The focus of  this assignment is on exploring your own ‘Assessment Literacy’.  Follow each of the steps to produce a formal paper.  The final paper should be able to stand on it’s own without any headings or ‘Step’ notations.

Step One:            Take the Classroom Assessment Literacy Inventory (CALI).  Assess your responses using the attached answer key.   In 1-2 paragraphs summarize your results.

                           CALI – Classroom Assessment Literacy Inventory [PDF]

CALI – Answer Key [DOC]

 

Step Two:            Read “Appendix A: Standards for Teacher Competence in Educational Assessment of Students”.  In 2-3 paragraphs identify and discuss key ideas from the Standards that relate to your performance on the CALI.

                          Appendix A: Standards for Teacher Competence in Educational Assessment of Students [PDF]

 

Step Three:         Read “Assessment Literacy Defined – May 2016; the report from the National Task Force on Assessment education for Teachers”.  In 1-2 paragraphs note the commonly used definition for Assessment Literacy and then in your own words write your own definition.  You may write the definition as learning objectives with phrases such as ‘teachers will be able to . . .’ or ‘teachers can . . .’ 

                          Assessment Literacy Defined – May 2016 [PDF]

 

Step Four:           In a few paragraphs discuss the professional learning you have undertaken regarding assessment.  Coursework?  Undergraduate classes?  Workshops?  Inservice?

Step Five:            Discuss in detail the professional learning that you would need to consider yourself ‘Assessment Literate’.  Discuss the status of your current setting in terms of Assessment Literacy.  Describe what you could do as a teacher leader in your own setting to help the staff to be more assessment literate.

Answers to CALI

1. C

2. B

3. B

4. B

5. C

6. B

7. C

8. A

9. D

10. B

11. A

12. D

13. D

14. B

15. A

16. C

17. B

18. B

19. C

20. B

21. B

22. A

23. C

24. D

25. B

26. C

27. A

28. D

29. A

30. A

31. D

32. A

33. C

34. C

35. D

Appendix A

Standards for Teacher Competence in
Educational Assessment of Students

Developed by the
American Federation of Teachers

National Council on Measurement in Education
National Education Association

This is not copyrighted material. Reproduction and dissemination
are encouraged (

1

9

90).

The professional education associations began working in 19

8

7

to develop standards for teacher competence in student assess-
ment out of concern that the potential educational benefits of student
assessments be fully realized. The Committee appointed to this pro-
ject completed its work in 1990 following reviews of earlier drafts by
members of the measurement, teaching, and teacher preparation and
certification communities. Parallel committees of affected associa-
tions are encouraged to develop similar statements of qualifications
for school administrators, counselors, testing directors, supervisors,
and other educators in the near future. These statements are intended
to guide the preservice and inservice preparation of educators, the
accreditation of preparation programs, and the future certification of
all educators.

Astandard is defined here as a principle generally accepted by the
professional associations responsible for this document. Assessment

1

is defined as the process of obtaining information that is used to make
educational decisions about students, to give feedback to the student
about his or her progress, strengths, and weaknesses, to judge
instructional effectiveness and curricular adequacy, and to inform
policy. The various assessment techniques include, but are not limited
to, formal and informal observation, qualitative analysis of pupil per-
formance and products, paper-and-pencil tests, oral questioning, and
analysis of student records. The assessment competencies included
here are the knowledge and skills critical to a teacher’s role as educa-
tor. It is understood that there are many competencies beyond assess-
ment competencies which teachers must possess.

By establishing standards for teacher competence in student
assessment, the associations subscribe to the view that student assess-
ment is an essential part of teaching and that good teaching cannot
exist without good student assessment. Training to develop the com-
petencies covered in the standards should be an integral part of
preservice preparation. Further, such assessment training should be
widely available to practicing teachers through staff development
programs at the district and building levels.

The standards are intended for use as:

• a guide for teacher educators as they design and approve
programs for teacher preparation

• a self-assessment guide for teachers in identifying their needs
for professional development in student assessment

• a guide for workshop instructors as they design professional
development experiences for inservice teachers

• an impetus for educational measurement specialists and
teacher trainers to conceptualize student assessment and
teacher training in student assessment more broadly than has
been the case in the past.

The standards should be incorporated into future teacher training
and certification programs. Teachers who have not had the prepara-
tion these standards imply should have the opportunity and support
to develop these competencies before the standards enter into the
evaluation of these teachers.

The Approach Used to Develop the Standards

The members of the associations that supported this work are pro-
fessional educators involved in teaching, teacher education, and
student assessment. Members of these associations are concerned

2

about the inadequacy with which teachers are prepared for assessing
the educational progress of their students, and thus sought to address
this concern effectively. A committee named by the associations first
met in September 1987 and affirmed its commitment to defining
standards for teacher preparation in student assessment. The commit-
tee then undertook a review of the research literature to identify
needs in student assessment, current levels of teacher training in
student assessment, areas of teacher activities requiring competence
in using assessments, and current levels of teacher competence in
student assessment.

The members of the committee used their collective experience
and expertise to formulate and then revise statements of important
assessment competencies. Drafts of these competencies went through
several revisions by the Committee before the standards were
released for public review. Comments by reviewers from each of the
associations were then used to prepare a final statement.

The Scope of a Teacher’s Professional Role
and Responsibilities for Student Assessment

There are seven standards in this document. In recognizing the
critical need to revitalize classroom assessment, some standards focus
on classroom-based competencies. Because of teachers’ growing roles
in education and policy decisions beyond the classroom, other stan-
dards address assessment competencies underlying teacher partici-
pation in decisions related to assessment at the school, district, state,
and national levels.

The scope of a teacher’s professional role and responsibilities for
student assessment may be described in terms of the following activ-
ities. These activities imply that teachers need competence in student
assessment and sufficient time and resources to complete them in a
professional manner.

Activities Occurring Prior to Instruction

(a) Understanding students’ cultural backgrounds, interests,
skills, and abilities as they apply across a range of learning
domains and/or subject areas;

(b) understanding students’ motivations and their interests in
specific class content;

(c) clarifying and articulating the performance outcomes expected
of pupils; and

(d) planning instruction for individuals or groups of students.

3

Activities Occurring During Instruction

(a) Monitoring pupil progress toward instructional goals;
(b) identifying gains and difficulties pupils are experiencing in

learning and performing;
(c) adjusting instruction;
(d) giving contingent, specific, and credible praise and feedback;
(e) motivating students to learn; and
(f) judging the extent of pupil attainment of instructional

outcomes.

