7.

Measuring Performance
Based Assessment/Practical
work
7.1Types of performance based assessment
 What is performance-based assessment?

 These are methods of teaching and

appraising children based on how they
carry out specific tasks or activities, as
opposed to more traditional test formats.
 Performance-based learning is an active,

hands-on approach to student learning at

any grade level.
 Performance Based Learning…

 Performance based learning

emphasizes students being able to do,
or perform, specific skills as a result of
instruction.
 They demonstrate the ability to apply

knowledge, rather than simply knowing

the information.
….
 In other words, Performance Based
activities and assessments allow
students the ability to show what
knowledge and skills they have
acquired and what they can do with
these skills.
 Its key feature is that it requires

learners to produce an end result - a

report, a performance or an experiment
which is then scored against a set
of criteria.
….

 Itasks questions that don’t have a

right and a wrong answer.
 Student achievement is about

producing a product, like a group

project, or placing more emphasis
on the process.
 Features of performance-based
assessments

 Authentic – projects should be

reflective of tasks that would be
encountered in the real world or a
workplace environment.
 Time bound – there is a set time limit

for when the project needs to be done.

This is similar to deadlines that learners
will experience in the real world.
 …..
 Open-ended – Students have
flexibility in how the task can be
completed, not just one right answer.
 Process/Product orientated - The end

goal is ideally not just a typed paper,

but something tangible that students
can see, focus more on steps taken to
achieve the end goal.
Features…
 System of learning and assessing
a student’s knowledge through a
display of skills.
 Requires more collaboration

between students and teachers

than other teaching methods. It
also enable the teacher to make
adjustments to assist students’
learning.
 ….

 Nurture students’ higher-order

thinking skills, which are critical for
developing an understanding beyond
the memorization of basic facts.
 Enable teachers to see the depth of

understanding their students have of

the material.
Types of performance based
assessment
Performance Based assessment can
take many different forms, including:
Presentations, Group or solo projects,
Portfolios, Debates, Performances & Exhibits
and fairs.
1.Debates

A debate in the classroom teaches

students about varied viewpoints
and opinions.
 Skills associated with debate

include research, media and

argument literacy, reading
comprehension, evidence
evaluation, public speaking, and
civic skills.
…..
 Itgives students the ability to add
their voice, body language,
knowledge and passion into one
assignment/ task
 Different ways that a debate can

be set up:
….
 Fishbowl debate - students form a
half circle facing the other students
and debate a topic. The rest of the
classmates may pose questions to the
panel.
 A mock trial- teams representing the

prosecution and defence take on the

roles of attorneys and witnesses. A
judge, or judging panel, oversees the
courtroom presentation.
 2.Portfolios

 A collection of a student’s work throughout the

school year. This include artwork, written papers
or project summaries, summary of their grades.
 Portfolios generally include a collection of

documentation that provide proof of specific skills

or talents.

 Help students and teachers in seeing the

progress made along the way. Students feel
encouraged by the growth that they are able to
easily see and reflect on.
Portfolios…

 students create a portfolio of their

written work that shows how they
have progressed from the beginning
to the end of class.
 Some teachers have students select

those items they feel represents their

best work to be included in
a portfolio.
…
 Reflectionsmay be included in
student portfolios in which
students may make a note of their
growth based on the materials in
the portfolio.
3.Performances
 Performances are activities where
students create, perform or
provide a response. This include,
dance, music, languages, artistic
expression, or demonstration,
reading comprehension, evidence
evaluation, public speaking etc
 Performances….

 Performances can be used in your classroom no

matter what subject you teach.
E.G students create a song about the parts of a
plant or the process of evaporation. Also write a
play about important historical events.

 When using performances, it’s essential to outline

clear benchmarks/standards , so that students
know what elements are needed for success.
 Write out expectations when possible so that they

can be easily referenced.

 ………
 Utilizing performance-based learning as a
teaching strategy will encourage student
ownership of the subject matter.
 They are more engaged and motivated because

they feel connected to their learning and take

pride in their work.
……

Dramatic performances are collaborative

activities that can be used as a performance-
based assessment. Students can create, perform,
and/or provide a critical response. Examples
include dance, drama, poetry etc.
 Students must be provided time to address the

demands of the activity; resources must be

readily available and meet all safety standards.
 Developing the criteria and the rubric and

sharing these with students before evaluating a

dramatic performance is critical.
4.Presentations

Presentations are about students

provide information, teach or
demonstrate a skill, report
progress, or persuade others.
This activity could be done by
students, which takes time, or in
collaborative groups.
 ….

