2.1 Roles of assessment

More often than not, assessment in the past was done to students. Its main purpose was not to help improve learning; it was to find out what someone did – or did not – know. Learners were often simply given a mark or a brief comment (‘excellent’, ‘could do better’ and so on). Little help was given to learners regarding their particular difficulties or how they might improve their work. This is assessment of learning (AoL), which is also known as summative assessment.

The role of assessment in school today is thought about very differently – much emphasis is placed on assessment for learning (AfL, also known as formative assessment). Links between different types of assessment are summarised in Figure 1, and Table 1 distinguishes between AoL and AfL.

Figure 1 Links between different types of assessment

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Figure 1 is a complex diagram that shows planning, teaching and assessment as connected activities. It is read from left to right and includes several loops. The first box is ‘Assess pupils’ current knowledge and understanding’. The arrow leads to the next box on the right, which is ‘Planning’. An arrow straight down from this leads to ‘Teaching’. It is a double-headed arrow to indicate that planning and teaching inform each other. The teaching box has three other linked boxes; ‘continual assessment of pupils’ learning’, ‘internal test (e.g. end-of-topic test)’ and ‘external examination’. All these loop back to the planning box to indicate that assessment informs planning. Even tests are used to inform planning and teaching although the externally set examination remains as a final assessment.

Figure 1 Links between different types of assessment

An over-reliance on AoL – focusing on grades rather than where to go next – can damage the self-esteem of low attainers, while high attainers become reluctant to take risks due to fear of failure. AfL approaches seek to avoid these pitfalls. The importance of AfL and the crucial role that it plays in enhancing teaching and learning is supported by a great deal of research. It is important to ensure that assessment is the servant of teaching and learning and not their master.