Assessment Terms
Key types, principles, and tools that guide how student learning is measured
1. Anecdotal Records
Definition: Brief, objective, narrative descriptions of specific student behaviors or incidents observed by a teacher. These records are typically gathered over time to provide a cumulative picture of a student’s development, learning patterns, or challenges, often used for formative purposes or to inform discussions.
Classroom Example: A teacher keeps a small notebook to jot down observations like “Maria consistently struggles with multi-step word problems, often skipping the planning stage” or “Jamal demonstrated strong leadership during group work today, organizing tasks effectively.”
Citation: Kubiszyn, T., & Borich, G. (2016). *Educational testing and measurement: Classroom application and practice* (11th ed.). Wiley.
2. Assessment
Definition: Assessment is the process of collecting evidence about student learning to inform teaching and evaluate progress. It includes both formal and informal methods and occurs throughout the learning process. It is a broad term encompassing all methods used to gather information about student knowledge, skills, and understanding.
Classroom Example: A teacher reviews student essays to gauge understanding of persuasive writing techniques, uses a quick poll to check for comprehension during a lesson, or observes students’ participation in a group discussion.
Citation: Black, P., & Wiliam, D. (1998). Assessment and classroom learning. *Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy & Practice*, *5*(1), 7–74.
3. Authentic Assessment
Definition: A form of assessment that asks students to perform real-world tasks that demonstrate meaningful application of essential knowledge and skills in a context that mirrors real-life situations. It often involves complex tasks, open-ended problems, and the creation of products.
Classroom Example: Instead of taking a traditional multiple-choice test on nutrition, students are tasked with planning and cooking a healthy meal for their family, documenting the process, and explaining their nutritional choices.
Citation: Wiggins, G. (1990). The case for authentic assessment. *Practical Assessment, Research & Evaluation*, *2*(2).
4. Benchmark Assessment
Definition: Periodic assessments administered throughout the school year (e.g., quarterly, tri-annually) to evaluate student progress toward learning goals, identify students who need additional support, and inform instructional adjustments. They are typically more formal than formative assessments but less high-stakes than summative ones.
Classroom Example: A school administers a reading comprehension benchmark test each quarter to track student growth across grade levels and identify students who are falling behind or exceeding expectations, allowing for targeted interventions or enrichment.
Citation: Perie, M., Marion, S., & Gong, B. (2007). *A framework for considering interim assessments*. Educational Measurement: Issues and Practice.
5. Bias in Assessment
Definition: The presence of characteristics in an assessment instrument or its administration that unfairly disadvantage certain groups of students (e.g., based on gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, or disability) due to factors irrelevant to the construct being measured. Bias can lead to inaccurate inferences about student abilities.
Classroom Example: A science test includes cultural references or idioms that are only familiar to students from a specific background, inadvertently disadvantaging students from other cultural contexts, even if they understand the scientific concepts.
Citation: Popham, W. J. (2011). *Classroom assessment: What teachers need to know* (6th ed.). Pearson.
6. Constructed-Response Items
Definition: Assessment questions that require students to generate or produce their own answer, rather than selecting from a provided list. Examples include short-answer questions, essays, problem-solving tasks, and open-ended prompts, which often assess higher-order thinking skills.
Classroom Example: A history exam includes an essay question asking students to analyze the causes and effects of a major historical event, requiring them to construct a detailed argument with supporting evidence.
Citation: Wiliam, D. (2011). *Embedded formative assessment*. Solution Tree Press.
7. Criterion-Referenced Assessment
Definition: An assessment that measures a student’s performance against a fixed set of predetermined criteria, learning standards, or performance objectives, without comparing their score to other students’ scores. The focus is on what the student *can do* or *knows* relative to a specific standard.
Classroom Example: A driving test where a student must demonstrate specific skills (e.g., parallel parking, three-point turn) to pass, regardless of how others perform. Similarly, a math unit test might require mastery of 80% of specific learning objectives.
