Action & Expression
"When I talk to this one student during office hours, it’s clear that she knows her stuff. She even helps out other students during class. But then when I grade her tests, it’s like she forgot everything."
Showing vs. Telling
It is very possible, and in fact common, to have knowledge and skills but not be able to show it in a specific way. For example, a tennis player may have an excellent forehand but when pressed to explain the biomechanics of the swing, they struggle.
If you had to write with your non-dominant hand, would that be the best representation of your handwriting ability?
If you had to describe what “love” feels like, could you capture that in words?
Could you eloquently share all your scientific knowledge to a crowd of thousands?
Choosing the Right Assessment
If we consider grades to be a measurement of students’ knowledge and skills, it is crucial to choose measurements that accurately demonstrate what students know. Let's consider a few students, who we will assume all know the exact same information but have some important differences.
Bella
Has social anxiety
Efrain
Learning English as a second language
Max
Recently broke his arm
Making Bella do a presentation, Efrain a speech, or Max a handwritten essay would all be poor measures of what they actually know. And remember: even the most personable educators know only a fraction of their students’ ever-changing lives. One should assume that there is much we do not know about students’ preferences and limitations.
In reality, there is not one means of action and expression that will be optimal for every learner, so options for action and expression are essential.
