Assessing Intelligence: A Perspective from Education Psychology Notes PDF

**Assessing intelligence: A perspective from education psychology** Holistic -- looks at all factors involved in the persons model (environment, genetics)- what they bring to the table Integrating emotional and social Educational psychologists often work with the systems in order to make it more...

**Assessing intelligence: A perspective from education psychology** Holistic -- looks at all factors involved in the persons model (environment, genetics)- what they bring to the table Integrating emotional and social Educational psychologists often work with the systems in order to make it more inclusive Do not always work 1-1 but professionals, teachers, paediatricians to move the group on and unlock the students potentials MacKay 1989 **What do educational psychologists do?** A lot of collaborative work -- build on other peoples ideas; solution finding in a joint manner - Consultation - Fundamental aspect: have a positive conversation that can make a difference to the child - 1989 children act: must act in the best interest of the young person - Facilitate child's learning but also their inclusions - Schools sometimes have agendas (e.g. child isn't performing academically -- "get rid of them" by excluding them) -- schools should meet the community needs - Less capable students are marginalised -- adopt an "educational triage" in boosting performance on mid range (C/D average) students and lower achievers are ignored - Reproduces class inequalities: lower achievers are typically w/c students: not a central target for schools \+ Tough and Brooks : schools will often use covert selection (expensive uniforms + complicated applications) that requires cultural and economic capital that only the m/c can access - Assessment - All done through collaboration and consultation - Can be direct (tools that go beyond consultation) - Look at the child in the context (may be observations...) - Intervention - All work should inform positive change (something should be different) - Sometimes could be achieved just through the consultation (just talking things through) - Or more systematic: look at their current situation, where they want to be and how to get there - Training - What are the pressing issues? How is wellbeing effected? (directed to staff) - Bring ideas and get people talking so they think differently - Research - Informs intervention strategies **What is the point in assessment?** - Important for accountability : local authorities have to set up education to a certain standard -- assessment is a means to decide that these are performing well -- e.g. OFSTED - \+ inform teaching and provision -- shows if a child isn't making adequate progress (intervention would be needed) - Educationalists have to measure students and how they are performing at certain time points (e.g. KS1, KS2...) -- ensures that their rate of progress is natural and they are progressing through the curriculum - SATS (standardised assessment tests)- compare children to a standard Already a 6 month age difference in performance between children from lower to higher income areas -- education can have nothing to do with performance and there's interrelated factors that play out differently for individuals - E.g. No access to technology/ parents that can pay for tutoring/ extra curricular or help with homework : not entering education with the same resources to enable them to access the education system in the same way - Government now looks to recognise this: drawing out some of these contexts -- measure schools accountability in baseline assessments as well as contextual value -- demographics where children are in poverty (free school meals) - Also shows us how we perform as a nation: if our school system helps children - Data can indicate how politically and morally the nation is acting - Assessment needs to transform this: does this need to be fixed or carried out Government have sought to reduce these educational disparities : 1988 education reform act: ensures that children are delivered the same education with the same core curriculum - Equal footing \[ \_ ignores systemic factors that prevent working class achievement: Becker: m/c are labelled as the "ideal" student and favoured by teachers -- offered more support and encouragement = Pygmalion effect: this enhanced teacher expectation influences beliefs about capabilities, leading to more academic motivations \_ Also external factors: core curriculum makes no difference if w/c continue to lack the economic capital necessary to enhance their learning (e.g. textbooks, extra curricular clubs \_ e.g. students from low socio economic backgrounds often don't live in poor quality housing and lack a sufficient diet -- do not have adequate conditions to revise/ do homework and often associated with health problems, which leads to school abscences Programs (pupil premium) have been put in place to help alleviate this BUT students often reject these in fear of reprisal and stigmatisation from peers (Wilkinson: 20% of students refuse free school meals. \] Important to consider if: the assessments should be fixed or caried out with ongoing