The+final+Essay

==An essay of 800-1000 words which explains why you think that these six websites are the best for of th e three assessment purposes, including an example of a specific application that a teacher might use .== --- //** Assessment **//
 * *Final Essay* **

The chief goal of any learning assessment in a corporate environment is not evaluation. There is a subtle but important difference between assessment and evaluation. Assessment is about giving feedback to the learner to help them develop their understanding and skill. Evaluation is about ranking performance on the workshop’s learning expectations.

//Why Assessment? //
" //O this learning, what a thing it is!//",(1) Learning as William Shakespeare has once noted in one of his famous novels is a mysterious process which can't not be easily achieved. It is a multi-sided process, that has different aspects and different attitudes. Learning is an on-going process that has no borders or limitations. Therefore, learning can't have a specific definition or steps to follow, it could be earned in a variety of ways or with different techniques. One of these learning techniques is "Assessment". One of the most common questions a lecturer hears from students is, “Will this be in the exams?” It is well recognised by educationalists that students are preoccupied with what constitutes the assessment in their chosen field, so like it or not, we need to accept that assessment usually drives student learning. This is the traditional concept of Assessment over decades. To most educators and learners, Assessment is an end-product, a non-avoidable chore that is used to evaluate, measure and box students. But there is more to the process of assessment than this. However, It's a vital part of learning which helps enhancing learning not only measuring or evaluating it. Assessment and Learning are no more two separate processes, they are two integrated and compatible processes. Both of them are driving in one track towards achieving the goals of learning process, ultimately, should aim to improve the quality of student learning. The methods and timing of our assessment send messages to students. So when creating assessment plans, we need to think about these messages: We need to take care to priorities the most important areas we want our students to learn from, create clear and upfront learning outcomes, and assess appropriately. We should also be aware of the differences between ‘deep’ and ‘surface’ learning, and use assessment to produce students who are deep rather than surface learners. Thus, Assessment determines student approaches to learning and the technique they follow to reach to the outcomes. Learning outcomes are statements that predict what learners will gain as a result of learning, so there should be a clear relationship between learning outcomes and assessment. It is possible to assess more than one learning outcome at once as long as all assessment tasks are appropriate to, and in harmony with, the learning outcomes they are meant to assess.

// When to assess? //
To integrate Assessment in the process of learning successfully, it should go through three stages of assessment; formative (for learning), continuous (as learning) and summative (of learning) assessment. They complete each other and work as a connected chain that ends with a big ring which represents the goals of learning. **Assessment as learning**involves students in becoming more responsible participants in the whole learning process. They: understand the purposes of their work; generate personal learning goals that link into the broader Standards they are working towards; ask themselves metacognitive questions to actively reflect on their progress; and regularly undertake informal and formal self and peer assessment. Assessment as learning is based in research about how learning happens, so it's required during the whole process of learning as the main aim for students in this assessment is to guide them to be able to articulate about what they know and what they need to learn to achieve deep thinking with increasing independence. Only reading tasks (or any learning tasks) that is done by students can foster true independence. But teachers need to start presenting and modeling the skills of self-assessment to monitor their own learning, provide descriptive feedback, appropriate environment for students to work freely and efficiently in groups and individually without worries about grades to guarantee a high level of student's participation. Due to the five criterias for evaluating web pages of ([|http://olinuris.library.cornell.edu)I] consider this website ‍‍‍‍‍ 1.@http://teaching.unsw.edu.au/designing-assessment-learning ‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍ is one of the best sites that guide and help teachers not only to design assessment as learning tasks but also to show how to design assessment properly reflected on varied resources, a youtube presented and a digram summarising what designing assessment as learning depends on. It's a well organised site with simple interface that helps anyone focus on the material presented.Its purpose is presented to sustain teachers all over the world with resources to help them design assessments appropriately, to be able to facilitate deeper learning experience for our students so they can learn more effectively.Second, what is really remarkable about this site. @http://www.cea-ace.ca/blog/brooke-moore/2011/08/2/assessment-learning-it%E2%80%99s-time-seriously‍‍‍‍‍‍‍ 2. is the author 's trials to facilitate these obstacles and present possible alternatives for assessment as giving feedback through her own experience and others' experience.Dealing with **accuracy** in this blog, I think it is quite satisfactory as the author(Brooke Moore) views her opinion and Moore's goals which are encouraging and inviting teachers all over the world for shifting their classrooms and mindest from ranking(marks) to learning (feedback).She presents her point of view in an article describing her own experience with her students when she stopped giving them marks and gave them feedback using Rubrics.She scaffolds her article with her prezi where she presents her leap from the formal methods to new practices.
 * Assessment as learning**

