ABSTRACT
In an earlier chapter it was argued that tests should be employed only when the case for testing was justified as the most suitable assessment means for fulfilling an educational purpose. The converse also applies; that is, if other kinds of assessment than tests are not most suitable, then a test should be used to take an educational purpose further effectively. In the case of the National Curriculum assessments of pupils, the combination of tests and teachers’ assessments are to be used, though the tests will have the major function of providing yardsticks for teachers when moderating their own provisional assessments to give a final score or level. Implicit in this concept is the proposition that acting purposefully entails taking decisions which enable or support educational objectives. Whilst aims may be implied rather than formally stated, decisions involve the explicit use of information to apply criteria.
