Work

Assessment for learning? Thinking outside the (black) box

Year: 2005
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: This article draws on a survey of 83 teachers, to explore the concepts of ‘assessment for learning’, ‘assessment’ and ‘learning’. ‘Assessment for learning’ is categorized as meaning: monitoring pupils' performance against targets or objectives; using assessment to inform next steps in teaching and learning; teachers giving feedback for improvement; (teachers) learning about children's learning; children taking some control of their own learning and assessment; and turning assessment into a learning event. Conceptions of assessment include assessment‐as‐measurement and assessment‐as‐inquiry. These conceptions are related to two conceptions of learning: learning‐as‐attaining‐objectives and learning‐as‐the‐construction‐of‐knowledge. The conceptions of assessment‐as‐measurement and learning‐as‐attaining‐objectives are dominant in English educational policy today. The article suggests that these conceptions need to be challenged and expanded, since conceptions held by those who have power in education determine what sort of assessment and learning happen in the classroom, and therefore the quality of the student's learning processes and products.
Language: English
Subfield: Education
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2070170675
FWCI: 28.71
Cites: 23
Cited by: 242
Related to: 10