A Comparative Analysis of Assessment Types in Higher Education

This report provides a detailed discussion on different assessment types, focusing on summative, formative, and diagnostic assessments. It outlines the purpose, outcomes, advantages, and disadvantages of each type. Summative assessments are used at the end of a learning session to evaluate overall student performance, while formative assessments are conducted during the session to gauge student absorption and concentration levels. Diagnostic assessments are used to identify students' capabilities, skills, and disabilities at the beginning and end of a session. The report emphasizes the importance of assessment in identifying students' drawbacks and improving the teaching process. It concludes that all assessment types aim to enhance students' skills and capabilities. The report includes a table summarizing the assessment types and their key features, followed by detailed explanations and examples for each type, along with a comprehensive reference list.

Running head: DISCUSSION ON THE ASSESSMENT TYPES
DISCUSSION ON THE ASSESSMENT TYPES
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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DISCUSSION ON THE ASSESSMENT TYPES
Table of Contents
Introduction:....................................................................................................................................2
Assessment Type:............................................................................................................................2
Summative Assessment:..................................................................................................................5
Formative Assessment:....................................................................................................................6
Diagnostic Assessment:...................................................................................................................6
Conclusion:......................................................................................................................................7
Reference:........................................................................................................................................9

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DISCUSSION ON THE ASSESSMENT TYPES
Task 6:
Introduction:
Assessment is the process of evaluating the progress of the learners by the teachers in
terms of the skills, capabilities and requirements of the students (Wang and Hurley 2012). The
assessment of the students helps the teacher to understand the room for improvement and change
in the teaching method. Therefore, the assessment is one of the most important aspects of
teaching as well as the learning process. The teachers are the responsible bodies for conducting
the assessment of the learning progress of the students and they must involve the practical
participation of the learners as well as the guardians of the students in some special cases and
situations. In different words, the assessment of the students is a process of feedback from the
students and the guardians when the students are incapable of providing proper feedback of the
progression of the learning of the students (Evans 2013). The feedback can be of both direct and
indirect and of different types and are used at different point of time of the learning session
(Price et al., 2013). In addition, the different assessment types use different resource for the
execution of the assessment. However, the following section presents a chart of the different
assessment types and discuses the three assessment types in details.
Assessment Type:
Assessment
Type (Earl 2012)
Purpose Outcome Advantages Disadvantages
Summative Examine the final
result of
performance of
Indicate the
achievement and
success of the
Used for
measurement of
students’
Lengthy
process and

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DISCUSSION ON THE ASSESSMENT TYPES
students students improvements not accurate
Formative Evaluate the
concentration and
absorption level of
students
Indicate the
effectiveness of
the teaching and
any need for
improvement in
the teaching
process
Continuous
evaluation makes
the student
competent in
certain learning
programs
Rapid process
which often
makes the
teachers to
skip some
important steps
of learning
Authentic Evaluate the
development of
students’ academic
and special skills
and competencies
Development of
the students’
skills for the
employment
Continuous
assessment helps
the student
improve their
capabilities
This
assessment is
time
consuming and
costly
Initial Screening of the
students’ abilities
Teachers’
professional and
personal
understanding of
students’
capabilities and
requirements
Teachers are
privileged in terms
of improving their
way of delivering
learning
requirements
No
improvements
is seen at the
side of the
students
Diagnostic Diagnose the
students’
capabilities, skills
Identify the
special skills and
competencies of
Creates a link
between the
students and
teachers in terms
the chance of
mistakes by
the teachers in
understating

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DISCUSSION ON THE ASSESSMENT TYPES
and competencies
and gap between
the expected and
existing skills
the students and
mark the gaps
between the
expected and
existing growth of
skills
of learning process the abilities of
the students
Formal Evaluate overall
performance of
students in formal
way
Identify overall
growth and
performance
Students growth is
evaluated and
supported
Not a detailed
assessment
process
Informal Measure the
progression of the
students’ learning
level
Mark the growth
of the learning
level of the
students
Identify special
skills of the
students along with
the growth
Skips the
weaknesses of
the students
Dynamic Measure the
achievements of
unfamiliar topics
Mark and
improve the
achievements
level of students
in unfamiliar
topics
Provides ample
amount of
information
about the
students’ abilities
Creates
challenges for
the teachers
to establish
meaningful
relationship
with the
students
Synoptic Evaluate the Identify the Establishes the Time

