This thesis records a study of major change. The study was designed to reveal and address the implications for teachers of primary mathematics, of moving from test-based assessment to a base built upon a balanced blend of norm-referenced and criteria-based assessments. In developing embedded authentic assessment through a process portfolio model, the teachers looked to change from the assessment of learning to assessment for learning. Consequently, through the efforts of the teachers involved, their students and those students’ parents, the study traced a substantial pedagogical restructure. Based on an interpretative methodology, this study of significant assessment restructure used mainly qualitative approaches to data collection and analysis, supplemented by limited quantitative data. Interviews, participant observer interactions, surveys and joint teacher discussion and planning sessions were effective in mapping the change. Through frequent interaction, participating teachers shared their emerging understandings, along with difficulties and successes in the evolution and implementation of an effective, flexible process portfolio. From the beginning of the evolution, teachers working together to bring about improvements that would lead to students perceiving mathematics as meaningful, engendered a strong feeling of excitement, curiosity and ‘team’. As the change progressed the team identified and met a range of challenges, not the least of which was gaining an understanding of the nature and function of a process portfolio strategy as against the product portfolio which was in use at that time in the study school. The resultant change was not implemented without barriers. / Of prime concern across the group of teachers involved was the perennial problem of finding development time in what were already busy teaching days. However, for the change to be meaningful and lasting, it was imperative that the teachers invested considerable time in assuming ownership through genuine engagement in the evolution of the new concept. The engagement saw teachers experience first-hand the application of constructivist learning theory. It was an approach to learning that was largely unfamiliar to them and one they needed to understand in developing a successful process portfolio model. The study of that learning and the resultant change illustrated that a well-designed process portfolio structure offers widely diverse opportunities for teachers and students to work meaningfully with authentic mathematics. The enthusiastic prolonged engagement on the part of the students, with notable parental support, was deemed by the participant teachers to be suitable reward for the time and effort that they invested over the two years of the study. Following the teachers’ prolonged commitment, the emergent portfolio was shared through an in-house booklet written to encourage other teachers to adopt authentic assessment, Process Portfolios in Primary Mathematics: A Guide. Within the booklet, explanation and illustration of the rationale, form and function of the unique process portfolio model offers starting points for others, should they embark on a similar course of assessment change in search of real student engagement in understanding mathematics. Subsequent sharing of the results of the study with the wider profession through journal articles and conference workshops is to be based on the contents of the guide booklet.

Denna uppsats besvarar forskningsfrågan; hur ser universitetslärare på bedömning och examination inom högre utbildning. Syftet är att identifiera lärarattityder till bedömning och examination. Resultaten syftar till att skapa förutsätt­ningar för pedagogisk utveckling av lärare på Linnéuniversitetet samt inspirera nya sätt att betrakta bedömning och examination. Forskningsöversikten behandlar övergripande perspektiv på bedömning och dess inverkan inom högre utbildning. Vidare redogörs för bedömningens funk­tioner, bedömnings­kultur samt bedömning för lärande. Universitetslärares uppfatt­ning om bedömning och undervisning i allmän­het behandlas också. Metoden är en kombination av enkäter och intervjuer där således både kvalitativ och kvantitativ metod användes för att insamla data av både kvalitativ och kvantitativ karaktär, vilken analyse­rades med både kvalitativa och kvantitativa analys­metoder. Resultat och analys visar relationen mellan förutsättningar, kriterier för vad som betraktas som bedömning och examination av god kvalitet, samt utveckling av densamma. Det empiriska resultatet identifierar också diversifierade attityder till en mängd aspekter relaterade till bedömning och examination, men även pedagogisk utveckling generellt sett. Betydelsen av kunskapsöverföring är återkommande där diskussioner och förklaringar kollegor emellan och med studenter, i syfte att skapa mening och utveckling krävs. Studentengagemang på olika nivåer; från strategisk utveckling till konkret implementering, är också betydelsefullt. / This essay answers the research question; how do university teachers view assessment and examination in higher education. The aim is to identify teachers' attitudes to assessment and examination. The results aim to create conditions for the educational development of teachers at Linnaeus University and inspire new ways of looking at assessment and examination. The research review deals with overall perspectives on assessment and examina­tion and its impact on higher education. Furthermore, the functions and culture of assessment and assessment of learning are outlined. University teachers’ attitudes on assessment and teaching in general are also considered. The method is a combination of questionnaires and interviews, thus both qualitative and quantitative method was used to collect data of both qualitative and quantitative in nature, which was analyzed with both qualitative and quantitative methods. Results and analysis show the relationship between the conditions, criteria for what is regarded as assessment and examination of good quality, and the development of the same. The empirical results also identify diverse attitudes to a variety of aspects related to assessment and examination, but also educational development in general. The importance of knowledge transfer is repeated where discussions and explanations between colleagues and students, in order to create meaning and development is required. Student involvement at various levels; from strategic development to practical implementation, is also significant.

