in the education sector to comprehend the degree of efficiency and effectiveness. The focus of this paper is to provide an analysis of up to three articles that have looked into the concept of assessment practices used in evaluating student learning. Student learning evaluation is a means that is crucial for interested parties to ascertain the progress of students in various learning institutions. It is also important in shaping policy within the education sector.
McNamara, Joyce, and O’Hara, (2010), look at the evaluation process but within the context of adult education. They explain assessment as a process that should challenge and change the assumptions that people have developed in regards to a particular subject or topic. The article is articulate when it comes to the primary goal of examination. The expected outcome of an assessment process is often, to contribute to quality in the education sector. This is a fit that is achieved through the provision of loopholes and corrective actions in the education process.
An interesting aspect that the authors propose is that; the evaluation model is often influenced by the philosophy of the evaluator regarding the assessment process. In their paper, they discuss many examination models that they find compelling on some fronts. Formative and summative evaluation models, Jacob’s model, self-evaluation and Kirkpatrick’s model are some of the mention models within the paper (McNamara, Joyce, and O’Hara, 2010). The authors of the article hold the idea that assessment in the education sector is organized with the objective of shaping policy and philosophy in the educational sense.
According to Jean Piaget in his theory of cognitive growth in a human being, it is clear that the education system has to be arranged in a way that it correlates with mental and cognitive growth. For example, children between seven and eleven years undergo concrete operational development. At this age, children develop a logical fashion that is more rational and organized. Children between these ages can understand the concepts of volume, area, and reversibility in science. They do not just know how to count, but can also manipulate numbers.
For the adult learning system, the adult learner holds the role of ensuring that he or she becomes an active participant. They have to embrace the role and relevance of learning and its applicability in learning. Evaluation in the educational sector has often been confined to the classroom or learning environment. However, there is a growing need for the evaluators to go beyond the learning environment. This is an issue that is critical as it influences the learning process in one way or another. The challenge, however, arises in terms of deciding who should conduct the evaluation outside the classroom walls. Proposals made have hinted at the idea of having coordinators who understand the assessment process and who can confine it to the necessary aspects.
Dylan Wiliam in the article: Studies in Educational Evaluation traces the onset of assessment as an intrinsic component in the world of education. Dylan delves into the role of examination in the enhancement of learning processes. In tracing the onset of assessment in learning, the author creates a clear picture regarding the need for evaluation and how it has evolved over time (Wiliam, 2011). Situations and needs keep changing over time, as clearly stipulated in the article, and for that matter evaluators have to keep with changing dynamics and needs of the education sector as well. A recurrent idea within the context of the paper is that evaluation and teaching are aspects that need to run concurrently. The reason being; the teacher gains the ability to make changes and improvements in their approaches and in so doing attain maximum efficiency and effectiveness.
The underlying basis that Dylan attempts to push forward to the reader is that assessment is an excellent support tool for the learning process. The growth and development of assessment and evaluation were born out of the need to establish the degree of success in trying to teach. Looking at both the past and present examination models and approaches in education is instrumental in depicting practical techniques that teachers to enhance the quality of education (Wiliam, 2011). This in turn results in a more successful learning process for the students. Dylan, in the paper, does realize the need for research to allow for an integrated relationship between learning and assessment. The desired outcome is that learning outcomes will be improved and so will student engagement.
Jay McTighe and Ken O'Connor look at evaluation as a part and parcel of the learning process in their article: Seven Practices for Effective Learning (2009). The approach that they present is one that evaluation should be a process that teachers use alongside the teaching process. This way, McTighe, and O'Connor argue that the learning process becomes more efficient. The teacher can ascertain the level of efficiency in their teaching approach. The learning process and its success are dependent very much on evaluation, and that’s the reason they have to be conducted concurrently.
The provisions of seven important approaches that can be used to allow active learning enshrine the spirit of concurrent teaching and evaluation for effective learning. The authors look at methods that can be used to make students motivated to learn. After which, the teacher is expected to use many ways of identifying the specific cues to make their teaching process and successful as possible (McTighe and O'Connor, 2009). The article by McTighe and O'Connor proposes that the use of the proposed assessment practices does guarantee an enhanced learning process within the classroom environment. The step by step approach provided in the article allows for the utmost applicability in a classroom environment. For teachers concerned with the practical learning process in the classroom, McTighe and O'Connor suggest the integration of assessment alongside the teaching process. In doing that, teachers can make corrective measures early enough during teaching.
The student has to be treated as the epicenter of the learning process. This results in the necessary attention and motivation for them to attain the various motivation levels in the learning curves. Assessment and evaluation as presented in the course of the entire paper, are integral components in education and learning. Research and improvement in assessment approaches and models do require constant improvement to allow for the development of comprehensive methods. As stated earlier, teachers and other stakeholders have an interest in understanding the effectiveness and efficiency of various learning processes that the students are involved in. It is also important to note the fact that no particular model or approach can be labeled as being the best. This means that program evaluators have to be able to make a choice based on the requirements of the situation.
References
McNamara, G., Joyce, P., & O’Hara, J. (2010). Evaluation of adult education and training programs. International Encyclopedia of Education, 3, 548-554.
McTighe, J., & O'Connor, K. (2009). Seven practices for effective learning. Kaleidoscope: Contemporary and Classic Readings in Education, 174.
Wiliam, D. (2011). What is assessment for learning?. Studies in Educational Evaluation, 37(1), 3-14.
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