Citation: Popham, W. J. (1978). *Criterion-referenced measurement*. Prentice Hall.
8. Curriculum-Based Measurement (CBM)
Definition: A standardized set of procedures for repeatedly measuring student progress in basic academic skills (e.g., reading fluency, math computation) using brief, timed assessments derived directly from the curriculum. CBM is often used to monitor student response to interventions and make instructional decisions.
Classroom Example: A teacher administers a weekly 1-minute reading fluency probe where students read aloud from a grade-level passage. The teacher tracks words correct per minute (WCPM) to monitor progress and adjust reading interventions for individual students.
Citation: Deno, S. L. (1985). Curriculum-based measurement: The emerging alternative. *Exceptional Children*, *52*(3), 219–232.
9. Diagnostic Assessment
Definition: A pre-instructional assessment used to identify students’ existing knowledge, skills, strengths, and misconceptions *before* new learning begins. Its purpose is to provide detailed information about a student’s current understanding to help teachers tailor instruction and differentiate learning experiences effectively.
Classroom Example: Before starting a unit on fractions, a math teacher administers a diagnostic pre-test that includes questions on basic number sense, division, and multiplication to identify specific areas where students may have gaps or prior knowledge.
Citation: Salvia, J., Ysseldyke, J., & Witmer, S. (2012). *Assessment in special and inclusive education* (11th ed.). Cengage Learning.
10. Evaluation
Definition: Evaluation is the act of judging student learning based on established criteria, often culminating in grades, scores, or summative judgments about overall achievement. It involves making a value judgment about the quality or worth of student performance or programs.
Classroom Example: A teacher assigns a final grade to a group science project based on a rubric with criteria for research, experimental design, presentation quality, and collaborative effort, providing a summative evaluation of their learning.
Citation: Nitko, A. J., & Brookhart, S. M. (2013). *Educational assessment of students* (7th ed.). Pearson.
11. Fairness in Assessment
Definition: The principle that assessments should provide all students with an equitable opportunity to demonstrate their learning, free from bias, discrimination, or irrelevant factors. It involves ensuring appropriate accommodations, accessible language, and unbiased content and administration procedures.
Classroom Example: A teacher ensures fairness by providing extended time for students with documented learning disabilities, offering translation for assessment instructions to English language learners, and reviewing test questions for cultural bias.
Citation: American Educational Research Association, American Psychological Association, & National Council on Measurement in Education. (2014). *Standards for educational and psychological testing*. American Educational Research Association.
12. Formative Assessment
Definition: Formative assessment refers to ongoing, low-stakes checks for understanding used *during* instruction to monitor student learning and provide timely, specific, and actionable feedback. Its primary purpose is to inform and adjust teaching strategies in real-time and guide student growth, rather than to assign grades.
Classroom Example: A teacher uses exit slips at the end of a lesson to quickly identify students who grasped the main concept and those who need reteaching, then adjusts the next day’s lesson plan accordingly.
Citation: Heritage, M. (2010). *Formative assessment: Making it happen in the classroom*. Corwin Press.
13. Growth Mindset Assessment
Definition: Assessment practices that focus on evaluating a student’s effort, learning strategies, perseverance, and progress over time, rather than solely on fixed ability or final performance. This approach aims to foster a belief in students’ capacity for growth and development, aligning with Carol Dweck’s theory of mindsets.
Classroom Example: A teacher provides feedback on a student’s draft essay that highlights specific strategies for improvement (e.g., “Your revision of the introduction shows great effort in clarifying your thesis”) and praises their persistence, rather than just marking errors or assigning a preliminary grade.
Citation: Dweck, C. S. (2006). *Mindset: The new psychology of success*. Random House.
14. Learning Progressions
Definition: Research-based descriptions of the successive stages of understanding, knowledge, and skills that students are expected to pass through as they learn a particular concept or domain over time. They map out a typical path of learning, guiding curriculum development, instruction, and assessment design.
