Assessment
The Assessment domain tests whether you can choose, design, and interpret assessments and use results to adjust instruction. Many items turn on correct interpretation of scores or on distinguishing formative from summative use.
Purposes and types
Formative assessment happens during learning and feeds feedback; summative assessment documents achievement at the end; diagnostic assessment locates prior knowledge. Criterion-referenced tests compare performance to a standard; norm-referenced tests compare to a group. Rubrics may be analytic (separate traits) or holistic. Performance tasks and portfolios capture complex outcomes but require clear criteria.
Technical qualities
Validity concerns whether a test measures what it claims and supports the intended inference; reliability concerns consistency; fairness concerns freedom from bias and unnecessary barriers. Accommodations change access without changing the construct; modifications change the construct or expectations.
Interpreting scores
A percentile rank is the percentage of the norm group scoring below that score-not the percentage correct. Grade equivalents are easily misread and should not be used for placement. Stanines run 1–9 with a mean of 5. Use the standard error of measurement to read score bands, and never overhaul instruction from one data point.
Worked example
A student earns a 45th percentile on a reading test. Reasoning: she performed at or above 45% of the norm group; the score does not mean she answered 45% correctly, and it does not specify which skills are weak. The teacher should examine the item-level report and run a brief diagnostic before grouping her.
Traps
Confusing percentile with percent correct; treating grade equivalents as placement guides; grading every formative check; teaching to specific test items; changing instruction after one score; assuming an accommodation changes expectations.