CHAPTER 4

AFFECTIVE ASSESSMENT

Overview

Affective assessment places emphasis on student attitudes, interests,

appreciations, values, and emotions. The objective of the assessment is to develop
students’ understanding of their emotional and social behavior. This gives them the
ability to better themselves in both individual and social aspects of life. The affective
domain is a term derived from Bloom‟s Taxonomy of educational objectives. The
grouping also includes two other domains, namely: the cognitive and the psychomotor.
It is assumed that when an educator incorporates all these domains, a more complete
form of education is created. Skills in the affective domain depict the way people react
emotionally to internal and external circumstances, as well as their ability to
sympathize and empathize with others.

What to Expect?

At the end of this chapter, the students can:

1. define the affective factors that are important in students‟ learning.
2. identify the taxonomy of affective behavior in students‟ learning.
3. demonstrate knowledge and understanding affective traits articulated in the
Basic Education Curriculum Framework in one‟s field of specialization.
4. develop understanding on the various assessment methods and tools that
could measure affective outcomes of learning.
5. develop an assessment tool to measure affective outcomes of students
learning.

What is affective Assessment?

Affective assessment deals with the affect dimension of students‟ learning.

The affective domain (from the Latin “affectus”, meaning "feelings) includes a host of
constructs such as attitudes, values, beliefs, opinions, interests, and motivation.
They are the non-cognitive outcomes of learning that are not easily seen or explicitly
demonstrated. The type of assessment in this domain is not aimed to determine
what the students have learned. Rather, it looks into how students feel while are
learning how their learning experiences have influenced their emotions and future
behavior.
Affective assessment may involve students‟ opinions, preferences, attitudes,
interests, and values in connection with mathematics, a topic in mathematics,
learning mathematics, a particular learning activity, the mathematics teacher, or the
student himself or herself as a learner of the subject. Affective assessments,
compared to their cognitive counterparts, have more inherent technical and
interpretative challenges. We reiterate that attitudes, interests, and values, being
conceptual, are inferences made from observed or self-reported behaviours. To
measure and assess them, we can obtain observed evidence of affect. This can be
done by observing, by using checklist, the student‟s behaviour related to the object,
or by asking the student to report on his or her behaviour related to, or feelings
towards, or views on the object. Note that we can do both but, for a busy teacher,
self-reports may be more practical than direct observation of every student.
In cognitive assessments, our focus is mainly on students‟ optimal
performance in tests or other assessment tasks. We assume that the students will try
their best in the test within the given time. An athlete‟s performance in the Palarong
Pambansa or Olympics is an example of optimal performance. For affective
assessments we are more concerned about students‟ typical behaviour towards
something, say, mathematics learning. Students who are positive towards self
(positive self-concept) in relation to mathematics learning will have a tendency to
respond favourably to learning mathematics. These behaviours are characterized by
feelings, emotions, or values. Such students may, for example, show enthusiasm or
engagement (covert behaviours, not observable) during the daily mathematics
lesson by asking questions or volunteering to look up answers (overt behaviours,
observable). Where a student typically or normally responds enthusiastically, we are
inclined to say that they have a positive disposition towards mathematics. Teachers
may use this information to predict how students will be predisposed to behave in the
future in mathematics lessons. Likewise, students whose affect is adverse (away
from something, say, homework) have a tendency to respond negatively towards
that something. Transient or one-time feelings or emotions are of lesser concern in
affective assessments, and we should guard against labeling students as having a
poor attitude towards mathematics based on their atypical responses.
 A technical challenge is the difficulty in linking the observed behaviours or
self-reports to the concept of attitude, interest, or values. In the first place, unlike
objective tests, there is no “right” or “wrong” answers in the assessment of affect.
Depending on the manner in which the affective responses are captured, a student
may react in a socially desirable way so as to project the expected image, especially
where persons of authority such as their teachers are involved. Does a student‟s
smile when solving a mathematics problem indicate enjoyment of the subject? Well,
he may be thinking what a silly question the teacher has set; or he has seen the
answer of the question before. Some students may fake answers or behave
differently for some reasons, e.g., fear that their responses might be held against
them. So we want students to be honest in supplying us with information about their
affect. Then, it is of utmost importance that anonymity and/or confidentiality be
assured in order to collect accurate affective assessment evidence.
This brings us to another aspect of affective assessment that is different from
cognitive assessment for the classroom teacher. We agree with Popham (2006) that
the focus of affective assessment should be on the status of the students as a class
than as individuals. The requirement of anonymity and/or confidentiality, as well as
respect for sensitivity of the nature of affect, necessitates a treatment of affective
measures at a group or class level. Therefore we suggest, based on what we know
about the nature of affect and the purpose we have for its assessment that teachers
carry out affective assessment at the classroom level. We recommend that their
inferences about students‟ affective status to be directed at students as a group
rather than at a student, at least until we know how to do it more accurately.
A technical challenge in student assessment is the accuracy of the inference
from the assessment evidence to the construct being assessed. For example, in a
written test to assess understanding, a student‟s written solution may indicate
memory work (hence rote-learning) rather than understanding. Hence for affective
assessment, it would also be challenging to link the evidence (observed behaviours)
for affective assessment to the constructs of beliefs, attitudes, interests, and values.
The correlation between overt behaviours and covert attitudes or interests is far from
being perfect in that we may not be able to predict accurately how a student will be
disposed to respond. Being situation-specific, a student‟s reaction will depend on
both internal (within the student, e.g., tiredness, unhappiness) and external (in the
surroundings, e.g., hot day) factors at play at the time when the assessment
evidence is being collected. In the prediction of behaviour from attitude, we have to
constantly remind ourselves that it is a tendency or predisposition to behave in a
particular way. Hence, we should avoid using once-off behaviours of students related
to mathematics as their attitude towards mathematics.

