EDU30010: Assignment 2 - Multimodal report by Renee Briggs

Assessment and reporting are defined as the process of validating students’ learning through work-based experiences which provides an informative summary of students’ progress (Churchill et al, 2013). The intention of this report is to explore three forms of assessment and reporting which are utilised to determine year 5 students’ learning and achievements in English writing skills. Each form of assessment and reporting is aligned with the Australian Curriculum: English and is critically evaluated and compared against each other. The three assessments of NAPLAN, portfolios and computer assisted self-assessment each have their own purpose, whether that be assessment for learning or assessment of learning. They are intended to recognise students’ achievements in English writing skills and report data to the individual student, parents, schools or systems (Churchill et al, 2013).

NAPLAN – A nationwide standardised test for students in years 3, 5, 7 and 9 with a focus on students’ Literacy skills. The aim of NAPLAN is to use the data collected to report to students, schools and systems an understanding of students’ high or low literacy achievements and to further improve curricula, teaching and learning where necessary (National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy, [NAP], n.d.).

Portfolios – A summation of students’ writing to recognise learning and achievement in the areas of vocabulary, spelling, grammar and text structure. They are considered as a summative assessment to measure if students’ learning objectives have been met by the end of a learning unit or term (Churchill et al, 2013). Writing portfolios can consist of drafts to demonstrate editing and final entries for the teacher and student to recognise achievement and progress by the end of unit (Winch, Johnston, March, Ljungdahl & Holliday, 2014). Portfolios can be individualised with entries chosen by each student or all students submit the same entry. (Churchill et al, 2013).

Computer Assisted self-Assessment – A fast and effective informal formative assessment for students to recognise their own learning and achievement using Information and Communication Technologies (ICT). This is an effective approach of assessment for students to experience immediate feedback to their syntactic learning and writing skills via word programs and other applications (ACT Government, 2011). Students strengthen their own individual learning as they construct knowledge through self-assessment and report to the teacher in discussion to extend learning outcomes (Churchill et al, 2013).

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