The Pros and Cons of Learning Assessments
Debating the Territory-Wide System Assessment in Hong Kong
Learning assessments are considered essential for measuring and improving the quality of an education system; yet for some they also raise serious concerns. The controversy over Hong Kong SAR’s Territory Wide System Assessment illustrates the issues at stake.
It has become widely accepted that students’ learning must be assessed in order for education systems to evaluate and improve on their own quality over time. Around the world, the majority of countries apply one or more forms of assessments and examinations at different educational stages (see the UNESCO Institute of Statistics catalogue of assessments). Regional and international assessment programmes and tools have proliferated, and data on international indicators is already being collected to measure progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals on indicators such as proficiency in reading, mathematics, and basic ICT skills.
Yet there has also been marked resistance from some education stakeholders to the rising use of learning assessments. Opponents argue that over-reliance on learning assessments leads to a narrowing of the educational experience, places undue pressure on students and weakens their intrinsic love for learning, and—despite advancements in measurement—can ultimately provide only a very limited picture of many important aspects of a quality education.
It has often been argued that low-stakes assessments can overcome many of these concerns by simply offering a snapshot of quality among a sample of students, without tying reward or punishment directly to the results. However, in many contexts even low-stakes assessments have been the subject of intense public debate.