When are informal assessments useful (versus formal assessments)? How valuable are informal assessments? Can informal assessments be good replacements for formal assessments?

When one thinks of assessment, grades and test results are what easily come to mind. Unless we have units or a degree in Education, we may not be aware that we are also using informal assessment. It is easier to discuss the value of formal assessments in as much as they are  “used to assess overall achievement, to compare a student’s performance with others at their age or grade, or identify comparable strengths and weaknesses with peers”. (Weaver, 2007 p. 1) Formal assessments are typically comprised of standardized tests that have prescribed norms for conducting the test, means of scoring and interpretation. While ease of use, reliability, its value as a basis for comparing student performance against students in the same age or grade level are among its advantages, formal assessment has its disadvantages as well. They are criticized for being overused, biased against a certain ethnicity or student with limited English proficiencies, heavily reliant on multiple choice type questions and may have low content validity especially for bilingual learners. (Navarete, et al. 1990)

On the other hand, “Informal assessments are not data-driven but rather content and performance driven”. (Weaver, 2007 p. 1) Information gathered from informal assessments are “used to make judgments about children’s learning behavior and characteristics or programs using means other than standardized instruments”.  (Morrison, 2008 p.1) Informal assessments take into account students’ levels of ability in performing specific tasks. These tasks, in turn, are appropriately selected so that students are expected to perform them reasonably. Informal assessments also aim to pinpoint the strengths and weaknesses of students as individuals regardless of age or grade level standards. (Navarete, et al. 1990) Forlizzi (2004) recognizes the importance of informal assessment in instruction because it provides instructional staff with frequent monitoring and guidance in answering the questions “How are we doing?” and “Where are we going?”.

Although informal assessments are time-consuming because they are conducted over a period of time, the value, it seems of informal assessment, lies in its ability to provide immediate feedback, ongoing and continuous measure of student progress, areas of strengths and weaknesses, and its role in determining future courses and teaching strategies. Further, it is adoptable and adaptable to tailor to student’s, teacher’s administrator’s, school board’s needs.

Having discussed the advantages and disadvantages, characteristics and value of each, I don’t think that informal assessments can effectively replace formal assessments. Rather, both types of assessment should be used together to provide educators with enough insight to as to a student’s mastery of a topic or skill and the areas where he or she may need help. Also, data and information gathered from both may be useful for students to know their levels of achievement and what they need to do in order to meet the learning goals and objectives set out by their teacher or by their school. What I have come to realize from reading the prescribed and additional materials in this course is that no assessment is perfect in itself and that educators must not judge the abilities, talents, weaknesses and needs of a student based on testing alone. They must also give importance to assessments which may seem casual, simple or time-consuming, but also indicative of the direction in which classroom instruction is bound to go.

Although I have been using assessment for a number of years as a big part of my job, I have never really given it much thought until now. I always took for granted that it was part of our school’s application requirements or given at the end of a school year. Results of standardized tests, report cards with numeric and/or letter grades, teacher and principal evaluations, class observations, student portfolios, interviews and the like are just some of the assessments used at our school. Enrolling in this class, has made me aware of the different types of assessment, their uses, differences, advantages, disadvantages and most especially their value. By examining both formal and informal assessment, I can now better appreciate and determine which one to use at different stages of our school’s admissions process, and which results to share with faculty, fellow administrators, students, parents and the school board.

Is reflective teaching a necessary skill for informal assessment to effectively facilitate teaching-learning? (What does it mean to reflect about teaching?)

Reflective teaching is a necessary skill for informal assessment to effectively facilitate teaching-learning. In How We Think  (1910), John Dewey describes reflective practice as “an active, persistent and careful consideration of any belief or supposed form of knowledge in the light of the grounds that support it and the further conclusions to which it tends”. Applying this to teaching, the “grounds” or basis of the decisions teachers make regarding instruction and curriculum are gathered from the informal assessments they make use of.  As established in the discussion of the value of informal assessment earlier, such assessment is indicative of the individual needs of students and how to help them develop their abilities and reach their full potential.  But it is not enough for teachers to know their students’ strengths and weaknesses. What they do with this information is what is crucial to the progress of their students and the direction in which their teaching will take.

Dewey further writes that “Reflection involves not simply a sequence of ideas, but a consequence  - a consecutive ordering in such a way that each determines the next as its proper outcome, while each in turn leans back on its predecessors” (Dewey 1910  p. 8) Here, Dewey talks about reflective action, reflection that inspires change. When teachers reflect about their teaching, they open their classroom teaching  experiences to scrutiny, use the information they gather about their students to carefully examine their students’ learning experiences in the classroom and make the changes necessary to provide the best teaching practices to and the most conducive learning experiences for their students.

