ABSTRACT
The diversity of adult education practice means that adult educators must discern which assessment practices are best suited for their purposes and master varied assessment skills to serve their students. This chapter describes the purposes of assessment, principles for effective assessment practice, perspectives on assessment that can be employed when assessment processes are planned and implemented, and methods of assessment. Assessment processes should be meaningful to and driven by adult educators organizing programs and teaching students because they are responsible for articulating learning outcomes, selecting assessment activities, evaluating results, and undertaking actions based on assessment results. Assessment may be viewed as a type of action research to inform instruction and student learning. The chapter describes a few perspectives about assessment that seem most relevant to adult education, including formative and summative assessment, authentic assessment, sustainable assessment, self-regulated learning and metacognition, and dynamic assessment.