En vue de l’importance de l’évaluation dans l’enseignement et l’apprentissage des langues étrangères, notre projet vise à comparer et analyser les pratiques d’évaluation utilisées dans les cours de langue étrangère au sein de trois pays : l’Iran, la France et les États-Unis. L’objectif de cette recherche n’est pas de mettre en valeur un système éducatif à proprement parlé, mais de comprendre si les pratiques évaluatives de ces contextes sont universelles ou culturellement spécifiques. In fine, il convient de comprendre quelle est la dynamique qui met en jeu leurs spécificités, c'est-à-dire les réalités sociales, politiques ou économiques qui les forment. Pour la réalisation de cette étude, nous avons mené des entretiens compréhensifs semi-directifs auprès de 48 enseignants de langues (français, anglais et persan) dans les trois pays. À travers ces entretiens nous avons extrait les représentations de ces enseignants autour de quatre concepts clés de pratiques d’évaluation, c'est-à-dire les objectifs d’apprentissage des langues, les pratiques et les instruments évaluatifs, l’examen, et la perception des enseignants des langues (étrangères). L’analyse qualitative de ces entretiens nous a montré que les pratiques d’évaluation utilisées dans les différents contextes académiques et universitaires dans ces trois pays, sont plutôt universelles ; fait principalement dû aux règles et exigences particulières du contexte institutionnel d’évaluation que les enseignants doivent respecter et satisfaire, ainsi qu’au niveau élémentaire des étudiants, qui nécessite l’intégration des activités évaluatives des niveaux inférieurs de la Taxonomie de Bloom. En même temps, nous avons également constaté des différences significatives qui relèvent des particularités culturelles telles que les traditions d’enseignement et d’évaluation, les rôles de l’enseignant, de l’apprenant et de l’institution, ainsi que des contextes d’emploi de la langue, situations qui dépendent, à leur tour, des contextes et des enjeux politiques, économiques, sociaux et géographiques de chacun des trois pays étudiés. / Given the importance of assessment in the teaching and the learning of foreign languages, this dissertation aims at comparing and analyzing the assessment practices used in university-level foreign language classes in three countries: Iran, France and the United States. The goal of this research is not to valorize one of these countries’ educational systems, but to understand if the assessment practices used in these countries are universal or culturally specific and if specific, what social, political or economic realities are involved. For the completion of this study, a set of semi-directive comprehensive interviews were conducted with 48 language instructors (French, English and Persian languages) in these three countries. These interviews provided us with the representations of the participants of their assessment practices, which enabled us to establish four images that reflect the key concepts relating to assessment: these images were course objectives, assessment tools and practices, exam and instructors’ perception of (foreign) languages. Through a qualitative analysis of these interviews revealed that assessment practices in academic (university) settings were in part universal, due to their institutional contexts, which require the implementation of certain rules and regulations, as well as the elementary level of students involved in these assessment practices, which favored the use of the activities that lie in the inferior levels of the Bloom’s Taxonomy. At the same time, we also able to observe significant differences among the assessment practices used in these three countries, which raise from the specificities of these three cultures and education/teaching traditions, as well as the uses of the language in question, which depend on the political, economic, social and geographic situations of each of these three countries.