monitoring? Students can have good/ bad days -- these standardised assessments do not take in accounting factors into account - Should make varied sets of assessments that are triangulated to make a form of reasoning -- shouldn't be summative (point marker) but formative (inform) If we're trying to find the students level in comparison to other students? - Need to take environment and context into account - Contextual factors must be considered to make sure these comparisons are fair If were trying to find their level in comparison to teaching or a set of skills? - Why is it that they cant perform these skills? - Have to step back beyond the level of the child - If we measure their skills we can help give them support in terms of fairness (think about equity) -- some children need more support than others (e.g. reading -- may need more help with literacy but less so with maths -- vice versa for a different child) Brofenbrenners ecological systems theory: individual development is influenced by a series of interconnected environmental systems (immediate surroundings (family) to broad societal structures (culture) - These influences should be considered when making assessments **Why is assessment important?** *" The most influential factor in whether a poor child grows up to be a poor adult, repeating the cycle from generation to generation, is educational attainment."* Department for Work and Pensions (2014). We live within a class system: w/c children have different opportunities: inter relationship of different factors Often cycle is repeated but education can lift them out of this - Want to know the value added dimension that educational providers are making - Important that children's progress is monitored to ensure that effective interventions are targeted to those who need support - Closing the attainment gap: look to "level up" opportunity as certain children have greater disadvantages than others Issues with gender : DFE gathers information on these disparities **Curriculum based tests: GCSE and A -- level** Gap between gypsy/ roma, travellers of irish heritage, black carribean and other black background can be 10.9 months behind other pupils on English and maths gcse (Hutchinson et al 2020) - Gilbourn and Youdell: teachers are often quick to discipline black pupils as they are labelled to be anti authoritarian, this can create conflicts and lowered self esteem, resulting in the self fulfilling prophecy Children do not have the same rate of progress -- may be due to colonisation of the curriculum (mainly study Caucasian culture) - Ball "little englandism" : curriciulm focuses on English history and European languages -- those from other ethnic backgrounds cannot relate to this and become disengaged Inter relationship of factors -- also poverty and emotional curriculum (feeling connected to peers) - Black students are much less likely to assimilate with m/c white curriculum - Due to colonalisation they are have formed a "culture of resistance" and are extremely hesitant to assimilate with other cultural values - Explains why Asian students outperform Black students : systematic racism continues but this impacts ethnicities differently - E.g. progress 8 scores (average progress) : Asian pupils progressed by +0.53 but Black students by +0.22 (Department for education 2023) Also differences in overall attainment between ethnic groups in achievement of 3 grades at A level - 25.7% Chinese - 11% Asian / white Can be differences within categories : Indian communities score higher than Pakistani/ Bangladeshi Differences in attainment in boys vs girls with boys being over represented at both extremes of the continuum Rust (2007): questions this but suggests that the answers may be too complex Curriculum based assessments do measure performance from the classroom but are seen as reductionist and ignore affective + social domain **British psychological society** Children from w/c background have worse educational outcomes than their peers - Present even in the earliest years of education - Only become more pronounced as the child progresses - Educational gap widens throughout time at school between socio economic groups Government have stated that they are working to change but this hasn't been achieved "Disadvantaged" students (those eligible for free school meals) at any point within a 6 year span are estimated to lag behind their peers by 5 months of learning - At the end of primary school this is by 9 months - GCSE: 18 months - A level: 3 grades lower Education policy institute (2020) : gap between disadvantaged pupils and their peers has stopped closing for the first time within a decade: serious problems that require serious solutions - Those eligible for free school meals are over 18.1 months of learning behind their peers (over a year group below) - Even higher for those of persistent poverty (on FSM for 80% of their time at school) : 22.7 months - Consistent throughout schooling: primary school the gap is 9.3 months and even in reception the gap is 4.6 months Clear that there are systematic barriers that prevent educational achievement Children who require extra care and support are being ignored: those who were within the care system are nearly 2 ½ years behind their peers at GCSE age And those with a special education, health and care plan are over 3 years behind. **Socio economic status** Those eligible for free school meals make less educational progress between the ages of 11 and 16 Since COVID-19 the proportion of children on FSM has increased: January 2018- 13.6% -\> 2019- 15.4% -\> 2020-17.3% -\> 20.8% in 2021 FSM rates in 2022 were highest amongst travellers of irish heritage (63.3%) and gypsy/ roma (51.9%). Rates were lowest for Indian (7.5%) and Chinese (7.8%) Extremely complex matter with individuals and intersections of need Government should put this at the centre of their interest: pressing matter **How would educational psychologists assess learning?