Session Information
09 SES 03 B, Assessing Spelling and Written Composition
Paper Session
Contribution
The research questions addressed in this paper relate to the Assessment for learning (AfL) strategies New Zealand teachers of Years 7–9 students (11–14 years) use in their writing (written language) lessons.
- Which AfL strategies are evident during writing lessons?
- How are these strategies implemented?
- What gaps are apparent in teachers’ AfL practice?
Contemporary literature depicts AfL as an everyday practice whereby learners work in partnership with teachers and peers as together they seek, reflect upon and respond to information from dialogue, demonstration and observation in ways that promote student autonomy and enhance ongoing learning (Klenowski, 2009; Swaffield, 2011). No longer are students “the objects of their teacher’s behaviour, [rather] they are animators of their own effective teaching and learning processes” (James & Pedder, 2006, p. 28). They are expected to take ownership of the goals for learning and to monitor their progress in achieving these goals through strategies such as peer feedback and self assessment. The role of the teacher is to provide opportunities for, and support students, as they take control over their learning. The overall aim of AfL is for students to become autonomous, self-regulating learners (Willis 2011). Butler and Winne (1995) have described self-regulating students as those who are able to “judge performance relative to goals, generate internal feedback about amounts and rates of progress towards goals, and adjust further action based on that feedback” (p. 258).
It is generally agreed that AfL encompasses the following strategies: the promotion of learner understanding about the goal(s) of learning and what constitutes expected performance; generation of feedback about the relationship between current and desired performance; learner engagement in peer feedback and self-monitoring, and the taking of action to bring about desired performance (James & Pedder, 2006). Teachers’ ready adoption of individual strategies such as goal setting and feedback has been attributed to the ease with which they can be attached to class programmes and the lack of disruption this attachment causes to prevailing practices and roles (Dixon, 2011; James & Pedder, 2006). Although itemised individually, these are neither stand-alone strategies nor sequential steps. Rather, each strategy feeds into and from the others in an iterative manner. All are necessary, with no one strategy being more or less important than any other – all contribute to supporting and furthering students’ learning. AfL is therefore more complex than teachers adding strategies onto existing class programmes (James & Pedder, 2006; Willis, 2011). Furthermore, the critical factor in terms of students’ learning is not the presence of these strategies - what is important is how goals and criteria are framed, the nature or type of feedback that is given and the role afforded to students in relation to their learning. The full potential of AfL can only be realised when all strategies are present, to a greater or lesser extent, within a learning-teaching episode, and when students are given opportunities to take responsibility for their learning.
Method
Expected Outcomes
References
Butler, D. L., & Winne, P. H. (1995). Feedback and self-regulated learning: A theoretical synthesis. Review of Educational Research, 65(3), 245–281. Dixon, H. R. (2011). Infusing peer assessment into classroom programmes: Descriptions of practice. SET: Research Information for Teachers, 2, 3–10. James, M., & Pedder, D. (2006). Beyond method: Assessment and learning practices and values. Curriculum Journal, 17(2), 109–138. Keen, J. (2010). Strategic revisions in the writing of Year 7 students in the UK. The Curriculum Journal, 21(3), 255-280. Klenowski, V. (2009). Assessment for Learning revisited: An Asia-Pacific perspective. Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy & Practice, 16(3), 277-282. Parr, J.M. (2011). Writing in the curriculum. A complex act to teach and to evaluate. In C. Rubie-Davies (Ed), Educational Psychology: Concepts, research and challenges, Pp.51-67. London: Routledge. Sadler, D.R. (1987). Specifying and promulgating achievement standards. Oxford Review of Education, 13, 191–209. Swaffield, S. (2011). Getting to the heart of authentic Assessment for Learning. Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy & Practice, 18(4), 433-449. Ward, R., & Dix, S. (2004). Highlighting children’s awareness of their texts through talk. SET: Research Information for Teachers, 1, 7–11. Willis, J. (2011). Affiliation, autonomy and Assessment for Learning. Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy & Practice, 18(4), 399–415.
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