TheVirginiaJournal_SpringSummer2024

Tips for Assessing in Physical Education Lindsey Slaughter, MAT, is a recent graduate of the PHETE program in the Department of Kinesiology at James Madison University, Harrisonburg, Virginia Dr. Cathy McKay , Associate Professor of Kinesiology, PHETE Program; James Madison

Figure 1 The Assessment Cycle

Assessment is a crucial tool in physical education because it helps track students’ growth, gives the field the credibility it deserves, and helps teachers to adjust and realign their teaching to make sure the students are receiving the best instruction possible (Brookhart, 2013). There are multiple kinds of assessments: pre- and post-assessments, formative, summative, and others. Formative assessments are continuous throughout a unit to check for student understanding of the topic. Summative assessments occur at the end of a unit to allow the teacher to see a summary of student’s progress and comprehension. Unfortunately, there are obstacles to implementing assessments, such as lack of time, disruptive classroom environments, and access to resources (McKenzie & Lounsbery, 2009). The focus of this article is to offer physical education professionals tips for assessing within their classes. These tips are not listed in order of importance, but rather are a guide for implementing continuous assessments into a physical education class. Tip One: Look at Assessment as a Cycle When it comes to assessment, it helps to look at and use assessment as a cycle (Hushman et al., 2021). The goal of the assessment cycle is to track students’ growth over a unit. As indicated in Figure 1, the assessment cycle collects data in four ways: pre-assessment, self-assessment, peer observation, and post-test (Hushman et al., 2021). Pre-assessments occur at the beginning of a unit, so the teacher knows where students are before beginning the lessons. Self-assessments and peer observation are utilized during the lesson and give students feedback on their performance and skills from their own point of view or another student’s point of view. To use these assessments, students must know the cues they are looking for, how they should be performed, and the procedures for assessing themselves or another student. Self and peer assessments are used for three main reasons: the teacher can continue managing student behavior and provide specific feedback, the teacher can continue addressing other students needs during the assessment, and the students can take responsibility for the assessment, helping the teacher meet the affective domain (Hushman et al., 2021). There are four things to keep in mind when using a self or peer assessment. The first thing to keep in mind is student grouping. Students who demonstrate a higher level of friendship to one another may give each other higher scores, which interferes with the true results of the assessment (Hushman et al., 2021). Teachers should choose groups or partners wisely to help ensure authentic results. Second, teachers should train students on how to use the assessment. Training might include practice opportunities, such as where the teacher writes the rubric on the

board, then performs the skill while leaving out a critical cue, seeking to assess if the students can pinpoint the missing cue, and then facilitating a discussion where students look at the rubric and give feedback (Hushman et al., 2021). The third thing to keep in mind is to start with a small rubric, only looking for one or two cues, then progress to the larger and final rubric. Teachers should use terms that students are familiar with and give them chances to ask questions. When creating a rubric, be sure to identify a very good performance and a performance that needs significant improvement first, then build the middle levels. The fourth and final thing to keep in mind includes utilizing stations when giving an assessment. In this scenario, one station is the assessment, and the other stations are practice opportunities before reaching the assessment station. Teachers should demonstrate each station to students, and ensure that the assessment can be done in one day or class period. As educators, we use this cycle of different assessments to find evidence of student growth throughout the unit, which is critical to providing feedback to the student and teacher in terms of student learning and progress (Hushman et al., 2021). Tip Two: Create, Practice, and Utilize Assessments Creating, practicing, and utilizing assessments incorporates tip two, offering practical examples for teachers to utilize. The first example is a peer assessment hit map for net and barrier games. In this assessment, students are in pairs and one student is hitting the ball over the net and the observer marks a spot on the map of where the ball landed. This helps the student performing see where they are consistent and where they are missing with their shots. Teachers should place personal reflection questions at the end for the performer to reflect on their performance and

2 • Virginia AHPERD • SPRING-SUMMER 2024