ASSESSING

LEARNING
Reporter: Jhon Dave Saac & Isaac Andaya
ASSESSING LEARNING
 Assessment is defined as a process that is used to keep track
of the learners’ progress in relation to learning standards
including that of the development of 21st century skills, which
is part of the new K-12 education framework. Thus,
assessment should be aligned with curriculum standards and
on the 21st century skills assessment framework. Every
assessment you give must be aligned with the objectives of
the lessons to which the assessment was made for. This way,
you are sure that you are testing what you intended for the
students to learn
 ASSESSING LEARNING
 The process of assessment is anchored to the framework of ZPD of
Vygotsky (1978). In the center of the process is the nature of the
learner. Assessment shall recognize the diversity of the learners inside
the classroom, which requires multiple ways of assessment measures
of their varying abilities, skills, and potentials. The ZPD assessment
framework puts premium consideration on the recognition of the
learner’s ZPD at the heart of the assessment. A learner-centered
assessment supports the learners’ success in moving from guided to
independent display of knowledge, understanding, and skills, as well
as assimilation of these in future situations. The ZPD adheres to
learning and teaching within a degree that is not difficult yet
challenging for the learners. It facilitates the ultimate objectives of the
K-12 program in each learner that is to develop higher-order thinking
and 21st century skills. From this view, there is unity between
instruction and assessment. Instruction is assessment, and vice versa.
And assessment is not delimited to written examinations; it is part of
the day-to-day lessons and classroom activities and transcends to
 The enhanced curriculum of the K-12 basic education is
standards-based. The assessment measures shall be anchored
on the attainment of these standards and competencies.
Assessment is aimed at helping the learners perform well in
relation to these learning standards. There is a recommended
type, component, period, and approach of assessment for
each learning standard lifted from DepEd’s policy guidelines.
 STANDARD BASED CURRICULUM
Curriculum Learning
Content Performance
Standard Competencies
Standard Standard

Type Diagnostic Summative Formative

Assessment Assessment “for” Assessment “of”

Approach “for” Learning Learning
Learning

Before the
When lesson During the lesson After the lesson

Componen Written
Performance Task Quarterly
t Work Assessment
 PRINCIPLES OF
ASSESSMENT
1. Assessment should be consistent with the curriculum standards.
 The teacher should make sure that the assessment measures the attainment
of the learning objectives set at the beginning of the lesson or unit
2. Formative assessment needs to scaffold the students in the summative
assessment.
 The results of formative assessment are not graded but it is important to keep
documents of these to study the patterns of the learning demonstrated by the
learners to prepare them in taking the summative assessment.
3. Assessment results must be used by teachers to help the students learn
better.
 The teacher must seek ways to use assessment to help the students want to
learn and feel able to learn.
4. Assessment is not used to threaten or intimidate the learners.
 The main purpose of assessment is to improve learning, not increase anxiety
among the learners
TWO TYPE OF
FUNDAMENTAL
ASSESSMENT
1Formative Assessment
 can be viewed in two lenses. It is an assessment for learning on the
lens of the teacher, while an assessment as learning on the lens of
the learner. Formative assessment can be given at any time, before,
during, and after the lesson; it is also not confined within the
classroom because any interaction with the learner is opportunity to
assess the learner’s abilities. The United Nations Educational,
Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Program on Teaching
and Learning for a Sustainable Future defines formative assessment
as an ongoing and closely related to the learning process. It is
characteristically informal and intended to help the student identify
his/her strengths and weaknesses in order to learn from the
assessment.
 TWO FUNDAMENTAL TYPES

OF ASSESSMENT
Formative Assessment as “assessment for learning”
Provides teachers the evidence about what the learners know and can do. Teachers
observe and guide the learners in their task through interaction and dialogue-in
the ZPD framework, thus, gaining insights and pieces of evidence about the
learners’ strengths, weaknesses, progress, and needs. The results of these will
help teachers design instructional activities and make decisions so that it is suited
to the learners’ situations and needs. The pieces of evidence in the formative
assessment shall be documented or recorded in order to track and monitor the
learners’ progress systematically.
 Formative Assessment as “assessment as learning”

Provides the learners of the immediate information on how they perform on the
learning process. The assessment provides information on which areas the learners
do well in or which areas do they need help with. This can be through feedback
from anyone around them especially from the teacher or any individual who is
considered more knowledgeable Formative assessment should also be a learning
opportunity that enables the learners to take responsibility for their own learning
A formative assessment is effective when instruction is embedded in it to
promote learning (McMillan, 2007). The steps begin in giving orientation
about the learning goals (black arrow). The detailed steps after the
orientation of the learning goals are to determine the current status of
learners or pieces of evidence of prior understanding; next is to provide
clear, specifics and on-time feedback²; next is to provide instructional
corrections/adjustments based on the needs of the learners; next is to
move the learners close to the goals/learning standards”; next is to
evaluate the learners’ progress; and lastly, again to provide feedback of
the learners’ status”
• In a case where a learner is highly self-regulated, the process begins with
the orientation of learning goals, next is to determine the status/prior
understanding of learners, next is to provide feedback, next is to provide
instructional corrections/adjustment, next is to evaluate the student’s
progress, and lastly, the processes ends in the same step, which is to
provide feedback after evaluation of the student’s progress.
• The DepEd guidelines provide the assessment purposes before, during,
and after the lesson. Examples are given, which teachers may utilize but
Part of the lesson For The Learner For the teacher Example of the
Assessment Method

