Evaluation Thinking Unpacked
Note the importance in the definition given again below of establishing
criteria and where necessary explaining them:
Definition of Evaluation. (in Bloom's taxonomy: synthesis, evaluation)
These tasks require us to judge quality, credibility, worth or
practicality. Generally we expect students to use established criteria
and explain how these criteria are or are not met. The criteria might be
established rules of evidence, logic , or shared values. Bloom's levels
of synthesis and evaluation are involved in this category. To evaluate,
students must assemble and explain the interrelationship of evidence and
reasons in support of their conclusion (synthesis). Explanation of criteria
for reaching a conclusion is unique to evaluative reasoning.
This means that before a teacher, judge, principal or citizen passes judgement
they must announce or write the criteria that they will use for measurement,
that is, for evaluation. Where necessary for the intended audience, these
criteria may need explanation to go along with their listing. Only after
this has been done, should the evaluator analyze the evidence and compare
this evidence against the established criteria. From this analysis the
evaluator should reach clearly stated conclusions that follow from their
reasoning.
This means that a response to an evaluation question could have
at least five major parts:
-
Recall or restatement of the issue or debate under discussion
-
Listing of search terms used in the collection of evidence
-
Analysis (breakout) of the criteria with explanation of any special criterion
that may be more difficult to understand than others
-
Comparisons and Inferences as to how the evidence of the case matches or
does not match these stated criteria.
-
An evaluation synthesis or summation that indicates why it weights some
criteria more heavily than than others and concludes with a judgement as
to the recommendation or decision to support or not support the issue or
consideration.
Though all four steps are important, steps two and three require significantly
more treatment or writing than the other steps. This is the commentary
of Dr. Houghton, not part of the official publications of the State Department
of Public Instruction.
Houghton@wcu.edu