Tools of evaluation in education and teaching

Tools and techniques are required to gather information. These should be valid, reliable and usable.
Interpretation of gathered information needs to be given in numerical scores, grades as well as in qualitative

terms. Judgement should be made not just on scholastic aspects but also on co-scholastic aspects which depend to a large extent on the learning ambience and learning culture of an institution.

As far as interpretation is concerned, attainment can be measured in terms of three levels. First is with reference to the learner himself/herself and the current status of progress. The learning gaps need to be identified and marked upon. The second level is to identify the status of the learner with reference to his/her peer group. (Percentile Rank)

The third level is with reference to the criteria. The criteria means the expected level of learning keeping in view the required skills.

An evaluation tool is a means of appraisal scientifically designed to evaluate or measure what is required to be evaluated or measured

Following factors need to be considered while using a tool: Objectivity, Discrimination, Relevance Fairness, Validity, Speed, Reliability

Various evaluation techniques in Education

Different evaluation techniques are used by teachers to know all the changes that take place in the child as a result of teaching.

There are various tools and techniques of evaluation. Generally, they are classified into two categories

1. Quantitative technique
2. Qualitative technique

Oral Tests

• The oral exam (also oral test or viva voce) is a practice in many schools and disciplines, where an examiner poses questions to the student in spoken form. The student has to answer the question in such a way as to demonstrate sufficient knowledge of the subject in order to pass the exam.

Written evaluation techniques/devices

• Most commonly used tool of evaluation.
• Various types of written tests are conducted throughout the academic session.
• Written tests are tests administered on paper or on a computer.
• Here student appearing for the written test have to provide answers by writing or typing in the space given or on a separate sheet.

So, written tests are tests that are administered on paper or on a computer. A test taker who takes a written test could respond to specific items by writing or typing within a given sp[ace of the test or on a separate form or document.

Written examination include the following type of tests.

1. Essay type tests
2. Objective type tests
3. Short answer type tests

Content of Written Test

This includes the following types of test items :

• Short-answer
• Long-answer
• Multiple-choice and matching
• True/false (alternative choice)

This is followed by a brief discussion on the use of graphics in test questions. It is important to use the appropriate types of tests in your evaluations.

(1) Essay type tests:-

In essay type test students give responses to many questions of the curriculum in some fixed devotion in the form of essay.
This type of tests is commonly employed to check the power of memorization, expression, recognition, etc.
So these tests are used to measure the levels of interpretation and evaluation of the student.

(2) Objective type tests:-

• Objective type questions are answered by just writing one or two words, or numerals, fill in the blanks, choosing one cut of multiple responses given, etc.
• In objective tests, the achievement of subjective knowledge of pupils, their aptitude, attitudes, interests, inelegance, etc are measured.
• These tests consist of about 150 to 200 short and pointed questions based on the entire curriculum in a very short duration.
• These tests have objectivity and their measurements will not effect scorability of the pupils.
• Since the answers to these types of questions even one and the same, therefore it is quite reliable, objective, valid and can not vary.

Type of Objective tests:-

(1) True/False (alternative choice) questions

The choices offered in these types of questions may be True/False, Yes/no, Fact/Opinion, High/Low, Agree/Disagree, and so on. There must be only one correct response to the question.
Use True/False questions to test a student’s ability to :

• Recognize a correct statement of fact or opinion
• Identify relationships (including cause)
• Identify attitudes, values, and beliefs
• Identify a new situation where known principles apply.

These type of tests are presented in the form of a simple declarative statement, to which the pupil responds indicating whether the statement is true or false.

(2) Completion test:-

A fill-in-the-blank item provides a test taker with identifying characteristics and requires the test taker to recall the correct term. There are two types of fill-in-the-blank test. The easier version provides a word bank of possible words that will fill in the blanks. For some exams, all words in the word bank are used exactly once. If a teacher wanted to create a test of medium difficulty, they would provide a test with a word bank, but some words may be used more than once and others not at all. The hardest variety of such a test is a fill-in-the-blank test in which no word bank is provided at all. This generally requires a higher level of understanding and memory than a multiple choice test. Because of this, fill-in-the-blank tests are often feared by students. In these tests, the pupils are required to complete the given incomplete statement.

(3) Multiple choice tests:-

A multiple choice is a form of assessment in which respondents are asked to select the best possible answer (or answers) out of the choices from a list. If guessing an answer, there’s usually a 25 percent chance of getting it correct on a 4 answer choice question. Finding the right answer from multiple choices can be automated using multiple choice question answering systems. The multiple choice format is most frequently used in educational testing, in market research, and in elections, when a person chooses between multiple candidates, parties, or policies.

(4) Matching tests:-

In these tests, the pupils match test items of one side to the test items of the other side.
On the other side, answers are not written exacted in front of the questions but they are written un-sequentially.

Students have to make a pair by mentioning the right sequence of answers in front of the questions.

PORTFOLIOS

A portfolio is a collection of a learner’s work that demonstrates progress in the development of knowledge, skills, values, and attitudes in a given area. Portfolios provide useful information and evidence for teachers to keep track of what learners know and can do in the area being assessed in order to carry out the assessment for learning. Samples of the learner’s oral or written work such as recordings of oral presentations and writing tasks can be included in a portfolio.

OPEN-ENDED QUESTION

Open-ended question, which cannot be answered with a simple “yes” or “no”, on with a specific piece of information, and which gives the person answering the question scope to give the information, and which gives the person answering the question scope to give the information that seems to them to be appropriate Open-ended questions are sometimes phrased as a statement which requires a response.

Examples of open-ended questions :

1. Tell me about your relationship with your supervisor.
2. Do you see your future?
3. Tell me about the children in this photograph.
4. What is the purpose of government?
5. Why did you choose that answer?

At the same time, there are closed-ended questions which are sometimes impossible to answer correctly with a yes or no without confusion, for example, “Have you stopped taking heroin?’

Observation

Information can be best collected about children in 'natural' settings. Some information is based on teachers' observations about learners in the course of teaching. Other information is based on planned and purposeful observation of students on activities/tasks.