“Assessment reform journeys: intentions, enactment and evaluation”
Assessment reforms are usually instigated by the changing educational needs of society and a desire to address these needs. As such, assessment reforms are often promoted and rationalised through the use of educational discourse linked to, for instance, the creation of more equitable learning environments for students; recognition and application of teacher assessment expertise; the development of fairer assessment tools and systems; finding a balance between trust and accountability in assessment; and keeping assessment practices apace with theoretical and technological advancements. But there are times when an assessment reform is a reaction to an external factor or a fait accompli, as was the case with the Covid19 pandemic in the last few years. The theme chosen for the AEA-Europe 2022 annual conference, in Dublin, was in fact New Visions for Assessment in Uncertain Times. And discussions focused on the way in which education planners, test developers, teachers and others responded to the different needs created by the pandemic to develop new assessment practices. These included efforts to reform assessment practices through, for instance, the adoption of digital teaching and resources, greater focus on teacher assessment, adaptive assessment, and remote proctoring in high stakes examinations. A recurring narrative in these new visions for assessment was the problematisation of the journeys from the formulation of the intentions of assessment reforms to their eventual enactment. Read More
The journey metaphor is used here to capture the notion of transitioning from a point of departure with a clear destination (i.e. the intentions of an assessment reform) to a point of arrival (i.e. the enactment of an assessment reform) that might correspond or not, to varying degrees, to the intended destination. While the intended destinations of these journeys are usually well-documented and publicised, policy makers and other key stakeholders might be less inclined to then follow and evaluate the pathways taken along the journeys and their actual points of arrival. This would be problematic because there is much to learn from careful consideration of these pathways and points of arrival vis-à-vis the planning and implementation of future assessment reforms. What is sure, however, is that cultural, contextual and personal factors play a significant role throughout, even possibly leading to unforeseen results with either empowering or debilitating consequences.
In Malta, assessment reform is a constant factor within the education system. And as in many other countries, shifts in assessment policy frequently stem directly from changes in Government. To give an example, at the time of the AEA-Europe 2009 annual conference, which was held in Malta, the country was going through a big assessment reform that was intended to replace the selective examinations, which channelled primary school children to different types of state secondary schools, with a more equitable assessment system that recognises diversity and promotes a holistic education. However, although the eventual enactment of this reform led to the elimination of student segregation in state secondary schools, which was one of the key aims of the reform, some other concerning elements of the replaced examination system have remained (e.g. teaching to the test and reliance on private tuition). In other words, while some of the reform’s intentions were enacted, others were not.
Moving forward, the annual conference of AEA-Europe is back in Malta, after 14 years, and in Malta we are going through yet another assessment reform. This time, it is another comprehensive reform that aims, among other things, to introduce school-based assessment (SBA) as part of the end-of-secondary certification system (at 16+) operated by the MATSEC Examinations Board of the University of Malta. The intended outcome of including SBA at this level is to widen high stakes assessment opportunities for students to show what they know and can do, and to give due consideration to teacher assessment for certification purposes. With the reform still in its initial stages, there may be concerns as to whether the reform will be enacted as intended. While it is too early to draw any conclusions about this reform, the scene is set for the need to evaluate the pathways that it takes, its point of arrival and the impact that this has on the education system, especially with regard to students’ learning and issues related to fairness and equity.
It is clear that most of the challenges that Malta was facing in 2009 remain. For, in reality, one assessment reform seems to follow another with very little to show with regard to how its enactment measures-up to its intended purposes. The underlying need to explore Assessment reform journeys, which is lacking in Malta, might have relevance for other countries undergoing assessment reforms that, as we know, all occur within a social, cultural and historical context. Moreover, for countries that, like Malta, have traditionally structured their modus operandi in education on imported ideas from educationally influential countries, the issue of decolonising assessment and assessment reforms is particularly relevant. Decolonisation would create the right environment for assessment reforms to address the specific needs of specific contexts (e.g. promoting critical thinking, peace and democracy), which would contribute in turn to improving the sustainability of reforms. At the AEA-Europe annual conference to be held in Malta in 2023, we would therefore like to offer delegates the opportunity to reflect on the notion of assessment reforms as journeys delineated by intentions and enactment from different perspectives by key stakeholders, such as students, educators, schools, policy makers, employers, academics, examination boards and test developers.
Questions of Interest
Areas of issue that can be raised include:
- What motivates and drives assessment reform?
- What are the tensions in assessment reforms?
- How does assessment reform impact schools, educators, test-developers, examination boards, policy makers and the general public?
- How much are the intentions of assessment reform aligned with realities in the educational landscape?
- What strategies are implemented to allow multiple voices (such as those of students, educators, and parents) to be heard and acted upon in assessment reform?
- How is the success of an assessment reform evaluated (e.g. through the use of implementation research, pre- and post-enactment studies, and data from international comparative studies)?
- What are the implications of assessment reform for equity and fairness?
- How does assessment reform find a balance between trust and accountability?
The conference theme for 2023 builds on the theme for 2022, that is, the development of New Visions for Assessment in Uncertain Times. With the times remaining uncertain, at least for the foreseeable future, the attention this year will shift towards the development of a vision for assessment reform that puts the journey from intentions to enactment at the centre of developing further assessment knowledge and practices. To achieve this, we invite participants to look forwards towards the future, but also to look backwards to the historical, social and cultural contexts in which assessment reforms are shaped and changed. For, arguably, it is through this combination that the assessment community can create assessment cultures that would hopefully enable a good alignment between the intended outcomes of assessment reforms and their enactment in practice.
