Handout 7

Performance-Based Assessment

Performance assessments are constructed response, supply-item assessments that require students
to create a product or deliver a performance. Unlike traditional paper-and-pencil assessment,
performance-based assessments can occur in an unlimited number of formats. Having multiple
parts or steps and pre-determined scoring criteria are the key characteristics of a performance
assessment. Although they may be declining in use, portfolios are often used with performance-
based assessments.

What is Performance-Based Assessment?

 Classroom assessment which requires that students produce a product or deliver a

performance for the purpose of evaluating skill or ability

 Requires examinees to construct or supply answers, perform, or produce something for

evaluation

 Has been around much longer than the "traditional" approach

o China used a performance-based system for selecting civil servants for more than
2000 years up until the 20th century

o Until the start of the industrial revolution throughout Europe in the 1800's, there
was little interest in evaluating or even describing things or thoughts with
numbers; an emphasis on precision and comparison necessitated a movement
towards objective assessment

o Oral exams have been a staple in American education from the 1700's through
today

o Boston Public Schools added written essay exams in mid-1800's

 Performance assessment today is common in real-world classrooms with about 40% of

teacher-made tests including some performance-based components.
How and When to Use Performance-Based Assessment

 There is considerable overlap in the scholarly definitions of performance assessment and

authentic assessment.
The Format of Performance-Based Assessment

 Almost an infinite number of "formats" limited only by the creativity of the teacher
  Typically, all performance assessments require performance of a multi-step behavior or
creation of a multi-part product.

 Scores are based on observation of the behavior or analysis of the product and are meant
to reflect skill or ability.

 Really good performance-assessments have these characteristics in common:

o Supply items - the response is constructed or performed

o A purpose which identifies the decision to be made

o Parts or steps are directly observable

o Pre-determined scoring criteria

Who Uses Performance-Based Assessment?

 Substantially used across grade levels and subjects

 Essays and written assignments are the single most common assessment format

 Used much more frequently by language arts teachers than those who teach other subjects

 More common at secondary levels than at elementary level

 Female teachers choose performance-assessment more often than male teachers

Validity of Performance-Based Assessment

 Based on this line of reasoning:

o With objectively score formats, any number of reasons could explain choosing the
correct answer (chance, cheating, "educated" guesses)

o When students are asked to actually do something, it is more likely that the skill
or ability of interest is being directly observed.

Portfolios

 An individualized collection of students' writings and other products providing evidence

of the skill or ability of interest

 Allow others to see what students are actually doing, learning or producing in class by
comparing previous work to later work
  Allow teachers to assess themselves as to which assignments or lectures were presented
well or were unclear to the students

 Can provide both formative and summative information

 Help move the teacher away from being in charge of instruction into a partnership role
between the teacher and students to guide instruction over time

 Common characteristics of portfolios:

o Person-centered, qualitative, and holistic

o Accentuate the positive

o Student choice over what to include

o Provide rich variety of products

o Reflect student work over time

o Opportunities for self-assessment

 Three functions of portfolios:

o Documentation - provides detailed account of student work and progress over

time

o Evaluation - standardization of contents and the process by which the contents are
evaluation

o Showcase - encourages students to select and present their best work

 Portfolios may be on their way out because of the current No Child Left Behind-
influenced environment. They do not provide common standards that are easily
quantifiable.
What Performance-Based Assessment Looks Like in the Classroom

 Scoring rubric is the scoring system of choice for performance-based assessment

 Rubrics make assessment more valid and reliable if they:

o Make public relevant criteria of quality

o Score multiple pieces or steps

 o Establish performance guidelines, and

o Provide detailed, formative feedback

 For performance-based assessment, the assessment itself is made of two pieces

o Performance or product which students provide

o Rubric used to assess the performance or product

 Rubistar is a non-profit Web site offering real-world scoring rubrics for dozens of subject
areas and grade levels. They have been constructed and used by real-life teachers.