Performance-Based Assessment: Everything Old is New Again

For many children, school learning becomes firmly bound to its classroom context. Seldom do they see the connection between what they learn in science and mathematics and the practical problems that make up their everyday world. In short, they do not transfer their learning.  . . . In real life, scientific and mathematical skills have little value in themselves; they are tools to be used in the context of a task. 

Anyone who closely follows education trends might come to the conclusion that these statements relate to the current focus on 21st Century skills and workplace readiness. In reality, they are excerpted from "Beyond Paper & Pencil," a series of reports published by the Massachusetts Department of Education nearly 20 years ago. The passages appeared in an edition devoted to the importance of performance testing. 

Some might be surprised that performance-based assessments—comprised of performance tasks that have students apply learning concepts to problem solving and include portfolios that gather a "body of evidence" of student work over time—have been around for so long. In fact, Measured Progress has worked with a number of states on such assessment approaches starting in the early 1980s in Connecticut, later in the decade in Massachusetts, and in the early 1990s in Kentucky. 

The programs differed in various ways. Connecticut and Massachusetts used performance assessments for research and to encourage teachers to make greater classroom use of hands-on learning opportunities. Kentucky counted results toward state accountability requirements. Two of the states called on Measured Progress to train outside administrators to administer the tests. The third asked teachers to administer the assessments and record results using protocols, which Measured Progress then scored. 

The programs did share common attributes, such as a component that required students to work in teams. The rationale for such teaming was based on research that revealed students working in pairs or small groups were less intimidated by the process than those working in isolation. Ironically, the team approach assumes heightened importance in the context of 21st Century skills and workplace readiness, which emphasize the value of collaboration, communication, leadership, and other interpersonal attributes sometimes referred to as "soft skills." 

What has remained constant over the decades is the importance of using assessments to evaluate students' higher-order skills—the ability to analyze, synthesize, evaluate, and apply knowledge; again, the hallmarks of the 21st Century movement. 

"What we referred to as ‘authentic assessment' 20 years ago is still just that," said Measured Progress Chief Executive Officer Stuart Kahl. "Instead of just teaching knowledge and skills in isolation, we want to make sure kids are able to apply the learning in real life."

"In that way, performance events are not just an evaluation; they're a learning tool. This is one testing approach that should have a real impact on what happens in the classroom—legitimate ‘teaching to the test,'" Kahl said.

Pat Ross