Dilemmas and Issues for Teachers Developing Performance Assessments in Mathematics

This report examines some of the dilemmas and issues that arose during the first two terms of work with teachers participating in a mathematics performance assessment development program. Additionally, the authors report on changes in teachers’ instruction and assessment as a result of the project. During the study, many dilemmas and issues arose that were unique to each of the three schools studied, but the most challenging problems across all schools were the teachers’ focus on what was important to teach, and therefore assess; and how children could learn what was taught–all within the constraints of limited teacher time. As expected, preliminary results of the project were mixed, but hopeful. Researchers believe that future development and implementation of performance assessments in these classrooms hinge on teachers’ beliefs in these assessments as useful and practical tools.