Educational Assessment and Evaluation Terms

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Formative Evaluation

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Information and data gathered along the way that is used to improve, modify, or revise a program, curriculum, or unit of instruction to enhance student learning. This type of evaluation helps guide ongoing classroom instruction.

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Rubric

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A teacher-constructed list of characteristics used as criteria for ranking the quality of students' work, along with some type of guide for scoring or grading. Usually, this guide describes the criteria along with a numerical range or scale to indicate the degree of quality or mastery shown by the work.

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Median

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The middle number; the point where there is one-half above and one-half below, thus dividing the group into two equal parts: the 50th percentile.

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Portfolio Assessment

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A collection and evaluation of student products and performances selected for inclusion based on agreed-upon criteria. These generally illustrate a range of abilities and special talents showing growth, self-reflection, and achievement.

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Evaluation

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Process of gathering and using qualitative and quantitative data to make a judgment of value, worth, merit, or effectiveness. This can be for an individual student, group, class, grade level, department, school, school district, or program.

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Reliability

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The extent to which scores, tests, programs, or assessments are accurate, dependable, stable, consistent, and free from error over a period of time.

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Correlation

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A relationship, correspondence, or connection between two things. This is not a cause-and-effect relationship; two items may be strongly 'connected' without one causing the other.

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Range

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The difference between the highest and lowest scores plus 1.

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Criterion-referenced

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An assessment that measures progress toward mastery of a given set of objectives, outcomes, or skills. This measurement does not compare one person's score to the scores of the rest of the group.

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Grade Equivalent

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Theoretically, an average score at a given grade level. This score relates a student's raw score to the average scores obtained by norming groups at different grade levels.