Limits and Boundaries

“Students are much more than the academic work they produce.” Information
generated from affective assessments can help provide a window into better
understanding of your students and potential learning opportunities in your
classroom. But there are limits and boundaries that must be recognized.

Cautions of Affective Assessment

Affective assessment is not personality testing and assessment. Validity and

reliability must be demonstrated, particularly since the measured constructs (e.g.,
attitude toward school) may be unstable or change considerably over a short period
of time.
The over generalization of findings and implications must be recognized and
prevented. Jumping to conclusions without several sources, with repeated findings
from those measures, must be avoided at all costs. As with any assessment
measure, make sure that the data, and the domain(s) being measured, are truly
needed and relevant.

Why Affective Assessment?

Teaching is also knowing and understanding students as learners and

humans. It is essential that teachers know the feeling of pleasure, enjoyment or even
anxiety that learners experience because these feeling will have bearing on their
attitudes, motivation and belief that will eventually be manifested in their future
behavior. This is to individualize their approaches to students and reshape the
lesson plan based on the identified needs of students.
Also, it is important for the students themselves. Self-awareness of feelings,
emotions and attitudes can make students reflect on how they are in the process of
learning. This type of metacognition has proven to enhance learning and contribute
to success in academic work. Cognitive and affective assessment should work in
tandem as what empirical studies have proven.
Knowledge of what students view, perceive, and feel as they are engaged in
learning activities will guide teachers to improve their teaching strategies and
enhance learning. Affective assessment can provide supplemental information about
a learning difficulty or behavior problem that affects learning.
The low performance may be caused by affective factors, such as attitude,
interest, and motivation. According to Suggins (2005), motivation and desire
represent the very foundation of learning. If the students do not want to learn, there
will be no learning. Further, Popham (2011) contends that affective variables are
often more significant than cognitive variable.

What is the taxonomy of affective domain in learning?

The taxonomy of learning domains was formulated in 1956 under the

leadership of educational psychologist Dr. Benjamin Bloom. It was initiated to
promote higher forms of thinking in education, such as analyzing and evaluating,
rather than just remembering facts (rote learning). Learning takes place in three (3)
domains, namely: cognitive, psychomotor, and affective. The cognitive processes
are remembering, understanding, analyzing applying, evaluating and creating. „
On the other hand, the affective domain of learning that was developed by
Krathwohl et al. (1964) serve as guide in doing affective assessment. Table 1 shows
behavioral levels, description, the relevant verbs and examples of objectives.

Level Description Illustrative Example

Verbs
To receive In this level of affective asks, chooses, Looking at the
behavior the learner describes, teacher during
demonstrates awareness or follows, gives, lecture is
passive attention in an holds, awareness on
activity that is happening identifies, learning stimulus.
such that he/she gives locates, names,
attention to that activity. This points to, Listening and
level involves willingness to selects, sits paying attention
receive the stimulus. erect, replies, indicate willingness
uses in receiving that
stimulus.

