Purpose+of+Assessment


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From Alberta Learning: The purpose of assessment as outlined in the Guiding Principles in the Alberta Learning Document are:
 * Purpose of Assessment - Assessment //for// learning **
 * **Assessment, evaluation and communication of student achievement and growth are essential parts of the teaching and learning process.**
 * **Each part of the teaching and learning process should be a positive experience for students and promote personal growth.**
 * **Practices should be carried out in such a way that they support continuous learning and development**

For effective assessment and evaluation, the following principles are essential: Principle #1: Assessment should be //**continuous**// Principle #2: Assessment should be //**collaborative**// Principle #3: Assessment should be //**comprehensive**// Principle #4: Assessment should //**include criteria**//

Assessment practices should be carried out in such a way that they support and enhance ongoing student learning and development.
 * Principle #1: Assessment should be continuous.**

Assessment practices should:
 * Promote student learning
 * Be part of instruction in a variety of contexts, using varied methods and instruments that match learner outcomes
 * Be part of an ongoing process rather than a set of isolated events
 * Focus on both process and product
 * Provide information about students/ prior learning
 * Provide ongoing feedback about the effectiveness of instruction
 * Enable students to demonstrate their knowledge and skills
 * Provide opportunities for students to revise their work in order to set goals and improve their learning
 * Provide a status report on how well students can demonstrate learner outcomes at that time.

Students benefit when they are involved in the assessment process
 * Principle #2: Assessment should be collaborative.**

Assessment practices should help and encourage students to:
 * Be responsible for their own learning and develop a positive attitude towards the use of technology in meaningful, real-world situations
 * Be involved in establishing criteria for evaluating their products or performances
 * Work together to learn and achieve outcomes
 * Set goals for further improvements

Assessment practices should address learner outcomes and include a variety of strategies that meet the diverse learning needs of students.
 * Principle #3: Assessment should be comprehensive.**

Assessment practices should:
 * Be developmentally appropriate, age-appropriate, gender-balanced, and consider students’ cultural and special needs
 * Be constructive, build on student strengths and encourage further learning, be creating positive atmospheres and self-images
 * Enable students to demonstrate learning in many different contexts and subjects and in meaningful, real-life situations
 * Include multiple sources of evidence (formal and informal)
 * Provide opportunities for students to demonstrate what they know, understand and can do

Assessment practices should identify and clearly define the critical aspects of performance for demonstrating student learning.
 * Principle #4: Assessment should include criteria.**

Assessment practices should:
 * Involve students in identifying and /or creating criteria
 * Communicate the criteria used to evaluate student work BEFORE students begin tasks so they can plan for success
 * Provide students with rubrics to indicate performance levels
 * Be communicated to students so that they understand expectations related to learner outcomes

*Achievement is based on demonstration of learner outcomes rather than comparing one student’s performance to another’s.*