Employment Prospects of Unemployed Youths - Essay Example

Designing Quality Assessment Introduction In modern society, education and education systems are given the first priority since they are vital in enhancement of human knowledge, skills, talents and motivation among others. Assessment is a fundamental practice in a learning process as it offers information on the performance of both the teacher and the student including the quality of the learning program, determining learner’s grades, formulating new teaching and learning methods as highlighted by (Banta, et al., 2009). Therefore, learning assessment helps in developing instructions aligned to the needs of the leaner in a bid to help the leaner to best, exploit their skills, knowledge and abilities. Education assessment helps to evaluate the processes, outcomes of teaching with the intention of examining to what extent educational mission, goals and objectives are attained, and how effective they are (Lal, 2008). Measurement and assessment are important when offering guidance and counseling for learners on career choice and personal development, for instructional purposes and administrative use. (Razon, 1993), defines evaluation as assigning symbols to an experience in a bid to determine its worth of value using particular social-cultural or systematic principles. When designing an assessment plan, teachers analyze the content, tasks and skills. In analyzing content, the teacher structure the content from known to unknown, concrete to conceptual, simple to complex, part to full and from observation to rational thinking (Rani, 2004). This report will explicitly draw a quality assessment plan to help unemployed youths enhance their employment prospects. In addition, the report will offer an in-depth description of the drawn assessment plan and finally, assessing the validity, reliability, cohesiveness and fairness of the assessment plan designed. Module descriptor The module or program descriptor offers the context for formulating specific behavioral objectives of the assessment plan. The program’ main outcome is to equip experienced and knowledgeable teachers with the ability and guideline on how to teach a group of unemployed youth, thereby, enhancing the youth’s employment prospects. The program is essential in providing the teachers with additional professional pedagogical development. This is necessitated by the fact that although teachers have content expertise, they lack prior experience instructing unemployed youths. The program seeks to establish the knowledge of the unemployed youth on what are the causes of their unemployment, what are the ways they can be empowered in order to motivate them, what role as individuals the unemployed youths play in reducing levels of unemployment, and establish ways in which the unemployed youths think can minimize the rates of unemployment. This will be helpful in offering more effective, relevant, reliable, valid, objective, consistent instructions to the unemployed youths which is essential in enhancing the youth’s employment prospects An assessment matrix Developing an assessment matrix involves highlighting the behavioral objectives, assessment targets and assessment methods. The behavioral objectives point out the definite behaviors that the unemployed youths must show to signify that learning has occurred as suggested by (Gronlund, 2006). Using Bloom’s taxonomy, the assessment targets involves the knowledge, skills and attitudes that will help choose appropriate assessment method. Assessment methods vary in their ability to test Bloom’s taxonomy of educational aims, which are the cognitive, affective and psychomotor domains as highlighted by (Banta, et al., 2009). The learning outcome of this assessment plan is to enhance employment prospects for the unemployed youths. Behavioral Objectives Assessment Targets Assessment Methods type of knowledge cognitive processes objective type subjective type performance type 1. Identify key factors that contribute to youth unemployment -ability to comprehend problems and their sources -enhance communication abilities - competence in choosing, organizing and synthesizing information -enhancing the skills and knowledge to review, criticize or sustain arguments recognize true/false tests extended response essay essay tests 2. Establish possible solutions from the unemployed youths and the community to issues of unemployment -ability to develop and implement decisions Ability to solve problems Ability to express one’s point of view synthesis oral tests short answer tests case study 3. Recognize ways in which unemployed youths can be empowered and better equipped to get jobs ability to use knowledge and skills already acquired to boost self esteem and self confidence predict matching answers restricted response essays instructor checklist 4. Observe the role the unemployed youths, teachers, the community and related stakeholders play in resolving employment crises ability to collaborate and associate with others to achieve a similar goal evaluate essays extended response essay interview Table A Two assessment methods from two separate behavioral objectives and different assessment types The two assessment methods selected are essays and oral tests from two behavioral objectives namely- 1. Identify key factors that contribute to high levels of unemployment and 2.establish possible individual and community solutions to issues of unemployment in subjective and objective types of assessment respectively. a) Essays Essays as methods of assessment are essential in weighing the unemployed youth’s ability to communicate clearly when