Listening to
 discussions of
controversial issues
with an open mind.
To respond In this case, the learner answers, If a learner
reacts positively to a given assists, participates in a
stimulus or information that complies, class discussion,
has been received. Active conforms, and not merely
attention and response to a discusses, listening, then the
particular to phenomenon or greets, helps, learner is in this
interest. labels, level of behavior.
performs, This behavior may
practices, be compliance to a
presents, given task,
reads, recites, voluntary
reports, selects, engagement or
tells, writes doing an activity
with interest.

Participating in
team problem
solving activities.
Questions new
ideals, concepts,
models, etc. in
order to fully
understand them
To value The learner demonstrates completes, Picking up litters
commitment to the object, describes, outside the
knowledge, or activity. differentiates classroom without
Here, the learner has teacher's presence
internalized a set of specific or saving money for
values such that these values a book, or putting
are manifested through off lights after class
overt behaviors. Attaching on own volition are
value or worth to a "valuing" behaviors.
phenomenon or object.
Accepting the idea
that integrated
curricula is a good
way
To The learner has internalized adheres, alters, In this level, the
organize and integrated his or her arranges, learner is able to
feelings, emotions, beliefs, combines, discern
opinions, etc., resulting to compares, independently the
actions where new values completes, right from wrong,
and traits emerged. defends, and he/she is able
Organizing values into explains, to make a decision
priorities by comparing, generalizes, on what is more
relating, synthesizing specific identifies, valuable based on
values. integrates, his or her own
 modifies, judgment.
orders, Recognizing own
organizes, abilities, limitations,
prepares, and values and
relates, developing realistic
synthesizes aspirations.
Accepts
responsibility from
one‟s behavior.
To The learner demonstrates or acts, If doing an
characterize shows consistency of the discriminates, experiment has
behavior that establishes an displays, instilled the value of
image or character of the influences, patience, such trait
learner. This behavior listens, could be carried
extends beyond the school modifies, over to the
setting and becomes part of performs, student's non-
his or her lifestyle. Having practices, science activities.
personal value system that is proposes,
now a characteristic of the qualifies, A person's lifestyle
learner. questions, influences
revises, serves, reactions to many
solves, uses, different kinds of
verifies situations. Shows
self-reliance when
working
independently.
Uses an objective
approach in
problem solving.

What are the Affective Variables in Learning?

1. Attitudes

It is important to note that attitude cannot be taken as solely affective.

It also has a cognitive component where the learner has the concrete
knowledge that defines the worth or value of the object or situation. For
example, knowledge about the effect of smoking on health and knowledge
about nicotine ideally should make students have negative attitude towards
smoking. However, this is not always the case. One may have the knowledge
but applying the knowledge is another thing. Cognitive knowledge can be a
contributing factor to affect a desired affective outcome.
2. Values and Beliefs
Values are characteristics or traits that a person holds in high
importance. These include principles that one considers being right and
consequently which guides the person's future actions and decisions. In a
school setting, values that are included in the curriculum are honesty,
patience, perseverance, respect for others, cleanliness and order, care for
environment, etc. Beliefs, on the other hand, refer to our convictions or
opinions we hold to be true even without evidence. While beliefs are
traditionally associated with religion, they have been talked about in the field
of education. There are such things as beliefs about mathematics, freedom
gender equality, etc.
Beliefs emanate from multiple sources, from what one hears, sees
reads, and experiences. Values are developed from beliefs. Beliefs, as well as
values, can change over time from learned experiences. As such, it is
important that teachers provide positive learning experiences to students
because from these experiences, they form beliefs that leads to formulation of
values that are desired.
These beliefs and values determine attitudes which are correlated with
a learner‟s performance. This sequential relationship reinforces the
importance to assess these affective factors that can aid teachers in
developing their instructional plan to attain intended curriculum goals and
objectives.
3. Interest
Interest is a psychological state that draws a person's attention to an
object, Idea, or event in a classroom setting it is what students are "into" or
the learner's disposition about a topic such as reading science, mathematics,
history, etc. It is interest that drives the learner to be attentive to the topic of
discussion or engage in any academic activity. Interest may be personal or
situational. Whether personal or situational it is important for the teacher to
know how students are receptive on the content that is covered in the lesson.
If there is low interest as revealed from the assessment results, the teacher
can think of intervention strategies to address problem, like creating learning
experiences that are more exciting to engage students in interaction with
 peers, or with teachers. Interest is directly linked with enjoyment and joy in
doing something.
4. Motivation

Brown (1987) defines motivation as an inner drive, impulse, emotion, or

desire that moves one to a particular action. It arouses and sustains behavior.
It can lead to increased effort and energy to pursue a goal. If a learner is
highly motivated, he/her is willing to give his or her time and effort to reach a
goal. It brings a learner to excitement and enjoyment to an academic task and
enhances cognitive processing and improves learning.