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DISCUSSION ON THE ASSESSMENT TYPES
progression of the
students integration
of their abilities
and skills with
knowledge
students growth
and intensity of
the integration of
knowledge with
skills
integration of
students’ skills
and abilities
consuming
process and
also does not
often
privilege the
teachers
Criterion
Referenced
Evaluate and
measure students’
achievements on
specific criterion
Ensure reliability
and validity based
of specific
criterion for the
students
Always addresses
the specific
learning program
objectives
Requires
expensive
and extensive
effort and
time
Summative Assessment:
Summative assessment is conducted at the end of the session to produces the final
outcome of the students’ performance (Cilliers et al. 2012). This type of assessment includes
written method. The written method further includes the final project, mid-term test and a
reflective paper. In this way a teacher can understand and evaluate the overall performance of the
students based on the learning session (Harrison et al. 2013). For example, I have used the
summative assessment for the session 1, where I made sure the students submits a final project
and reflective assignment paper on the topic. Using this assessment method not only I
understood the overall performance of the students, but also I was able identify the drawbacks of
the students and make them understand the required area of the topic accordingly. For example,
if one of my student got poor mark in only an area of the topic, but the overall performance of

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DISCUSSION ON THE ASSESSMENT TYPES
the student is good, then I had to make sure I provide proper understanding of that specific
content to the student.
Formative Assessment:
The formative assessment is conducted during the session to evaluate the absorption and
concentration level of the students (Earl 2012). This assessment type includes the method of
feedback of the students. The feedback of the students can be verbal or non-verbal. The
formative assessment helps the teacher to understand the progression rand concentration level of
the students until certain point of the learning (Black 2013). If the teacher finds anyone with poor
concentration and absorption level, the teacher can specially and individually make the student
understand the topic to match his/her level with other students. For example, If one of my
students lacks behind with the average speed of the learning in the class, with the help of the
formative assessment I can identify that and provide the student special attention to match his/her
concentration and absorption level with other. Therefore, the effectiveness of the assessment
report helps the teacher to act accordingly with the capabilities of the student at every single
level of learning.
Diagnostic Assessment:
Diagnostic assessment can be conducted both at the beginning and end of the session.
The assessment enables the teachers in identifying the capabilities, abilities and disabilities of the
students as well as the competencies and skills of the same (Nichols, Chipman and Brennan
2012). This assessment uses the method of observation. This particular assessment method works
as the tool of measurement of the students’ capabilities and skills. The teacher is helped by this
assessment in terms of providing learning experience to the students according to their needs and

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DISCUSSION ON THE ASSESSMENT TYPES
capacity (Treagust 2012). For example, if I observe one of my students with communication
disabilities, I must make sure that I chose resources and way which will be easier for the student
to understand the topic I am teaching. In addition, the diagnostic assessment also identifies and
marks the gaps between the expected and existing outcome and skills of the students, so that the
teacher can act accordingly while teaching them. For example, if after a certain portion of
learning the students are expected to be capable of provide practical example of the topic and one
of the students only provides example that he/she has been taught, then the teacher must
understand that there is certainly any gap between the expected and existing outcome.
Conclusion:
Therefore it can be concluded from the above discourse that the assessment of the
students is important for the identification of the lack in the progress of the students. The report
discussed the different assessment types that are generally used by the teacher for the evacuation
of the students’ development in the learning process on any specific subjects. The report makes it
evident that the assessment types can be different, but the basic purpose of all the assessment
type is to identify the drawbacks of the students as well as the teaching process. The detail
discussion on the three different assessment types presents need for the each assessment types at
different point of time of teaching. The report presents the need for the summative assessment
for examining the overall performance of the student at the end of the end of the learning session
whereas the formative assessment of the student is done during the session on leering. On the
other hand, the diagnostic assessment can be conducted at the beginning of the session as well as
the end of the session. However, all the assessment measures the performance of the student in
terms of the development, enhancement of the skill and the capabilities of them.

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DISCUSSION ON THE ASSESSMENT TYPES
Reference:
Black, P., 2013. Formative and summative aspects of assessment: Theoretical and research
foundations in the context of pedagogy. Sage handbook of research on classroom assessment,
pp.167-178.
Cilliers, F.J., Schuwirth, L.W., Herman, N., Adendorff, H.J. and van der Vleuten, C.P., 2012. A
model of the pre-assessment learning effects of summative assessment in medical
education. Advances in Health Sciences Education, 17(1), pp.39-53.
Earl, L.M., 2012. Assessment as learning: Using classroom assessment to maximize student
learning. Corwin Press.
Evans, C., 2013. Making sense of assessment feedback in higher education. Review of
educational research, 83(1), pp.70-120.
Harrison, C.J., Könings, K.D., Molyneux, A., Schuwirth, L.W., Wass, V. and van der Vleuten,
C.P., 2013. Web‐based feedback after summative assessment: how do students engage?. Medical
education, 47(7), pp.734-744.
Nichols, P.D., Chipman, S.F. and Brennan, R.L. eds., 2012. Cognitively diagnostic assessment.
Routledge.
Price, M., Handley, K., O'Donovan, B., Rust, C. and Millar, J., 2013. Assessment
feedback. Reconceptualising feedback in higher education: Developing dialogue with students,
pp.41-53.