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Dismantling the factory model of assessment

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Abstract

The Factory Models of the 1900's had a significant and lasting impact on the educational curriculum and testing frameworks developed in America's public schools. The child was viewed as a product, the school was designed as an educational factory, and standardized testing became the quality control mechanism for measuring educational progress. The effects of these structures can still be seen in today's public school organizations. Breaking free of the limiting effects of standardized testing requires changes in teacher education, school organization, curriculum frameworks, and especially, the methods of assessment currently used in public schools. Viewing assessment as 'reflective inquiry' rather than the measurement of accumulated facts, requires time, a new perspective, and dialogue among educators.
... In line with this, Irons (2008) argues that changing the assessment system is the quickest way to bring about desired changes in education. Accordingly, theoretical shifts have been made from traditional assessments that tend to be psychometric, standardized, objective, quantitative and dogmatic in approach to alternative assessment paradigms that tend to be social, contextual, qualitative, subjective, and less systematic (Buhagiar, 2007;Gipps, 1999;McNamara, 2001;Nasab, 2015;Serafini, 2002). ...
... In the new paradigm, assessments are contingent upon the social context in which they are designed and used and emphasize on questions that look for multiple justifiable perspectives and application of knowledge rather than reproduction of facts (Janisch et al., 2007;McNamara, 2001). Students, along with teacher, decide on what and how to assess, seek and interpret evidence for use to decide where they are in their learning, where they need to go, and how best to get there (Serafini, 2002;Wellberg & Evans, 2022). It, thus, considers students as agents of their learning and grants them to generate knowledge (Nasab, 2015). ...
... For example, while in Delandshere (2001) many assessment contents were found to be based on assumptions of universal and essential knowledge, Mitana (2018) reported participants' tendency towards essentialists' assessment assumptions rather than existentialists in the elementary school context. These findings are in line with the general understanding in the literature that shows that current language assessment practices are substantially guided by assumptions that have roots in behaviorist and psychometric theories (Fulcher, 2014;Serafini, 2002;Wellberg & Evans, 2022). ...
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This study investigated EFL teachers’ underlying assumptions about assessment and how these assumptions are congruent with current perspectives in assessment. Informed by interpretivist philosophical underpinnings, the study adopted qualitative research approach. Nine teachers from three universities located in western Ethiopia participated in the semi-structured interviews, and the data were analyzed using thematic and content analysis approaches. Generally, the findings revealed complexity and diversity in teachers’ assumptions, which centered on four emergent themes: knowledge/content, valid approach to assessing knowledge, values and judgements, and power relations. Most of the teachers’ assumptions are contradictory with current perspectives and the expectations of the recent reforms on classroom assessment. A few modernist assumptions that teachers held even could not always translate into practice, suggesting the influences of contextual and institutional factors that should be further studied. The need to help EFL teachers develop contemporary assumptions in foreign language assessment is the primary implication of the study. Findings of this study can be considered as one of the necessary steps towards developing a new measure of assumptions about assessment that can be used to assess the underlying assumptions embedded in EFL teachers views and practices of assessment.
... The traditional high school paradigm, characterized by fixed schedules, rote memorization, teacher-centered instruction, and standardized curricula, seen as ill-suited for success in contemporary society and the professional arena (Casner-Lotto & Barrington, 2006). This conventional "factory model of education," described by Serafini (2002) as treating students as products and structuring education, accordingly, not originally designed to foster critical thinking, creativity, problem-solving, or other 21st-century skills (Wheatley, 2015). Employers echo these concerns, perceiving a deficit in crucial workplace competencies among students, including communication, creativity, and critical thinking (Casner-Lotto & Barrington, 2006). ...
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This study examines the impact of a polytechnic high school model designed in collaboration with a research-intensive university and industry/community partners. Aimed at urban settings and focused on minoritized youth, this model replaces traditional subject-specific classes with industry-driven design project cycles. As design-based integrated STEM learning gains global traction, this research offers valuable insights. Pre/post surveys administered to seniors and teachers, along with follow-up surveys and focus groups with alumni during their first semester of college. This study explores the model's effect on college and career readiness, teachers' perceptions of its effectiveness, and challenges encountered in implementing design-based instruction. Through an exploration of the model's successes and challenges, this study provides actionable recommendations for polytechnic models, contributing to the broader discourse on design-based STEM instruction. https://openjournals.ljmu.ac.uk/DATE/article/view/2437.
... The character of such school systems mimic the factory model of education which Serafini (2002) clarifies as one in which "[t]he child was viewed as a product, the school was designed as an educational factory, and standardised testing became the quality control mechanism for measuring educational progress" (p.67). In such contexts, teachers are challenged with the minimal importance placed on the teaching and learning processes because procedural quality is sacrificed for the sake of merely preparing students to gain high marks on tests. ...
... In particular, as Foucault (1979) suggested, although assessment is an educational tool it can dominate and even contribute to the formation of mass education, encouraging regularity and normality in learning processes as the only acceptable way of learning. It can also facilitate the top-down accountability of schools in terms of financial investment and time management, resulting in the increased use and frequency of standardized testing instead of its minimization (Scott, 2000;Serafini, 2002). Consequently, pupils' training for achieving high performance in standardized examinations is emphasised, narrowing significantly the curriculum into teaching basic skills, whereas children tend to develop their self-image as learners based on their attainment in meeting the expected performance levels, and in addition, attempting not to be viewed differently from normal learners. ...
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