Self-assessment

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Thought leadership
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Self-assessment

HomeSchool resourcesSelf-assessment

Topic summary

Students who can reflect on the learning process and evaluate their own work are often more successful learners.

Student self-assessment involves students assessing their own work. This typically will include some form of overall assessment of the work’s quality in achieving the intended purposes of task as well as evaluative judgements about what they think is weak and what is strong in their work, and what they need to work on and improve. It also can involve students reflecting on the learning process (how well they undertook the task and learned), as well as the learning output, e.g. the essay they had to write.

Students who can assess their own learning are more effective learners. They are more motivated and engaged, have a greater belief that they can succeed, and are able to adapt their approach if learning is not working. Assessment-capable students typically show higher achievement.

There is a growing body of evidence on what self-assessment is and the different ways that teachers can support self-assessment in their classrooms. Currently, there is more limited research demonstrating in a causal way the impact that self-assessment has on student learning outcomes. Furthermore, the evidence would suggest that the impact of self-assessment depends substantially on the ways in which it is employed. 

  • Establishing successful self-assessment requires considerable input by teachers through sustained direct teaching on how to do it and follow-up support. Teachers also need to set the right conditions in the classroom so that students are not threatened by feeling judged. Some common self-assessment techniques include 
  • Rubrics
  • Scripts
  • Journals
  • Traffic lights
  • Exit cards
  • Paired marking
  • Dedicated Improvement and Reflection Time (DIRT)

  • Have I taught students how to self-assessment and provided opportunities for practice and feedback?
  • Am I getting my students to focus on both the process and the product of learning in their self-assessment?
  • Are students utilising self-assessment to help them to improve?

Research reviews

How to successfully introduce self-assessment in your classroom

How to help students learn to assess and improve their work

7 strategies for introducing self-assessment in your classroom

A series of clear steps for teaching students about self-assessment.

8 tools for peer and self-assessment

A systematic look at eight tools that students can use for peer and self-assessment

Webinars

Harnessing and enhancing assessment in schools

Professor Stuart Kime discusses the role of assessment in teaching and learning with a particular focus on practical strategies for how teachers can enhance their assessment practice and embed effective assessment into their day-to-day teaching.

Infographics

Snapshots

Harnessing and enhancing assessment in schools: key ideas from Professor Stuart Kime’s webinar

Key ideas on effective assessment practice in schools from Stuart Kime's webinar
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