Assessment

Philosophy and Principles - IB Assessments - School Based Assessment

Philosophy and Principles

Assessment is the process of gathering information that accurately reflects how well a student is achieving the learning outcomes in a course. Assessment is used to communicate and support student learning and encourage student success.


Teachers use a variety of assessment instruments to gather information about student achievement. The action that is taken in response to an assessment determines its formative or summative nature.

understanding Formative and Summative Assessments

Formative assessment involves the ongoing process of gathering and interpreting evidence to monitor progress in student learning. An example of a formative assessment might be a homework probe or an assignment. It may also be as simple as a teacher asking a student a question in class to assess understanding of a concept. Formative assessments identify the learning needs of students, shape learning, and prepare students for summative assessments.


Summative assessment involves the process of gathering and interpreting evidence to assess a student’s understanding of the course material. Summative assessments measure achievement based on established criteria used to assign a value to represent the quality of student learning at the end of a period of learning. For example, a unit test would be designed to assess how well a student has learned the material in the current unit, before moving on to the next unit. A final examination, which assesses a student’s understanding of an entire course, is an example of a summative assessment.

IB Assessments in the Diploma Programme

IB teachers use a variety of formative and summative assessments to support and encourage student learning. IB assessment is criterion-referenced. This means that student work is marked in relation to clearly defined levels of skill attainment. The levels of skill attainment for each subject are derived from the aims and objectives of the course and established by the International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO). They are designed to be fair to students all over the world. The criteria for achievement are explained to students in each course and are the focus of class and homework activities.

Internal Assessment


There are two types of summative IB assessment tools which are used in the determination of final IB grades: internal and external assessments. Detailed IB policies describe the conditions under which these tools must be administered.


IB internal assessments allow teachers to assess some of the students’ work during the IB course. Examples include English individual oral commentary, language presentations, historical investigations, laboratory reports, and math projects. RHS teachers mark the internal assessments and this grade counts as a percentage of the student’s overall final IB score. The marks for the internal assessments are submitted to the International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO), along with a representative sample of the work marked by the RHS teacher. This sample is then sent to an IB moderator who evaluates how the teacher has applied the IB grading rubric. IBO may then adjust the marks of the assignment.


Internal assessments provide students with opportunities to show mastery of skills outside of final examinations. Students receive significant instruction and practice throughout their courses in order to effectively prepare for these challenging tasks.


In each IB subject teachers are given a very specific list of criteria to assess and guidelines about how to mark each criterion. To determine a mark, the teacher chooses the level of achievement that best matches the work being marked using a markscheme or rubric. The criteria for achievement are clearly communicated to students well in advance of the internal assessments. IB assessments are graded on a scale of 1 (low) to 7 (high).


Rockford High School IB teachers use the RHS IB calendar to maximize student achievement and minimize student stress. The due dates for IB internal assessments are established in consultation with other RHS IB teachers in order to spread out the workload of the IB Diploma Programme over the two years and avoid overlap. The dates for internal assessments are posted on the RHS IB calendar and copies of such are provided to students at the beginning of the school year.

External Assessment

IB external assessments are assessments that are completed by students at Rockford High School while overseen by RHS teachers, but are sent away to be marked by external IB examiners. Final examinations are the main means of external assessment, but work such as the Extended Essay, Written Assignment papers, TOK essays and Visual Arts exhibitions are also externally assessed.


The dates for IB examinations are set by the IBO and given to students a year in advance of their exams. IB exams are conducted in strict accordance with IBO regulations. In most IB courses at RHS, practice questions are embedded into course materials and assessments. However, you may also be asked to participate in a practice exam to prepare for exam setting and expectations.

IB external assessments form the basis of the assessment for most courses. This is because of their high levels of objectivity and reliability. They include:

  • Essays

  • Structured problems

  • short-response questions

  • Data-response questions

  • Text-response questions

  • Case-study questions

  • multiple choice questions, though these are rare


How DP assessment is scored

DP assessment procedures measure the extent to which students have mastered advanced academic skills in fulfilling these goals, for example:

  • analyzing and presenting information

  • evaluating and constructing arguments

  • solving problems creatively


Basic skills are also assessed, including:

  • retaining knowledge

  • understanding key concepts

  • applying standard methods


In addition to academic skills, DP assessment encourages an international outlook and intercultural skills, wherever appropriate.


Student results are determined by performance against set standards, not by each student's position in the overall rank order.

School Based Assessment

IB teachers also use school-based student assessment in addition to IB internal and external assessments. These school-based assessments are essential for student success and contribute to the students’ report card grades. The report card grade each student earns in a particular IB class is not tied directly to the marks earned on formal IB assessments, but is reflective of work completed in preparation for those assessments. These school-based assessments do not contribute toward the final IB grade, which is awarded by the IBO in July.


Report card marks during the course are based on a number of data points which may include:

  • unit tests

  • past IB exam questions

  • in-class assignments

  • Spoken or oral exams

  • fieldwork in geography

  • laboratory investigations

  • artistic performances