AAC, a recognized education partner in Alberta. An independent voice, with informed responses to assessment topics that impact student learning.
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Joined August 2010
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We need to stop treating standardized testing as the answer to the problem of teacher subjectivity. Even standardized assessments involve human judgment.
O’Connor and Townsley (2025) argue that the goal shouldn't be to eliminate subjectivity, but to make assessment judgments credible and defensible. Let's build systems that trust, support and strengthen teacher professional judgment, not systems that try to replace it.
reference: O’Connor, K., & Townsley, M. (2025). Busting myths about professional judgment and subjectivity in assessment. Phi Delta Kappan, 106(7-8), 13-16. doi.org/10.1177/003172172513…
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Teachers spend hours preparing them but are families actually reading them? There are so many ways to make learning visible throughout the year; student work, portfolios, conversations, conferences, reflections and feedback.
A report card can serve a purpose: communicating a professional judgment about achievement at a particular point in time. But it shouldn't be the primary way we tell the story of learning.
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My favorite restaurant has great food but terrible service. I keep going back because I love the food. The service dampens the experience, but the food makes up for it.
The same thing happens with our students.
Students can demonstrate strong learning while struggling with organization, punctuality, or completing work.
Both matter. But they aren't the same thing.
Grades should communicate learning, not behaviour.
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1. It doesn't have to be a worksheet observations and conversations are powerful assessment tools especially in the age of AI.
2. You don't have to assess all your students on the same day - If you're making a judgment about what a student knows and can do, you can gather that evidence when the student is ready to demonstrate it.