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School Counsellor Use of Curriculum-based Dynamic Assessment

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  25 September 2015

Jeanette Berman  and
Lorraine Graham
Jeanette Berman*
Affiliation:
University of New England, Australia
Lorraine Graham
Affiliation:
University of New England, Australia
*
Dr Jeanette Berman, School of Education, The University of New England, Armidale, NSW 2351, Australia. Email: [email protected]
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Abstract

This study explored the conditions required for the practical implementation of dynamic assessment in schools. It involved the development and implementation of a curriculum-based dynamic assessment procedure in the area of school mathematics for use by school counsellors. Dynamic assessment has been developed within Vygotskian theories of learning, teaching and assessment. It incorporates a teaching or mediation phase that requires the application of clinical assessment and teaching skills. This paper argues that the competencies needed to conduct a successful dynamic assessment are a blend of professional skills possessed by school counsellors. The assessment procedures used in this study resulted in valid assessment information about students' cognitive development as well as aspects of their general cognitive, social and emotional functioning. The information gathered through dynamic assessment was particularly useful for informing classroom teaching. The practical problems associated with dynamic assessment identified in the literature were not found to be barriers to the use of these techniques in schools in this study. Instead, dynamic assessment, used to complement conventional assessment instruments, has the potential to enhance the classroom utility of assessments carried out by school counsellors.

Type
Articles
Information
Journal of Psychologists and Counsellors in Schools , Volume 12 , November 2002 , pp. 21 - 40
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2002

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