References

Weaver, B. (2007). Formal versus informal assessments. Retrieved January 22, 2013 from http:// http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/article/formal-versus-informal-assessments

Navarete, C. et al. (1990). Informal assessment in educational evaluation. Retrieved January 22, 2013 from http://www.finchpark.com/courses/assess/informal.htm

Forlizzi, L. (2004) Informal assessment: the basics. Retrieved January 22, 2013 from http://aded.tiu11.org/disted/FamLitAdminSite/fn04assessinformal.pdf

Morrison, G. (2008) Informal methods of assessment. Retrieved January 23, 2013 from http://www.education.com/reference/article/informal-methods-assessment/

Dewey, J. (1910). How we think.  New York, NY: D.C. Heath & Co.

 

 

Reliability – refers to the degree of replicability and consistency with which students’ performance on assessment tasks is measured. A reliable assessment is one which uses consistent methods and criteria to produce the same results if given more than once and to a similar group of students. An example would be giving a standardized test like the MAP (Measure of Academic Progress) to all students grades 3 and up. The test is deemed reliable because it doesn’t matter if the test is given to a group of students in the morning or in the afternoon, on one day or after 2 days.

Validity – refers to the accuracy of an assessment. A valid form of assessment is one which measures what it is set out to measure and actually measures the performance  of students vis-à-vis the specified learning outcomes. An example would be giving a practical exam which asks for students to demonstrate the concepts of force, motion and gravity by constructing an “egg drop device”. To show the practical application of these concepts, a mere written exam on the process by which they came up with their device will not suffice. The practical assessment component of the activity calls for the actual demonstration of the concepts in class by performing an “egg drop experiment” and showing the class how the concepts learned applies to the use of the device.

Reliability and Validity are co-dependent. An assessment has to be both reliable and valid at the same time for it to be effective.  Inconsistent results cannot provide  valid information about students’ performance or achievement  in the same way that highly consistent results do not mean that a test is valid since the test may not be appropriately assessing the competence or skills intended to be assessed.  For example , a math exam comprised of questions which involve routine calculations even if given in two different sets purport to have a high degree of validity to determine  arithmetic skills but have a low degree of validity to determine problem-solving skills.

Norm Referenced Assessment – refers to assessment measured against non-fixed criteria. Its goal is to compare student performance against a national or statewide standard. It indicates the performance of a student vis-à-vis that of other students in a specific domain and tests not what a student knows or can do but rather how he or she is ranked among other students of a similar age or grade level. Examples would be IQ tests, school or college entrance examinations, SAT9 or Measures of Academic Progress (MAPs).

Criterion-Referenced Assessment – refers to assessment measured against fixed criterion. It is used to determine a student’s competency, and what he or she knows, can or cannot do when asked to perform a specific task and/or at a certain level. It is non-competitive and non-ranking and does not indicate whether one student is better than another or others. Examples would be driving tests, writing test or exercise where the score is based on a set of criteria such as presentation, clarity, creativity, and other class projects whose scores are evaluated against a set of criteria.
 
Formative Assessment – refers to assessment which is continuously going on throughout a course providing the students with feedback in light of the intended learning outcomes and opportunities to improve their performance on the same or similar tasks. They are “low stakes” in that they are aimed to help students determine their strengths and weaknesses and indicate what areas need improvement so that teachers may address their problems right away rather than aimed at contributing towards a final grade. Examples would be projects, homework, written work, pop quizzes, journal entries, self and peer evaluations.

Summative Assessment – refers to assessment which is given at the end or upon completion of a course, module, task or activity and comparing it against some criteria or standard. It is considered “high stakes” because it involves the giving of a final grade on students’ performance and does not provide the opportunity to improve their performance.  Examples would be semester or final exams, performance tasks, class demonstrations and portfolios.

Formative and Summative assessments should be balanced when used together in a curriculum. The formative assessment tasks provide the teacher with a basis for the teaching and learning activities which culminate in a summative assessment at the end of the course.

Formal Assessment – refers to assessment which involves written documentation and given a numerical score or grade. Examples are examinations, thesis, research papers,

Informal Assessment – refers to assessment which takes place in a more casual manner and may not necessarily be given a grade. Examples include classroom observations, checklists, discussions, self and peer evaluations.

Traditional Assessment – refers to assessment which is mostly conventional and “paper and pencil” such as tests, quizzes, papers, thesis, etc.

Alternative Assessment – refers to assessment which is unconventional such as online discussion forums, online portfolios, blogs, interviews, etc.

Assessment is a means by which student’s progress is measured. It is a way for the teacher to know whether her students are learning or have learned what she is teaching.

Assessment in the classroom is an essential part of the learning process. It indicates how effectively a teacher has explained her goals and objectives to her students and how effectively her students have understood and met them. Without assessment, both the teacher and the student would not obtain a sense of fulfillment and pride in their efforts to teach and to learn.

As Director of Admissions, I rely on assessment to make decisions about whether to accept or reject a student applying for admission to our school. Grades on report cards, teacher, principal or guidance counselor evaluation forms and student portfolios are some types of assessment that I have encountered in my line of work. They are invaluable to my decision-making process and form a big part of admissions decisions in our school.