Assessment is an important tool to incorporate into any physical education class. There are two forms of assessments that can be used: formative or summative. Formative assessments are assessment procedures that teachers utilize during the learning process, for example: a skills assessment. These types of assessments can be used during instruction to check for students understanding. Summative assessments are used to evaluate students overall understanding of a unit, for example: written exam, mid-term, or final paper. Students can then set goals/targets during instruction so that they have something to practice on before their assessment, either formative or summative. Teachers use assessments to know where their students are in terms of skill development and to determine whether the students are comprehending the material. Students can benefit from these assessments, by recognizing areas where they need to improve on, determining if they are performing the skills correctly, and if they understand the rules and guidelines for a specific activity. Once the assessments are evaluated the teacher can use the information to rewrite a lesson, unit, or teaching strategies for that specific class or individual.

   

Assessments can be a powerful tool when they are used in a timely, informative way and relate to what the teachers are currently teaching. Teachers can use assessment results, to change how they plan or give instruction for future lessons to come. If a lesson is to easy, changes can be made to incorporate other ways to challenge students. It’s also important to realize the diverse learning process of each student. Not all students learn the same so it’s important to incorporate a variety of assessment tools to accommodate all students. The assessment process allows for students to learn to evaluate their own work and take responsibility of their effort in developing the skills needed.  Also, students have a tendency to become more engaged during class time because they are aware that they will be assessed over the material in the future.

   

It’s important for students to practice their skills in both the content and in the format of the assessment. Students begin practicing the specific cues for skills through extensions, refinements, and applications. Once the necessary skills are practiced students start to play the actual game/activity. Students need to be able to perform the skill correctly during actual gameplay, to help them be more successful in demonstrating their knowledge during the assessment process. As a teacher, it’s important to incorporate specific or congruent feedback to each individual student. Students usually become more motivated to engage in the lesson, once they begin receiving feedback from the teacher over the specific skill they are practicing. Grading, is also a way to help give feedback and keep students engaged throughout the lesson. In physical education students are graded largely on participation, therefore, being actively involved in the activities is important in order for them to receive a good participation grade. Thus, as a teacher it’s important to give feedback to help students stay on task and increase their overall participation during the lesson.