Assessment for Learning: the practical implications A contribution from Ruth Sutton March 2008
Transcript
Slide 1
Assessment for Learning: the practical implications A
contribution from Ruth Sutton March 2008
Slide 2
2 My task and intent My task: to offer you ideas to stimulate
reflection and conversation, and then respond to your questions I
will: review the key points of what we know from 20 years of
research about Assessment for Learning, and explore the practical
implications for teaching The conversations that follow will be
guided to: encourage you to see how many of the AFL strategies you
are already using, and how you might adopt more
Slide 3
3 My intent: whats the point? My intent is to keep things
simple and practical, while recognising that making assessment for
learning work and last in our schools is not easy or quick. AFL
challenges some of our assumptions and our habits around teaching
and learning, and hard-wired habits are hard to break
Slide 4
4 My criteria for a successful session today are: 1.You are
clear what Assessment for Learning is really about, and why its
worth pursuing 2.You have reflected on your own current teaching
and found some connections between what you already do, or have at
least thought about, and the strategies Im suggesting 3.Youve
decided to change one thing for yourself, or preferably with some
of your colleagues, and understand that it may take a while before
you feel fully confident about a different way of planning, or
questioning, or marking and providing feedback. Whichever area you
choose to focus on, it will mean involving your students,
intentionally and thoughtfully.
Slide 5
OK then! Lets get going back to basics
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6 Assessment: 2 Key Purposes Assessment of learning Checks
learning to date Audience beyond the classroom Periodic Uses
numbers, scores and grades Criterion/standards referenced No need
to involve the learner Assessment for learning Suggests next
learning Audience is teachers and learners Continual conversation
and marking Specific feedback, using words Self-referenced,
ipsative Must involve the learner the person most able to improve
learning
Slide 7
7 Why bother making this distinction? The word assessment has
been used in our language to mean judgement, and we need to
re-capture its original meaning which was much more about feedback
than about measurement Many of us, and most children, parents and
community members still react to assessment with anxiety So we need
to be clear what kind of assessment were talking about, and how the
two purposes differ from each other
Slide 8
8 The importance of purpose Many teachers spend many hours each
week marking students work Whats the purpose of marking? Is it for
grading (the left hand column) or for improvement (on the right)?
If its for improvement, we may need to think again about why and
how we mark, to make sure that we dont waste our own time We also
need to think again about how much and how often we grade for
reporting. The purpose of reporting should be improvement: if not,
why do we do so much of it?
Slide 9
Actually maybe we should avoid the word assessment altogether
What else could we call Assessment for Learning to clarify its real
purpose? The Winnipeg Inner City project was entitled Feedback for
Learning
Slide 10
10 The research base We need a sound research base before we
embark on something so important, and think about changing some of
the fundamentals of teaching AFL research spans 25 years, from the
1970s to now, and right across the planet The basic principles are
widely understood, but they are not so widely acted upon Lets look
at a good summary of the principles
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11 The AFL Big 5 Principles (UK Assessment Reform Group, 1999)
The provision of effective feedback to students The active
involvement of students in their own learning Adjusting teaching to
take account of the results of assessment Recognition of the
profound influence assessment has on the motivation and self-esteem
of students, both of which are crucial influences on learning The
need for students to be able to assess themselves and understand
how to improve
Slide 12
Lets take these principles one at a time and unpick the
practical implications
Slide 13
13 The provision of effective feedback To understand what
effective means, we have to remember that the purpose of AFL is
improvement, not measurement, so effective feedback must be aimed
at that Take a minute: think and talk about the kind of feedback
youve had over the years that most helped you make your work or
performance better
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14 Heres what the experts say effective feedback should be
