- student verbal responses
- student contributions to peer or class discussion
- learning activity observations
- learning support observations
- information from a parent or carer.
Forming an on-balance judgement
Considering a range of information to support feedback and reporting on student learning.
What is an on-balanced judgement
An on-balance judgement should be a fair judgement of what a student knows, understands, and can do at a point in time. It is a holistic professional judgement of learning that considers what the teacher knows about the student in relation to performance standards. This can be informed by observations from the classroom, their work, as well as more formal assessment information.
Teachers form on-balanced judgements in an ongoing process of revising the image of a student’s knowledge and capability in a specific area against a predetermined performance standard as more information becomes available. This judgement reflects a student’s performance at one point in time and is not a reflection of their potential. It is therefore important for assessment to be a regular part of a teacher’s reflective practices.
What information is used
Information gathered from across different assessment modes should be used to make on-balance judgements of student learning against a performance standard. Information from less structured approaches, such as classroom observation and review of student work provides valuable formative information, guiding the next steps in learning. More structured assessments, programmed into learning as summative tasks, are usually single point-of-time measures that may have other factors that influence student performance. As such summative tasks should be considered alongside other information about the student to develop reliable judgements for reporting on student learning. For more information see NESA's Reporting and Using Grades.
Processes of reflection and professional judgement should be used to decide what information to use when forming an image of a student. This considers both quantitative and qualitative data.
- Quantitative data is numerical such as assessment marks that can assist in summarising or comparing large amounts of information.
- Qualitative data is usually descriptive or observational such as teacher observations, work samples, conversations or verbal responses.
Considering both forms of data can help make an on-balance judgement of student learning against a standard.
How to consider a range of information
When making on-balance judgements, information from multiple sources is used to refine a teacher’s image of a student. Each piece of information should challenge or corroborate pre-existing ideas of a student’s knowledge and skills and so contribute to a clearer picture of individual strengths and learning needs and support student feedback for continued learning improvement. Information can be collected at various times in the teaching and learning cycle to provide evidence of learning and used to provide actionable feedback to students.
Observations
What they look like
What they assist with
Observations usually provide qualitative information.
They may provide insight into unique student strengths or challenges not captured in more formal assessment processes.
These observations also provide opportunities for timely point-of-need feedback to move learning forward.
Observations can also give insights into social, emotional, or physical factors that might impact student learning.
How to consider them
Initially, informal or unstructured assessment observations create an image of current student knowledge and capability. This image is refined by further observation and other information gathered about student learning.
These observations can be enhanced through effective questioning to identify specific aspects of student learning with respect to the outcomes.
Observations can be used to identify what kind of work samples will be most helpful in developing a clearer image of the student. Observations of all students do not usually need formal capture of information if meeting learning expectations. Teachers may like to note when an individual student’s performance is different from these expectations. Such as when they show difficulty understanding a concept, or if their performance is above what was expected from a lesson’s learning intentions and success criteria. These observations can help differentiate support for these students and assist in monitoring learning progress.
Student work samples
What they look like
- structured work connected with classroom activities
- work samples (visual, oral, written, practical)
- student bookwork.
What they assist with
Observations usually provide qualitative information.
They may provide insight into unique student strengths or challenges not captured in more formal assessment processes.
These observations also provide opportunities for timely point-of-need feedback to move learning forward.
Observations can also give insights into social, emotional, or physical factors that might impact student learning.
How to consider them
Work samples from different types of tasks are collected for analysis. These samples can include visual, oral, written or practical work that are assessed against a criterion and complement informal observations to further refine the image of the student. Some work samples may contradict initial inferences made from observations. These samples can add depth to the teacher’s image of the student or assist with the identification of an aspect that needs further exploration.
Work samples can be considered alongside information from more structured assessment data.
More structured assessment data
What they look like
- structured internal assessments
- NAPLAN
- Check-in Assessment
- On-demand assessments.
What they assist with
Student work samples provide information that can be coded to identify specific features against performance standards.
They also provide opportunities for quality written and/or verbal feedback on strengths and areas for improvement.
Due to the volume of student work samples, teachers should have a clear purpose in mind with the timing and nature of tasks collected for analysis.
How to consider them
Assessment data from more structured assessments are used to support or refute the image a teacher has of the student, already formed by observations and work samples. These are often more summative in nature but can be incorporated through a period of explicit teaching, particularly when considering both the process of learning and the product. These data assist with developing a holistic picture of the student and performance of a cohort.
Teachers continually refine their judgments of student understanding in an iterative process, considering their observations of students, the work samples they produce, and more formal assessment results. An on-balance judgment is only accurate at the time the judgement is made, changing as new information comes to light. It is used to inform decisions about reporting, feedback and identifying the next steps in student learning. Student knowledge, skills and understanding develop at a rate that is unique to each learner.
When bringing together pieces of information, some of the following questions may be helpful:
- Is further information needed to help form a reliable judgement?
- Is this piece of information consistent with what I have previously observed of this student?
- Are there inconsistencies between pieces of information and, if so, why might this be the case?
- What other information might help to clarify or confirm a judgement?
The reliability of holistic on-balanced judgments can be strengthened within schools through embedding key practices that support consistent teacher judgement.
