Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority Assessment of Learning: Standards, assessment maps and progression points Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority

Focus for this session Assessment of student learning Using the standards in an assessment process Using resources to help make on-balance judgments

Assessment – key issues Why assess? Characteristics of effective assessment What evidence do we gather? How do we assess student learning? Making on-balance judgments of student achievement

Why assess student achievement? To improve student performance (Assessment as and for learning) To provide useful information to report to parents on student achievement (Assessment of learning)

Characteristics of effective assessment Based on how students learn Integral to program design Clear purpose, goals, standards and criteria A variety of measures

Characteristics of effective assessment Valid, reliable and consistent methods Attention to outcomes and processes Ongoing is best Feedback and reflection

Collection of on-going assessment

Standards Describe what students should know and be able to do Set for six levels from Prep to Year 10 Signposts at widely spaced points along an underlying continuum Basis for curriculum planning Basis for assessment and reporting

Planning and gathering evidence Identify focus domains, levels and specific elements of standards Refer to standards above and below Select assessment activities appropriate to demonstrate learning Develop assessment criteria and/or rubrics drawn from standards

Collection of on-going assessment

Assessing more than one domain Multi-domain units of work One teacher might teach and assess all aspects of a student’s learning Two or more teachers might teach and assess different aspects of a student’s learning

Students with additional learning needs Modify tasks Allow students to demonstrate learning in different ways Refer to individual learning plans Refer to Students With Disabilities Guidelines and English as a Second Language Companion

Using evidence to make judgments Collect a variety of evidence Base judgment on evidence overall Work through school processes Use standards, assessment maps and progression points

Assessment maps - purpose Assist teachers to: Develop common understanding of standards Assess student work consistently Answer the questions: What does work at this standard look like? What are typical features of work of students progressing towards the standard?

Assessment maps - features Developed for each domain Work samples illustrate achievement of elements of the standard/s Work samples progressing towards a standard at three points

Work samples Address specific elements of standard/s Describe context for assessment task One or more samples illustrate typical features of student work Annotations identify attributes of the work linked to elements of standard/s

Progression points Schools required to report to parents using A to E Standards at six levels Finer scale developed to support reporting Three points between each standard to show progress towards the standard Three points to show progress beyond Level 6

Progression point examples Assist common interpretation of progression points when reporting Illustrate typical development of some concepts and skills in the standards Some concepts and skills developed across more than one level Content references are examples – not prescriptive

Level 5 Standard – Thinking Processes Reasoning, processing and inquiry At Level 5, students use a range of question types, and locate and select relevant information from varied sources when undertaking investigations. When identifying and synthesising relevant information, they use a range of appropriate strategies of reasoning and analysis to evaluate evidence and consider their own and others’ points of view. They use a range of discipline-based methodologies. They complete activities focusing on problem solving and decision making which involve an increasing number of variables and solutions.

Standards and progression points In Thinking Processes, the work of a student progressing towards the standard at Level 5 demonstrates, for example: At 4.25 with teacher direction and using a range of strategies and self-formulated questions, identification of information that would be appropriate for an investigation, analysis or report At 4.5 identification and synthesis of relevant information from given sources, using appropriate strategies to evaluate evidence; for example, identifying subjective or misleading information At 4.75 use of self-generated selection criteria to locate and critically assess information from varied sources for investigative purposes Level 5 Students use a range of question types, and locate and select relevant information from varied sources when undertaking investigations.

Collection of on-going assessment

Making an on-balance judgment Evidence based – rather than where the student ‘should be’ Assessment is holistic and on-balance Take account of differing nature and complexity of each assessment task Key question: which standard or progression point does this collection of evidence best match? Assessment maps and progression points are a further reference

Reviewing the evidence Review a range of evidence Evaluate what the evidence as a whole demonstrates about the student’s learning Qualities may reflect statements or examples in more than one standard or progression point Use moderation processes, assessment maps, progression point examples to refine judgment Determine which standard or progression point, on-balance, the identified qualities best match

Online resources VCAA http://vels.vcaa.vic.edu.au/assessment/index.html Standards and progression points, Assessment maps, Assessment principles, Assessment tasks, Assessment resource Department of Education http://www.sofweb.vic.edu.au/blueprint/fs1/assessment.htm Assessment advice, Assessment professional learning modules, Multi-domain assessment tasks, Reporting advice