Specific Connected to clear criteria Timely: received and acted
upon as soon as possible Indicative of next steps Followed through
Descriptive rather than evaluative
Slide 15
15 Whats the difference between descriptive, and evaluative?
Descriptive Facts, not judgements Explicitly related to clear
shared criteria Usually in words Includes specific next steps
Evaluative Judgements, without specific detail General and overall,
rather than relating to specific criteria Usually numbers (scores,
grades) but can be words too, eg.Good job Provides general goals,
eg Pay attention to punctuation but not specific advice
Slide 16
16 Sounds easy, but Most of the feedback we received as school
learners ourselves was evaluative, so thats what were used to Much
of the feedback we provide to our students is evaluative, so thats
what were used to Much of the feedback our students receive is
evaluative so thats what theyre used to Much of what is expected of
us by school, district and provincial systems is evaluative
information Providing descriptive feedback takes more thought, and
probably more time, so why should we change?
Slide 17
17 Why should we change to descriptive feedback? Because it
enables more students to improve their work faster, and achieve
more Because it makes more students think more about their
learning, and take greater responsibility for improvement Because,
after the initial struggle to change our habits, we can do a better
job by working differently, not working harder
Slide 18
18 AFL Principle #2 The active involvement of students in their
own learning These words were chosen with care: it could have said,
The active involvement of students in their own assessment, but it
didnt The message is, AFL works best where the students are
encouraged to be involved in the learning process, from the start
This starts with the teacher checking what students already know,
what they dont know, and their misconceptions, and then adjusting
their teaching accordingly It has huge implications for teachers
planning; we need to plan for learning, not for coverage!
Slide 19
19 AFL Principle #3 Adjusting teaching to take account of the
results of assessment Another implication for planning.now we want
teachers to check, as they go along, for students understanding,
and be flexible enough to adapt their teaching to meet the learners
needs, not just plough on regardless, driven by coverage of the
programme
Slide 20
20 How do we check as we go along? Many teachers already use
simple techniques to check whats happening in students heads: *
Thumbs up/down/sideways to indicate levels of grasp * Asking a key
question and using students answers as a guide * traffic lights
shown by students to communicate easily how theyre feeling about
the learning What matters is that the students are expected to
reflect and respond honestly, and the teacher is able to act upon
their responses
Slide 21
Planning for Learning or Planning for Coverage? Its a big
issue, and one to discuss when we break for conversation
Slide 22
22 AFL Principle # 4 Recognition of the profound effect
assessment has on the motivation and self-esteem of students, both
of which are powerful influences on learning What does it look like
and feel like in a classroom where students motivation and their
self-respect as learners are treated as powerful influences on
learning? How about this..
Slide 23
23 The well-motivated classroom Students prior knowledge and
experience are identified and respected in designing what we teach
Students varied learning styles are incorporated into deciding how
we teach Students are encouraged to understand the criteria that
will be used to judge their work Students are offered an
opportunity to improve their work after feedback, just once or as
much as the teacher believes is manageable and useful Students
support their peers, and expect to be supported by them Teachers
have high expectations of their students
Slide 24
24 Where does intrinsic motivation come from? Self efficacy
Believing in yourself as a learner Effective Feedback and the
chance to act upon it Locus of control Having some control over
factors that influence your success Intrinsic Motivation
Achievement
Slide 25
We are all learners! What we know about intrinsic motivation
applies to us as well.
