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Assessment Literacy Defined
In 2016, the National Task Force on Assessment Education for Teachers met and created this publication to promote “deeper understanding of sound assessment practice throughout the fabric of American education.” Their intended audiences include teachers, students, parents, policymakers, communities, college of education faculty, and school leaders. This publication hopes to help each audience “understand the importance of …
— Beginning assessment with a clear purpose;
— Starting with clear and specific learning target(s) to be assessed;
— Building high-quality assessments to fit this intended context;
— Communicating results in ways that assure understanding by recipients, and;
— Linking assessment and student motivation in ways that keep all students striving for academic success.”
This publication was developed and written by a broad and diverse group of educators, ranging from nationally known researchers to education policymakers and teachers. The authors state their purposes through the publication’s title and overview. Topics of assessment literacy are on-target, including assessment purposes, learning targets (those assessed), assessment quality, communicating results, and motivation. The authors also describe assessment literacy by role, i.e., teacher, students, parents, policymakers, etc.
Communications quality is excellent. Sentences, paragraphs, and sections are of appropriate length to communicate content, which should be highly useful for each audience. Wording is easy to understand. Publication design is spartan, but does not detract from high content quality and its presentation. Although evidence of effectiveness is not addressed, the publication’s overall quality suggests a positive impact on appropriate assessment use.