 Studentsmay choose to add visual aids or

a PowerPoint presentation or
Google Slides to help illustrate elements
in their speech.
 Presentations work well across the

curriculum as long as there is a clear set

of expectations for students to work with
from the beginning.
 5.Projects

 Projects is when students complete

several assigned tasks which may
include reports, diagrams, maps,
journals and group work.
 Projects are used by teachers include

everything from research papers to

artistic representations of
information learned.
 Projects may require students to apply
their knowledge and skills while
completing the assigned task.
 They can be aligned with the higher

levels of creativity, analysis, and

synthesis.
 Teachers can also choose to have

students work individually or in

groups.
 6.Exhibits and fairs
 Exhibits and Fairs refers to science
projects, art exhibits and history fairs that
include students presenting or sharing
information.
 Teachers can expand the idea of

performance-based activities by creating

exhibits or fairs for students to display
their work. Examples include history fairs
to art exhibitions. Students work on a
product or item that will be exhibited
publicly.
Exhibits and Fairs….

 Exhibitions show in-depth learning and

may include feedback from viewers.
 In some cases, students might be

required to explain or defend their work

to those attending the exhibition.
 Some fairs like science fairs

could include the possibility of prizes

and awards.
BENEFITS OF PERFORMANCE-BASED ASSESSMENTS

1.Direct observation of students

performing in a real-world setting
provides a powerful way to measure
both their knowledge and their ability to
apply it.
Thus, it allow teachers to access
information not available through
traditional testing.
….

2.Good Instructional alignment means-

that teachers test what they
teach,Students know exactly what is
expected of them and are given multiple
opportunities to meet teacher’s
expectations and criteria. Thus ,it leads
to a strong instructional alignment and
enhances students' learning.
3.Since they usually involve real-world tasks,
students find them more engaging and
challenging. When an assessment results in a
product or performance, students will be
proud of their accomplishment.
4.Because they have a formative component,
performance-based assessments provide
high-quality feedback to students throughout
the assessment.
5.Performance-based assessments
prompt students to use higher-order
thinking skills such as analysis,
synthesis, and evaluation.
6.It give students multiple chances to
succeed and allow multiple
opportunities to meet the criteria or
standard of excellence set by the teacher.
Thus, provides more of a real-world
experience than a one-shot evaluation
provides.
7.2 Constructing performance based
tasks
 A good performance based task has these
key features:

1.Focused purpose:
 Clarify the intended uses of the assessment

results. Specify whose information needs the

assessment will meet: teachers, curriculum
developers, and policymakers.
….

2.Proper method:
 Use an assessment method that is suited to

the assessment goals (such as essays, direct

communication, selected response or
extended investigations).
3.Sound sampling:
 Provide a representative sample of all the

questions that can be asked.

 Produce results of maximum quality at

minimum cost in time and effort.

…..

4.Identify learning goals

Having clear and concise learning objectives or
goals, assist with understanding what
methods of measurement to use.
Learning goals can also help students create a
clear vision of what they should know by the
end of the course.
…
 5.Choose an engaging activity
Using relatable situations in questions or
creating unique visuals to help a student
understand the questions being asked, help a
student feel more engaged with the content.
 6.Develop criteria for the rubric help provide
clarity for the students to understand what is
being tested , how to complete a
performance assessment and how to get a
specific grade or score.
7.3 Developing rubrics and rating
scales for assessing
Definition of rubrics
 A rubric is a set of criteria used for assessing

a particular type of work or performance and

provides more details than a single grade or
mark OR
 A rubric is a scoring guide used to evaluate

performance, a product, or a project.

Definition of rubrics…..
 For the teacher and students, the rubric
defines what is expected and what will be
assessed.
 Grading rubrics can be used to assess a range
of activities in any subject area.
 As a grading tool, rubrics can address issues
related to assessment: they reduce grading
time; they increase objectivity ; they convey
timely feedback to students and they improve
students’ ability to include required elements
of an assignment (Stevens & Levi, 2005).
Types of Rubrics

 Determining which type of rubric to use

depends on what and how you plan to
evaluate. Types of rubrics include:
 Holistic,
 Analytical,
 General, and
 Task-specific.
1.Holistic
 All criteria are assessed as a single score.