Activities Occurring After the Appropriate Instructional
Segment (e.g. lesson, class, semester, grade)

(a) Describing the extent to which each pupil has attained both
short- and long-term instructional goals;

(b) communicating strengths and weaknesses based on assess-
ment results to students, and parents or guardians;

(c) recording and reporting assessment results for school-level
analysis, evaluation, and decision making;

(d) analyzing assessment information gathered before and dur-
ing instruction to understand each students’ progress to date
and to inform future instructional planning;

(e) evaluating the effectiveness of instruction; and
(f) evaluating the effectiveness of the curriculum and materials

in use.

Activities Associated With a Teacher’s Involvement in
School Building and School District Decision Making

(a) Serving on a school or district committee examining the school’s
and district’s strengths and weaknesses in the development of
its students;

(b) working on the development or selection of assessment
methods for school building or school district use;

(c) evaluating school district curriculum; and
(d) other related activities.

Activities Associated With a Teacher’s
Involvement in a Wider Community of Educators

(a) Serving on a state committee asked to develop learning goals
and associated assessment methods;

4

(b) participating in reviews of the appropriateness of district,
state, or national student goals and associated assessment
methods; and

(c) interpreting the results of state and national student assess-
ment programs.

Each standard that follows is an expectation for assessment
knowledge or skill that a teacher should possess in order to perform
well in the five areas just described. As a set, the standards call on
teachers to demonstrate skill at selecting, developing, applying,
using, communicating, and evaluating student assessment informa-
tion and student assessment practices. A brief rationale and illustra-
tive behaviors follow each standard.

The standards represent a conceptual framework or scaffolding
from which specific skills can be derived. Work to make these stan-
dards operational will be needed even after they have been published.
It is also expected that experience in the application of these standards
should lead to their improvement and further development.

Standards for Teacher Competence in
Educational Assessment of Students

1. Teachers should be skilled in choosing assessment methods
appropriate for instructional decisions.

Skills in choosing appropriate, useful, administratively convenient,
technically adequate, and fair assessment methods are prerequisite to
good use of information to support instructional decisions. Teachers
need to be well-acquainted with the kinds of information provided by
a broad range of assessment alternatives and their strengths and weak-
nesses. In particular, they should be familiar with criteria for evaluat-
ing and selecting assessment methods in light of instructional plans.

Teachers who meet this standard will have the conceptual and
application skills that follow. They will be able to use the concepts of
assessment error and validity when developing or selecting their
approaches to classroom assessment of students. They will under-
stand how valid assessment data can support instructional activities
such as providing appropriate feedback to students, diagnosing
group and individual learning needs, planning for individualized
educational programs, motivating students, and evaluating instruc-
tional procedures. They will understand how invalid information can
affect instructional decisions about students. They will also be able to

5

use and evaluate assessment options available to them, considering
among other things, the cultural, social, economic, and language
backgrounds of students. They will be aware that different assess-
ment approaches can be incompatible with certain instructional goals
and may impact quite differently on their teaching.

Teachers will know, for each assessment approach they use, its
appropriateness for making decisions about their pupils. Moreover,
teachers will know of where to find information about and/or
reviews of various assessment methods. Assessment options are
diverse and include text- and curriculum-embedded questions and
tests, standardized criterion-referenced and norm-referenced tests,
oral questioning, spontaneous and structured performance assess-
ments, portfolios, exhibitions, demonstrations, rating scales, writing
samples, paper-and-pencil tests, seatwork and homework, peer- and
self-assessments, student records, observations, questionnaires, inter-
views, projects, products, and others’ opinions.

2. Teachers should be skilled in developing assessment methods
appropriate for instructional decisions.

While teachers often use published or other external assessment
tools, the bulk of the assessment information they use for decision
making comes from approaches they create and implement. Indeed,
the assessment demands of the classroom go well beyond readily
available instruments.

Teachers who meet this standard will have the conceptual and
application skills that follow. Teachers will be skilled in planning the
collection of information that facilitates the decisions they will make.
They will know and follow appropriate principles for developing and
using assessment methods in their teaching, avoiding common pit-
falls in student assessment. Such techniques may include several of
the options listed at the end of the first standard. The teacher will
select the techniques which are appropriate to the intent of the
teacher’s instruction.

Teachers meeting this standard will also be skilled in using
student data to analyze the quality of each assessment technique they
use. Since most teachers do not have access to assessment specialists,
they must be prepared to do these analyses themselves.

3. The teacher should be skilled in administering, scoring, and
interpreting the results of both externally-produced and teacher-
produced assessment methods.

It is not enough that teachers are able to select and develop good
assessment methods; they must also be able to apply them properly.

6

Teachers should be skilled in administering, scoring, and interpreting
results from diverse assessment methods.

Teachers who meet this standard will have the conceptual and
application skills that follow. They will be skilled in interpreting
informal and formal teacher-produced assessment results, including
pupils’ performances in class and on homework assignments.
Teachers will be able to use guides for scoring essay questions and
projects, stencils for scoring response-choice questions, and scales for
rating performance assessments. They will be able to use these in
ways that produce consistent results.

Teachers will be able to administer standardized achievement tests
and be able to interpret the commonly reported scores: percentile
ranks, percentile band scores, standard scores, and grade equivalents.
They will have a conceptual understanding of the summary indexes
commonly reported with assessment results: measures of central ten-
dency, dispersion, relationships, reliability, and errors of measurement.

Teachers will be able to apply these concepts of score and sum-
mary indices in ways that enhance their use of the assessments that
they develop. They will be able to analyze assessment results to iden-
tify pupils’ strengths and errors. If they get inconsistent results, they
will seek other explanations for the discrepancy or other data to
attempt to resolve the uncertainty before arriving at a decision. They
will be able to use assessment methods in ways that encourage stu-
dents’ educational development and that do not inappropriately
increase students’ anxiety levels.

4. Teachers should be skilled in using assessment results when
making decisions about individual students, planning teaching,
developing curriculum, and designing school improvement.

Assessment results are used to make educational decisions at sev-
eral levels: in the classroom about students, in the community about
a school and a school district, and in society, generally, about the pur-
poses and outcomes of the educational enterprise. Teachers play a
vital role when participating in decision-making at each of these
levels and must be able to use assessment results effectively.

