set 2003: no. 2

This issue of set contains a major feature section – seven articles in all – on assessment. The amount of research being carried out in this area indicates that assessment is still one of the key issues for educators and policy makers.

Research into mathematics education has highlighted that many students struggle to develop an appropriate understanding of the equals sign. When over 300 students at a large intermediate school were asked to demonstrate their understanding of the sign by solving a simple equation, more than half interpreted it incorrectly. This article considers why a mathematical understanding of the equals sign is important, and suggests some strategies that can be used in the classroom to help learners… Read more

The notion of “kanohi ki te kanohi” contact between boards of trustees, teachers and Māori whānau is explored as a simple yet effective mode for developing genuine partnership between schools and their Māori communities.

This paper condenses our conclusions from an extensive review of published evidence concerning teaching strategies used with children with learning difficulties. The review was carried out in 1999–2000 and has parallels with “best evidence” reviews in medical education.

How can the New Zealand curriculum encompass Māori values and perspectives? Arohia Durie comments on the issues.
 

In 1997 the Ministry of Education launched the School Entry Assessment (SEA) kit, a non-mandatory set of standardised assessment tasks for new entrants. Teachers at 75 Auckland primary schools were asked about which SEA tasks they were using, and why – or why not. Teachers’ judgments about SEA were influenced by each school’s approach to the delivery of the curriculum, and by the nature of the school’s population. Only one of the tasks seems likely to have a secure mid- to long-term future.… Read more

A group of teachers examined over 400 assessment tasks in the NEMP probe study reports from 1995 to 2000. From mapping each task onto the curriculum, the teachers were able to identify 23 tasks which were particularly innovative, exciting, easy to implement, and excellent models of the wide range of NEMP tasks available. The resulting Teachers’ Choice of NEMP Tasks is a kit of assessment resources for teachers to use in their classroom.

In this article, two recent case studies are used to give examples of how Assessment Resource Bank (ARB) resources, along with other assessment tools, are being used for both formative and summative purposes in a primary and intermediate school. Staff at both these schools engage in a detailed analysis of their formative practices, and the data gained from summative assessments, to ensure that the results of assessments inform learning and contribute to improving classroom practice. … Read more

Research suggests that teachers need a great deal of professional support if they are to acquire and use new knowledge and skills, but within the area of formative assessment teachers have often been expected implement policy with little help or support. A research project investigating the factors that have shaped and influenced teachers’ understandings of formative assessment points to the need for a focus in this area.

In November 2001, NZCER conducted a survey of the English and mathematics assessment practices of teachers at Years 5, 7, and 9. Initiatives such as the changes made to the National Administration Guidelines (NAGs), the new literacy and numeracy initiative Assessment Tools for Teaching and Learning (asTTle), the introduction of the National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA) into secondary schools, and the Education Standards Act (2001), meant that it seemed timely to collect base… Read more