Assignment or Assessment: What's the Difference?

I am a big promoter of course-embedded assessments, what Linda Suskie describes as “course assessments that do double duty, providing information not only on what students have learned in the course but also on their progress in achieving program or institutional goals” (Suskie 27). 

Research papers, capstone projects, presentations, evaluations from clinical or internship supervisors—these are authentic assessments that allow us to gather evidence of student performance in our programs without necessarily adding to our workload.  Suskie credits course-embedded assessments with keeping assessment processes manageable, and, because they are developed locally, “they match up well with learning goals” (27). 

While course-embedded assessments are often course assignments, the assignment itself is not an assessment measure, and grades earned are not considered direct, valid evidence of student performance. 

That last sentence reads like assessment doublespeak, so think of the difference this way.  The assignment might be to compose a research paper and then present the work orally to the class.  How the paper and presentation are assessed is the assessment measure.  Typically, papers and presentations are scored by rubric, a scoring guide that provides clear and detailed descriptive criteria for what constitutes excellent work and what signifies an unacceptable performance. The rubric, therefore, is the assessment measure, assuming that what it is measuring aligns to a learning goal.   

Likewise, specific questions on an exam that measure a learning goal may serve as an assessment measure, while the complete examination, like the research paper, is the assignment.

When assignments are confused with assessment measures, the results do not produce specific enough information about student learning that has implications for continuous improvement.  A typical example of such assessment findings might read, “73% of student earned grades of 80 or higher on the presentation. Target was achieved.”  Such findings report how students performed on a given assignment in a given class on a given day, but they do not indicate anything about where student performance was especially strong, and where it was less successful.  Were the presentations well organized?  Were the delivery techniques effective?  Did the students use technology well to convey their messages? 

Assessment goes beyond grading and analyzes patterns of student performance.  Good assessment methods help identify these patterns. 

To learn about the advantages and disadvantages of specific assessment methods, visit  https://www.utica.edu/academic/Assessment/new/resources.cfm  or contact the Office of Academic Assessment in 127 White Hall.

Works Cited

Suskie, Linda. Assessing Student Learning: A Common Sense Guide. San Franscisco: Jossey-Bass, 2009.