writing. The method is quantifiable as implied by (Ekbatani, 2008). They will help the teachers appraise the youth’s competence in choosing, organizing and synthesizing information and their skills and knowledge to review, criticize or sustain their arguments or perspectives on the issue of unemployment. Essay questions and in this case, the extended essay tests are easier to formulate compared to objective tests such as multiple-choice assessment test. For example, setting a thirty question multi choice exam takes longer than preparing a two question extended essay test. A teacher using extended essay is able to measure the affective and cognitive abilities of the unemployed youth, which is critical in evaluating what the youths know and do not know about what are the main causes of the rising levels of unemployment. Using this medium, the unemployed youths will be in a better position to present their views, attitudes and ideals, which the teacher can easily evaluate. Essays enhance the elements of validity, fairness, reliability, usability and consistency required in an assessment plan (Ekbatani, 2008). b) oral tests While using the oral tests, teachers teaching the unemployed youths will be able to gauge the youth’s ability to communicate coherently and articulately. This is important because it may help shade light on the youth’s ability to present their point of view during job interviews. The use of oral tests will be helpful for the teachers in seeking in-depth information from the unemployed youth about unemployment related matters and at the same time, evaluate the depth of knowledge, skills and experience of the youths. In addition, the unemployed youths will be in a better position to inquire and seek instantaneous answers and clarifications of previously learnt contents. This method helps all the unemployed youths in a learning set up to actively participate, which is helpful in generating multiple ideas and opinions on causes of unemployment, possible solutions and the role the youths can play to revert the situation. In addition, enhancing the unemployed youth’s self –confidence and self-esteem and improving the youth’s communication abilities. Teachers will be well stationed to assess the ability of the youths to not only comprehend theory and principles underlying theorems, but also, the ability of the youth to relate theory to real life situations. This is very important for the youths, as their theoretical knowledge will help them deal with daily issues once they are employed. After the end of a session, the teacher has an idea on the comprehension levels of the students on the role the society, themselves and other stakeholders play in averting unemployment issues, depending on the responses the teacher gets during the oral assessment session as implied by (Lal, 2008). This helps in making efficient alterations to the teaching methods in a bid to enhance effective and productive learning experiences (Lal, 2008). Describing the Assessment plan The assessment plan has been necessitated by the increasing numbers of unemployed youths globally which is coupled with teachers who have content expertise but do lack prior experience instructing unemployed youths. The assessment plan therefore, provides a basis to developing and implementing the right learning experience that culminates to offering the unemployed youths with more effective, relevant, reliable, valid, objective, consistent instructions, that not only empowers them but also motivates and inspires them, which is essential in enhancing the youth’s employment prospects The when, where, how and to whom of the assessment plan The assessment plan will be most effective in workshops meant to motivate unemployed male and female youths, and help them acquire necessary cognitive skills and knowledge that will market them. At the same time, challenge the unemployed youths to identify alternative ways to earn a living than relying too much on being employed/ putting too much faith in white-collar jobs. The main implementers of the assessment plan are teachers who have content expertise but do lack prior experience instructing unemployed youths and the assessment plan is meant to improve learning experiences for unemployed youths. The assessment plans are most preferred for graduate students who are almost clearing their courses, industrial trainees and actual unemployed youths. Full set of instructions for learners While assessing the knowledge of the unemployed youths on the factors that contribute to youth unemployment, the youths will be required to write a one thousand worded extended essay on what are the factors that contribute to youth unemployment. The essay will carry sixty percent of the total marks. In addition, the youths will have to correctly, answer a quick true/false test that will carry thirty percent of the mark. An additional ten percent will be awarded by the teacher based on the commitment, originality, accuracy and effectiveness of the learner on the two tasks. When assessing the behavior objective of establishing possible solutions from the unemployed youths and the community to issues of unemployment, the unemployed youths will have to actively, participate in a planned oral test. The oral test will carry a fifty-five percent of the mark and a forty-five percent in the short answer tests. Learners who get less than half the hundred percent mark mean they did not fully get the program content. Full set of instructions for teachers analysis of learner learning Suitable approaches and teaching methods to enhance effective teaching and evaluation Alignment between objectives, instruction, and