Summary
Contents
Subject index
The Sage Handbook of Research on Classroom Assessment provides scholars, professors, graduate students, and other researchers and policy makers in the organizations, agencies, testing companies, and school districts with a comprehensive source of research on all aspects of K-12 classroom assessment. The handbook emphasizes theory, conceptual frameworks, and all varieties of research (quantitative, qualitative, mixed methods) to provide an in-depth understanding of the knowledge base in each area of classroom assessment and how to conduct inquiry in the area. It presents classroom assessment research to convey, in depth, the state of knowledge and understanding that is represented by the research, with particular emphasis on how classroom assessment practices affect student achievement and teacher behavior. Editor James H. McMillan and five Associate Editors bring the best thinking and analysis from leading classroom assessment researchers on the nature of the research, making significant contributions to this prominent and hotly debated topic in education.
Student Self-Assessment1
Student Self-Assessment1
The only way any of us can improve—as Coach Graham taught me—is if we develop a real ability to assess ourselves. If we can't accurately do that, how can we tell if we're getting better or worse? (Pausch & Zaslow, 2008, p. 112)
During the past two decades, student self-assessment has been strongly endorsed as an important aspect of formative assessment through the global assessment for learning (AFL) movement. Student self-assessment is not new, with Brookhart (2009) noting that even in the 1930s and 1940s there were numerous authors endorsing the use of student self-evaluation. However, self-assessment is seldom implemented in many classrooms. Hunter, Mayenga, and Gambell (2006) found that 23% of the 4,148 Canadian secondary teachers sampled reported never using self-assessment, with 58% reporting minimal self-assessment use. Only half of 346 surveyed upper secondary students in Finland reported participating in self-assessment (Lasonen, 1995). This limited implementation likely relates to the tensions teachers report between the use of student-led assessment practices and the externally and teacher-controlled summative results generally reported to stakeholders (Harris & Brown, 2010; Volante & Beckett, 2011).
There is general consensus that self-assessment is positive and leads to benefits for students. Perhaps the most powerful promise of self-assessment is that it can raise student academic performance by teaching pupils self-regulatory processes, allowing them to compare their own work with socially defined goals and revise accordingly (Andrade, 2010; Black & Wiliam, 1998; Butler & Winne, 1995; Hattie & Timperley, 2007; Ramdass & Zimmerman, 2008). The logic is that, like self-regulation, self-evaluation of the quality attributes of one's own work draws on metacognitive competencies (e.g., self-observation, self-judgment, self-reaction, task analysis, self-motivation, and self-control) (Zimmerman, 2002). Additionally, there is evidence that students can improve their self-regulation skills through self-assessment (i.e., set targets, evaluate progress relative to target criteria, and improve the quality of their learning outcomes) (Andrade, Du, & Mycek, 2010; Andrade, Du, & Wang, 2008; Brookhart, Andolina, Zuza, & Furman, 2004). Furthermore, self-assessment is associated with improved motivation, engagement, and efficacy (Griffiths & Davies, 1993; Klenowski, 1995; Munns & Woodward, 2006; Schunk, 1996), reducing dependence on the teacher (Sadler, 1989). It is also seen as a potential way for teachers to reduce their own assessment workload, making students more responsible for tracking their progress and feedback provision (Sadler & Good, 2006; Towler & Broadfoot, 1992).
This chapter reviews relevant empirical studies concerning the use of student self-assessment in the compulsory school sector (K–12) to help establish which claims about self-assessment are empirically supported. Previous reviews of this topic have focused primarily on higher education students (e.g., Boud & Falchikov, 1989; Dochy, Segers, & Sluijsmans, 1999; Falchikov & Boud, 1989; Mabe & West, 1982). This chapter contributes to our understanding of self-assessment in public schooling.
Defining Self-Assessment
Many terms have been used to describe the process of students assessing and providing feedback on their own work, including self-assessment, self-evaluation, self-reflection, self-monitoring, and more generally, reflection. Since self-assessment requires evaluative consideration of one's own work, the processes of self-grading, self-testing, and self-rating can also potentially be forms of self-assessment. Both the Thesaurus of ERIC Descriptors (Educational Research Information Center [U.S.], 2001) and the Thesaurus of Psychological Index Terms (Tuleya, 2007) treat self-assessment as a synonym for self-appraisal, and both are classified under the subject heading self-evaluation (individuals) or self-evaluation, respectively. The Thesaurus of ERIC Descriptors defines self-evaluation as “individuals’ assessment of themselves” (Educational Research Information Center [U.S.], 2001).
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