All teachers are required to assess students for reporting purposes, particularly at this time of year as the semester report writing begins. My SBTE and I recently had a conversation about the tensions and biases which arise in reporting due to the relationships teachers have developed with each student. From my limited time in the classroom, I can see a smaller-scale version of this tension as I have started to get to know each learner. With each lesson there is also some form of informal assessment to judge if learning outcomes were achieved. Due to the diversity in the classroom (particularly this classroom as it is multi-age), it is a tricky balancing act between the need to be fair to individuals and the need to be fair to the group. (Campbell, 2003)
The standards for assessment and reporting are set by a governing body at a level higher than the individual teacher and so it is important that there is consistency in the way teachers’ grade students to meed the standards. However in all aspects of teaching and assessing students, teachers think about each learner as...