Lesson 8 - Assessment Strategies

2.2. The Purpose of Assessment

purpose of the assessment, because it is unlikely that one single assessment instrument will meet all assessment needs. Here are some reasons (you can probably think of many more):

• To improve and extend students’ learning;
• To assess students’ knowledge and competence in terms of desired learning goals or outcomes;
• To provide the teacher/instructor with feedback on the effectiveness of their teaching and how it might be improved;
• To provide information for employers about what the student knows and/or can do;
• To filter students for further study, jobs or professional advancement;
• For institutional accountability and/or financial purposes.

I leave it to you to decide the order of importance of these reasons for creating an effective learning environment.