This study analyzed how three award-winning divisions of Student Affairs are using assessment to show evidence of student learning and development at their institutions. There is a movement in U.S. higher education toward increased accountability through outcomes assessment. Institutions are called upon to demonstrate effectiveness in their programs and services and to provide evidence of student learning and development in the curricular and co-curricular environments. To date, there is little research on how Student Affairs uses assessment to show that students are learning and developing as a result of participating in its programs, services, and activities. Findings and discussion from this study revealed (a) conditions and strategies for building and sustaining a culture of learning outcomes assessment in divisions of Student Affairs; (b) promising practices in planning, designing, implementing and using student learning outcomes assessment in Student Affairs; and (c) ways that Student Affairs contributes to student learning and development in the co-curricular and curricular environments. Implications of this study show also how selected divisions of Student Affairs are addressing the call for increased accountability in higher education and suggest that Student Affairs plays an integral role within institutions of higher education for student learning and development.

This essay covers the increasingly prevalent issue of the assessment of preschool children. The revised curriculum for preschool (Lpfö 98, 2016) prescribes on us educators constant documentation by children's learning and development. The purpose of the documentation is to develop preschool activities. We document children's learning in different ways, for example through observations, photography or video recording. When we reflect on the dokumentation, it becomes an educational documentation. The educational documentation, help us to realise what the children have learned and what educators need to change or develop to achieve goals. We also make plans on how we will take care of different situations and whom we would like to involve in this work. This alternative approach requires a certain assessment of children. The purpose of this essay is to problematize and reflect on the assessment of preschool children. My own formulation is intertwined with three stories my preschool colleagues told about their experiences of assessing children. Our thoughts are examined and reflected in our practical knowledge, power relationships, responsibility and socialization in preschool culture. The assessment of preschool children does not only happen here and now, but has also historically developed in various forms. Research also shows different trends in assessment culture. In the revised curriculum, the assessment culture approaches the Anglo-Saxon tradition, which places the focus of evaluationon the child instead of the preschool activity. / Föreliggande essä behandlar den alltmera aktuella frågan om bedömningen av förskolebarn. Den reviderade läroplanen för förskolan (Lpfö 98, 2016) ålägger oss pedagoger ständigt dokumenterande av barns lärande och utveckling. Syftet med dokumenterandet är att utveckla förskoleverksamheten. Vi dokumenterar barns lärande på olika sätt, till exempel genom observationer, fotografering eller videofilmning. När vi tar dokumentationen till reflektion blir den till en pedagogisk dokumentation. Utifrån pedagogisk dokumentation ser vi vad barnen har lärt sig och vad vi pedagoger behöver förändra eller utveckla för att uppnå mål. Vi planerar även hur vi ska gå tillväga och vilka vi ska involvera i detta arbete. Detta tillvägagångssätt förutsätter att det sker en viss bedömning av barn. Syftet med denna essä är att problematisera och reflektera kring bedömningen av förskolebarn. Min egen gestaltning vävs samman med tre förskollärarkollegors berättelser om sina erfarenheter av bedömningen. Våra tankar undersöks och speglas mot vår praktiska kunskap, maktförhållanden, ansvar och socialiseringen i förskolekulturen. Bedömningen av förskolebarn sker inte enbart här och nu, utan har även historiskt sätt utvecklats i olika former. Även forskningen visar på olika tendenser i bedömningskulturen. I och med den reviderade läroplanen börjar bedömningskulturen närma sig den anglosaxiska traditionen, där man lägger utvärderingens fokus på barnet istället för verksamheten.