Teachers who meet this standard will have the conceptual and
application skills that follow. They will be able to use accumulated
assessment information to organize a sound instructional plan for facil-
itating students’ educational development. When using assessment
results to plan and/or evaluate instruction and curriculum, teachers
will interpret the results correctly and avoid common misinterpreta-
tions, such as basing decisions on scores that lack curriculum validity.

7

They will be informed about the results of local, regional, state, and
national assessments and about their appropriate use for pupil, class-
room, school, district, state, and national educational improvement.

5. Teachers should be skilled in developing valid pupil grading
procedures which use pupil assessments.

Grading students is an important part of professional practice for
teachers. Grading is defined as indicating both a student’s level of
performance and a teacher’s valuing of that performance. The princi-
ples for using assessments to obtain valid grades are known and
teachers should employ them.

Teachers who meet this standard will have the conceptual and
application skills that follow. They will be able to devise, implement,
and explain a procedure for developing grades composed of marks
from various assignments, projects, inclass activities, quizzes, tests,
and/or other assessments that they may use. Teachers will under-
stand and be able to articulate why the grades they assign are ratio-
nal, justified, and fair, acknowledging that such grades reflect their
preferences and judgments. Teachers will be able to recognize and to
avoid faulty grading procedures such as using grades as punishment.
They will be able to evaluate and to modify their grading procedures
in order to improve the validity of the interpretations made from
them about students’ attainments.

6. Teachers should be skilled in communicating assessment
results to students, parents, other lay audiences, and other educators.

Teachers must routinely report assessment results to students and
to parents or guardians. In addition, they are frequently asked to
report or to discuss assessment results with other educators and with
diverse lay audiences. If the results are not communicated effectively,
they may be misused or not used. To communicate effectively with
others on matters of student assessment, teachers must be able to use
assessment terminology appropriately and must be able to articulate
the meaning, limitations, and implications of assessment results.
Furthermore, teachers will sometimes be in a position that will
require them to defend their own assessment procedures and their
interpretations of them. At other times, teachers may need to help the
public to interpret assessment results appropriately.

Teachers who meet this standard will have the conceptual and
application skills that follow. Teachers will understand and be able to
give appropriate explanations of how the interpretation of student
assessments must be moderated by the student’s socio-economic,
cultural, language, and other background factors. Teachers will be

8

able to explain that assessment results do not imply that such back-
ground factors limit a student’s ultimate educational development.
They will be able to communicate to students and to their parents or
guardians how they may assess the student’s educational progress.
Teachers will understand and be able to explain the importance of
taking measurement errors into account when using assessments to
make decisions about individual students. Teachers will be able
to explain the limitations of different informal and formal assessment
methods. They will be able to explain printed reports of the results of
pupil assessments at the classroom, school district, state, and national
levels.

7. Teachers should be skilled in recognizing unethical, illegal,
and otherwise inappropriate assessment methods and uses of
assessment information.

Fairness, the rights of all concerned, and professional ethical
behavior must undergird all student assessment activities, from the
initial planning for and gathering of information to the interpretation,
use, and communication of the results. Teachers must be well-versed
in their own ethical and legal responsibilities in assessment. In addi-
tion, they should also attempt to have the inappropriate assessment
practices of others discontinued whenever they are encountered.
Teachers should also participate with the wider educational commu-
nity in defining the limits of appropriate professional behavior in
assessment.

Teachers who meet this standard will have the conceptual and
application skills that follow. They will know those laws and case
decisions which affect their classroom, school district, and state
assessment practices. Teachers will be aware that various assessment
procedures can be misused or overused resulting in harmful conse-
quences such as embarrassing students, violating a student’s right
to confidentiality, and inappropriately using students’ standardized
achievement test scores to measure teaching effectiveness.

Invitation to Users

The associations invite comments from users that may be used for
improvement of this document. Comments may be sent to:

Teacher Standards in Student Assessment
American Federation of Teachers
555 New Jersey Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20001

9

Teacher Standards in Student Assessment
National Council on Measurement in Education
1230 Seventeenth Street, NW
Washington, DC 20036

Teacher Standards in Student Assessment
Instruction and Professional Development
National Education Association
1201 Sixteenth Street, NW
Washington, DC 20036

The Committee that developed this statement was appointed
by the collaborating professional associations: James R. Sanders
(Western Michigan University) chaired the Committee and repre-
sented NCME along with John R. Hills (Florida State University) and
Anthony J. Nitko (University of Pittsburgh). Jack C. Merwin
(University of Minnesota) represented the American Association of
Colleges for Teacher Education, Carolyn Trice represented the
American Federation of Teachers, and Marcella Dianda and Jeffrey
Schneider represented the National Education Association.

10

Classroom
Assessment
Literacy
Inventory 1

Craig A. Mertler, Ph.D.
Bowling Green State University

1 Adapted from the “Teacher Assessment Literacy Questionnaire” (1993), by Barbara S. Plake & James C. Impara, University

of Nebraska-Lincoln, in cooperation with The National Council on Measurement in Education & the W.K. Kellogg
Foundation

Description of the inventory:

This inventory consists of two parts. Part I consists of 35 items related to the seven “Standards for Teacher
Competence in the Educational Assessment of Students.” Some of the items are intended to measure general
concepts related to testing and assessment, including the use of assessment activities for assigning student grades
and communicating the results of assessment to students and parents; other items are related to knowledge of
standardized testing and the remaining items are related to classroom assessment. Part II consists of items related
to your background as a classroom teacher.

Directions:

Please read each item carefully and select the response you think is the best one by shading the corresponding
circle. Even if you are not sure of your choice, but you think you know which is best, mark that response.

PART I

1. What is the most important consideration in choosing a method for assessing student achievement?

ô The ease of scoring the assessment.
ô The ease of preparing the assessment.
ô The accuracy of assessing whether or not instructional objectives were attained.
ô The acceptance by the school administration.

2. When scores from a standardized test are said to be “reliable,” what does it imply?

ô Student scores from the test can be used for a large number of educational decisions.
ô If a student retook the same test, he or she would get a similar score on each retake.
ô The test score is a more valid measure than teacher judgments.
ô The test score accurately reflects the content of what was taught.

3. Mrs. Bruce wished to assess her students’ understanding of the method of problem solving she had been
teaching. Which assessment strategy below would be most valid?