** [Standardised assessments: ] *Psychometric assessments* -- physiological measurement: scores on a test that are compared to a comparison group -- strength of abilities can be judged relative to other students (norm referenced) - Measuring their "mentality" : their capacity to intelligence and natural ability - Think we have a fixed and stable impression in their achievement (problematic -- not valid or reliable) *Curriculum based assessments --* compare a students performance with criterion linked to the local curriculum: progress can be systematically gathered over time in a variety of settings using materials employed for instruction (compare performance through pre established goals) : could be gathered through consultation and evaluation -- results may not be readily generalised - National curriculum 1988 : must be studied by all children :national level reduces down with GCSE options and A levels (still standardised across country) - Can compare these grades nationally Dynamic assessments are less about standardisation and measurement as the assessor is involved in the assessment process - Underused but is growing - How the child can achieve something with the help of an adult - E.g. encouraged by teacher to "find corner pieces" when solving a jigsaw -- helps child achieve with this scaffolding What is intelligence? A hypothetical construct! How can we measure intelligence? - Rational/ logical/ type of thinking? - Problem solving/ lateral thinking? - Emotional/ social? Hypothetical construct but not necessarily one thing -- should look at the wider breadth -- different context will require different elements Is it stable? How can we be sure this wont progress? - Doesn't feel hopeful or fair to use this capacity defined basis of intelligence around children - What would even be the point of education? Psychologists measure intelligence: often different conceptions **Cattell's**: Crystalised vs fluid intelligence Fluid intelligence -- natural innate - Inherited ability but is not often captured by testing - High fluid intelligence enables us to quickly learn and understand new material Crystalised- taught at schools (largely environmental) - Nurtured through education - Increases over time: the more information we are exposed to the more knowledgeable we become - Down to the individual to invest this into the domain of their choosing Children that perform well at school have this underlying ability Beneficial as it takes contextual cues into accounts Bert- found out which children would go into specialist classes / schools (grammar schools) Grammar schools would focus on classical literature and languages Supposedly set up to help poorer children to avoid trade work BUT statistically it was dominated by m/c children (have the means to access this (private tutors)) - Marxism "myth of meritocracy" : schools are seen as equal and based on merit but in reality it is to ensure the middle class remain in these highly qualified, well paying positions to ensure the capitalistic structure of society remains **Standardised assessments** Curriculum based approach Standardised means but is not a psychometric assessment: form a standard of normality based on normal distribution curve Where would we draw the line? Where do we stop sending children to grammar schools/ cut them from top classes? How do we decide inclusion rates? Spearman (1904) coined the concept of general underlying ability (this is 80% heritable- nurture have some effect); felt it to be dominantly heritable Provides an idea of global intelligence (full scale IQ or GCA) - Performance on cognitive tasks are similar and correlational - Therefore there must be a common factor that relates to mental ability - Makes sense to use standardised measures: all tests / practises will yield the same result Binet (1857- 1911) Binet published the first ability test - Stated that intelligence IS a thing and we can measure it Intelligence was felt to be measured by a range of tasks (e.g. making a sentence with given words) that were felt to be representative of typical children's abilities at a certain age -- felt to be partly malleable but the task overall was felt to be measured with consistency Early test questions: if the child could shake hands with the examiner, if they could construct sentences with specific words (paris, river, fortune) Originally it was developed by Binet to identify children who needed academic