Classroom Example: A science teacher uses a learning progression to identify where individual students are in their understanding of the concept of “energy transfer” and plans differentiated instruction and assessments to move them along the progression from basic understanding to complex application.
Citation: Corcoran, T., Mosher, F. A., & Rogat, A. (2009). *Learning progressions in science: An evidence-based approach to reform*. Center on Reinventing Public Education.
15. Norm-Referenced Assessment
Definition: An assessment that compares a student’s performance to that of a larger, representative group of peers (the “norm group”). Results are typically reported as percentiles or standard scores, indicating how a student performed relative to others, rather than against a fixed standard of mastery.
Classroom Example: Standardized tests like the SAT or ACT are norm-referenced; a student’s score indicates their standing compared to all other test-takers, not necessarily their mastery of specific curriculum content.
Citation: Popham, W. J. (2005). *Classroom assessment: What teachers need to know*. Pearson Education.
16. Observation (Assessment)
Definition: A systematic method of collecting data about student learning, behavior, or interactions by directly watching and documenting what students do or say in various learning contexts. Observations can be formal (using checklists, rubrics) or informal (anecdotal notes).
Classroom Example: During a group project, a teacher circulates among student teams, observing their collaboration skills, problem-solving approaches, and contributions, taking notes on a rubric to assess their teamwork.
Citation: McMillan, J. H. (2011). *Classroom assessment: Principles and practice for effective instruction* (5th ed.). Pearson.
17. Peer Assessment
Definition: A process where students evaluate the work of their peers based on established criteria, providing constructive feedback to help improve learning. This practice fosters critical thinking, self-regulation, and a deeper understanding of quality work.
Classroom Example: After drafting their persuasive essays, students exchange papers with a partner and use a provided rubric to give feedback on clarity, evidence, and argument strength, helping each other revise before final submission.
Citation: Topping, K. J. (2009). Peer assessment. *Theory Into Practice*, *48*(1), 20–27.
18. Performance Assessment
Definition: An assessment requiring students to demonstrate their knowledge and skills by performing a task or creating a product. These tasks often involve complex, real-world applications of learning, such as giving a presentation, conducting an experiment, or building a model.
Classroom Example: Students design and carry out a science experiment to investigate the effects of different fertilizers on plant growth, then present their findings and conclusions to the class, demonstrating their scientific inquiry skills.
Citation: Wiggins, G. P. (1998). *Educative assessment: Designing assessments to inform and improve student performance*. Jossey-Bass.
19. Portfolio Assessment
Definition: An assessment method that evaluates student learning based on a curated collection of their work over time. Portfolios can showcase growth, mastery, effort, and reflection across various assignments, projects, or disciplines.
Classroom Example: A student’s writing portfolio includes multiple drafts of essays, peer feedback forms, revised final pieces, and a reflective essay explaining their growth as a writer over the semester.
Citation: Arter, J. A., & Spandel, V. (1992). *Portfolios for assessment and instruction*. ERIC Clearinghouse on Tests, Measurement, and Evaluation.
20. Reliability
Definition: The consistency and stability of assessment results. A reliable assessment yields similar results when administered repeatedly under similar conditions or when scored by different raters, indicating that the measurement is dependable and free from random error.
Classroom Example: If the same student takes the same math test twice within a short period and scores similarly both times, the test is considered reliable. Similarly, if two different teachers score the same essay using the same rubric and give similar grades, the rubric’s reliability is supported.
Citation: Nitko, A. J., & Brookhart, S. M. (2011). *Educational assessment of students*. Pearson.
21. Response to Intervention (RTI) (Assessment)
Definition: A multi-tier approach to the early identification and support of students with learning and behavior needs. Assessment within RTI involves universal screening of all students, progress monitoring for those receiving interventions, and diagnostic assessment to inform individualized support, guiding placement decisions.
