Presented in Faculty of Arts, Jazan University Nov 4 2012

1. The Best Kinds/Types of
Student- centred
Assessments or Evaluations.
By Dr Koshy A.V.
Assistant Professor
Faculty of Arts, Jazan University
MoHE, KSA.

2. Diagnostic Evaluation
• Preliminary evaluation should be
DIAGNOSTIC at the beginning of a course
or semester or year or degree. This is to
ascertain that the level of the students is
actually what it ought to be, with regard to
their age and prior educational
qualification and experience, except in the
case of differently abled students who
have ASD etc.

3. Diagnostic Evaluation -2
• This would include not only entrance tests but
also tests held in the actual learning
environment/situation so that the teachers could
find out the “Multiple Intelligences” (Howard
Gardner) of the students, their individual
gifts/strengths and weaknesses, as well as get
an idea of how to not only generalize,
commonalise or specialize but “differentiate
instruction” (Carol Tomlinson) for the entire class
and its students as individuals and a group.

4. A Brief Inset on the MI
> Linguistic Verbal.
• Logical Mathematical
• Bodily Kinesthetic.
• Visual Spatial.
• Interpersonal.
• Existential
• Naturalist.
• Intrapersonal
• Musical Rhythmic. (Howard Gardner)

6. Definition of DI and Its Use
• “Differentiated instruction, according to
Carol Ann Tomlinson (as cited by Ellis, Gable, Greg, &
Rock, 2008, p. 32), is the process of “ensuring that what
a student learns, how he or she learns it, and how the
student demonstrates what he or she has learned is a
match for that student’s readiness level, interests, and
preferred mode of learning”. Teachers can differentiate
through four ways: 1)through content, 2) process, 3)
product, and 4) learning environment based on the
individual learner.” This is what the best attempts at
designing education – ideal education – offers or should
offer.

7. Contextual Examples of
Introductory Diagnostic
Evaluation/Assessment.
• Academic Writing – Make the students write a
paragraph or essay for the teacher’s perusal.
• Poetry – Make them write their own definition of
poetry and perhaps quote lines, poems or even
song lyrics they like as examples.
• Drama – Let them define it, instead of telling
them what it is, in interactions or writing.
• Short story - Let them define it, instead of telling
them what it is, in interactions or writing.

8. Prescriptive Evaluation
• The second step of evaluation is
PRESCRIPTIVE based on the tests held
that were diagnostic, and on continuous
assessment, taking the form of feedback
given to students as to how they can hit
the target of the learning aims/goals of the
course by its end or the overarching
bigger ones of the syllabus and curriculum
and lifelong learning (life skills, soft skills
etc.).

9. A Contextual Example following on
from the earlier slide of Examples
to Diagnostic Assessment.
• Academic writing – After checking the
paragraphs and essays give feedback, ideally
written, on learning aims and where the students
have to improve individually, on the basis of their
learning outcomes.
• Example: Student A has to improve in
mechanics, B in syntax, C in grammar and
writing sentences that are connected
meaningfully to one another to unify their
paragraphs etc.

10. Drama.
• On the basis of written work handed in by
the student check if he/she has some idea
of the Freytag’s pyramid and of any kind of
actual exposure to theatre, drama and its
history. Knowledge of local forms should
be considered an asset.

11. Freytag’s Pyramid.
• Exposition, rising action, climax, falling
action, resolution.

12. Poetry Checklist.
• Figurative language.
• Imagery
• Structure/form
• Meaning/themes
• Music and Rhythm.
• Language and Style
• History- names, poems, ages etc.

13. Short Story Checklist.
• Plot – the basic five Freytag elements plus
irony, symbolism, foreshadowing, flashback
(sub-plot) etc.
• Characters - characterization
• Theme- themes
• Setting – time, place, space, atmosphere, milieu
etc.
• Point of view – omniscient etc.
• History and genres, names, stories etc.

14. Graded Learning and Level Based
Evaluation
• The third step is to have CONTINUOUS or
CUMULATIVE evaluation through internal
assessment, accompanied by diagnostic,
prescriptive and descriptive narratives. The aim
is not for this to add up to grades or marks,
though that can be a secondary aim, but to
ensure that the gap between learning outcomes
and learning goals/aims are continuously
discovered and addressed to be bridged
satisfactorily in the case of each student. The
teacher-student ratio has to be ideal for this.

15. Graded Learning and Level Based
Evaluation -2
• To achieve graded learning by which one
actually ensures that the student moves
from one level to the next as intended, it is
very useful to have course planning,
syllabus planning etc., done by
pedagogical and curriculum experts and
not left vague. The written material used
as guidelines must thus be clear, sharp
and accurate.

16. Things to concentrate on in
Evaluating Graded Learning or
Level Based Learning.
• Check if reading comprehension has actually
occurred.
• Are the learning aims/goals being satisfactorily
met.
• Is brain based learning taking place? This
means the students will make intelligent
connections, not learn by rote, master
curriculum based skills, problem solve and
become self-sufficient learners not ‘taught’
learners.
• Are the abilities of critical thinking, analysis,
interpretation and holistic thinking/learning –
pattern forming - being mastered?

17. Summative Evaluation/Assessment
• It is suggested that SUMMATIVE assessment be
done - if at all - not on the basis of the pass
minimum – there being ideally no failure but
attempts to try again till one succeeds or gives
up– but on the basis of a very clear grid of
whether the learning outcomes match the
intended learning aims/goals. This can be
tabulated in different ways, including by
descriptive/report narratives or evaluation, as in
the case of assessing research papers.

18. Rubrics
• Sometimes rubrics of assessment as a
guideline for evaluating final exam papers
can help tremendously in summative
assessment, although this might be more
likely in the context of language than in
that of literature.

19. A Note on Exercises for
Assessment.
• If techniques like trans-disciplinary learning,
group and paired participatory activities, field
trips, projects, portfolios, library research,
experiential learning, hands on learning, class
rooms as experimental teaching spaces for
students and teachers, problem solving,
presentations in pairs and as groups and as
individuals, making and doing as a part of
learning etc., are made use of in setting
exercises for assessment the students will
always find it more interesting.

20. Summing Up:
• The kinds/types of evaluation and
assessments are:
• Diagnostic
• Prescriptive/Descriptive
(reports/narratives)
• Continuous – Graded and Level based
• Cumulative
• Summative

21. It is important to see the
continuity.
Diagnostic/Prescriptive Continuous/Cumulative
Summative.

22. Thought for the Day.
• Summative assessment can be done
away with entirely if the first four types of
assessment are done properly and
continuously and the students are asked
to develop portfolios for assessment at the
end of the semester or term and not to
take a final exam.

23. A Cardinal Point.
• All this works only in a mature educational
set up where teachers enjoy a great deal
of independence and trust to ensure
quality education transpires.

24. References
• Howard Gardner’s MI (http://
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multiple_intelligences
)
• Carol Tomlinson’s DI. (http://
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Differentiated_instruction
)

25. THANK YOU.
• © Dr A.V.Koshy, November 2012
• Email: terrestrian@gmail.com
• THE END.