The assessment for learning movement argues that formative assessment can help teachers to understand what learners need to do next in order to develop their knowledge,skills and abilities.It provides the data which the teachers need to make instructional decisions.More important it allows teachers to give the kind of quality feedback that is necessary for learners to understand where they are now,and where they want to be in the future.Assessment for learning is therefore concerned with change.One of the founding documents bout ssessment for learning movement was written by Black and Wiliam in 1998 ,entitled inside the black box.Black and Wiliam argue that: "//the term assessment refers to all those activities undertaken by teachers,and by their students in assessing// //themselves,which provide information to be used as feedback to modify the teaching and learning activities in which they are engaged .// Such assessment becomes //"formative assessment" when the evidence is actually used to adapt the teaching work to meet the need.// Teachers in this stage are thinking about their work differently. First, they assess or get to know the literacy needs and interests of each student in their classroom. Then, they reflect on and interpret the information.Next, they plan lessons based on the needs and interests of the students. Finally, they teach according to the students’ needs and interests.This is called assessment for learning. It means that teachers are continually noting the changing literacy needs of their students and then acting. Brown claims that the ways we assess our students can really make a difference to how students learn. There are multiple and complex problems to resolve and solutions are not easy to find (or the brightest minds in the world would have done so already), permanent (as we have to deal with an ever-changing environment), or universal (assessment is an area where context is of paramount importance; what works well in a medical environment probably doesn’t work equally well in a poetry workshop, although there might be some interesting cross-overs). So we are left with the need for professional higher education practitioners to take the lead in ensuring that we do not allow the process to slip out of our hands. We cannot let bureauc regulations (whether from within our institutions or nationally) to skew our effective assessment processes. If we find our systems do not allow us to implement a really valuable assessment innovation, for example, then we must find ways to change the system. We need to ensure that decisions about assessment strategies are based on the best available evidence-based research on assessment, rather than on custom and practice or what is easy to do. So we need to keep abreast of new developments, evaluate tried and tested ones and experiment with our own initiatives, preferably within a supportive learning community of fellow practitioners. Inevitably, I would therefore argue that we in the UK need to participate in our subject communities, through the Higher Education Academy. __References__ BROWN, S. & KNIGHT, P. (1994) Assessing Learners in Higher Education, London: I think this website 1 -__ [|http://www.assessmentforlearning.edu.au/default.as//p/] [|/]__  the best website as it has been developed by Curriculum common wealth of Australia.(authority) It contains professional learning modules which are easy to download and without fees.(Coverage).It contains 32 assessment tasks, covering many subjects. The tasks are supported by professional learn modules. Each covers a separate aspect of assessment for learning.(objectivity)There are links to other relevant websites. It also has a tab called contact us having phone numbers, faxand e-mail address. (Coverage)It has a site map which explains everything in this web in an organized way.(objectivity) The pictures are expressive. The layout is organized. (Coverage) The acknowledge page shows every writer who shares in the development of the tasks. It also shows the contributions of teachers and students involved in the trialing of the assessment tasks.(authority)One of the main purposes of this site is toprovide professional learning for teachers in regard to Assessment for Learning. The assessment tasks aretherefore supported by professional learning modules, each of whichcovers a separate aspect Assessment for Learning.(Accuracy) The site domain is edu (Authority)The material on this site is based on the research findings, in particular, of Professors Paul Black and DylanWilliam. In 1998, Professors Black and William published //Inside the Black Box//, a summary of the findingsof a literature review which had explored research into the role played by formative assessment in improving each student achievement.(Authority and Accuracy). __[|This site is also a great one and the following paragraph assures that as]__ It is an online resource for educators.(accuracy).Anne Devais who is an author, consultant, and researcher applies her expert knowledge of developing quality classroom assessment practices toward her mission to"increase the possibility of learning for all our students." Educators at every grade level throughout Canada, the United States, and other countries have benefited from the high-touch support she provides during professional development events and multi-year projects. (accuracy).It begins with an exciting sentence which all teachers are seeking "How classroom assessment is transforming lives" (objectivity).Dr Anne Devais shows that the aim of her site to help educators use "assessment for learning" to improve students' learning and raise standard.(objectivity).There was also a great video for Dr Anne which explains the topic and the impact that assessment for learning is making at schools.(objectivity and accuracy).In this site there are many links and resources for educators, leaders and facilitators.(coverage).There is a mailing list to receive regular updates about assessment for learning.(currency)There is a great summary of research on classroom assessment. (objectivity).It has a very useful page for teachers which describes this stage as a journey having (a beginning or starting point –destination-going deeper) this formed a learning circle. At the beginning of the journey there was a story told by Drew Pisani"a high teacher in Maine" about how educators learn to make classroom assessment work for them.(objectivity).Dr Anne gave us important tips to belong to the learning circle.
 * Assessment for learning **
 * __2__**__**-** [] __

**Assessment Of learning** As part of the overall evaluation process, we need specifically to find out if the learners are actually learning (changing their behaviour) as a result of the process. This will show us whether the teaching process has been effective or not, which ultimately is the most important issue. Assessment is a means of finding out what learning is taking place. As well as specific knowledge and skills, we might also like to measure other changes in behaviour related to ‘personality’, social skills, interests, learning styles, etc.In our research we resorted to these two websites as being the best to illustrate what assessment of learning is.

