Utilization of Test Results Revised Punsalan

UTILIZATION OF

TEST RESULTS

DR. TWILA G. PUNSALANPhilippine Normal University

Use of Test Results

Test Results

TEACHERSSTUDENTS

PARENTS

OTHER STAKE-

HOLDERS

Use of Test Results

Test Results

TEACHERSSTUDENTS

PARENTS

OTHER STAKE-

HOLDERS

STUDENTS

New understanding

of what and how they are

learning

Use of Test Results STUDENTS

Review the examination with the students

Model correct written

answers. Return their tests

Teach them a

powerful study skill.

Do they understand

how they did on a test, and

why?

Did they know the material?

Did they prepare for

the test effectively?

Have students analyze their performance

Is there anything they would do

differently if they had to study for and take the test

again?

How well did they perform during

the test?

Have each student fill out a test-analysis questionnaire

A powerful tool for helping

students improve their

test-taking abilities.

Thinking About My

Test

Thinking about My Test

Name: __________________________Date:____________________Tests are one of the many ways to find out what I know and understand about a topic.

My mark on the ____________________ test was _________________________________.This mark tells ______________________________________________________________.I did well on the following questions:____________________________________________________________________________

I was successful on these questions because__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

To be even more successful on future tests I need to__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

My teachers and parents can help me improve my learning by_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________© 2004 Smart Tests by Catherine Walker and Edgar Schmidt. Permission to copy for classroom use. Pembroke Publishers.Smart Tests: Teacher-Made Tests that Help Students. Catherine Walker. Copyright © 2004. All rights reserved. No reproduction without written permission.

Self-reflection• Students become more

confident andmotivated about their own

learning.

•They see how effort contributes to learning – to

a test score.

• They realize that their marks are a result of effective preparation,

persistent commitment, and hard work.

• They realize that test results can identify areas of strength as well as areas that need improvement.

Self-reflection

• Students can use test results to set goals and develop

action plans for improving their learning.

Self-reflection

Use of Test Results

Test Results

TEACHERSSTUDENTS

PARENTS

OTHER STAKE-

HOLDERS

OTHER STAKE-

HOLDERS

TEACHERS • rich information for improving instruction

• better meeting the needs of students,

both individually and collectively

Use of Test Results -TEACHERS

…can give excellent feedback on how successfully the

material was taught.

TEST RESULTS..

Use of Test Results -TEACHERS

… provide insight into ways to adjust your

teaching, both the entire class and for individual

students.

TEST RESULTS..

USING TESTS FOR GRADING

Norm-referenced (Grading on the Curve).

Absolute or criterion-

referenced.



Each student’s grade indicates how the student performed in comparison with the other students in the class or several classes in school.


Certain proportions of students are given designated grades.



No indication of how much students master or what percentage of test items were answered correctly.



The standard is relative depending on student competitiveness



Fosters student competitiveness



Absolute or

criterion-referenced

Grading is determined by what level of performance is obtained.


No comparison with other students, possible for all students to get the same grade

Absolute or



Absolute levels of performance is called percentage-based grading

Absolute or



Standard set by the percent of correct items for each grade, but may not be true due to variation in item difficulty

Absolute or



Another type is the use of performance-based assessment of skills and products, e.g. scoring rubrics

Absolute or


ISSUE on the CURVE

C B A

Cut point

Cut point

Cut point

Scores

(a) Normal

ISSUE on the CURVE

C B A

Cut pointCut point

Scores

(b) Sculpted

ITEM Difficulty Issue

Score of 70

Difficult Test

Score of 70

Easy Test

=

ITEM Difficulty Issue

Score of 85

Teacher A

Score of 85

Teacher B

=

Which is a more difficult item?

A. Name three energy-sources that are non-renewable.

B. Of the following energy sources, which energy source is non-renewable?

A. Coal B. Solar

C. Geothermal D.Falling water

What is the difference between…

• Percentage Points Issue:• The discriminations by a scale of 1

to 100 are much finer that what can be reliably assessed.

92 93?

What is the difference between…

• Percentage Points Issue:

• There is no meaningful difference between scores differentiated by one or two points.

77 78?

Is Percentage correct the same as percent mastered?

• % of Mastery Issue:

• The tendency to equate percentage of items correct with percent mastered. Items can differ tremendously in item difficulty.

75%

%?

Characteristics of Norm- and Criterion-referenced

AssessmentNorm-referenced Criterion-referenced

Interpretation

Score compared to the performance of other students

Score compared to predeter-mined standards and criteria

Nature of Score

Percentile rank; standard scores; grading curve

Percentage correct; descriptive performance standards

Characteristics of Norm- and Criterion-referenced Assessment

Norm-referenced Criterion-referenced

Diffi-culty of Test Items

Uses ave. to diff. items to obtain spread of scores; very easy and very difficult items not used

Uses average to easy items to result in a high percentage of correct answers

Use of Scores

To rank order and sort students

To describe the level of performance obtained

Norm-referenced Criterion-referenced

Effect on Motivation

Dependent on comparison group; competitive

Challenges students to meet specified learning target

Strengths

Results in more difficult assessments that challenge students

Matches student performance to clearly defined learning targets;

Weaknesses

Grades determined by comparison to other students; some students are always at the bottom

Establishing clearly defined learning targets; setting standards that indicate mastery

What to Include in the

Final Grade?

Tests?Papers?Quizzes?

Academic Performance based on learning

goals for the grading period

Homework?Projects?

Participation?


Final Grade?Academic Performance

based on learning goals for the grading

period

• Those that are primarily formative in nature, i.e. give students practice and feedback, may be viewed as instruction than assessment and may not be included in the final grade.


