Assessment: The engine of systemic curricular reform?

Abstract

We sought to examine empirically the prevailing assumption that changing assessment can leverage curricular reform. This assumption has been signi® cantly con-® rmed by our research for the case of mandated high-stakes assessment. Two studies were conducted in the two most populous Australian states, New South Wales and Victoria. In the ® nal two years of secondary school in both states, courses of study and assessment arrangements are mandated for all schools, including the private sector, by the state' s Board of Studies. Congruence between mandated assessment and schoolwide instructional practice was found in two states whose high-stakes assessment embodied quite contrasting values. The assessment agendaWhatever metaphor is employed to characterize the function of assessment within or upon the curriculum, the centrality of assessment is universally acknowledged. This paper makes use of the ® ndings from two related studies to establish and elaborate two fundamental observations regarding the function of assessment:. attempts at curriculum reform are likely to be futile unless accompanied by matching assessment reform; and . assessment can be the engine of curriculum reform, or the principal impediment to its implementation.

Assessment in Mathematics Education

“…One issue is whether the results of large-scale assessment should drive curriculum and instructional reform (Barnes et al 2000). Standings on international assessments of mathematics often drive political and educational agendas and there have been several examples of this in situations in recent years (c.f.…”

Investigating changes in high-stakes mathematics examinations: a discursive approach

“…Indeed, the symbiotic relationship between assessment, on the one hand, and curriculum and pedagogy on the other is well documented (e.g. Barnes, Clarke, & Stephens, 2000;Broadfoot, 1996). The impact of GCSE examinations may be especially strong, considering the high stakes they have not only for students but also, through their use as accountability measures, for teachers and schools.…”

Assessment in the service of learning: challenges and opportunities or Plus ça Change, Plus c’est la même Chose

“…8 Some educational effects were impressive: Barnes, Clarke, and Stephens (2000) found that, although this was a school leaving examination for age 18, the kinds of problem-solving it introduced became part of the curriculum throughout secondary schools.…”