Educational Assessment on Trial

by Andrew Davis, Christopher Winch, Gerard Lum (Editor)

Overview

What purpose does educational assessment serve? Are the same instruments suitable for different purposes? How much trust can we place upon the outcomes of educational assessment?

The subject of educational assessment is much discussed and much misunderstood. Policymakers assert its importance to quality in education and its essential role in ensuring accountability for public education, and the results of educational assessment are thought to be of such vital interest to society that they are often made public knowledge.

This approachable text explores the philosophical issues underlying these debates and how they impact on public educational policy. Two leading educators well-known for their work on educational assessment offer different perspectives on the value of exams and tests for a flourishing system of education, while the editor, Gerard Lum, comments on the strengths and weaknesses of the arguments.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781472572301
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Publishing
Publication date:	02/26/2015
Series:	Key Debates in Educational Policy
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	176
File size:	250 KB

About the Author

Andrew Davis is Honorary Research Fellow in the School of Education at Durham University, UK.

Christopher Winch is Professor of Educational Philosophy and Policy at King's College London, UK.

Gerard Lum is Lecturer in Philosophy and Education Management at King's College London, UK.
Andrew Davis is Honorary Research Fellow in the School of Education at Durham University, UK. He is an authority on assessment, philosophy and psychology of mathematical learning and primary mathematics. There has been widespread media coverage of his 2014 IMPACT pamphlet 'To Read or Not to Read: Decoding Synthetic Phonics'.
Christopher Winch is Professor of Educational Philosophy and Policy at King's College London, UK.
Gerard Lum is Lecturer in Philosophy and Education Management at King's College, London, UK. He is a longstanding member of the Philosophy of Education Society of Great Britain.

Table of Contents

Notes on Contributors
Series Editor's Preface
Introduction, Gerard Lum
Part I: Assessment and Accountability, Andrew Davis
Part II: The Nature and Purpose of Educational Assessment - A Response to Andrew Davis, Christopher Winch
Afterword: Can the Two Positions Be Reconciled?, Gerard Lum
Bibliography
Index

Editorial Reviews

This book represents the philosophy of education at its best - it takes the practical issue of assessment and probes underlying matters, such as the transfer of learning and the nature of knowledge. The three contributors demonstrate great skill in presenting their arguments and I would recommend it to anyone who wants to understand the implications of educational assessment. The arguments are sustained right up to the last page and, with careful reading, will be of great benefit to anyone who takes the trouble to take this book seriously.” —Geoffrey Hinchliffe, Director of Academic Practice, Centre for Staff and Educational Development, University of East Anglia, UK

“A lucid and enlightened debate engaging both sides of the assessment 'divide'. The arguments here serve to actually strengthen the thinking concerning this pressing educational issue – it is what good policy making, sound professional practice and our children need and surely deserve.” —Christine Doddington, Senior Lecturer in Education, University of Cambridge, UK

From the Publisher

A lucid and enlightened debate engaging both sides of the assessment 'divide'. The arguments here serve to actually strengthen the thinking concerning this pressing educational issue - it is what good policy making, sound professional practice and our children need and surely deserve.

Christine Doddington

This book represents the philosophy of education at its best - it takes the practical issue of assessment and probes underlying matters, such as the transfer of learning and the nature of knowledge. The three contributors demonstrate great skill in presenting their arguments and I would recommend it to anyone who wants to understand the implications of educational assessment. The arguments are sustained right up to the last page and, with careful reading, will be of great benefit to anyone who takes the trouble to take this book seriously.

Geoffrey Hinchliffe