Assessment can show teachers what students are ready to learn next

Assessment is useful when it gives teachers reliable evidence about what students know and can do—and what they may be ready to learn next. That means looking beyond a total score to the knowledge and skills students have developed, as well as understandings they are still building.

Dr. Dara Ramalingam, research director of assessment development at the Australian Council for Educational Research, describes assessment as evidence that can inform classroom decisions as well as education programs and policy. The quality of that evidence matters: if a test does not measure learning well, the decisions based on its results may also be compromised.

A score alone can hide differences between students. Two students with the same overall result may have answered different questions correctly, so examining response patterns can give teachers a more detailed picture of their learning.

What makes an assessment useful

Assessment developers start with two questions: what knowledge, skills or abilities is the test meant to measure, and how will students’ responses provide evidence of those abilities? Each question should be designed to test a skill within the subject area, rather than something unrelated.

An early mathematics test, for example, could end up measuring reading ability if its problems use complicated written language. Developers can use simple language or provide audio support when reading is not the skill being assessed. In a science test, an item might instead be designed to assess whether a student can draw conclusions from evidence.

Using evidence to plan next steps

Standardized assessments are one source of information, but they are not the only one. Teachers also gather evidence through classroom tests, questions and informal observations. Used together, these forms of evidence can help build a fuller picture of where a student is in their learning.

Ramalingam’s account emphasizes that assessment should connect evidence to teaching: results can help teachers identify what students have learned and inform decisions about what to teach next. The article does not specify a particular assessment tool or prescribe one approach for interpreting results; it focuses on the need for sound materials and careful attention to student responses.

This report draws on information from Teacher Magazine.