Classroom Example: In an RTI framework, a school uses a universal reading screening tool to identify students at risk (Tier 1). For students who show a need, weekly progress monitoring assessments are used to track their growth during small-group reading interventions (Tier 2), informing whether they need more intensive support.
Citation: National Center on Response to Intervention. (2010). *RTI essential components*. American Institutes for Research.
22. Rubric
Definition: A scoring guide used to evaluate student performance, products, or processes based on a set of clearly defined criteria and descriptions of varying levels of quality or proficiency. Rubrics provide transparency, guide student work, and facilitate consistent grading.
Classroom Example: A writing assignment rubric evaluates organization, grammar, voice, and evidence on a scale (e.g., 1-4 points), with detailed descriptors for each score level, allowing students to understand expectations and teachers to provide targeted feedback.
Citation: Arter, J. A., & McTighe, J. (2001). *Scoring rubrics in the classroom: Using performance criteria for assessing and improving student performance*. Corwin Press.
23. Self-Assessment
Definition: The process by which students evaluate their own learning, performance, or progress against established criteria or learning goals. This practice fosters metacognition, self-regulation, and a sense of ownership over their learning journey.
Classroom Example: After completing a project, students use the same rubric their teacher will use to assess their own work, identifying strengths and areas for improvement before submitting it, and reflecting on their learning process.
Citation: Andrade, H. L., & Du, Y. (2005). Student perspectives on self-assessment. *Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy & Practice*, *12*(2), 157–176.
24. Selected-Response Items
Definition: Assessment questions where students choose an answer from a given set of options. Common types include multiple-choice, true/false, and matching questions. They are typically efficient to score and can cover a broad range of content knowledge.
Classroom Example: A biology quiz features multiple-choice questions about cell structures, where students select the best answer from four given options.
Citation: Linn, R. L., & Gronlund, N. E. (2000). *Measurement and assessment in teaching* (8th ed.). Prentice Hall.
25. Standardized Test
Definition: An assessment administered and scored in a consistent, or “standard,” manner. These tests are designed so that the questions, conditions for administering, scoring procedures, and interpretations are consistent. They often allow for comparison of student performance across schools, districts, or states.
Classroom Example: State-mandated achievement tests administered annually are standardized tests, designed to measure student proficiency against state standards and compare performance across schools.
Citation: Ravitch, D. (2010). *The death and life of the great American school system: How testing and choice are undermining education*. Basic Books.
26. Standards-Based Assessment
Definition: An assessment designed to measure a student’s progress and mastery of specific, predetermined learning standards or objectives. The focus is on what students know and can do relative to clear academic benchmarks, rather than comparing them to other students.
Classroom Example: A student is assessed on their mastery of a specific math standard like “adding fractions with unlike denominators,” with the assessment questions directly aligned to the skills outlined in that standard.
Citation: Guskey, T. R. (2001). *Standard-based grading*. Corwin Press.
27. Summative Assessment
Definition: Summative assessment provides a final, high-stakes measure of student learning, typically administered at the end of an instructional unit, semester, or course. Its primary purpose is to evaluate overall achievement, assign grades, or determine program effectiveness.
Classroom Example: A unit exam, a final research project, or a state-mandated standardized test used to assign a final grade for a course or to determine a student’s proficiency level at the end of the academic year.
Citation: Garrison, C., & Ehringhaus, M. (2007). Formative and summative assessments in the classroom. *Association for Middle Level Education*.
28. Validity
Definition: The degree to which an assessment accurately measures what it is intended to measure and the appropriateness of the interpretations made from its results. It is the most fundamental consideration in developing and evaluating assessments, ensuring that the inferences drawn from test scores are meaningful and defensible.
Classroom Example: A math test designed to measure students’ problem-solving skills should primarily assess their ability to solve problems, not their reading comprehension or speed in completing calculations, ensuring the test has high validity for its intended purpose.
Citation: Messick, S. (1995). Validity of psychological assessment. *American Psychologist*, *50*(9), 741–749.