Motivation has other intrinsic factors like curiosity, appreciation, valuing

for learning, as well as extrinsic factors like praise, grades for completion
certification, etc. Ausubel (1968) has identified six needs and desires that are
integral parts of motivation: (1) the need for exploration; (2) the need for
manipulation; (3) the need for activity; (4) the need for stimulation; (5) the
need for knowledge; and (6) the need for ego enhancement. From this list, we
see the critical role of teachers in creating a learning environment that can
provide for these needs in order for the learners to reach the highest level of
motivation. Consequently, assessment in this aspect of affective domain is of
importance.
5. Self-confidence
This refers to how a person feels about his or her abilities to
accomplish a task or reach a goal. It is the person's perception of
himself/herself and his or her capabilities to perform successfully the task
given to him/her. Empirical studies showed self-confidence is associated with
academic success.

What assessment tools are used to measure affective learning?

Measurement of affective traits is more challenging compared to measuring

cognitive and psychomotor dimension of learning. Such measurement may be direct
or indirect. The direct assessment of affective learning outcomes is more attainable
at the lower levels in affective learning taxonomy (Krathwohl et al.,1964). Teachers
for example can take attendance to measure pupils‟ willingness to receive
information. Likewise, teachers may consider the number of time the pupils raised
his or her hand to answer questions or the number of completed assignments and
project.

Behaviors are less amenable to direct measurement because affective

learning outcomes (e.g. attitudes, values, beliefs, etc.) are internal states that exist
in the mind and thought of the learners. These indirect measurements are thought
less reliable.

A variety of methods for indirectly assessing intended affective learning

outcome have been espoused. Some of the most common assessments include
self-report inventory, questionnaire, opinionnaire, semantic differential, observation
and interview.

1. Self-report Questionnaires/Inventory is a type of assessment where the

respondents are asked to answer a question about himself or herself, his or her
behavior, emotions, feelings or views. It serves many purposes to include
diagnosis of students‟ mental and emotional state. This is also popular in a pre-
test and post-test design when the teacher wants to assess change (e.g. in
attitude, interest, motivation, etc.) before and after instructional period.
Self-report inventories use a variety of formats. The most common are:
a. Likert scale. This measuring tool that was invented by Rensis Likert, is a
series of questions or items that requires the respondent to select on a scale
a rating reflecting the level of agreement disagreement on items a particular
topic, experience, or issue. The responses both in descriptive and numeric
form, range from one extreme to another, such as “strongly agree” to strongly
disagree where “5” numerical value of the extreme positive feeling and "1" for
the extreme negative. This kind of scaling gives deeper insight into what the
students are thinking and feeling. An example of Likert scale is shown below:

The Modified Fennema-Sherman Mathematics Attitude Scales (FSMAS)

Using this scale will help you and find out how you feel about yourself and
mathematics. As you read the sentence, you will know whether you agree or
disagree. The only correct responses are those that are true for you. Whenever
possible, let the things that have happened to you help you make a choice.
 5 = Strongly Agree (SA) denoted by letter A
4 = Agree (A) denoted by letter B
3 = Uncertain (U) denoted by letter C
2 = Disagree (D) denoted by letter D
1 = Strongly Disagree (SD) denoted by letter E

1. I am sure that I can learn math. A B C D E

2. My teachers have been interested in my progress in math. A B C D E

3. Knowing mathematics will help me earn a living. A B C D E

4. I don't think I could do advanced math. A B C D E

5. Math will not be important to me in my life's work. A B C D E

6. Males are not naturally better than females in math. A B C D E

7. Getting a teacher to take me seriously in math is a problem. A B C D E

b. Semantic Differential. This is a widely used scale that employs ratings of

concepts with contrasting adjectives placed at opposite ends of the number
scale. For example, the concept of "Problem Solving" can be assessed using
the following semantic differential scale:

