ABSTRACT
Assessment is a very complex, integral part of teaching and learning. Without assessment, we would not be able to judge the effectiveness of our teaching or the extent to which pupils have learned and understood the work we have set. The notion that teachers should check on the effectiveness of their teaching is as evident as it is important. Prior to the National Curriculum, much of the checking involved written or verbal tests to find out what pupils could remember of the work covered. The National Curriculum for England introduced the idea of quality assurance into the education process through monitoring progress and assessment. Monitoring is the regular checking of the progress of pupils. It is often an informal process such as marking homework, talking to the pupils in lessons, question-and-answer sessions, short written exercises and so on. Assessment is the more formal process of gathering evidence so as to judge achievement as well as progress.
