THE FRAMEWORK OF ASSESSMENT AND EVALUATION

2.2 THE FRAMEWORK OF ASSESSMENT AND EVALUATION

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  Empirical analytic paradigm – It is a western technical rationalism embodied in the logical positivist origins. This amounts to the traditional standardised approach to assessment and evaluation. The empirical analytic paradigms are important to consider certification and development of educational policy (Aikenhead, 1997).
  
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  Interpretive paradigm – It involves understanding learner’s language, concepts and actions from the point of view of the learner. Alternative assessment techniques such as portfolio and concept making illustrate this paradigm. The issue of formative assessment is clearly interpretive because within this paradigm it is important to consider what knowledge, skills and values learners are actually learning (Aikenhead, 1997). This paradigm seeks to improve teaching by focusing on both process and product of learners’ work.
  
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  Critical theoretic paradigm – The critical rhetoric paradigm would ask such questions as, “whose knowledge is privileged in assessment?” Whose cultural interactions have cultural capital? Whose goal defines the criteria for evaluation? (Toughline, 1992). For example families within a high social economic status are privileged over lower economic status families.Thus the context of assessment is embraced in the critical theoretic paradigm. The culture and social context in which assessment takes place has a great influence on both process and product of learners work (Aikenhead, 1997). Different paradigms direct us to assess different instructional outcomes. Teachers need to draw upon the entire paradigm as they seek to meet the needs of that particular moment. The consideration of one paradigm exclusively will not give an accurate picture on assessment. Teachers should consider both the interpretive paradigm and the empirical analytic, in order to strike a balance in assessment. In the Zimbabwean primary schools, it would appear, the emphasis is on the empirical analytic and the interpretive paradigms are ignored; hence, this research is on Assessment Problems in the Primary Schools. Cognisant of the paradigms, it is important to realize how assessment evolved in order to have a view of the position of the Zimbabwean assessment practices. It might be devastating to find out that the Zimbabwean assessment practices have not evolved in line of the current practices leading to assessment problems.
  

2.3 EVOLUTION OF ASSESSMENT

Classroom assessment evolved from psychometrics, measurement and evaluation to assessment. According to (Gipps, 1994; Lynch, 2001),assessment has undergone a paradigm shift from psychometric to a broader model of educational assessment, from testing and examination culture to an assessment culture. The rationale behind the shift was to move from empirically driven psychometrics models towards models that reflect teacher’s beliefs, practices and needs (Gipps, 1994). Historically the focus of classroom assessment has been on technical concerns such as validity, reliability, item development, analysis and a host of other empirically based issues (Anastas, 1988; Nitko, 2001). It should be noted that methods of assessment are determined by beliefs (Wiggins & McTighe, 2001) and these beliefs have led to the evolution of assessment worldwide.

2.3.1 Psychometric testing paradigm

This is where testing in education begins. Psychometrics involves the measurement of intelligence, aptitude, and achievement.  The primary method for this kind of measurement is the standardised multiple-choice test. In the psychometric paradigm, the basic strategy for understanding learner achievement is comparison.  According to Gipps (1994:114);

Psychometrics places emphasis on relative ranking, rather than actual accomplishment; the privileging of quantifiable displays of skills and knowledge, the assumption that individual rather than collaborative forms of cognition are the most powerful indicators of educational progress; the notion that evaluating progress is a matter of scientific measurement.

Therefore, in the psychometric paradigm, assessments are based on "on-demand" tests often containing selected response items, such as multiple-choice and standardised content, format, and administration.

The psychometric model resulted in traditional methods of assessment. Traditional assessment has been viewed as a means of verifying learner and occurs after learning has taken place (Rudder & Schafer, 2002). The authors went further to say that, traditional assessment has been influenced by the positivist epistemology that assumes one can achieve objectivity and consequently uncover truths about real world. The goal of the curriculum is to teach by employing a transmission model of instruction and in turn assess whether the learner has learned these truths. This paradigm poses the following limitations.

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  Interpreting scores in relation to norms and norm referenced grading.
  
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  Measuring attributes which are thought to be fixed.
  
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  Measuring a single attribute and yet tests are multi rather that one-dimensional( Gipps ,1994.
  

Traditional forms of assessment have been criticised for their failure to truly assess children’s learning. This brings us to the concept of educational measurement.

2.3.2 Educational measurement

Educational measurement, by contrast with psychometrics aims to revise test which looks at individuals as individuals rather than in relation to other individuals and to use measurement constructively to identify strengths and weaknesses. Individuals might have so as to aid their educational progress (Gipps, 1994). Woods (1980:194) observes that educational measurement,

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  Deals with the individual’s achievement to himself rather than to others.
  
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  Seeks to test for competence rather than intelligence;
  
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  Takes place in relatively uncontrolled conditions and so does not produce well behaved data.
  
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  Looks for best rather than typical competencies.
  
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  Is most effective when rules and regulations characteristics of standardised testing are relaxed.
  
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  Embodies a constructive outlook on assessment where the aim is to help rather than sentence the individual.
  

Because of this development educational measurement has now become educational assessment. This is because measurement implies a precise quantification which is not what educational assessment is all about (Gipps, 1994).

2.3.3 Educational assessment

With the reform in education and emphasis on criterion related measurement, the traditional type tests gradually lost their credibility. Instead, process oriented, task based, learner centred, and strategy driven teaching and testing became popular. The paradigm shift, called assessment paradigm, assumes a greater role in teaching learning process. Educational assessment with the reform in education and emphasis on criterion related measurement. This assessment paradigm looks for a more comprehensive qualitative account of learner’s ability through a multiple measure in multiple occasions.
According to Glaser (1990) assessment must be used to support learning rather than just to indicate current and past achievement. Assessments must focus on the learners’ ability to use knowledge and skills learned. It is therefore important to interrogate the rational of assessment.

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