Slide 26
26 AFL Principle #5 The need for students to be able to assess
themselves and to understand how to improve Here again, the wording
is deliberateour job is to make sure that students are able and
willing to assess themselves If weve paid attention to the previous
four principles, this one should take care of itself
Slide 27
27 Practical implications of AFL Principle #5 Teachers need to
coach students to become effective in critique and correction of
their own and each others work Students may have trouble separating
feedback from friendship:first they need to learn the skills of
applying criteria to work, before looking at the work of people
they know Its essential that students understand the criteria
theyre using Co-construction of criteria is a great place to start:
the teacher uses her subject expertise to guide students towards
the criteria that need to be applied, but the wording of the
criteria is provided by the students Exemplars of work are more
useful to students than words on their own to illuminate and
illustrate the criteria they are expected to use
Slide 28
28 Feedback for Learning in Winnipeg 2000-03: some key lessons
Teachers skills, confidence, thoughtfulness and willingness to work
together are the keys to classroom change Many fine teachers are
reluctant to see themselves as leaders Teachers have to believe
that changing hard-wired habits will have a pay-off for them as
well as their students: whats in it for me is a legitimate question
School leaders are the main change-agents in their own schools:
what they understand about AFL, and what they do and say about it,
matters Schools need courage, confidence, good feedback and
perseverance Sustainable whole-school change takes years, not
months, to achieve
Slide 29
29 Winnipegs Ten Steps to Heaven 1.Teacher is clear about
purpose and task 2.Teacher knows how to state, share and show
learning expectations 3.Teacher designs and explains enabling tasks
that enable students to learn what we want them to learn, not just
keep them busy 4.Teacher and students co-construct criteria,
together 5.Students check their work, while the task is in
progress
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30 Ten Steps to Heaven Cont. 6.Students say whats OK and whats
not 7.Students identify a next step 8.Students continue, and
correct work so far 9.Students reflect periodically, with guidance
from the teacher where necessary, on what theyve learned, and how
they learned it 10. Students present their learning and achievement
to an audience
Slide 31
31 Ten steps: actions help us to remember 1. Task (clenched
fist) 2. Purpose (hand on heart) 3. Share (spread your hands) 4.
Small steps (down the arm) 5. Get working (turn around) 6.Look and
check (binoculars) 7.Idea for improvement (finger in air) 8.Take a
step towards (step forward) 9.Look back to reflect (look over
shoulder) 10.Present learning (raise your arms)
Slide 32
32 Questions for discussion In the early years of schooling: 1.
How can children be encouraged to reflect on their learning, in the
simplest terms and the most basic activities? 2. How does
Assessment for Learning connect with other important goals of early
learning? 3.What are the roadblocks we need to watch out for at
this stage?
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33 Questions for discussion In elementary classrooms: 1.What
are the most effective and manageable ways of increasing students
involvement in their own learning? 2.How can/do we incorporate AFL
strategies into our teaching plans? 3.How can/do we involve
students in self and peer assessment? What successes and
difficulties have we experienced?
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34 Questions for discussion In secondary classrooms: 1.How
can/do we resolve the dilemma around planning for learning vs.
planning for coverage? Whats the best first step towards this?
2.How do/could we involve students in self and peer assessment?
What successes and problems have we encountered in implementing
self and peer assessment?
Slide 35
35 Questions for discussion For school leaders: 1.What do we
need to do, say and model, systematically and regularly, to sustain
teachers implementation of AFL? 2. What evidence of AFL
implementation will we look for across the school? (Youll need to
be quite specific about this)
Slide 36
36 Off-line discussion and responses We will leave you with
your facilitators for 25 minutes: Discuss any or all of the
suggested questions Decide the questions and suggestions you wish
to email back to me.
Slide 37
37 Planning for learning not for coverage I taught the dog to
whistle! But the dogs not whistling
Slide 38
38 Teaching isnt the same as learning! I said I taught him, I
didnt say he learned it!
