Today we’re diving into… Assessments! In this blog article, we will be comparing objective and performative assessments, as well as looking at their standardization, and the advantages and disadvantages of these two kinds of assessment.

To begin, let’s look at the definitions of Objective Assessment and Performance Assessment. ( Seifert & Sutton, 2009) Objective Assessments are assessments that measure students’ progress using quantitative data. Objective Assessments often come in the form of multiple-choice questions, true/false questions, and extended matching questions.  Performance Assessment is when “student completes a specific task while teachers observe the process or procedure.” As the term might indicate, performance assessments are more “performative” in nature, in that they present more complex tasks (such as writing an analysis, performing on a musical instrument, or through skits on the selected topic).

What are the advantages and disadvantages of using Objective assessments? (Subjective vs. Objective Assessment, n.d.) Well, objective assessments, due to its quantitative nature, allow for all students to be assessed fairly and to see how well they are able to understand core material. Additionally, another advantage is that objective assessments are seen to be reliable: If a student passes a written assessment on cell anatomy, then that teacher can assume that the student is able to understand the information presented in class. On the other hand, some teachers (McCambridge, n.d.) can also be seen as unreliable: this is due to the idea that “regurgitating historical facts” for a history exam doesn’t mean that a student is able to critically analyze information presented in class. (Darling-Hammond, & Adamson, 2010) One researcher remarked that “I have seen more students who can pass the [state test] but cannot apply those skills to anything if it’s not in the test format. I have students who can do the test but can’t look up words in a dictionary and understand the different meanings…. “

What are the advantages and disadvantages of using Performance assessments? (Stecher, 2010) Performance assessments allow for students to complete tasks that are more similar to real-life tasks and projects, instead of choosing a predetermined option like on an objective assessment. Also, performance assessments allow teachers to evaluate students’ critical thinking skills in addition to providing answers in different contexts, which a teacher wouldn’t be able to accurately evaluate on an objective assessment. However, performance assessments, since they rely on the “…instructor’s professionally developed awareness of quality in academic or other work…”, this means that a performance assessment is more prone to bias grading than an objective assessment (Subjective v.s. Objective Assessment, n.d.). Additionally, if a performance assessment is not carefully guided and controlled, a student may present information inconsistent with the teacher’s objectives and lack information to see if the students understand certain concepts and skills taught in the classroom (McCambridge, n.d.). This last concern however, may be combated with a clear rubric and a standardization of performance assessments.

Both performance assessments and objective assessments are integral to teaching, so what are some ways that you can balance their usage?

References:

Seifert, K., & Sutton, R. (2009). Educational Psychology(2nd ed.). Retrieved June 24, 2019.

(n.d.). Subjective vs. Objective Assessment Retrieved from http://www.iupui.edu/~idd/assessment_strategies/asm_3.05.htm

Darling-Hammond, L. & Adamson, F. (2010). Beyond basic skills: The role
of performance assessment in achieving 21st century standards of learning. Stanford, CA: Stanford University, Stanford Center for Opportunity Policy in Education.

Stecher, B. (2010). Performance Assessment in an Era of Standards-Based
Educational Accountability. Stanford, CA: Stanford University, Stanford Center for Opportunity Policy in Education.

McCambridge, T. R. (n.d.). Performance Assessment, One. Retrieved June 23, 2019, from http://public.callutheran.edu/~mccamb/performanceassessment1.htm

Pearson North America (2015, August 26). Retrieved June 24, 2019, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZKhc3_2k4Q

Brunold, T. (2009, August 26). Retrieved June 24, 2019, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AvfNl2_ypyA