Before lesson 1. Know what s/he 1. Get information 1. Agree/Disagree

knows about the about what the activities
topic/lesson learner already 2. Games
2. Understand the knows and can do 3. Interviews
purpose of the about the new 4.
lesson and how to lesson Inventories/Checklists
do well in the lesson 2. Share learning of skills (relevant to the
3. Identify ideas or intentions and topic In a learning
concepts he/she success criteria to area)
misunderstands the learners 5. KWL activities (what
4. Identify barriers to 3. Determine I know, what! Want to
learning misconceptions know, what I learned)
4. Identify what 6. Open-ended
hinders learning questions
7. Practice exercises
Parts of the lesson For the learner For the teacher Example of the
Assessment Method

Lesson Proper 1. Identify one’s 1. Multimedia 1. Multimedia

strengths and presentations presentations
weaknesses 2. Identify what hinders
2. Identify barriers to learning 2. Observations
learning 3. Identify what
3. Identify factors that facilitates learning 3. Other formative
help him/her learn 4. Identify learning performance tasks
4. Know what he/she gaps (simple activities that
knows and does not 5. Track learner can be drawn from a
know progress in comparison specific topic or lesson)
5. Monitor his/her own to formative
progress assessment results 4. Quizzes (recorded
prior to the lesson but not graded)
proper
6. To make decisions on 5. Recitations
whether to proceed
with the next lesson, 6. Simulation activities
reteach, or provide for
corrective measures or
reinforcements
Part of the lesson For the learner For the teacher Example of the
Assessment Method

After the lesson 1. Tell and recognize 1. Assess whether 1. Checklists

whether he/she met learning objectives
learning objectives and have been met for a 2. Discussion
success criteria specified duration
3. Games
2. Seek support through 2. Remediate and/or
remediation, enrich with appropriate 4. Performance tasks
enrichment, or other strategies as needed that emanate from the
strategies lesson objectives
3. Evaluate whether
learning intentions and 5. Practice exercises
success criteria have
been met 6. Short quizzes

7. Written work
 TWO TYPES OF FUNDAMENTAL
2.
ASSESSMENT
Summative Assessment
 is the assessment of learning. This assessment is always given at the end of
a unit or toward the end of a period because it aims to measure what the
learners have acquired after the learning process as compared with the
learning standards. The results will be used for decisions about future learning
or job sustainability. For UNESCO, the judgments derived from this assessment
are more beneficial for others than to the learners.
 The summative assessment measures the different ways the learners use and
apply all the relevant knowledge, understanding, and skills. The learners
synthesize the knowledge, understanding, and skills during the summative
assessment and the results will be used as bases for computing the grades.
The summative assessment is in the form of a unit test and a quarterly test; it
must be spaced properly over the quarter. It has three components, namely,
Written Work, Performance Test, and Quarterly Assessment. These
components are the bases of computing the grade and different learning
areas have unique ways to assess these components and set different
percentage for each component.
Component Purpose When to give

Written Work • Assess the learners’ • At the end of the topic or

understanding of concepts unit
and application of skills in
written form
• Prepare the learners for
quarterly assessment
Performance Task • This can be individual or At the end of the lesson
collaborative over a period about particular topic/skill
of time • Several times within a
• Provide opportunities for quarter
the learners to demonstrate
and integrate their
knowledge, understanding
and skills about topic or
concept learned to apply in
real-life situations through
performance
• Provide opportunities for
the learners to design and
express their learning in
diverse ways
Component Purpose When to give

Performance Task • Encourage the learners’

inquiry, integration of
knowledge, understanding and
skills in various contexts beyond
the assessment period
Quarterly Assessment Synthesize all the learning skills, Once, every end of the quarter
concepts and values learned in a
quarter

The DepEd guidelines provide a list of assessment tools per learning area.
Shown below is for mathematics.
Learning areas Written Work (WW) Performance Tasks
(PT)
Math A. Unit/Chapter Tests A. Products
1. Diagrams
B. Written output 2. Mathematical Investigatory
projects
1. Data recording and analyses 3. Models/Making models of
geometric figures
2. Geometric and statistical 4. Number representations
analyses B. Performance-based tasks
1. Constructing graphs from
3. Graphs, charts, or maps survey conducted
2. Multimedia presentation
4. Problem sets 3. Outdoor math
4. Probability experiments
5. Surveys 5. Problem posing
6. Reasoning and proof through
recitation
7. Using manipulatives to show
math concepts/solve problem
8. Using measuring
tools/devices