What Is It?

chapter one ASSESSMENT DEFINED

Assessment is the engine that drives student learning. —John Cowan

Assessment is a learning process for everyone in the classroom. From the determination of standards, targets, and progressions before units begin, to the summative process, from the formative process to instruction, assessment guides learning. Each assessment should not simply be a judge of student understanding; it should be a springboard to continue learning. When teachers use assessment in a way that aligns with its intended purpose, students will learn while engaging in the process.

It is crucial that all members of a school, individuals and teacher teams alike, have the same understanding of how assessment is defined, as well as the role assessment plays in the learning process. This chapter highlights the importance of a solid and shared understanding of the definition and purpose of assessment. This understanding may start with individual teachers, but it is imperative that this cultural shift is school- or districtwide if the hope is to impact learning for all students.

What Is It?

The word assessment often conjures up images or memories of events such as quizzes, tests, exit tickets, and projects, as well as feelings of angst or worry from fear of judgment or failure due to past assessment experiences. While those images and those feelings are valid, they do not represent what assessment could and should be today. For too many years, assessment has been something that teachers do to learners, instead of with learners; it has punished students for the absence of a skill instead of providing the feedback and support necessary for them to acquire that skill.

Traditionally, assessments have become disjointed events instead of a process that students value because it empowers them and provides information they need in