Standardized Testing vs Teachers’ Classroom Assessment Practices

Abstract

Standardized tests are becoming increasingly influential across OECD countries, including Canada and the United States (Mons, 2013). While large-scale tests provide important information on system performance, many studies have revealed their potential negative impact on teachers’ practice (e. g., Koretz, 2017). Indeed, when teachers are confronted with recurrent external assessments, they can question their own skills and priorities in assessing students’ learning (Malet, 2015; Osborn, 2006). Concerningly, an overemphasis on large-scale, standardized tests can result in assessment being understood as a purely technical process rather than one in which teachers have professional autonomy and capacity to leverage their assessment literacy to effectively support and assess student learning. It is necessary to highlight and promote the essential role of teachers’ classroom assessment practices, in order to provide assessment information that is responsive to local classroom learning and student diversity. One approach to supporting teachers’ classroom assessment practices is to invite teachers to reconsider fundamental questions about their assessment practice.