Assessment Practices and Self-Perceived Skills of Secondary School Teachers in Ocampo District, Division of Camarines Sur

Abstract

INTRODUCTION

Assessment is designed to improve learners' performance and achieve the desired instructional outcomes. At the classroom level, it is critical for attaining sound decision on assessing student learning for it requires the ability of teachers to understand their students and make appropriate actions coherent to accurate assessments. Less explored, however in the Philippine setting, is how teachers employ varied assessment practices considering their perceived skills. In an interview with some teachers, the response was they lack assessment-related training and insufficient know-how in employing diversified assessment activities. In this study, we delve into the perceived skills of the teachers in employing varied assessment practices across content areas relative to their educational attainment, years in teaching, and professional training.

METHODS

Descriptive-correlational methods were used in the study. Seventy-two secondary school teachers responded to the Assessment Practices Inventory (API) adapted from Zhang & Burry-Stock (1994). With the gathered data, quantitative analysis was used to measure the frequency of usage and the level of skills of the teachers in employing different assessment practices.

RESULTS

Salient findings of the study revealed that the assessment practices of the teachers vary and reflect on the nature of the content areas or subjects they handle. It was also disclosed that teachers with advanced education, who have at least 6 years in teaching and attended at least one professional training perceived a higher skillfulness in using varied assessment practices in assessing student learning. There is a highly positive significant relationship between the assessment practices and self-perceived skills of teachers, such that teachers with the higher self-perceived skills have a higher level of frequency of usage of different assessment practices.

DISCUSSIONS

The results affirmed to study conducted by Zhang and Burry (2003) that teachers' involvement in assessment activities reflects on the nature and importance of the subjects they teach. Attending training or seminars on assessment are encouraged for the teachers with minimal educational attainment, least teaching years and without professional training. Peer mentoring for teachers will also improve the skills and usage of the varied assessment practices in assessing and evaluating learning and in giving an assessment that is suitable to the subject and teaching-learning process.