ô Select a textbook that has a “teacher’s guide” with a test developed by the authors.
ô Develop an assessment consistent with an outline of what she has actually taught in the class.
ô Select a standardized test that provides a score on problem solving skills.
ô Select an instrument that measures students’ attitudes about problem solving strategies.

4. What is the most effective use a teacher can make of an assessment that requires students to show their
work (e.g., the way they arrived at a solution to a problem or the logic used to arrive at a conclusion)?

ô Assigning grades for a unit of instruction on problem solving.
ô Providing instructional feedback to individual students.
ô Motivating students to attempt innovative ways to solve problems.
ô None of the above.

5. Ms. Green, the principal, was evaluating the teaching performance of Mr. Williams, the fourth grade
teacher. One of the things Ms. Green wanted to learn was if the students were being encouraged to use
higher order thinking skills in the class. What documentation would be the most valid to help Ms. Green
to make this decision?

ô Mr. Williams’ lesson plans.
ô The state curriculum guides for fourth

grade.

ô Copies of Mr. Williams’ unit tests or assessment strategies used to assign

grades.

ô Worksheets completed by Mr. Williams’ students, but not used for grading.

6. A teacher wants to document the validity of the scores from a classroom assessment strategy she plans to
use for assigning grades on a class unit. What kind of information would provide the best evidence for
this purpose?

ô Have other teachers judge whether the assessment strategy covers what was taught.
ô Match an outline of the instructional content to the content of the actual assessment.
ô Let students in the class indicate if they thought the assessment was valid.
ô Ask parents if the assessment reflects important learning outcomes.

7. Which of the following would most likely increase the reliability of Mrs. Lockwood’s multiple choice
end-of-unit examination in physical science?

ô Use a blueprint to develop the test questions.
ô Change the test format to true-false questions.
ô Add more items like those already on the test.
ô Add an essay component.

8. Ms. Gregory wants to assess her students’ skills in organizing ideas rather than just repeating facts.
Which words should she use in formulating essay exercises to achieve this goal?

ô compare, contrast, criticize
ô identify, specify, list
ô order, match, select
ô define, recall, restate

9. Mr. Woodruff wanted his students to appreciate the literary works of Edgar Allen Poe. Which of his test
items shown below will best measure his instructional goal?

ô “Spoke the raven, nevermore.” comes from which of Poe’s works?
ô True or False: Poe was an orphan and never knew his biological parents.
ô Edgar Allen Poe wrote:

1. Novels
2. Short stories
3. Poems
4. All of the above.

ô Discuss briefly your view of Poe’s contribution to American literature.

10. Several students in Ms. Atwell’s class received low scores on her end-of-unit test covering multi-step
story problems in mathematics. She wanted to know which students were having similar problems so
she could group them for instruction. Which assessment strategy would be best for her to use for
grouping students?

ô Use the test provided in the “teacher’s guide.”
ô Have the students take a test that has separate items for each step of the process.
ô Look at the student’s records and standardized test scores to see which topics the students had not

performed well on previously.
ô Give students story problems to complete and have them show their work.

11. Many teachers score classroom tests using a 100-point percent correct scale. In general, what does a
student’s score of 90 on such a scale mean?

ô The student answered 90% of the items on this test correctly.
ô The student knows 90% of the instructional content of the unit covered by this test.
ô The student scored higher than 90% of all the students who took the test.
ô The student scored 90% higher than the average student in the class.

12. Students in Mr. Jakman’s science class are required to develop a model of the solar system as part of their
end-of-unit grade. Which scoring procedure below will maximize the objectivity of assessing these
student projects?

ô When the models are turned in, Mr. Jakman identifies the most attractive models and gives them the
highest grades, the next most attractive get a lower grade and so on.

ô Mr. Jakman asks other teachers in the building to rate each project on a 5-point scale based on their
quality.

ô Before the projects are turned in, Mr. Jakman constructs a scoring key based on the critical features of
the projects as identified by the highest performing students in the class.

ô Before the projects are turned in, Mr. Jakman prepares a model or blueprint of the critical features of
the product and assigns scoring weights to these features. The models with the highest scores receive
the highest grade.

13. At the close of the first month of school, Mrs. Friend gives her fifth grade students a test she developed in
social studies. Her test is modeled after a standardized social studies test. It presents passages and then
asks questions related to understanding and problem definition. When the test was scored, she noticed
that two of her students—who had been performing well in their class assignments—scored much lower
than other students. Which of the following types of additional information which would be most
helpful in interpreting the results of this test?

ô The gender of the students.
ô The age of the students.
ô Reliability data for the standardized social studies test she used as the model.
ô Reading comprehension scores for the students.

14. Frank, a beginning fifth grader, received a G. E. (grade equivalent score) of 8.0 on the Reading
Comprehension subtest of a standardized test. This score should be interpreted to mean that Frank

ô can read and understand 8th grade reading level material.
ô scored as well as a typical beginning 8th grader scored on this test.
ô is performing in Reading Comprehension at the 8th grade level.
ô will probably reach maximum performance in Reading Comprehension at the beginning of the 8th

grade.

15. When the directions indicate each section of a standardized test is timed separately, which of the
following is acceptable test-taking behavior?

ô John finishes the vocabulary section early; he then rechecks many of his answers in that section.
ô Mary finishes the vocabulary section early; she checks her answers on the previous test section.
ô Jane finishes the vocabulary section early; she looks ahead at the next test section but does not mark

her answer sheet for any of those items.
ô Bob did not finish the vocabulary section; he continues to work on that section when the testing time

is up.

16. Ms. Camp is starting a new semester with a factoring unit in her Algebra I class. Before beginning the
unit, she gives her students a test on the commutative, associative, and distributive properties of addition
and multiplication. Which of the following is the most likely reason she gives this test to her students?

ô The principal needs to report the results of this assessment to the state testing director.
ô Ms. Camp wants to give the students practice in taking tests early in the semester.
ô Ms. Camp wants to check for prerequisite knowledge in her students before she begins the unit on

factoring.
ô Ms. Camp wants to measure growth in student achievement of these concepts, and scores on this test

will serve as the students’ knowledge baseline.

17. To evaluate the effectiveness of the mathematics program for her gifted first graders, Ms. Allen gave
them a standardized mathematics test normed for third graders. To decide how well her students
performed, Ms. Allen compared her students’ scores to those of the third-grade norm group. Why is this
an incorrect application of standardized test norms?

