During my education, from elementary to college, the goals of learning are not explicitly articulated by the teachers, instructors or professors. They tend to believe that the students already know what are expected of them. They guess that tests, long or short, homework or assignment, midterm, projects, and finals are parts of student’s life that the learners should be prepared to hurdle or accomplish. As a result, I also tend to believe that when I got high grades, I am already a good learner.
The problem with assessment as learning, like assessment of and for learning, lies with the teachers not telling their students why they are doing what they are doing. They begin their lessons without articulating to the learners what they will and need to accomplish at the end of the unit of study. They give tests, ask students to submit a project, grade them and move on the next lesson. They do not care if almost half of the class did not understand the lesson. The goal is to teach the next lessons and finish the materials that school administrators tell them to teach within the prescribed time frame.
From elementary to college, the concept of metacognition and self-regulation did not register in my mind. This is because my teachers did not introduce the concepts or even the words. I sense that the teachers’ primary role then is to give knowledge rather than facilitate learning. This is the reason why I was not fully prepared when I entered the university. I thought that my professors will just deliver the lecture for us to understand and memorize. It was surprising when they just gave you syllabus and they expected you to know the lessons and be able to articulate them during class discussion or during exams. The horror was that they gave you exams they did not teach or discuss as if they are gods that gave orders to their subjects and expected them to know them by themselves.
Students learning by themselves will not materialize if teachers themselves do not give the reasons to do so. The learning goals or expectations should be clear and specific; the methods of instruction are well-defined; and the assessment tools should be in accord with the two and the outcomes are achievable. Regular feedback to each and every student should be given at appropriate time interval to correct any misconception and enhance their learning.
Individual differences in terms of strategies and styles should be taken into consideration in judging one’s performance. Ample time should be given to students to reflect on their own learning. Teachers should continuously monitor students’ progress and strategies until they achieve the potential to self-assess and self-regulate. However, to do this, teachers should provide genuine opportunities and create environments so that learners feel safe, confident, responsible and independent in their approach to self-study.
Reference
Earl, L. & Katz, S. (2006). Chapter 4, “Assessment of Learning." In Rethinking classroom assessment with purpose in mind. Western & Northern Canadian Protocol for Collaboration on Education, 41-54). Retrieved from http://www.edu.gov.mb.ca/k12/assess/wncp/rethinking_assess_mb.pdf
Images from
1) http://www.hsac.org.uk/assets/images/target.jpg
2) http://www.elmiracityschools.com/uploadedimages/testprep.jpg
3) http://www.teachers.ab.ca/SiteCollectionDocuments/ATA/Quick%20Links/Publications/The%20ATA%20News/Volume%2039/Number%2014/2cartoon.gif
4) http://rlv.zcache.com/teachers_rule_female_teacher_cartoon_photosculpture-p153515481360359988zv6l5_210.jpg
5) http://bc.onlineschool.ca/images/student.jpg
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