuses of Evaluation | Phases of the Evaluation Process | Suggested Assessment Techniques | Evaluation in Information Processing |
Student Evaluation. Specific assessment techniques are selected or devised to gather information related to how well students are achieving the learning objectives of the curriculum and to the type of learning outcome (knowledge, understanding, skill, attitude, value, or process), the subject area content, the instructional strategies used, the students' levels of development, and the specific purpose of evaluation. It is inappropriate to evaluate student progress in the Common Essential Learnings independently of the subject area content.
Various examples follow in this section of the curriculum document that are specific to Information Processing. For further information on the various assessment techniques and types of instruments that can be used to collect and record information about student learning, refer to Student Evaluation: A Teacher Handbook (Saskatchewan Education, 1991).
Program Evaluation. Program evaluation is a systematic process of gathering and analyzing information about some aspect of a school program in order to make a decision, or to communicate to others involved in the decision-making process. Program evaluation can be conducted at two levels, relatively informally at the classroom level, or more formally at the classroom, school, or school division levels.
To support formal school-based program evaluation activities, Saskatchewan Education has developed the Saskatchewan School-Based Program Evaluation Resource Book (1989) to be used in conjunction with an inservice package. Further information on these support services is available from the Evaluation and Student Records Division, Saskatchewan Education, Training and Employment.
Curriculum Evaluation. Curriculum evaluation, at the provincial level, involves making judgments about the effectiveness of provincially authorized curricula. Curriculum evaluation involves the gathering of information (assessment phase) and the making of judgments or decisions based on the information collected (the evaluation phase), to determine how well the curriculum is performing. The principal reason for curriculum evaluation is to plan improvements to the curriculum. Such improvements might involve changes to the curriculum document and/or the provision of resources or inservice to teachers.
Curriculum evaluation is described in greater detail in the document, Curriculum Evaluation in Saskatchewan (Saskatchewan Education, 1991).
Evaluation can be viewed as a cyclical process: preparation, assessment, evaluation, and reflection. The evaluation process involves the teacher as a decision maker throughout the four phases.
Preparation phase. Decisions are made which identify what is to be evaluated, the type of evaluation (formative, summative, or diagnostic) to be used, the criteria against which student learning outcomes will be judged, and the most appropriate assessment techniques with which to gather information on student progress. The teacher's decisions in this phase form the basis for the remaining phases.
Assessment phase. The teacher identifies information-gathering techniques, constructs or selects instruments, administers them to the student, and collects the information on student learning progress. The teacher continues to make decisions in this phase. The identification and elimination of bias (such as gender and cultural) from the assessment techniques and instruments, and the determination of where, when, and how assessments will be conducted are examples of important considerations for the teacher.
Evaluation phase. The teacher interprets the assessment information and makes judgments about student progress. Based on the judgments or evaluations, teachers make decisions about student learning programs and report on progress to students, parents, and appropriate school personnel.
Reflection phase. Allows the teacher to consider the extent to which the previous phases in the evaluation process have been successful. Specifically the teacher evaluates the utility and appropriateness of the assessment techniques used. Such reflection assists the teacher in making decisions concerning improvements or modifications to subsequent teaching and evaluation.
All four phases of the evaluation process are included in formative, diagnostic, and summative evaluation.
There is a range of assessment techniques teachers may use to collect student progress information. Evaluation of a student's achievements and efforts can be effectively demonstrated through a collection of assessment information addressing the components of the curriculum: the knowledge to be attained, the processes through which decisions are made and problems solved, the technical skills that promote efficiency and quality, and the attitudes that ensure the individual will experience success outside of the school environment.
Following is a list of student assessment techniques, grouped according to how a teacher could organize assessments and record the information while students are engaged in either ongoing activities or writing quizzes and tests. These techniques, with their uses, hints for construction, and examples, are described in the Saskatchewan Education document Student Evaluation: A Teacher Handbook (1991).
Students perform best when they are aware of how their performance will be assessed. Teachers should clearly outline their expectations of students and make students aware of the content (knowledge), processes (application), keyboarding skills and attitudes (business-like attitudes) that will be assessed throughout the course.
In a full Information Processing course, a 50-hour core and two 25-hour optional modules will be used. The degree of emphasis for the modules should be:
Why Consider Assessment and Evaluation
Focuses of Evaluation
Phases of the Evaluation Process
Suggested Assessment Techniques
Evaluation in Information Processing
Phases of the Evaluation Process
Why Consider Assessment and Evaluation
Focuses of Evaluation
Phases of the Evaluation Process
Suggested Assessment Techniques
Evaluation in Information Processing
Suggested Assessment Techniques
Methods of Organization:
Methods of Data Recording:
Ongoing Student Activities
Quizzes and Tests
Why Consider Assessment and Evaluation
Focuses of Evaluation
Phases of the Evaluation Process
Suggested Assessment Techniques
Evaluation in Information Processing
Evaluation in Information Processing
| 50-hour core 25-hour module 25-hour module Total: |
50% 25% 25% 100% |
The Information Processing curriculum incorporates a number of instructional strategies and methods. Each one suggested has been chosen to facilitate the learning objectives effectively. Teachers should choose the most appropriate assessment techniques that will allow them to assess student performance in a manner that is compatible with what they have taught and how they have taught it. The linkages among the learning objectives, the most appropriate instructional strategies and methods, and the assessment techniques that are chosen to collect information on student learning progress are extremely important. Teachers are encouraged to use a broad range of assessment techniques in the prepartion of a comprehensive evaluation of student performance. Information Processing involves more than just the final product. How students generated and went about generating the final product is also important.
Some assessment techniques are better suited for providing certain kinds of information than others. The techniques teachers use will depend upon the purpose of the assessment. For example, if a teacher wishes to assess the knowledge the students have gained, a quiz or test using objective test items would provide the necessary evidence of student learning. However, should the teacher wish to assess keyboarding skills, a performance test with specific criteria listed on a rating scale or checklist as a recording instrument may prove of more value. Should information on student attitude or work involvement be the purpose of the assessment, anecdotal records may be of best service to the teacher. With processes that students would use in performing tasks, a teacher may choose to observe students during performance assessments or presentations and record the information on checklists or rating scales listing specific areas to be assessed. Teachers do not necessarily need to assess all students each class. For example, a teacher may prepare anecdotal records for five students per class.
Examples of how instructional strategies and assessment techniques may be applied to this curriculum can be found throughout the modules. These suggestions are not meant to be prescriptive in any sense. They are offered as examples of how a teacher may use a range of assessment techniques to assess student progress on the knowledge, keyboarding skills, processes, and attitudes that are contained in this curriculum.