ô The norms are not reliable for first graders.
ô The norms are not valid for first graders.
ô Third grade mathematics items are too difficult for first graders.
ô The time limits are too short for first graders.

18. When planning classroom instruction for a unit on arithmetic operations with fractions, which of these
types of information have more potential to be helpful?

norm-referenced information: describes each student’s performance relative to a other students in a group
(e.g., percentile ranks, stanines), or

criterion-referenced information: describes each student’s performance in terms of status on specific
learning outcomes (e.g., number of items correctly answered for each specific objective)

ô Norm-referenced information.
ô Criterion-referenced information.
ô Both types of information are equally useful in helping to plan for instruction.
ô Neither, test information is not useful in helping to plan instruction.

19. Students’ scores on standardized tests are sometimes inconsistent with their performances on classroom
assessments (e.g., teacher tests or other in-class activities). Which of the following is not a reasonable
explanation for such discrepancies?

ô Some students freeze up on standardized tests, but they do fine on classroom assessments.
ô Students often take standardized tests less seriously than they take classroom assessments.
ô Standardized tests measure only recall of information while classroom assessments measure more

complex thinking.
ô Standardized tests may have less curriculum validity than classroom assessment.

20. Elementary school teachers in the Baker School system collectively designed and developed new
curricula in Reading, Mathematics, and Science that is based on locally developed objectives and
objectives in state curriculum guides. The new curricula were not matched directly to the content of the
fourth grade standardized test. A newspaper reports the fourth grade students in Baker Public Schools
are among the lowest scoring districts in the State Assessment Program. Which of the following would
invalidate the comparison between Baker Public Schools and other schools in the state?

ô The curriculum objectives of the other districts may more closely match those of the State
Assessment.

ô Other school systems did not design their curriculum to be consistent with the State Assessment test.
ô Instruction in Baker schools is poor.
ô Other school systems have different promotion policies than Baker.

21. Which of the following choices typically provides the most reliable student-performance information that
a teacher might consider when assigning a unit grade?

ô Scores from a teacher-made test containing two or three essay questions related directly to
instructional objectives of the unit.

ô Scores from a teacher-made 20 item multiple-choice test designed to measure the specific
instructional objectives of the unit.

ô Oral responses to questions asked in class of each student over the course of the unit.
ô Daily grades designed to indicate the quality of in-class participation during regular instruction.

22. A teacher gave three tests during a grading period and she wants to weight them all equally when
assigning grades. The goal of the grading program is to rank order students on achievement. In order to
achieve this goal, which of the following should be closest to equal?

ô Number of items.
ô Number of students taking each test.
ô Average scores.
ô Variation (range) of scores.

23. When a parent asks a teacher to explain the basis for his or her child’s grade, the teacher should

ô explain that the grades are assigned fairly, based on the student’s performance and other related
factors.

ô ask the parents what they think should be the basis for the child’s grade.
ô explain exactly how the grade was determined and show the parent samples of the student’s work.
ô indicate that the grading scale is imposed by the school board and the teachers have no control over

grades.

24. Which of the following grading practices results in a grade that least reflects students’ achievement?

ô Mr. Jones requires students to turn in homework; however, he only grades the odd numbered items.
ô Mrs. Brown uses weekly quizzes and three major examinations to assign final grades in her class.
ô Ms. Smith permits students to redo their assignments several times if they need more opportunities

to meet her standards for grades.
ô Miss Engle deducts 5 points from a student’s test grade for disruptive behavior.

25. During the most recent grading period, Ms. Johnson graded no homework and gave only one end-of-unit
test. Grades were assigned only on the basis of the test. Which of the following is the major criticism
regarding how she assigned the grades?

ô The grades probably reflect a bias against minority students that exists in most tests.
ô Decisions like grade assignment should be based on more than one piece of information.
ô The test was too narrow in curriculum focus.
ô There is no significant criticism of this method providing the test covered the unit’s content.

26. In a routine conference with Mary’s parents, Mrs. Estes observed that Mary’s scores on the state
assessment program’s quantitative reasoning tests indicate Mary is performing better in mathematics
concepts than in mathematics computation. This probably means that

ô Mary’s score on the computation test was below average.
ô Mary is an excellent student in mathematics concepts.
ô the percentile bands for the mathematics concepts and computation tests do not overlap.
ô the mathematics concepts test is a more valid measure of Mary’s quantitative reasoning ability.

27. Many states are revising their school accountability programs to help explain differences in test scores
across school systems. Which of the following is not something that needs to be considered in such a
program?

ô The number of students in each school system.
ô The average socio-economic status of the school systems.
ô The race/ethnic distribution of students in each school system.
ô The drop-out rate in each school systems.

28. The following standardized test data are reported for John.

Subject Stanine Score
Vocabulary 7
Mathematics Computation 7
Social Studies 7

Which of the following is a valid interpretation of this score report?

ô John answered correctly the same number of items on each of the three tests.
ô John’s test scores are equivalent to a typical seventh grader’s test performance.
ô John had the same percentile rank on the three tests.
ô John scored above average on each of the three tests.

29. Mr. Klein bases his students’ grades mostly on graded homework and tests. Mr. Kaplan bases his
students’ grades mostly on his observation of the students during class. A major difference in these two
assessment strategies for assigning grades can best be summarized as a difference in

ô formal and informal assessment.
ô performance and applied assessment.
ô customized and tailored assessment.
ô formative and summative assessment.

30. John scored at the 60th percentile on a mathematics concepts test and scored at the 57th percentile on a
test of reading comprehension. If the percentile bands for each test are five percentile ranks wide, what
should John’s teacher do in light of these test results?

ô Ignore this difference.
ô Provide John with individual help in reading.
ô Motivate John to read more extensively outside of school.
ô Provide enrichment experiences for John in mathematics, his better performance area.

31. In some states testing companies are required to release items from prior versions of a test to anyone
who requests them. Such requirements are known as

ô open-testing mandates.
ô gag rules.
ô freedom-of-information acts.
ô truth-in-testing laws.

32. Mrs. Brown wants to let her students know how they did on their test as quickly as possible. She tells her
students that their scored tests will be on a chair outside of her room immediately after school. The
students may come by and pick out their graded test from among the other tests for their class. What is
wrong with Mrs. Brown’s action?

