Match Assessments to the Purposes for Assessment

Sound assessment begins when you define the content of the assessment (the student standards or goals to be assessed) and the purpose for the assessment. Below are examples of how purpose can affect assessment design:

1. A single multiple-choice or short answer multiplication test may be perfectly acceptable to determine whether or not third graders have learned their multiplication facts, but would not be appropriate for making a decision about the overall quality of the third grade mathematics program.

2. A short answer or multiple-choice assessment designed to measure student knowledge of specific scientific principles might be useful for partially determining a student's grade. However, inferring that this assessment sufficiently measures the student's ability to perform scientific tasks would be a mistake; instead, measuring the student's understanding of these principles would require observing the student applying that scientific knowledge in a laboratory setting.

3. Some assessments are used mostly to gather information about students in order to make decisions about them - for example, grading or certifying competence. Other assessments are designed to involve students more fully in their own assessment and thus serve an instructional function. This distinction between assessment to "monitor" and assessment to "teach" has implications for assessment design.

4. Herman, Aschbacher, and Winters (1992) describe two basic monitoring purposes for assessment. Different kinds of assessment are most appropriate for each purpose:
   • The first purpose is to determine whether or not students have acquired specific knowledge or skills. The assessment should focus on the products of student learning using selected answer tests (such as multiple choice) and direct assessment of projects and student products.

   • The second purpose is to diagnose student strengths and weaknesses and plan appropriate instruction. Because we are interested in understanding where the student is going wrong, we need to assess the process as well as the product. Interviews, documented observations, student learning logs and/or self- evaluations, behavioral checklists, and student think-alouds are useful assessment strategies for assessing the process.

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