1- breaking the confusion between assessment of learning and the grading systme **A** s the process of assessment is already a debatable one, a lot of confusion is usually raised around causing misunderstanding and misuse of the process in an affective way. Therefore, this website is considered one of the best sites illustrating this matter. It's mainly concerned with breaking the confusion between " //assessment of learning// " as a stage of the assessment process and the simple grading system. Moreover, the website provides us with some important points of //assessment of learning// such as :-
 * An illustrated explanation of the role of assessment of learning in the assessment process.
 * Gradeing vs. assessment of learning outcomes.
 * How effectively can grades can be a major source of data for assessment.
 * separate grades or subscores would have to be computed for the major components of knowledge and skills so that evidence of students’ specific areas of strength and weakness could be identified.
 * The role of the instructor or the teacher after grading is considered a source of assessment.
 * The different methods of assessment, and how each of them may assess multiple skills and abilities and may overlap with each other in terms of what knowledge and skills they assess.
 * Examples of how assessment could be used to identify the points of strength and weakness.
 * it has different links / tabs to show the difference between assessment of, for and as learning
 * Links to very important concepts such as " //**assessment triangle**// " which shows how does the process of assemssent goes on and how it works in circular way that each item is completing the other.

2- assessment of learning vs. summative assessment **S** ummative assessment has been seen by some to be a synonymous of assessment of learning. both of them are concerned mainly with the formal testing of what has been learned in order to produce marks or grades which may be used for reports of various types. This site is mainly concerned with a simple introduction and illustration of the factors of " assessment of learning " and how is works as a summative assessment. It contains:-
 * Key Elements of Summative Assessment.
 * one very important point that has been raised in this website too, is how Summative assessment can have a negative impact on pupils’ motivation.
 * Since motivation is an important factor mentioned in this website, the site has provided the learner with the "Effects on motivation" in points
 * As teachers, we are always looking for the relationship between these kinds of assessment and how do they serve the syllabus and the curriculum which is also illustrated in the website.
 * what are the main factors that the assessment along with the curriculum in order to get effective assessment; such as :
 * 1) Validity and reliability
 * 2) Positive potential
 * Can summative assessment be exploited for formative purposes? Then the site provide some activities relating to the issue summative assessment.

//** Applications of assessment:- **//
A computer without a software, is completely useless. The same with assessment without the right way of application, the choice of the right application to be used in which stage is the vital step in assessment process to finalize it successfully. One of the applications that can be used in "//Assessment for Learning//" is **//__"Exit ticket"__//** This application can be used as preparation for next class. Students are given “tickets” – small pieces of paper designed to look like tickets, but with space for writing. Students are asked a question that requires a factual answer about the next class lesson. Students are given five minutes at the end of class to write their answers. Their names do not go on these exit tickets. They must give the teacher an "Exit Ticket" to leave class for the day. The teacher analyzes the tickets to know what students need. I think this can be good in teaching novels and drama. "Exit tickets give the teacher a good idea about what students got from meaning, ideas and other things related to the novel to know where to start the next part. It is also suitable for grammar lessons as grammar items are built upon each other . This can check students' knowledge about the item.**//__"Traffic Light” Your Work__//** is a good application that could be used in //"Assessment As Learning"// is. Students write their own ideas about the topic and highlight it a s follows:**Green:** for things they can do it well and when they feel going straight**//Amber//**//:// for things they do not often make mistakes with and things they feel cautious about because they are unsure of.**Red**: For things with major mistakes and when they feel stopped because they do not understand.In "//Assessment of Learning"// a lot of ways could be used, but one of the innovative ways is using **//__webinars__//**. Webinars helps students to cross the barrier of time and place they can participate from everywhere at any time (at least the barrier of place). They can collaborate and interact. It allows students to use VLE with all its possibilities form anywhere. It allows them to upload presentations, use and share all desktop applications, chat, use live videos. VLE for webinars can be easily set by teachers using free ones like Edmondo or any website that offers free forums or via using face book which all students have access to.

// Assessment of assessment :- //
//" Well, what does "good" mean anyway...? As Wittegenstein suggested, " good", like " game," has a family of meanings. Prominent among them is this one: " meets the criteria or standards of assessment or evaluation.""// John Searle