assistance (with the outcome of them returning to mainstream education) but it soon became a test to identify the "feeble minded" - Largely based on culture : if parents have used these complex words - Product of environment : lots of caution should be used when using these psychometric measures to intelligence capacity \[ Should be extremely cautious when using these tests: Eugenic undertones - Identifying "feeble minded" could lead to prejudicial practises: excluding these from education or in extreme practises stop these individuals from re producing \] **The British ability scales 3** - Psychometric test Three cluster scores are produced which demonstrate the relative strength of a childs verbal abilities, non verbal abilities and spatial abilities Overall cognitive ability is calculated by combining these scores = general conceptual ability (GCA) The percentile figure shows where a child's score stands in relation to a hypothetical group of 100 pupils at the same age A percentile score between 16-84 is considered the norm Banding and streaming (top/bottom set) isnt productive for all children -- usually teachers with lower skill set and joined with children with behavioural problems (research indicates that disruptive students can have a negative impact on their peers -- Zhao 2021: encourage other pupils to not do their homework: grouping these students together only reproduces poor academic attainment) A blue and white rectangular box with white text Description automatically generated Performance scale (block design): also includes a lingustic element A lot of tests are timed : thinking quickly is associated with intelligence in western cultures: but this is not deemed as smart in other cultures (could explain why ethnic minorities perform worse)- confounding variable to a test that is supposed to be subjective - Children might have physical needs that could slow them down (cerebal palsy): disadvantages these as they cannot react quickly Goddard 1912: The kalilak family: study of feeble mindedness - Man had come back from battle (early 1900s) : cheated with bar made; child was of lower intellect due to lower class of bar made -- proof that genes had passed through despite the man having strong, higher class, intellectual genes McDaniel 2005: support for genetic element of IQ: associated with larger brain volumes Warned against sexual unions producing intellectually inferior descendants - Intelligence is 80% heritable - Society needs to have the most intelligent people - Shouldn't reproduce feeble minded genes Not viable to assume that intelligence is genetic/ heritable : The Flynn effect - Generational rise in IQ by 10 percentage points - Not culture bound : observed in 14 countries Has been caused by social multipliers: - Internet and wider access to education - Gaming = higher reaction times and speed - Rising standards of living Shouldn't assume that standardised tests will give a baseline and determined IQ: environmental influences can change this Became an argument for eugenicists and led to arguments for institutional isolation/ sexual sterilisation - Also problems with immigration: if they did not have a high enough IQ they would be turned away - Troubled past with psychometric tests Terman 1916 -- standardised the scale using a large American sample No longer used to advocate education for all children but rather a test to curtail the reproduction of feeble mindedness and eliminate an enormous amount of crime, pauperism and industrial inefficiency Those who scored: 80-90 = dull, rarely classifiable as feeble minded 70-80 = borderline deficiency, dull, often feeble minded Below 70= definite feeble minded Reddy 2008: data used to promote the interests of the ruling elite: not a fair system - Marxism Psychometrics - Judged by a scientific standard - Reliability: Assumed that child would perform the same whenever tested (not true: could practise/ have a bad day) - Validity : if the questions are relevant - Standardisation : compares the students scores with the group norm (not fair- child from poverty have to take the same test as those from affluent areas) - Freedom from bias (items shouldn't show group differences that are disproportionate from the test as a whole or there is different reliability or validity for different groups) Vygotsky (1978): emphasises the role of socio cultural factors in the "zone of proximal development" to enhance learning - Those in close proximity to the child act as "scaffolds" : not inherent intelligence but rather culturally determined Assumptions about intelligence and intelligence tests: - Intelligence is static - It can be precisely measured - Possible to design a testing instrument capable of peeling back layers of economic and socioeconomic shrouding to reveal a true essence of intelligence - That this essential intelligence can be expressed with a single/ several numbers - The purpose of the test is to allow society to identify and promote the best and brightest among us What is school and education for? Increase gross domestic profit of society? Keep children of the streets- safeguarded? Improve childrens intelligence? -- if it doesn't serve all children fairly then