Assessment in Learning 1
MODULE 4: Recent Trends and Focus of literature and other texts
types for a deeper appreciation
of Philippine Culture and those
Assessment of learning in education has evolved of other countries.
over time, influenced by progressive educators
who have challenged traditional methods of GRADE LEVEL The learner demonstrates
measuring student achievement. STANDARD communicative competence
through his/her understanding
of Philippine Literature and
Authentic assessment gained popularity in the other texts types for a deeper
21st century, though its effectiveness remains appreciation of Philippine
debated. Culture.
Standards-Based Education CONTENT The leaner demonstrates
➢ Standards-based education follows a STANDARD understanding of: pre-colonial
curriculum aligned with district, Philippine literature as a means
division, or national standards, defining of connecting to the past;
various reading styles; ways of
the skills, knowledge, and dispositions
determining word meaning; the
students must demonstrate. Teachers sounds of English and the
design activities to help students prosodic features of speech;
achieve these goals (Lund, 2014). and correct subject-verb
agreement.
PERFORMANC The learner transfers learning
E STANDARD by: showing appreciation for
the literature of the past;
comprehending texts using
appropriate reading styles;
participating in conversations
using appropriate
context-dependent expressions;
producing English sounds
correctly and using the prosodic
features of speech effectively in
various situations; and
observing correct subject-verb
agreement.
Standards-based education is well established in
the Philippines, with the K-12 curriculum
designed around national goals. Its content and
subjects are selected based on these standards, An example of how standards-based assessment
ensuring alignment from policy to classroom manifests in the K-12 Curriculum is shown
implementation. below.
K to 12 BASIC EDUCATION CURRICULUM
GRADE 7
FIRST QUARTER
PROGRAM The learner demonstrates
STANDARD communicative competence
through his/her understanding
1. An approach that compares students’
performance to the standards, rather than
comparing them with other students (Strater,
2006).
2. The measurement of student’s learning
performance according to predetermined
educational content and performance standards
(Rafiq, 2008)
3. Assessment is aligned to the attainment of
the standards through the defined skills or
TRANSMUTATION TABLE competencies.
Outcomes-Based Education
Basic education is gradually adopting
outcomes-based education (OBE). OBE shifts
focus from traditional teaching methods to
ensuring students can demonstrate required
skills and knowledge, addressing perceived
shortcomings of traditional education.
Key references that discuss OBE in the
Philippine context include:
1. Commission on Higher Education (CHED)
Memorandum Orders – CHED Memorandum
Order (CMO) No. 46, s. 2012
2. Department of Education (DepEd) Policies –
DepEd has gradually integrated OBE principles
in the K-12 curriculum, particularly in DepEd
Order No. 73, s. 2012
However, it is not only in teaching pedagogies 3. CHED Handbook on OBE (2014) – This
that teachers align to standards. A paradigm document provides guidance for implementing
shift is happening too in assessment of learning. OBE in Philippine higher education institutions.
The K-12 curriculum by virtue of DepEd Order
No. 73, s.2012 describes its assessment In the Philippine education system, a school
philosophy as: implementing Outcomes-Based Education (OBE)
can be identified through the following key
“Assessment shall be used primarily as a quality features:
assurance tool to track student progress in the
attainment of standards, promote self-reflection 1. Clearly Defined Learning Outcomes – The
and personal accountability for one’s learning, curriculum is designed around specific
and provide a basis for the profiling of student competencies and skills that students must
performance.” demonstrate upon completion of a course or
program.
When designing assessment in standards-based
curriculum take not of these definitions of 2. Student-Centered Approach – Teaching
standards-based assessment: strategies focus on active learning, ensuring
students achieve the intended outcomes rather In OBE, course outcomes (COs) lead to program
than just covering content. outcomes (POs) at graduation, which align with
long-term program educational objectives
3. Aligned Assessment Methods – Assessments (PEOs). These are designed with stakeholder
measure whether students have attained the input to meet global workforce demands.
expected outcomes, using performance-based
tasks, rubrics, and real-world applications.
Aspect Standards-Bas Outcomes-Bas
4. Flexible Teaching and Learning Strategies – ed Education ed Education
Instruction is designed to accommodate (SBE) (OBE)
different learning styles, ensuring all students
meet the desired outcomes. Focus Meeting Demonstrating
predefined mastery of
5. Continuous Quality Improvement – Schools content expected
regularly assess and refine their programs based standards outcomes
on feedback, assessment results, and
Curriculum Aligned with Designed
stakeholder input to enhance student learning. national or around desired
Design
district student
6. Industry and Community Linkages – OBE standards competencies
aligns education with industry and societal
needs, ensuring graduates are job-ready and Teaching Content-driven Student-center
equipped with relevant skills. Approach , structured by ed,
subjects problem-solvin
g approach
7. Competency-Based Grading – Student
performance is assessed based on mastery of Standardized Performance-b
Assessment
competencies rather than traditional grading tests, ased,
Methods
systems focused on rote memorization. traditional real-world
exams applications
Outcome-Based Education (OBE) includes
standards-based assessment but favors Goal Ensuring Preparing
alternative methods over traditional ones. students meet students for
set academic lifelong skills
benchmarks and
It emphasizes problem-solving, engaging
application
students intellectually with varied, real-world
situations. OBE values both content and Flexibility Fixed content Adaptable to
context, ensuring learning is relevant. and pacing students'
needs and
Classroom practices should allow students to learning styles
demonstrate understanding in multiple ways,
aiming for cognitive mastery (Spady, 1995). Success Achievement Demonstration
Measure of standards of skills and
competencies
Item-Response Theory and Educational
Assessment
➢ Item Response Theory (IRT) is a
well-founded framework for
educational measurement, aiding in test 3. Adaptive Testing – IRT enables
construction, score equating, bias Computerized Adaptive Testing (CAT),
evaluation, item banking, and flexible where questions adjust based on a
test administration (Glas, 2008). student's performance, making
assessments more efficient.
In easy terms, IRT has two postulates:
1. Examinee test performance can be 4. Comparable Scores – It allows for score
predicted or explained by a set of equating, ensuring consistency across
factors called traits, latent traits, or different versions of a test.
abilities.
2. The relationship between examinee 5. Efficient Test Design – IRT helps create
item performance and these traits can shorter but equally reliable tests by
be described by a monotonically selecting only the most effective
increasing function called an item questions.
characteristic function.
6. Item Banking – It supports the
The foundation of IRT is a mathematical model development of large question pools,
defined by item parameters. For dichotomous making it easier to create new tests
items (those scored correct/incorrect), each while maintaining consistency.
item has three parameters:
A. the discrimination parameter, an index 7. Flexible Test Administration – IRT
of how well the item differentiates low allows for different testing formats
from top examinees; typically ranges while maintaining measurement
from 0 to 2, where higher is better, accuracy.
though not many items are above 1.0.
B. the difficulty parameter, an index of
what level of examinees for which the
item is appropriate; typically ranges
from -3 to +3, with 0 being an average
examinee level. a
C. the pseudo guessing parameter, which
is a lower asymptote; typically is
focused on 1/k where k is the number
of options.
Benefits of Item Response Theory (IRT) in
educational measurement:
1. Improved Test Accuracy – IRT ensures
that test scores more accurately reflect
a student's true ability by considering
item difficulty and discrimination.
2. Fair and Bias-Free Assessment – It
helps detect and eliminate biased test
items, ensuring fairness across different
groups of test-takers.