ô The students can see the other students’ graded tests, making it a violation of the students’ right of
privacy.

ô The students have to wait until after school, so the action is unfair to students who have to leave
immediately after school.

ô Mrs. Brown will have to rush to get the tests graded by the end of the school day, hence, the action
prevents her from using the test to identify students who need special help.

ô The students who were absent will have an unfair advantage, because her action allows the
possibility for these students to cheat.

33. A state uses its statewide testing program as a basis for distributing resources to school systems. To
establish an equitable distribution plan, the criterion set by the State Board of Education provides
additional resources to every school system with student achievement test scores above the state average.
Which cliché best describes the likely outcome of this regulation?

ô Every cloud has its silver lining.
ô Into each life some rain must fall.
ô The rich get richer and the poor get poorer.
ô A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.

34. In a school where teacher evaluations are based in part on their students’ scores on a standardized test,
several teachers noted that one of their students did not reach some vocabulary items on a standardized
test. Which teacher’s actions is considered ethical?

ô Mr. Jackson darkened circles on the answer sheet at random. He assumed Fred, who was not a good
student, would just guess at the answers, so this would be a fair way to obtain Fred’s score on the
test.

ô Mr. Hoover filled in the answer sheet the way he thought Joan, who was not feeling well, would
have answered based on Joan’s typical in-class performance.

ô Mr. Stover turned in the answer sheet as it was, even though he thought George, an average student,
might have gotten a higher score had he finished the test.

ô Mr. Lund read each question and darkened in the bubbles on the answer sheet that represented what
he believed Felicia, a slightly below average student, would select as the correct answers.

35. Mrs. Overton was concerned that her students would not do well on the State Assessment Program to be
administered in the Spring. She got a copy of the standardized test form that was going to be used. She
did each of the following activities to help increase scores. Which activity was unethical?

ô Instructed students in strategies on taking multiple choice tests, including how to use answer sheets.
ô Gave students the items from an alternate form of the test.
ô Planned instruction to focus on the concepts covered in the test.
ô None of these actions are unethical.

PART II

36. What is your gender?

ô female
ô male

37. Which of the following is the most appropriate description of the level at which you teach?

ô elementary – primary (K – grade 3)
ô elementary – intermediate (grades 4 – 6)
ô elementary (K – 6)
ô middle (grades 6 – 8)
ô high (grades 9 – 12)
ô secondary (grades 6 – 12)
ô K – 12
ô other

38. Which best describes the educational level you have attained?

ô B.A. or B.S.
ô M.A. or M.S.
ô Specialist
ô Ed.D.
ô Ph.D.

39. Including the current year, how many years of experience do you have as a classroom teacher?

ô 1 – 5 years
ô 6 – 10 years
ô 11 – 15 years
ô 16 – 20 years
ô 21 – 25 years
ô 26 – 30 years
ô more than 30 years

40. To the best of your knowledge, did you take a standalone course in classroom assessment as part of your
undergraduate teacher preparation?

ô yes
ô no

41. Which of the following best describes your perception of the level of preparation for the overall job of
being a classroom teacher that resulted from your undergraduate teacher preparation program?

ô very unprepared
ô somewhat unprepared
ô somewhat prepared
ô very prepared

42. Which of the following best describes your perception of the level of preparation for assessing student
performance that resulted from your undergraduate teacher preparation program?

ô very unprepared
ô somewhat unprepared
ô somewhat prepared
ô very prepared

T h a n k y o u f o r y o u r a s s i s t a n c e ! ! !

Assessment Literacy Defined – May 2016

Overview

In an effort to address the need for assessment-literate educators in a positive way, the National Task Force on
Assessment Education for Teachers was launched in October 2015. The Task Force is comprised of three advisors
and 24 educators from 17 states, including pre-service and in-service educators, assessment experts and thought
leaders. The goal of the Task Force is to be a collective voice that elevates the national dialogue on assessment
education, develops innovative approaches to assessment literacy, and advances existing best practices in
assessment. The National Task Force is pictured above in Washington, DC, in February 2016.

The National Task Force on Assessment Education for

Teachers

 Chadwick Anderson, Principal, Scott Carpenter Middle School, North Denver, CO;
 Saroja Barnes, Director of Educator Preparation Initiatives, Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO),

Washington, DC;
 John David (JD) Bowman, Teacher, 2015 Arizona Teacher of the Year, Westwood High School, Mesa, AZ;
 Sarah Clark McKenzie, Executive Director, Office for Education Policy, University of Arkansas,

Fayetteville, AR;
 Kathy Dewsbury-White, President and CEO, Michigan Assessment Consortium, Lansing, MI;
 Amy Engelhard, Data Steward, North Dakota Educational Technology Council, Fargo, ND;
 Dee Fabry, Co-Chair, Teacher Education Department, School of Education, National University, La Jolla,

CA;
 Kristin Hamilton, Senior Director of Standards, National Board for Professional Teaching Standards

(NBPTS), Arlington, VA;
 Cara Jackson, Assistant Director of Research and Evaluation, Urban Teachers, Baltimore, MD;
 Mark Lacelle-Peterson, Senior Vice President for Policy and Programs, American Association of Colleges

for Teacher Education (AACTE), Washington, DC;
 Heather Lageman, Director of Curriculum, Maryland State Department of Education, Baltimore, MD;
 Sarah McManus, Director of Digital Learning, Education Services for the Deaf and Blind, North Carolina

Department of Public Instruction, Raleigh, NC;

The National Task Force on Assessment Education for Teachers – Continued

 Bret Miles, Executive Director, Northeast Colorado Board of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES),

Holyoke, CO;
 Happy Miller, Executive Director of Research, Assessment, Data and Accountability, Rio Rancho School

District, Rio Rancho, NM;
 Sue Nolen, Professor of Learning Sciences and Human Development, University of Washington, Seattle,

WA;
 Carlinda Purcell, Assistant to the Superintendent, Harrisburg School District, Harrisburg, PA
 Scott Reed, Teacher, Niles North High School, Skokie, IL;
 Meredith Ross, Senior Manager of Student Assessment and Accountability, Charter Schools USA, Fort

Lauderdale, FL;
 Melissa Spadin Finkel, Education Program Specialist, Maryland State Department of Education, Baltimore,

MD;
 Peter Tromba, Director of Research & Policy, Chief Education Office, Salem, OR;
 Missy Wall Mitchell, Director of Accountability for School District Five, Lexington and Richland Counties,

Irmo, SC;
 Kim Walters-Parker, Reading Specialist, Woodford County High School, Versailles, KY;
 Amelia Wenk Gotwals, Associate Professor, Department of Teacher Education, Michigan State University,

East Lansing, MI.

