Differences in the quality of school-based assessment: Evidence in Grade 9 mathematics achievement

Surette Van Staden,Puleng Motsamai

doi:10.4102/pythagoras.v38i1.367

Abstract

This non-experimental, exploratory and descriptive study, using a qualitative case study approach, aims to investigate whether there is evidence of variance in the quality of school-based assessment (SBA) in Grade 9 mathematics. Participants were purposefully selected from five schools in a district in the Northern Cape in South Africa. After questionnaires were completed, individual face-to-face semi-structured interviews were conducted with participants from the participating schools. Documents were collected and analysed to corroborate or contradict data from the questionnaires and interviews. Lack of adherence to policy, variation in classroom practice and inconsistent monitoring and moderation practices were identified as themes of possible sources of variation in SBA. An analysis of the interviews and document analysis revealed that most of the Heads of Department and principals lacked in-depth knowledge and understanding of their roles and functions in making SBA reliable, credible and valid. This was not only due to a lack of capacity to perform such functions, but was also due to a lack of effective induction and training by the district and provincial offices. Findings from the current study point to the necessary role that a periodic evaluation of SBA may play to ensure its effectiveness, credibility and reliability as part of successful assessment practices in a mostly developing context.

Highlights

Assessment is at the heart of the teaching and learning process (Chisholm, 2004)
Progressions should only be approved by the circuit manager; the evidence presented in this study shows that, prior to the circuit manager progressing learners who did not meet the minimum requirements, the mathematics teachers had already inflated the learners’ scores
This study sought to analyse evidence of variation in the quality of school-based assessment (SBA) from the perspective of principals, Head of Department (HOD) and teachers. This is an important topic as the management, monitoring, moderation, and implementation of SBA filter down from the principal through to the teachers and, eventually, to the learners

Summary

Introduction

Assessment is at the heart of the teaching and learning process (Chisholm, 2004). Continuous assessment constitutes school-based assessment (SBA) and examinations. SBA encompasses all forms of assessment that are conducted by the teacher and teachers develop their own assessments (Black & Wiliam, 2010; Poliah, 2010). Gipps (1994) is of the view that SBA has the potential to be a more valid form of assessment as it covers a wide range of curricular outcomes. Due to the subjective nature of SBA that weakens its design, it opens itself to lower levels of reliability, and reduced validity and credibility of learner performance (Poliah, 2010; Reyneke, Meyer & Nel, 2010)

Methods

Results

Conclusion