Problem Solving

Difficult _____ _____ _____ _____ _____ Easy

1 2 3 4 5
Interesting _____ _____ _____ _____ _____ Boring
1 2 3 4 5
Useful _____ _____ _____ _____ _____ Useless
1 2 3 4 5
Realistic _____ _____ _____ _____ _____ Unrealistic
1 2 3 4 5
Rigid _____ _____ _____ _____ _____ Loose
1 2 3 4 5
In this example, the students are asked to express their attitudes
toward problem solving. They need to make a check mark on the scale
indicating the degree of agreement they have with the adjectives listed.
Similar to the Likert scale where there are negative items the position of the
positive and negative adjectives in semantic differential are reversed to
balance the scale and create a less biased measurement. The response
 could then be summed, and a mean could determine in each of the adjective
pairs. In this way, the concept "problem solving” would be scaled on the
various pairs of the adjectives.

c. Checklist. A checklist is a form of self-report that asks persons whether they

demonstrate a set of qualities or behaviors. In particular for affective
assessment, it is a tool for identifying the presence or absence of a feeling,
attitude, or behavior. The behaviors that are checked will reflect what values
and beliefs learners hold. For example attitude toward environment may be
measured by giving students a checklist that enumerates on actions related to
environment awareness and commitment in one column and space in another
column where students will put a check or a cross, indicating whether those
actions are being done or not.

Example: Self-Report Behavior Checklist

Name:_____________________ Grade : ______________ Date: ______

Put a check (√) on the options that corresponds to your answer to each item.

1. What is your reaction on the signing of Executive Order (EO) 26 on

Providing for the Establishment of Smoke-Free Environments in Public and
Enclosed Places?

___ I support the EO to protect the health of people

___ I find the EO as anti-poor
___ It is not my concern
___ I do not know what it is all about

2. What is your reaction to environmental polluters?

___ I will report them to the concerned officials.

___ I will call their attention when I see them doing the act.
___ I will tell others not to imitate them.
___ It is their concern, they are responsible for their own.

3. Are you a member of any environmental organization?

___Yes
___ No
___Planning to do so
 Another form of checklist also provides students a list of adjectives for
describing something or making judgment about behavior and actions and asks the
respondents to check those that apply to them.

Put a check (√) on the blanks that are true to you.

The reading class is: I find English:

___ boring ___ fun

___ exciting ___ tiring
___ fun ___ easy
___ stimulating ___ difficult
___ informative ___ irrelevant
___ unpleasant ___ useful
___ routine ___ interesting

Writing Statements for Rating Scale for Self-Report

Some guidelines might be of help in creating your self-report assessment

instrument.

1. Statements should refer to the present conditions rather than past or future
situations.
2. The statement should be relevant to the psychological construct being
measured.
3. Avoid factual statement since the nature of what is assessed is affective traits.
4. Statement should elicit a response that lends itself to one interpretation.
5. Statements should be clear and single sentences using precise and direct
language.
6. Considering that responses in the instrument reflect gradation statements
should no longer contain always, nearly, only, never and just. These words
are ambiguous.
7. Use vocabulary appropriate for the level of understanding of the respondents.
8. Avoid double negative sentences.

Steps in the Construction of the Rating Scale

1. Select the affective trait you want to assess which you find relevant to teaching-
learning situation. Make sure that you or your school is going to benefit from it
and use the data to improve the present situation.
 Example

You may be interested to know students' interest about specific

educational issues like climate change and environment. These inventories
will not only help the science teacher in classroom situation, but the data
may also help teachers to know who can be tapped to participate in Waste
Management and Segregation Project the school is launching.

2. Construct items that are clear, definite, and focused on the trait you want to
measure. Consider the different levels of affective taxonomy in constructing the
items. In addition, since what you are assessing is on emotion or affect items
should include positive and negative positions that will make the respondent think
carefully the answer to the item.
3. Pilot test or field try the inventory and revise the parts that appear to be unclear.
This is advised when you want to measure more encompassing and long term
affective learning outcomes. The purpose of held testing the Instrument is to
detect unclear questions and statements and procedural difficulties the intended
respondents can experience with the questionnaire is preferred that field test be
given to comparable set of students. If the Inventory is intended for Grade 6
students, then having another class of Grade 6 to give feedback to the inventory
will best suit the purpose of field testing.
4. Evaluate the self-report inventory to your target respondents
5. Analyze the results and consider the findings and draw the implication. The most
common scale is 1 to 5, with 1 as the extreme negative option, followed by the
less negative, and mid-range ratings indicating a level of neutrally through 5
being the highest positive or favorable response. For the negative items, the
numerical values are reversed. The use of simple statistics is essential. This
involves frequency count relative to each option in the scale cumulative
percentages to see pattern of responses in each item as well as the entire scale.
Simple computation of mean will be useful in visualizing the collective outcome
as a class or as a grade level or in the entire school. The most common way to
treat data using Likert scale is to sum the values of each selected option and
determine the score for each respondent. The scores represent a specific trait---
agreed or not agree, satisfied or not satisfied, confident or not confident, etc
 Again our intention is for classroom setting only data analysis does not
have to be complex and computation of a score may not be the focus. The
teacher may give more attention to patterns of responses vis-à-vis the content
and essence of the affective items. Consequently, the teacher should be able
define the implications of the results to improve the learning environment.