Advisors to the National Task Force on Assessment Education for Teachers:

 Dr. Terri Akey, Co-Director, Center for Research, Evaluation, and Assessment at Education Northwest;

 Bernice Stafford, Strategic Consultant, Professional Development, Northwest Evaluation Association;

 Dr. Rick Stiggins, retired founder and CEO of the Assessment Training Institute.

Abstract

Assessment is the process of gathering evidence of student learning to inform education-related decisions. The
impact of decisions turns on the quality of the evidence gathered, which in turn, depends on the quality of the
assessment, and associated practices, used to gather it. Those who are assessment literate understand how to
gather dependable evidence and how to use it productively to support or certify achievement. Regardless of their
level of involvement in the education process, they understand the importance of:

 Beginning assessment with a clear purpose;

 Starting with clear and specific learning target(s) to be assessed;

 Building high-quality assessments to fit this intended context;

 Communicating results in ways that assure understanding by recipients, and;

 Linking assessment and student motivation in ways that keep all students striving for academic success.

Unfortunately, very often education practitioners, students, and stakeholders in the community face the
challenges of educational assessment without having been given the opportunity to develop the levels of

assessment literacy needed to succeed in meeting those challenges. This Task Force’s mission is to promote
deeper understanding of sound assessment practice throughout the fabric of American education.

Definition

Assessment is the process of gathering information about student learning to inform education-related decisions.
Assessments can reflect a wide variety of learning targets using a range of methods serving many important users
and uses at a variety of levels from the classroom to the boardroom. In this sense, assessment is an essential part
of the teaching and learning process.

Our assessments work best in contexts of strong assessment literacy, and they fail us when assessment literacy is
lacking. One becomes assessment literate by mastering basic principles of sound assessment practice, coming to
believe strongly in their consistent, high-quality application in order to meet the diverse needs of all students, and
acting assertively based on those values. The specific nature of those applications vary with one’s role in the
educational process. The definition of assessment literacy presented below details the universal understandings
and beliefs that underpin sound practice regardless of role and then analyzes how they play out by role.

The Universal Meaning of Assessment Literacy

Assessment Purpose

An assessment literate person understands that it is not possible to conduct a sound assessment without a clear
and specific purpose. The purpose is clarified through answers to three contextual questions:

 Who will use the results?

 What will they use them to accomplish?

 And, therefore, what information about student learning does the user need?

In all contexts, the assessment must be specifically designed, developed, and conducted to supply the information
needed to serve the intended user(s). Only then can it work in the service of student learning.

Further, an assessment literate person understands that district assessment systems must take into account and
balance the needs of users throughout the local context. These systems can, and must, serve a variety of levels of
applications, including continuous day-to-day classroom users, common benchmark assessments for progress
monitoring (every few months), and annual assessments. In addition, balanced local systems also rely on
assessments to:

 Assist teachers in supporting student learning

 Help students promote their own growth (“assessment for learning”)1

 Inform judgments of the sufficiency of learning given established expectations (“summative assessment

of learning).

Assessment literate individuals believe the intended purpose for any assessment is a guiding light—it must serve
its user(s) information needs. Assessment purpose must be clear from the very beginning because it anchors the
entire assessment process, whether a teacher is designing a task to be performed or a state is deciding which
standardized test to adopt. An assessment must be capable of fulfilling its intended purpose by providing
relevant, required information.

Assessment literate teachers and school leaders believe that establishing the purpose of any assessment must
take into account the importance of all assessment users, especially students whose assessment literacy is
critically important as they learn to use assessment results to inform their own learning. Assessment literate
individuals also believe that instructional decision makers, at every level, must take into account all relevant and
available evidence of student learning and affect to inform their instructional decisions. In other words, all users
are entitled to high-quality, understandable assessment results.

Learning Targets

Assessment literate individuals understand that the learning target(s) to be assessed form the foundation of the
tasks, items, or exercise and scoring procedures that will make up the assessment. Indeed, the target(s) of
interest determine the assessment method(s) to be used. Therefore, assessors must begin assessment
development and use with those learning expectations clearly and unambiguously defined. Finally, those
engaged in assessment understand that learning targets vary profoundly in type and complexity across subjects
and ascending grade levels, as well as according to individual student needs. For this reason, a variety of
assessment methods must come into play in classrooms, in schools, and across local assessment systems.

Assessment literate individuals believe that intended learning target(s) must be clear, appropriate, and available
for all involved—most importantly students—to see from the outset of instruction and assessment. In addition,
they believe that assessors themselves must be confident, competent masters of the learning targets to be
reflected in the assessment.

Assessment Quality

Assessment literate individuals understand that the assessment is comprised of exercises that present challenges
to the examinee and elicit a response to be evaluated in terms of performance criteria. They understand that,
regardless of their origin (inside or beyond the classroom) or format (e.g., oral, written, or performed),

1 Formative assessment is a process used by teachers and students during instruction that provides feedback to adjust ongoing teaching
and learning to improve students’ achievement of intended instructional outcomes. Distinguishing Formative Assessment from other
Educational Assessment Labels, CCSSO (2012), prepared by the Formative Assessment for Students and Teachers (FAST) SCASS.

assessments must be valid; that is, tailored to fit the context as defined by the purpose to be served, target to be
reflected, and the needs of students. Given this, they understand that assessors must rely on methods capable of
providing the evidence needed to support a strong inference about student mastery of the learning target(s) in
question. Everything from item or exercise selection to scoring or evaluation procedures must allow the assessor
to draw sound conclusions about student learning at that point in time. To that end assessment literate
individuals are expected to design assessments that are responsive and engaging for students of all cultural and
linguistic backgrounds.

Assessment literate people believe the results of high-quality assessments accurately reflect the extent of student
mastery of the learning target. Assessments must do so if sound instructional decisions are to be made on the
basis of those results.

