Chander,
Thank you for adding the point about instructors using assessments to improve learning by making changes to teaching or curriculum. It is so important for students achieve outcomes but using assessment as quality improvement is such a smart, efficient way to keep courses on track.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Hello All,
Yes, I agree on this holistic view. Summative is directly in the word itself “summaryâ€, is of course the total of the whole.
Thank you.
Kelly
The summative assessments should be assessing the learning that has taken place. in today's society the learning must include self management and research. Assessing these items shows the ability to move higher on Bloom's taxonomy.
Summative assessments should also be aligned with the course objectives and expectations as well as aligned with the teaching and that has taken place. Using a multiple choice test as a summative assessment in a class that has been taught with the Socratic method may not be effective in assessing the learning that has taken place.
Charles Vakos
Kelly,
True, we have to understand the role of assessment for the student information and for course revision.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Charles,
That is right. You have to provide students the tools for learning and to feel comfortable about assessment. They should be consistent.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
When conducting summative assessments it is important to consider the quality of work. Summative assignments can be used to assess a student's progress.
Stacy,
Yes it can. How would you use it to assess the effectiveness of the course?
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
According to materials read in chapter 2, “Summative assessment occurs at the conclusion of a lesson, project, unit, or course.†It is an evaluative measure design to measure students’ learning relative to the objective/outcome of the course. If the objective(s) of the course are not met then a correction process is worthwhile.
Neer,
True, it is also a tool to determine if the course delivery is appropriate to so students can learn and meet the objectives. Sometimes not meeting objectives may fall on us.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
The most important things to consider are what has been taught and where the student was on the diagnostic assessments.
Jeremy,
You you use them to drive delivery or curriculum changes?
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
I believe the summative assessments gauge both the teacher and the student. It is my belief that both share an equal responsibility in the learning process. The student obviously must be an active participant but the instructor must be a mentor to that student. So, a summative assessment must gauge both the student's ability to meet and exceed industry standard goals and objectives (skillets) and the teachers ability to mentor the student to those skills. I also believe that assessments must build confidence and connect several topics together, as in asking the student to perform an end of course practical (hands on) exam.
-Chris
Summative assessments serve as an accountability measure that is typically represented as a grade earned. When conducting summative assessments, the two most important things to consider are:
1) link real-world applications of knowledge and skills;
2) the ability to measure student learning relative to outcomes/objectives.
I think the two most important things to consider is can the student write a test at the end of a section or chapter to show what they have learned or know about the subject matter. This gives us and the student a level to determine the area in which we need more specific sets of skills to teach them. Second the oral product. Can a student prepare an oral piece of work? In the end can they write out a rubric or some type of an assessment to help in the scoring of this task.
Dr. Christopher,
Yes!!!! You are right, it is to gauge both teacher and student. Sometimes we are caught up in the student response we don't use the summative assessments to look at the instrument.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Audrey,
You do want to make sure it measures what you intend it to measure. If your objectives include linking real-world application you need to make sure the assessment reflects that.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Eyad,
Wow, you are talking about interesting summative assessments. Are you talking projects or "tests"? Or both?
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
When conducting summative assessments it is important to look for first an understanding of the material to be learned and second to see if there is anything, as an instructor, you need to go back over with students.
With summative assessments it should be easy for an instructor to see where there is a gap in the learning of a topic or a gray area. For example if more than 50% of the class misses a particular question then that should tell the instructor they need to revisit that topic before moving on to the next one.
I do something similar to this each week for my students when I finish grading their homework. I always start that next Monday off with the "Top missed question" and we review it to make sure they are understanding where they went wrong with and are ready for the next phase.
Kim Christensen.
I like what both of you had to say. I too ask instructors about summative assessments and how they help the students and the instructor. I amazed that instructors still assume it is the class' fault they have failed a quiz, test or even the final exam and think nothing of it.
I always ask that instructors go back and look at what happened.
When conducting summative assessments, I find the two most important things to consider are to make sure the ongoing formative assessments had taken place accordingly and in a timely fashion for effective learning experiences. Secondly, it is essential to connect the summative assessment to real-world applications of knowledge and skills and for the evaluation of the course/learning objectives.