2. Interview. This is an oral assessment of student learning that is conducted

through spoken words and casual conversation. This assessment tool allows the
teacher to collect and explore more in-depth information about the trait being
assessed that cannot be captured by written instrument nor even be observed.
The assessment data are not just answerable by "Yes" or "No" or other
predetermined responses. Through this assessment technique the teacher is
able to probe responses that other forms of assessment tool cannot. The
students can qualify and expand their previous answers, which can be vague at
the earlier part of the conversation. It provides students opportunity to open other
thoughts and ideas, and the teachers can be flexible to adapt questions as the
need arises. It can provide a powerful "moment of sharing where the learner is
able to express face-to-face his or her feelings and emotions. Prerequisite to
achieve all of these is the trust you have to build with the interviewee by
demonstrating care and respect.

Interviews may be structured or unstructured in the interview; there is a

planned sequence of questions, which lead to open ended discussions between
the teacher and the student, neither done individually or by group. One limitation
though of the structured interview is that predetermined questions tend to limit
flexibility. Some important information about the learner on constructs you want to
pursue may be implied or ignored because you can be controlled by the list of
question you need to complete. On the other hand, the informal interview will
appear to be natural and it can create a more conversational environment for
sharing, wherein the teacher will be able to elicit more truthful information from
students‟ themselves. In many cases, even when trust has been established
students may not also be comfortable talking about values and sharing feelings
where he/she is in a one-to-one conversation with the teacher. This is especially
true for young adolescents who are more particular with the image they create
with others. A group interview may work better on older students‟ elicit most
 authentic information. Younger children can be more candid and honest with their
answers whether the interview is done individually or in a group. Nevertheless, in
whatever manner, interview is considered an effective tool for affective
assessment. Imagine yourself as a student and you experience a teacher
spending time talking to you about how you are doing in his or her subject, asking
you face-to-face on how you are learning, or how you are feeling toward his or
her subject. Questions like "How did you do on the assignment I gave you?",
"What questions in the test excite you most and "What task did you find most
difficult?" will make a great deal on student feelings. In other words, interviews
may go beyond cognitive improvement. Spoken words will motivate students to
learn.

For interview to be an effective assessment tool, the following are general

steps in developing and conducting an interview

a. Select the assessment objectives.

b. List the oral questions in sequence based on the objectives. However, the
sequence is not absolute; instead, there should be a room for flexibility.
Questions should start with general questions followed more specific ones.

c. Make a report sheet or any form to record responses

d. Conduct the interview. Start with statements that will make me la be at

comfort level with the teacher.

e. Record the responses, both elicited responses and responses that were
aided by prompts. Record as well the questions were not.

Sample: The Interview

Questions Teacher Notes

1. How did feel about your participation in

our class today.
2. What did you think about the story that we
discussed?
3. Did the story interest you?
4. What is the part of the story that caught of
your attention? Why did it interest you
most?
5. What makes you read a book without
being told so by your teacher?
 6. How do you like your reading class? What
makes you dislike it if ever you feel so?
7. What different approach should your
teacher use to help you and your
classmates better?

3. Students’ Journal. These are effective tools that can be used in assessing and
monitoring student thinking and attitudes. Journal writing gives students guided
opportunities to “think aloud” through writing. It is a special form of documentation
that records personal experiences and thoughts. It is a reflection of learner‟s own
perception about a problem, a situation or an activity they are tasked with.
Journal writing opens the door for a one-to-one dialogue between the teacher
and student. It creates an environment of partnership where teachers and
students resolve issues and conflicts of ideas and understanding in confidential
manner. The written journal provides information to give feedback and ask
questions to students that can develop different ways of thinking. While the
primary intentions of journal writing is to capture students' feelings and emotions
the discourse can lead to empowering the cognitive domain of learning. To attain
this, journals are guided by a set of ideas, questions, or problems.