Holistic rubrics are good for evaluating

overall performance on a task. Because only
one score is given, holistic rubrics tend to
be easier to score.
 However, holistic rubrics do not provide

detailed information on student

performance for each criterion.
 2.Analytical
 Each criterion is assessed separately, using
different descriptive ratings. Each criterion receives
a separate score.
 Analytical rubrics take more time to score but
provide more detailed feedback.
 3.Generic
 A generic rubric contains criteria that are general
across tasks and can be used for similar tasks or
performances. Criteria are assessed separately, as
in an analytical rubric.
……..
 4.Task-specific
 Assesses a specific task. Unique criteria are

assessed separately.
 However, it may not be possible to account

for each and every criterion involved in a

particular task which could overlook a
student’s unique solution.
Importance of rubric

 Grading rubrics are effective and efficient tools

which allow for objective and consistent
assessment of a range of performances, and
activities.
 Rubrics help clarify expectations and show
students how to meet them, making students
accountable for their performance in an easy-to-
follow format.
 The feedback that students receive through a
grading rubric can help them improve their
learning.
……..
 can help to rationalize grades when students ask
about teachers’ method of assessment.
 Rubrics also allow for consistency in grading for
those who team up.
 allow teachers and students to gather information
and to make judgements about what students
know and can do in relation to the outcomes.
 They are systematic ways of collecting data about
specific behaviours, knowledge and skills.
Guidelines for Developing Rubrics

The following are step-to-step guidelines for developing

a rubric.

Step 1 - Identify the purpose and aims of assessing

students.
Determine if the assessment is for certification,
prerequisite of another subject or an assessment
contributing to the students’ graduation award
classification.

Step 2 - Identify what to assess

identify the subject intended learning outcomes for
assessment. Align the assessment tasks with the
intended learning outcomes and learning activities.
Step 3 - Select an appropriate type of rubric
Determine whether a holistic, analytic or item structure rubric is
more appropriate. The choice will depend on the assessment type
adopted (formative, summative or mathematically based).

Step 4 - Identify the performance criteria for assessing student work

List down criteria to be assessed in the task. For example, criteria
such as introduction, content, presentation, organization and time-
management maybe set for a presentation rubric.

Step 5 - Identify the levels of performance

Appropriate levels of performance have to be identified and adopted
to allow assessors to grade and students to identify their level of
performance.
Rubrics developed should adopt the similar grading levels as
presented.
…
Step 6 - Describe each level of performance
(grading descriptors)
Write the grading descriptors for each level of
performance ,begin with, the descriptors of the
highest and lowest levels .
Step 7 - Pilot the rubrics
Pilot test new rubrics if possible, review
the rubric with a colleague, and solicit
students’ feedback for further
refinements.
 Step 8 - Review / revisions of rubrics

 To ensure that the rubrics reflect a suitable

level of academic standards, it should be
reviewed by Academic Advisors and External
Examiners .
What is Rating Scale?

 The rating scale is a closed-ended survey

question used to represent respondent
feedback in a comparative form for specific
particular features/products.

 A rating scale survey question can be

compared to a checkbox question, but a
rating scale provides more information than
merely Yes/No.
Purpose of rating scales and rubrics
are to:
 provide tools for systematic recording of
observations
 provide tools for self-assessment
 provide samples of criteria for students prior to
collecting and evaluating data on their work
 record the development of specific skills,
strategies, attitudes and behaviours necessary
for demonstrating learning
 clarify students' instructional needs by
presenting a record of current accomplishments.
4 Types of Rating Scale
 Four primary types of rating scales can be
used :
 Graphic Rating Scale: It indicates the answer

options on a scale of 1-3, 1-5, etc.

 Numerical Rating Scale: It has numbers as

answer options and not each number

corresponds to a characteristic or meaning.
 Descriptive Rating Scale: Each answer option
is elaborately explained to the respondents. A
numerical value is not always related to the
answer options in the descriptive scale.
 Comparative Rating Scale: Respondents

answer a particular question in terms of

comparison, i.e. based on relative
measurement or keeping other features as a
reference.
Tips for Developing Rating Scales and Rubrics

 Use rating scales and rubrics in relation to

outcomes and standards.
 Use simple formats that can be understood by
students and that will communicate information
about student learning to parents.
 Ensure that the characteristics and descriptors
listed are clear, specific and observable.
 Encourage students to assist with constructing
appropriate criteria. For example, what are the
descriptors that demonstrate levels of
performance in problem solving?
….
 Ensure that rating scales are dated to track
progress over time.
 Leave space to record anecdotal notes or
comments.
 Use generic templates that become familiar to
students and to which various descriptors can
be added quickly, depending on the outcome(s)
being assessed.
 Provide guidance to students to use and create
their own , rating scales for self-assessment
purposes and as guidelines for goal setting.
Benefits of rating scale questions

 Rating scale questions are easy to understand

and implement.
 Offers a comparative data used for making
well-informed decisions.
 Using graphic rating scales, it is easy for
researchers to create surveys as they consume
the least time to configure.
 Abundant information can be collected and
analysed using a rating scale.
 The analysis of answer received for rating
scale questions is quick and less time-
consuming.
 End