there are structural and moral problems. Functionalism: secondary unit of socialisation that ensures children learn the norms of society: Parsons describes it as a "bridge" to wider society with individuals being allocated into best suited roles: natural that children will not be treated fairly but this is just as it is necessary for society to function Marxism: creates a false class consciousness: ensures structural inequalities persist by reproducing these class differences NO such test exists! Reddy 2008 Intelligence is fluid, multi facete and irreducible to a numeric standard We aren't living in a meritocracy and privilege is reproduced generation after generation Although we have moved to a model of difference rather than deficiency -- persecution to prosecution -- we still use mental retardation pretextually **Explanatory and predictive power of intelligence tests: problematic constructions over time**\ Flugel: 1947- 16% of people disagreed with the statement that intelligence tests are better than ordinary exams for finding out about the brains a person was born with This rose to 27% in 1973 \+ 22% disagreed with the statement that the concept of intelligence will find the "right person" for a job Rose to 41% in 1973 \+ 41% of people disagreed that a childs intelligence measured between the ages of 8-10 is a reflection of their intelligence grown up Rose to 52% in 1973 Outdated statistics Cline 2015: scepticism around measurements of intelligence: 1. Theoretical: how can a single construct (e.g. IQ) predict progress in literacy and numeracy 2. Practical: how can norm based measures of intelligence help teachers to plan and adapt teaching 3. Moral: could the measurement of intelligence be inequitable in its treatment of children who have had access to limited learning opportunities during early childhood? 4. Ideological -- have these intelligence tests been based on racist norms 5. Pedagogical: does a "fixed level" ability discourage teachers from trying to develop untapped potential? Educational psychology assessment in Scotland: BPS paper - Urges caution against psychometric testing within the educational context - Use of standardised information alone is not best practise Psychologists turn to socio cultural factors: Vygotsky (1896-1934) -- human development is socially mediated Children acquire cultural values, beliefs, problem solving strategies through collaborative dialogues with more knowledgeable members of society Community plays a central role in making meaning Infants are born with the basic abilities for intellectual development "elementary mental functions" = attention, sensation, perception and memory These develop into higher mental functions through interaction with the sociocultural environment Social interaction promotes cooperative/ collaborative dialogue = cognitive development Working with a more knowledgeable other shows greater understanding and improvement than working alone Dynamic assessment Teaching from a skilled other can create buds of development\ "scaffolding" : Wood et al 1976 - The child responds well to hand over hand mediation when practising letter formation Lokke et al 1997: surveyed 120 services in England, wales and northern Ireland -- 65% of services were increasingly using psychometrics - Now they try to use this to measure skills \> general conceptual ability - Profession is divided as to whether these are beneficial Woods and Farrell 2006: surveyed 142 educational psychologists on their approach to the assessment of children with learning and behavioural problems - Partial psychometric assessments feature prominently in the assessment of children with learning difficulties but less in those with behaviour problems - Approaches to dynamic assessment aren't frequently used but those who do use them find them to be useful in the purpose of assessment Freeman and Miller 2001: how useful do teachers find information from 3 assessment paradigms: normative dynamic assessment and curriculum related - Criterion rated assessment was rated as the most useful for understanding childrens needs and abilities + for planning teaching responses Making decisions about assessment - What is the rationale -- is it to advocate for the child and their education? - What is the most appropriate procedure which will facilitate the voice of the child or young person? - What theories and evidence underpin the practice? - How will the assessment take account of the child in different contexts over time, and build upon multi-agency and staged intervention? - How will the assessment build upon the child's strengths? - How will the assessment be used to develop the learning and community context? Is intelligence a thing and how fixed is it? - How might constructions around ability be perceived to change over time and culture - What role might motivation, engagement and experience play in relation to performance - What are important social and political factors that should be considered when generally assessing childrens achievements Exam question: How would you approach a question on intelligence? - Unpack intelligence and what it is - Problems with construct - Theories - Make an argument throughout