In choosing journal writing as an assessment tool for affective learning

outcomes, here are some guide questions to consider:

 What is your purpose for the student journal (i.e., critical thinking, reflection,
self-awareness, goal review, developing self-confidence, overcoming
anxiety)?

 What is the format (i.e., handwritten free form, typed, full sentences)?

 What is the topic? What do you want the students to write about?

 How much do you want your student to write (i.e., number of pages, number
of paragraphs, or number of words)?

 How will the students be given feedback (i.e., individual, with a small group,
with the teacher)?

 Who will read the journal (i.e., with teacher only with other teachers, with
selected students)?

 How will the students be graded (i.e., Pass/Fail, Rubric, no scoring needed)?
4. Observation. It is an assessment tool that involves looking out for the presence
or absence of behaviors of learners in a natural setting. Observation allows the
teacher to assess student behavior in the actual teaching and learning process
unlike other forms of assessment that require separate time with the student to
answer the measuring instrument. This method is a rich source of clues that can
be both obtrusive and unobtrusive measure of attitude, beliefs, disposition,
character, etc.

Example

A Physical Education (PE.) teacher watches students play basketball in a

school court. While the focus may be on the skill of playing basketball like
shooting or throwing the ball correctly, the teacher can also directly watch
who play the “clean” game and who play on "foul" moves or what we often
term, the “dirty tricks”. Such behavior is indicative of important affective
characteristics like honesty, patience and positive disposition, which we
aim to develop not only for P.E, but across the school curriculum.

Like interview, observation may be structured or unstructured. An

unstructured observation is open ended with no formal reasoning of why is
observed as assessment process is ongoing. This does not mean a thing that
does not require planning. You have to be very clear of what is observed and list
the behaviors and actions that will indicate the possibility of the traits. There is
still the need to record observed data right after action observation time. Recall
the more specific events, which can be significant and include both positive and
negative actions. Unstructured observation data had been criticized for being
subjective. Thus be mindful of personal interpretation of observed data.

On the other hand in the structured observation, you need to prepare a

checklist or rating form before the actual observation. This checklist defines the
positive and negative behaviors indicative of the trait you wish to measure. The
recording is straightforward as it just requires a check on the “Yes” and "No"
column for the presence or absence of the behavior, respectively, or a check on
the appropriate numerical and descriptive scale rating scale is used. These are
illustrated in the exhibits below

Checklist for Structured Observations in Science Class

 Student/s Observed ___________________ Date__________ Time
_________
Grade & Section ________________ Observer______________

Behavior Frequency of Occurrences

1. Raises hand during class discussions

2. Tells others that the lesson is fun

3. Gives criticism to classmates' response

to teacher's questions
4. Asks questions about issues connected
to the science concepts presented
5. Goes through the laboratory manual
before engaging in the actual
experiments

Rating Scale for Structured Observations in Science Class

Student/s Observed ___________________ Date__________ Time

_________
Grade & Section ________________ Observer______________

Behavior Not at Rarely Sometimes Most of Almost

all the Time Always
1. Raises hand during
class discussions
2. Tells other that lesson is
fun
3. Gives criticism to
classmates‟ response to
teacher‟s questions
4. Asks questions about
issues connected to the
science concepts
presented
5. Goes through the
laboratory manual
before engaging in the
actual experiments

The measures obtained from observation approach can be made more valid
and reliable with the following guidelines.

1. Set a clear definition of affective trait you want to observe.

 2. Prepare a checklist or rating scale that will define the more specific affective
behavior you want to capture. This checklist or rating scale will also be used
in collecting and recording your data.
3. Consult with a colleague or expert about the behavior listed as doable for
observation or not. You can try this with a sample of students.
4. Have a colleague/s to work with you in the actual observation time,
5. Be clear on ethical issues.
6. Record the observation immediately. Use the checklist, supplemented by
anecdotal records that are open-ended way to record observation. Record
factual observation and be cautious on personal interpretation and biased
statements.
7. Review data. Reflect outcomes.
8. Decide future steps based on the observation results.
9. Adjust planning and apply interventions.
10. Monitor progress.

