Assessments are critical to an educational program as they enable a tutor to identify the weaknesses and strengths of the students. Assessments act as a means through which to measure the effects of every educational undertaking. An assessment informs the tutor whether the instructions disseminated to the students were understood depending on how the recipient solves the problems associated with the same. Assessments can either be formal or informal. Whichever approach the tutor implements; there are pros and cons, some of which may depend on the tutor’s strategy and perceptions.
Formal assessments include norm- and criterion-referenced tests where norm-referenced tests entail the utilization of formal pre-determined procedures in administrating a test to a group of individuals of similar grade or level of development. The role of such assessments is to benchmark the performance of an individual against the group in which he or she belongs. The process of administering such assessments is documented in a manual to ensure consistent and reliable outcomes (Eric, n.d.).
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Criterion-referenced tests (CRTs) measure an individual’s capabilities and mastery of skills. This assessment method entails a comparison of an individual’s present with the past in alignment with the level of skills and abilities. This assessment emphasizes an individual’s mastery of specific behaviors rather than gauging a person’s position in comparison with a group (Eric, n.d.). CRTs can also be used in an informal manner. This would involve the alignment of the tests with the instructional objectives and then measuring a child’s progress in meeting the set objectives of every aspect of the curriculum (Navarete, Wilde, Nelson, Mertinez & Hargett, 2010).
Informal assessment encompasses strategies adopted to measure the skills of an individual in a natural setting. There are several tools available for use in informal assessment for children in the category of birth to eight years.
The Influence of Formal and Informal Assessments on Instructional Practices
An assessment, whether formal or informal, has a role to play in influencing instructional practices. First, the tutor or observer of the child must align the instructions with any planned assessments. Any mastery of skills that is to be tested has to be practiced at some point, in a formal or informal setting. Taking the example of a classroom, formative assessments are pre-planned and, therefore, instructions that accompany the curriculum have to align with the anticipated assessment. Taking into consideration that the tutor aims at measuring the progress of a child in the acquisition and mastery of specific skills, it is imperative that the child is exposed to such skills before the assessment (Tomlinson, Moon & Imbeau, 2015).
Secondly, any anticipation of an assessment stimulates the tutor to remind the students about previous instructions in a bid to reinforce their mastery (McTighe & O’Connor, 2005). This is founded on the fact that every tutor delights in the realization that his or her students have fully acquired and mastered the skills taught. It is for the same reason that rehearsals are conducted before an assessment. Students are also encouraged to revise their notes to reinforce their familiarity with various instructions that are likely to appear in an assessment and, therefore, increase their chances of passing the tests.
Possible Assessments for Children from Birth to Eight years in Various Areas
The developmental stages involved from birth to eight years entail several areas in which a child should be assessed. The assessments involved are highly dependent on the area of development and the options available for use.
One area in which a child can be assessed, particularly at the age of three years onwards, is the ability to read a comprehension. The CRTs is the formal means that is mostly fit in testing such a child. This would involve teaching a child how to read a specific comprehension and then directing him or her to read it. As the assessor, one is then supposed to follow through and identify areas of improvement until the child gains the mastery of reading the specific comprehension. Thereafter, the assessor may find other comprehensions and use a similar strategy. One advantage of using CRTs is that the assessor focuses on a child independently and this ensures an improvement in the acquisition of the targeted skill rather than when the child is compared with peers. The informal assessment method that could be used is the engagement of the child with the guardian in reading a comprehension. This method would work well as the guardian, particularly a parent, is the most trustworthy person to the child. The child will, therefore, be highly engaged and this would enable a comprehensive report of the child’s capacity.
Oral language is another area of development in which a child requires guidance and frequent assessments. This area is best when assessed through informal means. This would involve engaging the child in conversations to identify its capacity to pronounce various syllables in alignment with a word or phrase. The assessor can also follow the child during play to identify its weaknesses and strengths in pronouncing various words or phrases during conversations with other playmates. As part of the formal setting, the assessor can also interview the child on phrases or words that he or she has previously introduced to the child and then compare the child’s ability with that of others in the same grade or level of development. In this sense, the norm-referenced test applies in such a case.
When testing the awareness of a child in any aspect, the assessor aims at recognizing whether the child knows something or not. In testing phonological awareness, the norm-referenced test will be the most applicable formal means in a bid to identify the knowledge level of the child in comparison with its peers. Informally, the assessor may use the play-based assessment technique in a bid to stimulate the engagement of the child in articulating all the sounds he or she is aware of in alignment with specific linguistic concerns.
The CRTs is the best assessment strategy for a child’s fluency in linguistic concerns. This is because it considers a child independently and the assessor is, therefore, in a position to identify the weaknesses and strength of a child in the way he or she engages in a conversation. Fluency would, in this case, entail a focus on how well a child pronounces words in the construction of sentences. Informally, the assessor can observe the child during play to assess how he or she engages in conversations with the playmates. The aim would be to identify the child’s fluency in expressing him- or herself in various settings.
The perfection of a child’s vocabulary in interaction contexts is critical. Formally, an assessor can utilize the CRTs in testing the vocabulary of a child to know whether the child is at par with others at the same developmental level. This means that a four-year-old child can be put in a group of others of the same age and his or her level of skills in accurately utilizing various words or phrases tested. Informally, the assessor may evaluate the child in a social setting to know how well he or she expresses him- or herself using accurate vocabulary.
Phonics involves the child’s sense of hearing in a bid to identify and recognize a specific sound and letter. This enables the child to develop spelling and pronunciation skills. To assess a child for phonics, the norm-referenced tests would be the most appropriate formal means to enable the assessor to gauge the standard of the child in comparison with others. The advantage of using this method is that the assessor can easily identify different levels of skill and group the children accordingly. Play-based assessments are the best for use in the informal context. The assessor may engage with the children during play and perform his or her assessment to know each child’s level of mastery. Play may entail spelling and pronunciation contests among the children.
Conclusion
In conclusion, formal and informal assessment techniques are critical in instructional practice in a learning context. There are different strategies for use in teaching various aspects that are critical for a child in daily life. Reading comprehension should entail CRTs as it enables the identification of a child’s weaknesses at an individual level. Engaging the child with a guardian is the best informal strategy for use in the various areas of skill development. Phonological awareness aligns well with the norm-referenced testing which entails the comparison of a child’s skills with others of the same grade or level of development. Phonics is best assessed through informal means, particularly engaging the children in spelling and pronunciation contests. In assessing the oral language of a child, interviews would be the best strategy in enabling the child to express him- or herself. The assessment of a child’s fluency is best done using the CRTs as it is the only way that the assessor can identify each child’s needs in developing the relevant skills. This may be accompanied with informal conversations during play or other interaction contexts.
References
ERIC Clearinghouse on Assessment and Evaluation (n.d.). Assessments for young children. Retrieved from http://www.ldonline.org/article/6040
McTighe, J. & O’Connor, K. (2005). Seven practices for effective learning. Educational Leadership, 63 (3). 10-17.
Navarete, C., Wilde, J., Nelson, C., Mertine, R. & Hargett, G. (2010). Informal assessment in educational evaluation: Implications for bilingual education programs. NCBE Program Information Guide Series, 3, 1-14. Retrieved from http://www.ncela.us
Tomlinson, C. A., Moon, T. & Imbeau, M. (2015). Assessment and student success in a differentiated classroom. White Paper. Retrieved from http://www.ascd.org/ASCD/pdf/siteASCD/publications/assessment-and-di-whitepaper.pdf