Final Grade?

Academic Performance


period

ATTENDANCE?EFFORT?

PERSONAL CHARACTRISTICS?


Final Grade?Academic Performance


period

• The best rule for this is: the grade should be determined only by

student academic performance. This is essentially a matter of

maintaining appropriate validity so that your inferences about academic performance are

reasonable.

How Many Assessment Grades

Are Needed?

The more, the better, as long as assessment time

does not interfere significantly with

instructional time.

The rule of

thumb

What weight do you give each

assessment?

More important assessments are

given greater weight.

The most significant assessments are those that:

(1) correspond most closely to learning goals and targets (content-related evidence

for validity), (2) reflect instructional time, (3) are most reliable, and

(4) most current.

How do you Combine Different Scores and Grades? 3 Basic

Methods

1. Eyeball method- Simply review the scores and

grades and estimate an average for them, without performing any calculations. (NOT recommended)


Methods

2. Percent Correct Method –Combine scores to obtain a

composite percentage correct score, which is readily converted to a grade. One important principle here is to convert each score or grade to the same scale


Methods

3. Total Points Method –Same as the percent correct

method except that give each assessment a number of points (instead of percent) and add the points obtained to get the total.

Writing Assessment Reports

General and Specific Purpose of how test results will help the school to improve instruction

and learning.

•Clear statement of rationale is important

Writing Assessment Reports

Be equally clear about what information is to be

communicated, for what purposes, which reporting

techniques to use

•text-based, graphical, or both.

•lengthy and elaborate,

• brief and straightforward.

Reporting Results to Students

1. The first step is a briefing provided to the entire group of who received individual results. This briefing should present:

An overview of the assessment program and the assessment instruments.

2-Step Process


The uses that the division, the school, and the teachers have made or will make of the results.

The process used to review student results with each individual student.

2-Step Process


An explanation of what results have been provided or will be provided to students.

The plans (if any) that have been made to recognize outstanding performance on the assessment.

2-Step Process


2. The second step is individual follow-up with students. This meeting should focus on:

The student's assessed strengths and weaknesses.

2-Step Proces

s


• The relationship of these strengths and weaknesses to other available information about the student (from other assessments or teacher observations).

• A recommended plan of action to address the individual needs of the

student.

2-Step Proces

s

Use of Test Results

Test Results

TEACHERSSTUDENTS

PARENTS• better

understanding of how they can

support and motivate their children to become better

learners

OTHER STAKE-

HOLDERS

Reporting Results to Parents:

• Students should make corrections before they share their test results with parents.

• Parents also want to know how the entire student body is performing in comparison with other schools.

• Keep in mind that parents want to know how the school scored overall, even if their own children were not assessed.


Four strategies suggested for reporting results to parents:

(1) individual parent/teacher conferences

(2) an individual written report sent home

(3) parent group meetings

(4) parent newsletter articles


• Written reports also should include information concerning how parents can actively participate in a plan of action to address the instructional needs of their child.

Learning Conferences

a. A marked and corrected test

b. Tasks in which students were successful

c. Those demonstrating areas of difficulty

d. Highlighting areas of strength at the beginning of the conference

1.Parent–teacher–student learning conferences.

e. Make both parents and students feel more at ease and encourage a more open and constructive dialogue.

f. Select only one or two areas of focus for slower students

g. A lengthy list of problems will be discouraging for everyone.


h. Include students in the discussion, they may be more willing to set goals and make commitments

I. Encourage students to set short-term goals that are attainable and meaningful to them.


Use of Test Results

Test Results

TEACHERSSTUDENTS

PARENTS

OTHER STAKEHOLDERS

• help build support for

schools and for initiatives that school heads wish to carry

out.

Reporting Results to the School Board

First Report: Background information:

A. what was assessed,

B.what type of assessments was used,

C. why they were used, and

D. how the results will be applied and reported.

3-Part Reporting Strategy


Second report :Results of the assessment at the school and district levels.

It should answer that typical Policymakers often ask such as:

1. How well did each school and the district/division perform on the assessment?

2. Are scores from each school and the district/division up or down from last year?




3. Are students scoring at or above desired levels?

4. What steps are being taken to examine the assessment results and make instructional improvements?

5. How will the results be reported to parents and the public?



• Third report :Status Follow-up (Optional)

A. Follows up on the status of efforts to improve instruction at the school and the effectiveness of these changes.



• B. Conveys to the school board that the real purpose of student assessment is to help improve teaching and learning, not to serve as a scorecard on the quality of the school.



• C. The largest pitfall is reporting assessment results in an unclear manner. To eliminate this pitfall, various school staff members to ensure clarity should review reports

Suggested Techniques for Reporting

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Year 2005Year 2006

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Year 2005

Year 2006

Year 2005Year 2006

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Year 2005 50.2 38.6 47.6 45.9 56.2 55.6 50.5

Year 2006 45.9 46.9 45.2 43.9 59.1 50.3 45.2


LINE GRAPH


-55

152535455565758595


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Year 2005Year 2006

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Year 2005Year 2006LINE GRAPH


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Horizontal BAR GRAPH

Percentage Increase/Decrease Year 2005 and 2006

Changes in Test Scores

TEST-RELATED

• Change in Tests/TOS/LCs

• Different Difficulty Indices

• Different Discrimination Indices

• Different Attractiveness/ Plausibility of Options

Changes in Test Scores

INSTRUCTION-RELATED

• Teacher’s Professional Judgment

• Student Ability/Personality Differences

• Class Density

• Teacher Training and Attitude

• Support from Administrators and Stakeholders

Thank you.and

Good Day!

Documents

Utilization of Test Results Revised Punsalan