Perceptions of Foundation Phase mainstream school teachers regarding differentiated assessment

Abstract

The need for classroom assessment to be differentiated is gradually gaining momentum in mainstream schools around the globe. Differentiated assessment takes appreciation of the diverse and special needs of learners and seeks to accommodate them. Thus, promoting learners’ access to the curriculum. The Department of Basic Education (DBE) in South Africa makes provisions through the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) document and assessment guidelines to manage schools’ assessment practices. However, most teachers still use the traditional and standardised approaches to classroom assessments, which the literature criticises as an unfair approach. Although standardised approaches to classroom assessment appear superficially unbiased, it has proven to be exclusive and discriminatory with deeper scrutiny. This study investigated Foundation Phase mainstream schoolteachers’ perception regarding differentiated assessment and their support requirements from the District Based Support Teams (DBSTs). Non-probability purposive sampling was used to identify two mainstream primary schools in Eersterust, Gauteng Province, and five Foundation Phase teachers, two being the departmental heads as the participants. Two Foundation Phase teachers in school 1 and three Foundation Phase teachers in School 2. The study adopted a qualitative multiple case study design within an interpretivist paradigm. The conceptual framework draws from the Psychometric Theory which served as the lens through which standardised one-size-fits-all assessment was analysed. Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development, and Piaget’s cognitive development theory, provided insights into learners’ cognition. Furthermore, Sen and Nussbaum’s capability approaches served as the lenses for understanding the fairness of assessment policies and practices in mainstream schools. Finally, Lave and Wenger’s Community of Practice provided the lens to understand teacher support needs and partnerships with the DBSTs within the participants' sociocultural contexts. The data was collected through semi-structured interviews, non-participant observation and document analysis. The findings suggest that the Foundation Phase teachers had a limited perception regarding differentiated assessment, which was hinged on Bloom’s taxonomy. The findings further revealed that the teachers are not adequately supported by the DBSTs in differentiating assessment in their classrooms. It was recommended that mainstream schoolteachers be trained on the meaning and purpose of differentiated assessment and be shown practical ways to differentiate assessment in their classrooms to cater to learners' diverse needs.