Slide 39
39 Planning for coverage We start by looking at the
requirements and plan to fit them all in This usually means
teaching too much, too fast We know even before we start that some
of the students wont be able to keep up Were frustrated by being
set up to fail
Slide 40
40 Planning for coverage Content is fixed Timing is tight
Inflexible Students questions only matter if theyre within the
required framework Looks neat and tidy All the space is filled
Predictable and safe Planning for learning Content is decided after
checking with the students Timing is looser More flexible Students
questions provide opportunities for teaching and leaning Looks
messy Some spaces are left blank: it depends what crops up Less
predictable and feels riskier
Slide 41
41 How do we plan for learning without taking too many risks?
Find out about prior learning We may find that we dont need to
teach some stuff We may discover misconceptions that will need to
be corrected before students can learn what we plan to teach them
Students will feel that the teaching is more tailored to their
needs, and are more likely to engage with it
Slide 42
42 Be selective, and prioritise 1.Decide which bits of what you
want to teach are essential: they support future learning and cant
be omitted or rushed Discuss these choices with others: we need to
be sure, and we need to share ways of getting these bits across to
our students Highlight these aspects so you can see how they are
spaced out across the programme
Slide 43
43 2.Discuss and decide which bits are important: this means
you believe they support current and future learning You are
confident in these areas and know that you do a good job with them
Your students usually enjoy this work and benefit from it Mark
these bits in a different colour
Slide 44
44 3.Look at whats left You now have to decide which bits are
expendable, which means that you will not plan to teach them to all
your students. You may have resources to help students learn these
bits, which can be offered to those students who want, need, or
could benefit from them, but not be part of your class teaching
programme
Slide 45
45 Minimising the risk Dont go beyond 10% of the given
curriculum as expendable. This may mean going back and tweaking
your plans to include some bits that should not be left out Make
these decisions collectively wherever possible, pooling your
expertise about the subject area to share the responsibility and
ideas Decide how you are going to deal with the expendable
bits
Slide 46
46 The expendable bits Dont throw these bits away, just park
them at the edge of your plans, accessible if you have the time and
need to include them Develop resources to enable some students to
learn these bits without direct whole-class instruction If the pace
of learning speeds up (which it might) then you can cover the
expendable bits with more of the students Keep your focus on
learning rather than teaching: the quality of students learning,
motivation and confidence is more likely to increase their
performance than the quantity of your teaching
Slide 47
47 Co-construction of success criteria Students can engage
successfully in self- and peer-assessment only if they properly
understand the criteria that will determine the success of their
work For this understanding to be achieved, the following
pre-conditions are important.
Slide 48
48 Pre-conditions for successful self and peer assessment
1.Teachers need to consider the distinction and connection between
what they want students to DO, and what they want them to LEARN
2.Both activities and the learning expectations will have to be
explained to the students. This is not easy as much of it will be
abstract, and teachers will need to think about, plan and share
their strategies for these explanations, taking account of students
different starting points and learning styles
Slide 49
49 Co-constructing the success criteria 3.Students find it
useful, where possible, to see exemplars of the expected work,
rather than descriptions of the expectations in words 4.From a
range of exemplars, provided the teacher, the students are
encouraged to identify the characteristics of successful work, and
the range of quality for each, or some, of these characteristics
5.The teacher will guide the students as much as he/she feels
necessary, trying to ensure that the final wording of the success
criteria is arrived at by the students themselves 6.The teacher and
students together then test out the criteria by applying them to
some work, and amend where necessary
Slide 50
50 Separating feedback from relationship 7.Many students find
it difficult initially to provide objective and accurate feedback
to their peers, because of their over-riding concern for
relationship. They will need practice with neutral work to develop
the skill of critique, before tackling peer assessment 8.Teachers
may also coach their students in providing effective feedback
9.Once the students are clear about the criteria, and have
practised the skills of both critique and feedback, they are ready
for self and peer assessment
Slide 51
51 Investing in the quality of self- critique and
self-correction Children do not usually emerge from the womb able
and willing to critique and correct their own learning. This is
school taught and learned as an essential part of their education.
This skill will serve learners well throughout their learning
lives, within and beyond school. Once this skill is well-developed,
it will enhance student learning and allow the teacher to involve
students in the continual process of classroom assessment that
would otherwise fall to the teachers alone. Its a win-win
investment for both partners in the process.
