Self Assessment In Post Primary Education

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The statement which we will evaluate in this essay provokes the reader to use if self-assessment in their classrooms to help students to become lifelong learners. The question is how we as teachers bring self-assessment into our classrooms. To begin this section this we will look at the way in which teaching methods in post-primary education have developed since research into formative assessment outlined that student self-assessment was becoming a key part in the learning of students in post-primary schools. Formative assessments such as AFL have become key components in the classrooms of post-primary schools, ‘Sadler’s conditions as represented in these three questions frame what is called “Assessment for learning”-formative assessment practices …show more content…

Developing an emotional connection and a sense of responsibility with their work will see students become more involved and interested in their learning, Fisher employs that, ‘Neurobiologists have shown that the search for meaning is innate and that meaning emanates from the learner, not the teacher (Diamond and Hopson, 1998) Employment of self-assessment opportunities in daily practice increases each learners ability to seek and identify goals that are personally meaningful.’ (Fisher and Frey, 2001, p. 24.). Hodge speaks about this student responsibility of their work, ‘Self-assessment is important for students at all levels of secondary education. By assessing their own work, they become empowered, taking greater responsibility for and so ownership of their work.’ (Hodge, 2010, p.27). An implication of the statement posed at the beginning of the essay is that teachers will see far more student interest in the learning when they incorporate self-assessment into their classrooms. When tested it was seen that seventeen of twenty studies reported that the use of self-assessment In the classroom did see students taking responsibility for their own learning and in turn gaining confidence in …show more content…

In contrast to this student self-assessment sees the teacher facilitating the student in their assessment of themselves through techniques such as a KWL chart. This chart allows students to reflect and self-assess what they know about a topic, what they want to know and then assess what they feel they learnt after the topic has been taught. In comparison to a teacher using a summative technique like a test to assess what they learnt this gives the student an opportunity to reflect and decide what they feel they learnt it gives them room to explore their knowledge and express what they want to express they learnt. Boundaries which are set in summative tests are broken down in the form of student self-assessment. The teacher then becomes a facilitator of assessment, aiding the students in their reflections and working with them. This assessment strategy effectively lets the teacher assess students through their own self-assessment, ‘Using K-W-L as an assessment tool can provide teachers with insights about students’ processing of expository text before and after reading’ (Schumm, 2006, p.

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