4/11/23, 10:25 PM Assessment in Invasion Games: Part Three - Assessment Tools - iPhys-Ed.

com

Assessment In Invasion Games: Part Three –

Assessment Tools
/ All, Assessment / By Nathan Horne

This is the third part of the Assessment in Invasion Games blog post series. If you have not yet read part
one and part two, start there before continuing to read here.

In part one of the Assessment in Invasion Games series we looked at how team sports make up a large
part of most physical education programs worldwide, yet the assessment of student learning in these
games in inauthentic and is often largely based upon assumptions. Part Two of the series explored how
planning the activities in which your students will participate and choosing the right assessment tools is
vital to ensure you have authentic assessment of student performance and understanding.

In part two I mentioned how I wanted to know if my students knew what they should do (with and
without the ball) in an invasion game, as well as if they could execute the skills necessary to be 

successful.  Essentially I wanted to be able to assess their decision making ability as well as their skill
https://www.iphys-ed.com/blog/assessment-in-invasion-games-part-three-assessment-tools/ 1/10
4/11/23, 10:25 PM Assessment in Invasion Games: Part Three - Assessment Tools - iPhys-Ed.com

execution. When consulting research I found two assessment tools that have been used widely to
assess these two areas. One was the Game Performance Assessment Instrument (GPAI) and the other
was the Team Sports Assessment Procedure (TSAP).
Choosing the Right Tool for the Job
 Both the GPAI and the TSAP were designed to measure game performance behaviours that
demonstrate tactical understanding, as well as the player’s ability to solve these tactical problems by
selecting and applying appropriate skills. They both seemed like fantastic options, but which one should
I use?
GAME PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT INSTRUMENT 

The GPAI is constructed through seven identifiable game components for measurement and
codification. The identified game components include both “on the ball” and “off the ball” game
performance.

1. Base
2. Decision Making
3. Skill Execution
4. Support
5. Guard/Mark
6. Cover
7. Adjust

https://www.iphys-ed.com/blog/assessment-in-invasion-games-part-three-assessment-tools/ 2/10
4/11/23, 10:25 PM Assessment in Invasion Games: Part Three - Assessment Tools - iPhys-Ed.com

TEAM SPORT ASSESSMENT PROCEDURE

The Team Sports Assessment Procedure (TSAP) was developed for summative and
formative assessment of game play through the direct involvement of students in the collection of 
assessment evidence as part of the leaning process. It is based on two features of game performance:

https://www.iphys-ed.com/blog/assessment-in-invasion-games-part-three-assessment-tools/ 3/10
4/11/23, 10:25 PM Assessment in Invasion Games: Part Three - Assessment Tools - iPhys-Ed.com

1. How a player gains possession of the object – conquered or received.

2. How a player disposes possession of the object – lost ball, neutral ball, pass or successful shot

Although both tools would have been very beneficial forms of assessment, I decided not to use these
templates on this occasion and created my own assessment tool. But why?
Assessment Focus


https://www.iphys-ed.com/blog/assessment-in-invasion-games-part-three-assessment-tools/ 4/10
4/11/23, 10:25 PM Assessment in Invasion Games: Part Three - Assessment Tools - iPhys-Ed.com

While the versions of the GPAI and TSAP above would have provided me as the teacher with valuable
data and information on the students decision making and skill execution, I wanted to create an more
visual assessment tool which would enable my elementary school students to peer assess each other.
One of the main tactical problems that I had noticed when observing my students playing our generic
invasion game was the ability of the students to differentiate between passing to a team mate who was
“open” and a teammate from was “closed” or marked. When designing my assessment tool I wanted to
know if my students could choose the right pass to make? Going further, could the students execute the
necessary skill to make the pass?
Passing & Catching Peer Assessment
Below you will find two versions of the passing and catching peer assessment that I used with my
students (which you can download for free). Initially I started with first version. This version of the
assessment tool asked the assessor to look for four distinct observable actions within the game:

1. Uncatchable Pass, Receiver Not Open

2. Uncatchable Pass, Receiver Open
3. Catchable Pass, Receiver Not Open
4. Catchable Pass, Receiver Open

These four distinct actions would enable me to assess whether students have the decision making skills
to decide who to pass to, as well as the skill execution ability to make their desired pass. Upon my first
trial with this tool I found it was far too difficult for my students to distinguish between the two
variables so I simplified the tool the second version you see below.

The second version of the tool brought the focus of the assessment solely onto the decision making
aspect of play. Students were observing two distinct actions within the game:

1. Receiver Not Open

2. Receiver Open

Every time they saw the player they were observing make a pass they were to circle if the receiver was
Open or Not Open. By simplifying the assessment tool to only two options it helped me to narrow the
focus of the assessment and enabled the students who were peer assessing to be far more successful
in their ability to identify if the student they were observing was making passes to open players or
closed players.
Passing & Catching Assessment for Invasion Games by Nathan Horne


https://www.iphys-ed.com/blog/assessment-in-invasion-games-part-three-assessment-tools/ 5/10
4/11/23, 10:25 PM Assessment in Invasion Games: Part Three - Assessment Tools - iPhys-Ed.com

Zoss Tlhlcvlr Eit Iple Tlhlcvlr Iple

<

1
Wfot wiunm yiu tlnn tfl
pnoylr ti flnp tflb cbprivl9

ZOXXCEG & HO]HFCEG ZL

Znoylr Eobl; Idslrvlr Eobl;

Zoss Tlhlcvlr Eit Iple

<

1 

Wfot wiunm yiu tlnn tfl

n f n f c 9
https://www.iphys-ed.com/blog/assessment-in-invasion-games-part-three-assessment-tools/ 6/10
4/11/23, 10:25 PM Assessment in Invasion Games: Part Three - Assessment Tools - iPhys-Ed.com

The Next Step: Time to Assess

pnoylr ti flnp tflb cbprivl9

1 of 2  
Now that I had decided on an assessment tool to use with my students, it was time run the assessment
with my classes. In part four of the Assessment in Invasion Games series I will explore how I
implemented this assessment tool in my classes and give suggestions and ideas on how best to
organise your class to maximise the effectiveness of assessment. Thanks for reading and stay tuned!

Click here to read part four of the Assessment in Invasion Games blog series.

Want to make sure that you do not miss any upcoming posts in this series? All you need to do
is subscribe here to have every new post delivered straight to your inbox.

Nathan Horne is a Physical Educator based in Singapore and founder of iPhys-Ed.com. Be sure to never
miss out on any of iPhys-Ed.com’s future posts by connecting with us via Twitter, Facebook or
subscribing to our RSS Feed. 
Nathan can be contacted on Twitter @PENathan or via email at nathan@iphys-ed.com

← Previous Post Next Post →

🔎 Looking at PE Through a Different Lens

One of the fantastic things about PE is that...

By Nathan Horne | October 14, 2022 | All Read More

TGfU: Teaching Net & Wall Games

Net & Wall Games are one of the four...

https://www.iphys-ed.com/blog/assessment-in-invasion-games-part-three-assessment-tools/ 7/10