Enrichment

1. For more information on affective assessment and affective assessment tools,

please watch these videos:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FEou4iH9nc4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvL0WN4jYqY
http://youtube.com/watch?v=S9xspSC6MZ0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0SCLFgIS7pQ
2. Also, explore these online presentations.
https://www.slideshare.net/autisticbigbro/affective-assessment-62258040
https://slideplayer.com/slide/9225837/

Summary
Affective assessment is an assessment based on the student‟s attitudes,
interest and values.
Receiving, responding, valuing, organization and characterization are the
taxonomy of affective domain in learning while attitudes, values and beliefs,
 interests, motivation and self-confidence are the affective variables in
learning.
Affective assessment tools pertain to the tools that are used to measure the
affective traits, more challenging compared to measuring students‟s cognitive
dimension of learning.
Self-structured questionnaires such as likert scale, semantic differential and
checklist; interview, student journals and observation are some of
assessment tools to measure affective learning.

Assessment
A. Following are some questions to see how far you have understood what have
been earlier discussed.
1. What is affective learning?
2. Why do we need to measure affective learning?
3. What are some affective traits that are relevant to students‟‟ learning?
4. Why is it more challenging to measure the affective domain of learning?
5. What tools can you use to measure the affective dimension of learning? What
are the advantages and limitations of each measuring tool?

B. Test further your understanding about assessment of affective learning by

answering the following items below.
1. Which of the following learning domains relates to the development of a
person‟s value system?
A. Cognitive B. Psychomotor C. Social D. Affective
2. Which of the following theorists identified the taxonomy of affective learning
domain?
A. J. Piaget B. D.R. Krathwohl C. B.F. Skinner D. P.Likert
3. When a student is seeing the worth and usefulness of knowing the law of
gravity in his or physics lesson, the student is demonstrating what level of
behavior?
A. Receiving B. Responding C. Valuing D. Characterizing
4. Which of the following actions is at the highest level of the affective domain?
A. Recalling Information
B. Responding t an issue
C. Demonstrating awareness
D. Internalization of Values
 5. Which of the following assessment tools is most appropriate if teachers want
to capture and monitor in writing the students‟ personal experiences and
thoughts about something in his or her learning?
A. Rating Scales
B. Student Reports
C. Student Journal
D. Interview
6. If a student joins voluntarily a marathon activity for raising funds for flood
victim, he or she is demonstrating what level of affective learning?
A. Awareness
B. Responding
C. Valuing
D. Characterizing
7. It is an affective assessment tool that can take into account non-verbal
behaviors.
A. Self-report B. Observation C. Interview D. Student Journals
Consider the following case to answer questions 8-10.
Mrs. Abad is a fourth-grade teacher at J.P. Garcia Elementary School who
experienced difficulty in her classroom this school year. She had to spend much
time and energy preventing her students from bullying each other, and she
noticed how many are making verbal remarks, calling each other “stupid” or
“dumb”. In addition, quite a number did not do assignments and always missed
bringing their textbooks in class. She is, however, puzzled that in her actual
English period, majority, even those who are guilty of misbehavior, can
communicate well when asked to recite and talk sense when asked to interpret
literary works. Overall, Mrs. Abad is not happy with student achievement, as
measured by different test where only 75% performed above the level of
satisfactory performance.
8. What affective trait should Mrs. Abad first develop among her students?
A. Interest B. Self-Confidence C. Honesty D. Valuing of Learning
9. If the students can communicate when asked to recite and interpret literary
piece, what level of affective trait is demonstrated by the students?
A. Receiving B Responding C. Valuing D. Organizing
10. If Mrs. Abad wants to capture in depth the reasons for students‟ misbehavior,
what assessment tool is most appropriate in her case?
A. Checklist B. Observation C. Interview D. Semantic Differential

C. Construct an assessment tool and answer the following questions.

1. Examine the assessment tool that you constructed, Do you find meaning of
the work you have done?
2. What was the purpose of assessment tool? What will it serve?
3. How significant is this tool in your future work as a teacher?
4. Is this plan worth your time and effort? Why?
 5. What else could be done with assessment tool? For what other purpose can
this be useful?

REFERENCES
Cajigal, R. and Mantuano, M. L. (2014). Assessment of Learning 2. Quezon City:
Adriana Publishing Co., Inc.
David et al. (2020). Assessment in Learning 2. Manila: Rex Book Store.
De Guzman, E. and Adamos, J. (2015). Assessment of Learning 2. Quezon City:
Adriana Publishing Co., Inc