This article outlines ACER's Progressive Achievement approach to measuring, understanding, and supporting learning growth for every student.
The following topics are covered in this article:
The Progressive Achievement approach
PAIS assessments, resources and professional learning are underpinned by ACER’s Progressive Achievement approach. As an organisation, ACER strongly believes that assessment can support every student to be appropriately challenged and demonstrate progress in their learning. This is achieved through gathering evidence that provides teachers with an understanding of where students are in their learning journey at a particular point in time in a specific learning area.
As part of the Progressive Achievement approach, ACER develops assessments that define what progress in the assessment construct typically looks like over time. This body of evidence can be used to describe broad levels of attainment or be analysed at the question level to identify students’ specific weaknesses and misconceptions.
The Progressive Achievement approach emphasises that:
- the evidence obtained through assessment should infer where a student is in their learning
- this evidence should inform the next steps in teaching and learning
- students’ subsequent learning growth should be monitored using assessment instruments aligned to the same scale.
The Progressive Achievement approach provides reliable measures that enable a variety of interpretations about achievement and progress such as:
- what students achieving specific levels of progression are likely to know, understand and be able to do
- how much students have improved over time and what skills, knowledge and abilities they have been able to develop
- how a student’s level of achievement compares with other students.
How the PAIS tests are designed and developed
PAIS is based on international assessment frameworks that ACER has developed over the last 15 years. The PAIS framework draws on content and skills taught across curricula from several countries and in international schools, and is not specific to a national curriculum. This international focus ensures that the tests are culturally and educationally appropriate for students in a range of different countries. Additionally, through ACER’s research programs, all PAIS test content has been trialled in international schools.
The PAIS tests were developed by expert test developers with many years of experience in assessment and curriculum development. Using sophisticated psychometric analysis, every test question and every participating student is placed on a developmental scale for that subject area. This enables teachers to easily see the subject areas where students are performing above the standards and the areas where students may require additional support. The reports help teachers analyse student performance by grade, section (classroom), strand and item level to link learning outcomes from the test directly into the classroom and use the data to improve their teaching.