Assessment Policy
Read about how Greendale Secondary School uses both academic and character development assessments to support each student's growth as a Learner, Thinker, and Leader.
Philosophy
At Greendale Secondary School, Assessment is a means through which we continually strive for educational improvement. It is also a way for meaningful feedback for student development. With effective assessment practice, we hope that our students will be able to scale greater heights in their pursuit of excellence. We see teaching, learning and assessment of learning as interdependent. Assessment is integral and serves the overall purpose to improve standards and processes while at the same time, serve as a means to measure them.
The use of tools under the Assessment for Learning and Assessment of Learning frameworks exists to support and encourage students’ learning by enabling stakeholders – teachers, parents and students – to gather and analyse the extent to which desired knowledge, concepts and skills are effectively taught, learnt and demonstrated.
In addition to the above broad principles, Greendale’s assessment policy is guided by our school’s vision: Learners, Thinkers, Leaders, with reference to the 21st Century Competencies. We aim to develop students who are able to take responsibility of their own learning, think critically, and become a leader who can serve the community.
Purpose and Approach:
Assessment serves:-
i. To help students learn through the provision of relevant and timely feedback, using Assessment for Learning (AfL) strategies, which involves the continuous use of classroom assessments strategies such as effective questioning to check for understanding in order to improve student learning;
ii. To help evaluate the effectiveness of the teaching and learning processes so that teachers can improve the design and delivery of the curricular and co-curricular programmes and;
iii. To provide relevant and accurate information to stakeholders such as parents through Assessment of Learning (AoL) in the form of summative assessment, which measures students’ demonstration of desired knowledge, concepts and skills at a particular point in time.
AoL @ Greendale, encompassing different activities and processes that are undertaken by teachers and/or by students, is recognised as an integral process in teaching and learning as it provides useful and timely information to be used as feedback to modify subsequent teaching and learning activities that they engaged in.
AoL @ Greendale takes place at the end of a teaching and learning cycle for the purpose of evaluating mastery. The results of these assessment practices provide stakeholders (teachers, parents, students) with the information to make judgements about the student’s learning. AoL tasks include, but are not limited to, common tests, mid-year and end-of-year examinations, and conduct grades as well.
The following TWO Sections briefly describe the various assessment structures, processes and/or tools.
Section 1: Instructional Program @ Greendale Secondary School
Assessment of the instructional programme at Greendale is aligned to our school’s vision: Learners, Thinkers, Leaders. The following table is a summary-example of how the different assessment tools serve to assess students’ attainment of each outcome. It is important to note that each assessment tool cited may serve to evaluate or measure more than one desired outcomes.
Example of different assessment tools to assess students’ attainment of each outcome
School Vision | Desired Outcomes | Assessment Tools |
|---|---|---|
Learners | Students to be committed life-long learners who take responsibility for their personal growth. |
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Thinkers | Students to develop critical minds that reflect deeply and challenge issues and understandings for greater clarity and stronger solutions. | 1) Student journals/Reflections: To assess students’ ability to think, reflect about their own learning and solve problems. 2) Practical assessments: To assess students’ ability to apply and practice skills needed in the real world (e.g. oral presentations, historical & geographical investigations, mathematics statistical posters etc.). |
Leaders | Students to be confident leaders who are role models in service to community and society in the use of their talents and efforts. | Projects: To assess not only |
Section 2: Character Development Program @ Greendale Secondary School
In line with our school’s vision of Learners, Thinkers, Leaders, the school has the following summary-example of assessment tools to evaluate how each student fares in the areas of character development. Again, it is important to note that each assessment tool cited may serve to evaluate or measure more than one desired outcome.
Example of assessment tools to evaluate how each student fares in the areas of character development
School Vision | Desired outcomes | Assessment tools |
|---|---|---|
Learners | Students to be committed life-long learners who take responsibility for their personal growth. | 1) Conduct grade: To assess the general behavior of each student that would set the foundation of a learning culture in school. 2) Personal Qualities rubric: To assess the personal qualities of each student in becoming life-long learners who take responsibility for their growth. 3) CCA grade: To assess their co-curricular learning commitment and abilities. |
Thinkers | Students to develop critical minds that reflect deeply and challenge issues and understandings for greater clarity and stronger solutions. | Critical & Inventive Thinking (part of 21CC Assessment Rubrics used across departments and teams for Project Work, ALP feedback etc.): To assess how well each student is able to think critically and be future-ready to take on the challenges of the 21st century. |
Leaders | Students to be confident leaders who are role models in service to community and society in the use of their talents and efforts. | Servant Leadership traits: To assess how far each student is developed in each servant leadership trait. |
Holistic Assessment @ Greendale Secondary School
The school is developing a school-wide holistic assessment tool, that will reflect assessment data of both instructional programme and character development efforts. The outcome is a Holistic Assessment Report Card, which teachers, students and parents can use to reflect on teaching and learning efforts and discuss how the student can better learn to achieve their desired outcomes. The purpose of the Holistic Assessment Report Card is to provide stakeholders (students, parents, teachers), the critical information and data on, to what extent the Greendale student is learning and developing into the desired Learner, Thinker, Leader.