Examples in practice
Scenario
Katie is a Year 5 student who completes work to a minimal standard or refuses to engage in tasks. Katie can explain complex ideas in discussions with her teacher but is less engaged in group work with her peers. Katie’s Check-in Assessment results are quite strong across all areas, consistent with high achievement in NAPLAN.
Explanation
Teacher observations in class and student work samples suggest Katie is not fully engaged in her learning or has difficulty completing tasks. Her verbal explanations indicate she is more capable than is being shown by her work samples. Strong results in both NAPLAN and Check-in assessments indicate Katie’s classwork does not reflect her potential.
In forming an on-balance judgement the teacher might conclude that Katie might be a high-potential or gifted student who is underachieving in classroom learning. This could be the result of boredom, lack of challenge or social challenges shown by less engagement in group work.
This on-balance judgement can inform appropriate differentiation to support extension and engagement or prompt gathering of further information to build a clearer picture of Katie’s learning needs.
Scenario
Felix is a Year 3 student who engages in all class activities and produces work that meets stage-level expectations. He displays creative thinking and is particularly enthusiastic about activities that involve drawing or practical art skills. Work samples produced by Felix show good skills and knowledge across literacy and numeracy with a strength in measurement and geometry. End-of-term assessment data is consistent with this, revealing a few common misconceptions in literacy but sound capability across domains.
Explanation
Information from observations and work samples show that Felix is appropriately engaged and supported in his learning, as is seen by his consistent performance in class and formal assessment. This supports reliable reporting of student achievement against performance standards.
Felix is demonstrating the knowledge and skills expected in Year 3 and does not display behaviours that suggest he is under-engaged or requires additional support. His enjoyment of creative activities may support his ongoing engagement or provide him with opportunities in group activities.
Scenario
Saori is a Year 7 student who is anxious about tasks that demand reading and writing under examination-style conditions. Saori’s NAPLAN data and marks from the end-of-year examination would suggest she has difficulty with writing. Samples from her classwork, however, suggest she is achieving on par if not slightly higher than her peers in all writing elements apart from spelling. Saori’s teacher reports that Saori seems in good spirits in class but learns from the parents that Saori was up all night before her exams because of her anxiety.
Explanation
An on-balance judgement considers the various sources of information about Saori. Saori is observed to be actively involved in classwork that involves writing and samples of her work show that they are of a high standard in most areas. This demonstrates that Saori is a capable writer. The low NAPLAN writing scores do not accurately reflect her ability shown in classwork, indicating possible anxiety during examinations or some other factor that contributed to a lower result. Parental observations around exam anxiety confirmed the teacher’s inferences.
In considering this information the teacher concludes that Saori is a capable writer with an area for development in spelling. This on-balance judgement may inform targeted adjustments or learning support for Saori to manage anxiety, particularly during examinations. Her anxiety could be raised with the school’s learning support team for appropriate monitoring or action. An area of focus for Saori is spelling. The teacher can work with her to set achievable learning goals to strengthen this area.
The teacher continues to monitor learning tasks and check in with Saori before more formal examinations.
Scenario
Osman is a Year 9 student who was identified through NAPLAN and teacher observation as needing additional support in numeracy due to his low performance in comparison to a cohort average. Osman’s teacher adjusted work and offered one-on-one support, and Osman took part in one cycle of numeracy-focused Small Group Tuition. During Small Group Tuition, targeted assessments were made to check understanding of key concepts alongside general observations by the support teacher. Osman’s classwork demonstrated some improvement in understanding and accuracy, and his teacher observed increased confidence when answering questions in class. In his end-of-year exam, Osman’s results were still below the cohort average but had improved from earlier assessments.
Explanation
An on-balance judgement may consider these varied sources of information and conclude that interventions have been successful and that Osman is closer to meeting the expected numeracy outcomes.
This on-balance judgement may inform the gradual release of additional support structures, and transition to regular monitoring of student progress.
Ongoing monitoring of Osman’s progress will show whether this progress is sustained or whether further targeted support is needed.
How to improve consistency of judgements
The reliability of on-balanced judgements can be strengthened by establishing clear processes to arrive at consistent judgements between teachers for observations of learning, work samples or more structured assessments that can support reporting.
This can be achieved through professional dialogue to establish a clear and consistent understanding of syllabus expectations and qualities that are demonstrated in student work samples. Processes to make consistent teacher judgements are effective when created through professional dialogue aligned to the syllabus expectations and common grade scale.
More information on these practices is available on Consistent teacher judgement or in the Effective assessment practices guide.
Alignment to frameworks and standards
Effective assessment practices are a focus area in the School Excellence Framework (SEFv3) and the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers.
The importance of effective assessment practices is a key message in the School Excellence Framework (SEFv3) Learning Domain – Assessment.
In schools that excel, consistent school-wide practices for assessment are used to monitor, plan and report on student learning across the curriculum. Formative assessment is integrated into teaching practice in every classroom.
Theme: Whole school monitoring of student learning
- The school uses systematic and reliable assessment information to evaluate student learning over time and implements changes in teaching that lead to measurable improvement.
- The school has processes in place to support teachers’ consistent, evidence-informed judgement and moderation of assessments.
Effective assessment practices are a focus area of professional practice in the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers:
Standard 5.1 – Assess student learning – 5.1.1, 5.1.2, 5.1.3, 5.1.4
Standard 5.4 - Interpret student data – 5.4.1, 5.4.2