Assessing self-assessment: can age and prior literacy attainment predict the accuracy of children’s self-assessments in literacy?

Abstract

Self-assessment practices have been advocated in recent Irish educational documents due to their potential to enhance school children’s learning and self-regulatory skills. However, the literature has highlighted how some children struggle to make accurate self-assessments of their academic work, which diminishes such positive effects (Keane and Griffin 2015; Nicol 2009). Using Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development (1970) as a theoretical framework, the present study sought to investigate whether children’s academic self-assessments became more accurate in line with increased age and higher prior literacy attainment. Following training in the use of self-assessment writing rubrics, 85 school children from second class, fifth class and Transition Year wrote an English essay and later self-assessed their work using rubrics devised by Andrade, Du, and Wang (2008). Results indicated that overall, children’s self-assessment scores held a weak relationship with their actual performance scores (r = .24). However, findings illustrated that children’s self-assessments became significantly more accurate in line with increased developmental stages. Strong correlations also emerged between higher prior literacy attainment and children’s accuracy in self-assessments, amongst second class (r = −.45) and fifth class (r = −.73) children only. The findings suggest that Irish school children, in particular, primary school children with low literacy attainment, display difficulty making accurate self-assessments of their academic work in literacy. Stemming from the research, implications for practice and future research directions are outlined.

Keywords:

• Self-assessment
• development
• policy
• psychology
• literacy

Notes on contributors

Lainey Keane is a trainee educational psychologist on the ‘Professional Doctorate in Educational & Child Psychology’ Programme at Mary Immaculate College, Limerick, Ireland. She completed her ‘Bachelor of Education in Education and Psychology’ degree in 2014 in Mary Immaculate College, Limerick where she engaged in an elective in educational assessment. She also engaged in applied research in self-assessment as part of her final year Undergraduate Dissertation in Psychology. Lainey was shortlisted and highly commended in the international Undergraduate Award Competition for her essay based on her dissertation. Following her undergraduate degree, she worked as a primary school teacher and completed a graduate diploma in Early Intervention in Trinity College Dublin in 2016. During this time, Lainey also worked as a Junior Researcher on the Junior Researcher Programme, where she conducted international research on organisational justice and ‘health at work’. Her doctoral research focusses on the utility of cognitive assessments in distinguishing between English Language Learners and children who have a Specific Language Impairment.

Claire Griffin is an Educational Psychologist and lecturer in Educational and Developmental Psychology at Mary Immaculate College (MIC), Limerick, Ireland. She also engages in the supervision of trainee Educational Psychologists on the ‘Doctorate in Educational and Child Psychology’ programme at MIC. Claire originally worked within primary and special education settings, as well as in residential care centres for children and adults with physical and intellectual disabilities. Following this, she completed post-graduate training in special education and Educational Psychology. Claire is nearing completion of her PhD through University College London under the supervision of Professor Peter Blatchford. Her research pertains to the preparedness and deployment of ‘Special Needs Assistants’ in supporting children with significant behavioural care needs within mainstream school settings. Additional research interests consist of inclusive education, assessment in education, Precision Teaching, student engagement and child-centred teaching/learning approaches.