ACADEMICS    CURRICULUM     Lower School - Middle School - Upper School - Evaluation

Assessment and Evaluation of Student Achievement

At Crescent School we have a well-designed system of assessment, evaluation and reporting. It is based on clearly stated curriculum expectations and achievement criteria and allows teachers to focus on high standards of achievement for all students in all grades.

The primary purpose of assessment and evaluation is to improve student learning. Information gathered through assessment helps teachers to determine students' strengths and weaknesses in their achievement of the curriculum expectations in each course. This information also serves to guide teachers in adapting curriculum and instructional approaches to students' needs and in assessing the overall effectiveness of programmes and classroom practices.

Assessment is the process of gathering information from a variety of sources (including assignments, demonstrations, projects, performances and tests) that accurately reflects how well a student is achieving the curriculum expectations in a course. As part of assessment, teachers provide students with descriptive feedback that guides their efforts towards improvement. Evaluation refers to the process of judging the quality of student work on the basis of established criteria and assigning a value to represent that quality. In Ontario secondary schools, the value assigned will be in the form of a percentage grade.

At Crescent, assessment and evaluation is based on the curriculum expectations of the Province of Ontario.

In order to ensure that assessment and evaluation are valid and reliable and that they lead to the improvement of student learning, teachers must use assessment and evaluation strategies that:

• address both what students learn and how well they learn;
• are based both on the categories of knowledge and skills and on the achievement level descriptions given in Ministry documents.
• are varied in nature, administered over a period of time and designed to provide opportunities for students to demonstrate the full range of their learning;
• are appropriate for the learning activities used, the purposes of instruction and the needs and experiences of the students;
• are fair to all students;
• ensure that each student is given clear directions for improvement;
• promote students' ability to assess their own learning and to set specific goals;
• are communicated clearly to students and parents at the beginning of the course and at other appropriate points throughout the course.