PSY 4550 Week 1 Assignment 3 Understanding Assessment Instruments
What is an Assessment Tool?
An assessment tool is a technique or method of evaluating information to determine how much a person knows and whether this knowledge aligns with the bigger picture of a theory or framework.
Assessment methods differ based on context and purpose. For example, personality tests use your responses to discover character traits, and financial assessments measure how much you know about concepts like saving and investments.
Regardless of the context, all assessment tools depend on a set of well-thought-out questions to gather insights and arrive at informed conclusions by interpreting these insights.
Read: Motivation Assessment: Definitions, Types, Tools + [Questionnaire Examples]
Characteristics of an Assessment Tool
1. Reliability
The right assessment tool produces the same results over time. So there’s a consistency, or accuracy in these results. Here, you should consider whether the test can replicate results whenever it is used.
For example, if the students perform the same tasks simultaneously, then such assessment passes as reliable.
2. Validity
The validity of an assessment boils down to how well it measures the different criteria being tested. In other words, it is the idea that the test measures what it intends to measure.
This means your assessment method should be relevant to the specific context. For example, if you’re testing physical strength, you shouldn’t send out a written test. Instead, your tests should include physical exercises like pushups and weightlifting.
3. Equitable
A good assessment tool is equitable, which means it doesn’t favor or disfavor any participant. Fair assessments imply that students are tested using methods and procedures most appropriate to them. Every participant must be familiar with the test context so they can put up an acceptable performance.
4. Standardization
Standardization means applying consistency to your testing methods. For example, if you’re sending out a questionnaire, it should have the same set of questions for all participants, and all the answers should be graded using the same criteria.
Other characteristics of assessment tools include:
A good assessment tool should provide a window for high-quality feedback.
It is feasible and accounts for equivalence.
It should motivate participants to be involved in the testing.
It should be transparent, non-discriminatory, and match expectations.
Types of Assessment Tools
Educational Assessment Tool
An educational assessment tool is used for evaluating students’ performance and their level of knowledge in a particular subject. Educational assessment tools can be used during the learning process or on an ongoing basis.
For example, in formative assessment, the teacher deploys different methods to track a student’s performance as learning progresses. This allows the instructor to identify and fix knowledge gaps as they move from one learning phase to another. But in summative assessment, the teacher waits till the end to measure the student’s performance using a rubric of expected learning outcomes.
Expectedly, different assessment tools work for different types of educational assessment. So, while quizzes and straw polls are suitable for formative evaluation, end-of-term examinations with close-ended questions are better-suited for summative assessments.
PSY 4550 Week 1 Assignment 3 Understanding Assessment Instruments
Examples of Educational Assessment Tools
1. ASSISTments: This is a free online platform that teachers can use to assign Maths tests to students, whether during the learning process or outside the classroom. ASSISTments allow instructors to provide immediate feedback as students turn in their tests.
Discussion Questions (DQ)
• Initial responses to the DQ should address all components of the questions asked, include a minimum of one scholarly source, and be at least 250 words.
• Successful responses are substantive (i.e., add something new to the discussion, engage others in the discussion, well-developed idea) and include at least one scholarly source.
• One or two sentence responses, simple statements of agreement or “good post,” and responses that are off-topic will not count as substantive. Substantive responses should be at least 150 words.
• I encourage you to incorporate the readings from the week (as applicable) into your responses.
Weekly Participation
• Your initial responses to the mandatory DQ do not count toward participation and are graded separately.
• In addition to the DQ responses, you must post at least one reply to peers (or me) on three separate days, for a total of three replies.
• Participation posts do not require a scholarly source/citation (unless you cite someone else’s work).
• Part of your weekly participation includes viewing the weekly announcement and attesting to watching it in the comments. These announcements are made to ensure you understand everything that is due during the week.
APA Format and Writing Quality
• Familiarize yourself with APA format and practice using it correctly. It is used for most writing assignments for your degree. Visit the Writing Center in the Student Success Center, under the Resources tab in LoudCloud for APA paper templates, citation examples, tips, etc. Points will be deducted for poor use of APA format or absence of APA format (if required).
• Cite all sources of information! When in doubt, cite the source. Paraphrasing also requires a citation.
• I highly recommend using the APA Publication Manual, 6th edition.
Use of Direct Quotes
• I discourage overutilization of direct quotes in DQs and assignments at the Masters’ level and deduct points accordingly.
• As Masters’ level students, it is important that you be able to critically analyze and interpret information from journal articles and other resources. Simply restating someone else’s words does not demonstrate an understanding of the content or critical analysis of the content.
• It is best to paraphrase content and cite your source.
LopesWrite Policy
• For assignments that need to be submitted to LopesWrite, please be sure you have received your report and Similarity Index (SI) percentage BEFORE you do a “final submit” to me.
• Once you have received your report, please review it. This report will show you grammatical, punctuation, and spelling errors that can easily be fixed. Take the extra few minutes to review instead of getting counted off for these mistakes.
• Review your similarities. Did you forget to cite something? Did you not paraphrase well enough? Is your paper made up of someone else’s thoughts more than your own?
• Visit the Writing Center in the Student Success Center, under the Resources tab in LoudCloud for tips on improving your paper and SI score.
Late Policy
• The university’s policy on late assignments is 10% penalty PER DAY LATE. This also applies to late DQ replies.
• Please communicate with me if you anticipate having to submit an assignment late. I am happy to be flexible, with advance notice. We may be able to work out an extension based on extenuating circumstances.
• If you do not communicate with me before submitting an assignment late, the GCU late policy will be in effect.
• I do not accept assignments that are two or more weeks late unless we have worked out an extension.
• As per policy, no assignments are accepted after the last day of class. Any assignment submitted after midnight on the last day of class will not be accepted for grading.
Communication
• Communication is so very important. There are multiple ways to communicate with me:
o Questions to Instructor Forum: This is a great place to ask course content or assignment questions. If you have a question, there is a good chance one of your peers does as well. This is a public forum for the class.
o Individual Forum: This is a private forum to ask me questions or send me messages. This will be checked at least once every 24 hours.