Communication of Assessment Results

Assessment literate people understand that the quality and impact of any assessment is a direct function of the
effectiveness of the communication of the resulting information to its intended users. Truly effective
communication places resulting information in the hands of users in a timely and understandable manner. The
standard of timeliness is determined by when the decision is to be made; for example — whether a student is
making revision decisions, a teacher is designing the next lesson, a principal is designing a school-wide program,
or a district is developing its strategic plan. The format for the communication is a function of the purpose for the
assessment. For example, results intended to support learning do not merely list the grade for student
performance; rather, they provide feedback in a form and manner that provides guidance about how to do better
the next time.

Assessment literate individuals believe the communication of all assessment results should be accompanied by a
purposeful check with the recipient (decision maker) to verify their understanding and appreciation of the link
between results, the pending instructional decision, and student learning.

Assessment and Motivation

Assessment literate persons understand that the assessment process can contribute to the productive motivation
of both students and teachers. They understand that, for teacher and student alike, fear, vulnerability, and
anxiety are the enemies of learning success, while a sense of self-efficacy, confidence, and accomplishment
promote ongoing academic success. On behalf of students, assessment literate people understand that, used
effectively in instruction, assessment can cause learning, not merely measure it. It can support learning by
engaging students in ongoing self-assessment, so they can see themselves growing and as a result, actually be in
charge of their own success.

In the context of teacher motivation, teachers may be inspired to new heights of professional aspiration by
students who are demonstrating immense gains in proficiency and by the professional agency to flexibly employ
the assessment methods that they know will both take into account and positively impact student learning.
Classroom assessment practices in the hands of assessment literate teachers have demonstrated the ability to
contribute to this kind of growth. In this spirit, one key role of school leadership is to provide ongoing

opportunities for teachers to develop their assessment literacy so they can better meet diverse individual student
needs, promote student growth, and experience invigorating professional success.

Assessment literate people believe that students are entitled to equity of motivation; that is, all students must be
given the opportunity to believe that academic success is within reach for them if they strive for it. They believe
that the level of assessment application that promotes deep student involvement and well-being is the classroom
level. It is there that student and teacher team up to make sound decisions, keep targets clear, gather
dependable evidence, and believe success remains within reach. Schools, districts, and states all must create
balanced systems of professional support and assessment that nurture student learning. Nested within each
successive layer of school contexts, the classroom is where students encounter assessment at the hands of their
teachers.

Assessment Literacy Defined by Role

Each contributor to student academic well-being through assessment translates this universal meaning into
specific capabilities defined by their role:

Students

Students understand that they can contribute to their own academic success when they actively seek:

 To understand why their learning is being assessed in each context,

 To understand the learning target they are trying to master,

 To have confidence that they receive accurate information about their learning progress,

 To have the opportunity to ask for and receive the information they need to help them grow, and

 To feel that they have an important role in promoting their own success.

Teachers

An assessment literate teacher:

 Knows how instructional decision making fits into the balanced system of assessment, users of which they

are a member,

 Identifies clear and appropriate purposes for each

assessment,

 Is a master of the learning targets that are to be assessed,

 Can create and select high-quality assessments aligned to those targets,

 Implements assessments equitably, making appropriate modifications based on student need,

 Employs a variety of assessments that are appropriate for the students and learning targets,

 Analyzes the results of assessments given their knowledge of students, and makes instructional

adjustments based on those results,

 Understands how to tailor the communication of results to the needs of the intended user,

 Masters the use of formative assessment to support student learning and can teach students how to act

assertively on their own assessment results to take charge of their own learning success,

 Partners with colleagues, their students’ families, and the community, using assessment results to identify

needs that can be best met collaboratively,

 Sees the development of their assessment literacy as a career-long learning process, and

 Advocates for sound assessment practices in instructional and/or policy settings.

School Leader

An assessment literate principal and district or other school leader:

 Understands and advocates for the development of balanced assessment systems that meet the

information needs of all assessment purposes,

 Promotes through supervision and policy ethical assessment practices in all contexts,

 Sees learning target clarity and appropriateness as a foundation of sound assessment practice,

 Establishes the expectation that faculty members will continuously develop and hone their assessment

literacy, and recognizes the faculty who become leaders and model accomplished assessment practices,

 Sees the development of their own assessment literacy as a career-long learning process,

 Understands how assessment information can be used to strengthen partnerships with students’ families

and the community,

 Promotes effective communication of results both in formative and summative contexts, and

 Advocates for student involvement in their own learning through the use of assessment as a teaching and

learning strategy.

College of Education Faculty

An assessment literate member of a teacher education or administrator preparation faculty:

 Sees the development of their own assessment literacy as a career-long learning process,

 Understands the importance of monitoring and developing their own mastery of the principles of sound

assessment,

 Embraces their responsibility to teach sound assessment practices as they apply to the learning of their

candidates,

 Models sound practices in their assessments of the achievement of those candidates, and

 Frames the development of assessment literacy for their candidates as a career-long process.

Policy Maker

Whether working as an assessment literate leader at local, state, or federal levels, as an elected official or as an
appointed educational leader, one who sets policy and allocates educational resources does so in ways that:

 Honor the diverse purposes assessment can serve in improving schools,

 Demand ethical uses,

 Promote clear targets,

 Assure assessment literacy throughout the educational system,

 Promote effective communication of assessment results to intended users, and

 Maximize the quality of the motivational environment for students and professional educators.

Parents and Community

Assessment literate parents and interested community members understand that our students—their children—
are entitled to clear targets, quality assessments, effective communication of results and equity of motivation,
and they act assertively to protect those rights. In a broader sense, they are advocates for sound assessment
practices for the sake of their own children and for nurturing effective schools in their communities.

Collaboration across Roles is Essential

The development and promotion of an assessment literate school culture is a shared responsibility across roles.
All involved must take the initiative in advancing their own expertise throughout their careers, as well as helping
others to understand the principles of sound assessment practice. For example, teachers can help parents
understand how to advocate for the assessment well-being of their children; supervisors can provide teachers
with ongoing opportunities to develop their expertise; college of education faculty and district leaders can partner
to give candidates access to clinical experience with assessment; and policy makers can remove barriers to and
allocate resources to systematically support the development of assessment literacy. It is only with these kinds of
collaboration that we can come to trust one another to gather good evidence of student achievement and use it
to promote their academic well-being.

Note: Task Force members served as intellectual contributors, providing substantial input and ideas to this definition. The definition reflects
individual and collective insights of contributing participants, but it does not necessarily reflect an endorsement by any of these individuals
or the organizations with which they are affiliated.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/