Slide 52
52 How do we change the hard- wired habits of teaching?
Assessment for Learning is not about adding something on to our
existing teaching habits: its about changing some of those habits
for good The most fundamental habits of teaching are about teachers
planning, questioning, marking and feedback, and the roles and
behaviours we expect from our students
Slide 53
53 Limbic learning Research on habit change begins from an
understanding that habits are learned through the limbic brain the
emotional centre of our brains - rather than the neo-cortex which
we use for intellectual activities The connection between the
limbic brain and our habits has some important consequences: it
will influence the actions we take to achieve a change of habit,
and it may affect how comfortable or uncomfortable we feel as we
try to break old habits and develop new ones We might be able to
learn from other habit-change models, like Weightwatchers
Slide 54
54 The Weightwatchers Model The Weightwatchers model for
changing teaching habits involves: - Big, important, agreed goals -
Small steps and continual feedback - Perseverance - Collegial
support and accountability - Recognition of success
Slide 55
55 Professional Development to develop different teaching
habits If what we know about limbic learning applies to changing
our teaching, traditional forms of professional development may
help us to know what we need to do, but not to actually do it The
best model for changing teaching is the action research model: -
teachers work together - decide an area for change - identify
strategies that might help - try them out in their rooms - come
back together to share what they did and what happened, try again,
check the evidence of the impact of the new habits on learners, and
on themselves, and refine their activities still further Changing
habits is an experiential rather than an intellectual activity
Slide 56
56 Early years: 2 nd discussion 1.What next steps in early
years teaching practice would be the most helpful in implementing
Assessment for Learning at this stage? 2.What roadblocks can we
anticipate, and how might these be avoided, or tackled?
Slide 57
57 Elementary years: 2 nd discussion 1.How do we create a
classroom climate which allows all our students to take risks in
their learning, and to support each other in doing so? 2.How will
we explain the purposes, practices and value of Assessment for
Learning to parents and others in the community who may see it as
an abdication of teachers professional responsibility?
Slide 58
58 Secondary years: 2 nd discussion 1.How do we help our
students to understand why it is essential for them to be involved
in their own learning and accept increasing responsibility for it?
2.How do engage our more reluctant teaching colleagues, to ensure
that the students experience of AFL is more consistent across the
school?
Slide 59
59 School leaders: 2 nd discussion 1.Which school systems,
including planned professional development, will need review if AFL
is to be woven into them? 2.We are learners too: how does AFL apply
to us as well as to our teachers and our students? 3.How will we
explain the purposes, practices and value of Assessment for
Learning to parents and others in the community who may see it as
an abdication of teachers professional responsibility?
Slide 60
60 Assessment for Learning: Why bother? Teachers and schools
are reeling under a continuing stream of expectations and
accountability. Why does Assessment for Learning deserve our
attention and commitment? Here are three key reasons:
Slide 61
61 The rationale 1.Our students deserve opportunities to be as
successful as possible in school: decades of global research
clearly indicate the gains to be made from: clarifying expectations
providing high-quality feedback, and involving the learners
themselves
Slide 62
62 2. The students currently in Grade 1 graduate in 2020:
learning in the 21 st century should be a life-long process, driven
by the learners own ability, confidence and willingness to
continuously challenge themselves and identify the next learning
steps. Learning these skills and approaches to learning is not
accidental or trivial. It has to be an intentional part of
schooling and is the educators greatest gift to their
students.
Slide 63
63 Last, but not least.. 3.AFL can transform the way teachers
do business, every day and in the long term. If it is to be
sustained, there has to be something in it for the teachers
themselves, beyond mere compliance with external requirements. When
students are clearer about whats expected of them, more engaged and
more focussed on their own learning, the teachers day is
demonstrably more enjoyable and rewarding.
Slide 64
64 From theory to practice AFL strategies are not new: they
have been in the minds and sometimes in the practice of many
teachers for a long time What we now aspire to is AFL as an
intentional and valued part of every teachers practice the normal
way we do business There is much to gain for students AND
teachers
Slide 65
65 Review Have we completed the task? Have I achieved my
intent? Do you have some practical ways forward? Thanks for being
with us! [email protected] www.ruthsutton.com March 2008