How to do it

Prompting learners to reveal the sort of information you need about their prior learning and about how they view themselves as learners requires more than an unstructured conversation. Here are two ways to provide structure.

  1. Use an alerting tool

    An alerting tool draws out from learners information about:

    • their current knowledge and skills
    • their capacity to work out how to apply prior learning; and
    • the emotional aspects of learning: for example, how they feel about having to apply their knowledge and skills in various social contexts.

    Alerting tools can be a useful element in taster sessions where the aim is to interest potential learners in further study.

    The process:

    • Mention a few sample tasks to each individual learner. These should relate directly to the proposed area of study.
    • Have some questions ready, along the following lines:
      • Would you feel confident about doing this?
      • How would go about … ?
      • Would you be able to have a go at … ?
      • How would you rate yourself at … ?
      • Have you got any experience of … ?
    • The learner may then actually go on and do the tasks if he or she feels confident enough to try.

  2. Using a placing tool

    A placing tool allows you to identify where learners have reached the limit of their current knowledge or expertise. This enables you to place them on a course at an appropriate level, or to cater for his/her needs more effectively within a mixed level group. The diagnostic assessment tools used in literacy and numeracy are examples of placing tools.

    The process:

    • provide a range of tasks that get progressively harder and/or more complex; and
    • ask the learner to work through them until he or she can go no further.

If you are a Subject Learning Coach, make sure you discuss this process with your colleagues. It's important to maximise opportunities for assessment for learning.

Click here for some examples of initial assessment (14KB)

For more insight into assessment practices, read the Adult Learning Inspectorate's survey Starting Points: Initial assessment in adult learning:
New browser window: http://docs.ali.gov.uk/surveys/survey_02-03_engin/htm/03/03.01.htm.