What Is A Standardized Assessment?

Standardized Assessments May Be

1. Norm-Referenced,
2. Criterion-Referenced, Or
3. Standards Referenced

Norm Referenced Assessment

Norm-Referenced Assessments Compare Individual Scores To Those Of A Norm-Reference Group, Generally Students Of The Same Grade Or Age.

They Are Designed To Demonstrate "Differences Between And Among Students To Produce A Dependable Rank Order" (Bond, 1996, P.1) And Are Often Used To Classify Students For Ability-Grouping Or To Help Identify Them For Placement In Special Programs.

They Are Also Used To Provide Information To Report To Parents.

Criterion Referenced Assessment

Criterion-Referenced Assessments Determine The Specific Knowledge And Skills Possessed By A Student.

In Other Words, Identify "The Kind Of Performances A Student Can Do In A Domain, Rather Than The Student's Standing In A Norm Group" (Nitco And Brookhart, 2011, P. 369).

Standards-Based Assessments Involve Comparing Students' Scores To "Clearly Defined Levels Of Achievement Or Proficiency" (Nitco And Brookhart, 2011, P. 514), Such As State Or National Standards.

Self-Reference Assessment

Self-Reference Occurs In Natural Or Formal Languages When A Sentence, Idea Or Formula Refers To Itself.

The Reference May Be Expressed Either Directly Through Some Intermediate Sentence Or Formula Or By Means Of Some Encoding.

• It Is Studied And Has Applications In Mathematics, Philosophy, Computer Programming And Linguistics.
• Self- Referential Statements Are Sometimes Inconsistent.
• Self-Referenced Feedback (I.E. Information On Improvement Or Decline By Comparing Student Achievement With His Or Her Own Past Achievement) Has Been Recommended In The Assessment Reform.