Activity 1: Concept Clarification

A lot has been said and written about assessments in books and journals but there are some people or
even teachers who have misconceptions about the effective use of assessment in the classroom. Rectify
the following misconceptions. Explain in two to three sentences why they are incorrect.

1. Assessment and evaluation are one and the same.

In assessment, an individual's level of performance is tested; in evaluation, it is determined whether
goals have been achieved. Assessment and evaluation are fundamentally different in orientation:
assessment is focused on processes, whereas evaluation is on results.

2. Assessment is completed once every grading period.

An assessment is not completed at the end of every grading period. The assessment is designed to
enhance students' learning potential. assessment takes students' course and program experiences into
consideration and incorporates this information into the educational methods that are used. It is
assessment of student performance when you know how well a student is doing in a course, and, at the
same time, how a teacher is doing with regards to the teaching process.

3. Formative assessment is a kind of test teachers use to find out what their students know.
The short and frequent formative assessment helps teachers find out who comprehends and who
doesn't, whether instructional and whole-group reteaching is required, or if giving additional instruction
only to those who don't understand is sufficient.

4. Assessment is ultimately for grading purposes.

The terms "assessment" and "grading" are not interchangeable. Assessment is an important part of the
teaching and learning process since it ensures that students are learning and remembering what they've
learnt. The purpose is to learn, not to get a perfect score. A grade is merely an attempt to assess
learning.

5. Student’s work should always be given a grade or mark.

Students should not be graded all of the time. This is a dread that some students have, and it affects
their performance. Allow students to do their hardest and express their ideas without worrying about
getting a high grade or not.