L’évaluation des apprentissages occupe une place importante dans les dispositifs de formation. Les décisions évaluatives peuvent avoir un impact majeur sur l’avenir professionnel de l’apprenant. Les enjeux peuvent être également élevés pour toute la société. Par ailleurs, bien que l’enseignant soit le premier responsable de l’évaluation, d’autres acteurs internes et externes y participent : les évalués, les acteurs institutionnels, les décideurs du ministère, les organismes accréditeurs, etc. L’évaluation semble bien plus complexe qu’elle n’y paraît. Dans le contexte de l’enseignement supérieur tunisien, il y a un manque de recherche dans le champ de l’éducation et plus particulièrement en lien avec la question de l’évaluation des apprentissages. C’est pourquoi cette étude se propose de tenter de dissiper le flou qui entoure les pratiques évaluatives, qui, à notre connaissance, n’ont pas été traitées comme objet de recherche dans le contexte de l’université tunisienne. Dans la présente étude, le concept de « culture d’évaluation » est central. L’analyse culturelle réalisée s’appuie sur la forte ressemblance entre les concepts de culture et celui de pratique. Cela nous a conduit à adopter un cadre d’analyse inspiré de la théorie des architectures de la pratique (Kemmis, 2009; Kemmis et al., 2014b). Les objectifs spécifiques consistent d’abord à décrire en détail les pratiques d’évaluation des apprentissages des enseignants ciblés et, ensuite, à identifier les patrons culturels associés à ces pratiques. L’ethnographie est la méthodologie retenue pour cette recherche. Elle implique de mener une étude de terrain auprès d’un groupe social de « natifs ». Il s’agit d’un groupe d’enseignants appartenant aux disciplines de l’ingénierie œuvrant à l’université de Gafsa. Les données ont été recueillies à l’aide des méthodes de l’entrevue individuelle semi-dirigée, de l’observation participante et de l’étude de documents. L’analyse des pratiques évaluatives dans le cadre de cette étude a permis de dégager quelques constats généraux. D’abord, l’évaluation est avant tout un dispositif technique. Il s’agit en outre d’une activité plurielle où des pratiques singulières se développent. Néanmoins, les enseignants tendent à suivre un processus officiel générique. Un autre constat concerne le caractère solitaire de l’activité d’évaluation qui se manifeste dans le manque de collaboration et l’existence de pratiques de « bricolage ». Il apparaît aussi que les enseignants sont insatisfaits des pratiques évaluatives existantes et tentent par de multiples moyens de les améliorer, mais sans impact réel. Le système évaluatif officiel est trop rigide pour permettre de vrais changements dans les pratiques. Cela contribue à renforcer la logique du devoir qui consiste à répondre aux exigences administratives en matière d’évaluation. Paradoxalement, les prescriptions officielles ne sont pas toujours respectées. Les résultats montrent également l’existence de conflits dans les activités d’évaluation collaboratives. Tous ces éléments conduisent à un manque de transparence dans l’évaluation. Finalement, les résultats suggèrent une certaine prévalence de la tolérance dans la culture d’évaluation. À travers cette étude, nous présentons une ethnographie assez détaillée en tant que contribution importante pour la recherche en évaluation. Les acteurs du terrain pourraient s’y référer pour développer des dispositifs de formation plus efficaces en ingénierie. / Assessment of learning occupies a central position in training structures. Assessment decisions can have a major impact on the learner professional future. The stakes can be high for all the society as well. In addition, although the teacher has the lead responsibility for assessment, other internal and external actors are involved: the students, the institutional actors, the decision-makers at ministry level, accreditation bodies, etc. Assessment seems much more complex than it looks. In the context of Tunisian higher education, there is a lack of research in the field of education, especially regarding the issue of assessment of learning. Consequently, this study proposes to dispel the lack of clarity that surrounds assessment practices, which, to our knowledge, have not been considered as a research topic in the context of the Tunisian university. In this study, the concept of "culture of assessment" is central. The cultural analysis undertaken is based on the strong similarity between the concepts of culture and that of practice. This led us to adopt an analytical framework inspired by the theory of architectures of practice (Kemmis, 2009; Kemmis et al., 2014b). This research had two specific research objectives: first, to provide a detailed description of the targeted teachers assessment practices and, secondly, to identify the cultural patterns related to these practices. We have chosen ethnography as a research methodology in this study. It involves conducting field research with a social group of "natives". It’s a group of engineering teachers working at the University of Gafsa. Data were collected using the following methods: semi-structured individual interview, participant observation and documents. In this study, the analysis of assessment practices allowed us to form few overall observations. First of all, assessment is primarily a technical process. It is also a plural activity where unique practices develop. However, teachers tend to follow a generic formal process. Another conclusion concerns the solitary nature of the assessment activity which manifests itself in the lack of collaboration and the existence of improvisation practices. In addition, it appears that teachers express dissatisfaction with existing assessment practices and try in many ways to improve them but with no real impact. The official assessment system is too rigid to allow real changes in practices. This contributes in reinforcing the logic of duty which consists in trying to meet the administrative requirements for assessment. Paradoxically, official requirements are not always respected. The results also show the existence of conflicts in collaborative assessment activities. We also concluded that assessment lacks transparency. Finally, the results suggest a certain prevalence of tolerance in the assessment culture. In this study, we present a quite detailed ethnography as an important contribution to research on assessment. Actors in the field could use it as a reference in order to develop more effective training systems in the field of engineering.