evaluation inference for future instructions and assessment planning Implications for professional development Appraising the Assessment plan The proposed assessment plan is a learner-centered evaluation plan where the teacher acts as the facilitator as mentioned by (Gronlund, 2006). The assessment plan seeks to evaluate the skills and abilities of the unemployed youths by establishing what their opinions are on the causes of youth unemployment, possible solutions to youth unemployment, and what are the ways the youths think are the most effective and productive ways of averting the situations. This will not only help the teachers in gaining professional pedagogical development, but also, enhancing the prospects of the unemployed youths to be employed. The assessment plan contains four major behavioral objectives that includes . Identify key factors that contribute to youth unemployment Establish possible solutions from the unemployed youths and the community to issues of unemployment Recognize ways in which unemployed youths can be empowered and better equipped to get jobs Observe the role the unemployed youths, teachers, the community and related stakeholders play in resolving employment crises. The assessment plan places more focus and emphasis on the behavioral objectives rather than on content, and more on the needs of the leaner than on what the teacher will do which will helps the youths best understand theory and facts, solve problems, make accurate and effective decisions to avert unemployment. Different learning experiences, diverse learners, teachers, and different situations call for varied assessment plans as mentioned by (Ekbatani, 2008). Effective assessment plan are valid, reliable, efficient, relevant, cost effective, quality, flexible, cohesive and fair as indicated by (McCullough & West Virginia University 2007). The proposed assessment plan is effective in not only helping the teachers be able to improve their professional pedagogical development, but also, enhance the unemployed youth’s employment prospects. The assessment plan is both valid and reliable since an assessment plan can be reliable but fails to be valid. The proposed assessment plan have the four essential elements of validity, reliability, fairness and cohesive, Validity According to (Gronlund, 1985), validity of the assessment plan refers to the scope to which the evaluation plan is able to quantify what it is required for a specific objective and to which the learning outcomes, are able to significantly and systematically represent the precise skills. The proposed assessment plan is able to evaluate the skill and knowledge of the unemployed youths, the information generated from the exercise is beneficial in enhancing the youth’s employment prospects, and enabling experienced teachers to better, teach unemployed youth. Reliability According to (Singh, 2005), reliability refers to the dependability and consistency of the evaluation and learning outcomes. Reliability of the proposed assessment plan is high since if the set behavioral objectives were subjected to youths in a different time and space, the responses would remain similar. The use of extended essays and oral tests allow for in-depth analysis of the skills, knowledge, articulacy and communication abilities of the learner. This limits segments of inconsistencies that may escape the teacher if they were using other methods such as observations. Fairness Fairness in assessment plans refers to the ability to remain objective and limit chances of biasness when evaluating learners, where all group of learners have equal opportunities to actively participate and be assessed equally as discussed by (Gronlund, 1985). Assessment plans should be fair and objective and without bias to particular students. Assessment plans are not supposed to alienate or discriminate against learners based on their race, religion, gender, disabilities, social status, and level of education, culture and ethnicity among others. The proposed assessment plan does not discriminate against unemployed youths as it is meant for both genders, students still in school, trainees and those who have completed schools and are unemployed and those who have no educational background and are unable to get jobs. The behavior objectives and assessment methods used allow similar outcomes for learners with comparable knowledge and abilities. In addition, varied groups of unemployed youths are represented reasonably and the tasks do not require knowledge that is not directly linked to learning results being evaluated. The objectives and questions set do not favor one group over another which are critical as mentioned by (Singh, 2005) . Cohesive Cohesive refers to the ability of the assessment plan to interconnect and interrelate well between the assessment variables such as the set objectives, the processes, assessment methods, learning outcomes and a cohesive alignment of assessment planning, assessment implementation and evaluation and back to assessment planning (Gronlund, 1985). The proposed assessment plan interrelates between various assessment processes from the behavior objectives, assessment methods to instructions and achieving learning outcomes. The assessment methods used capture all the information required to achieve the four set behavioral objectives, which are key in enhancing the youth’s employment prospects and helping the teachers effectively instruct having had no prior experience when instructing unemployed youths. In additionally, the assessment methods such as oral tests, restricted and extended essays, and true/false tests, matching answers, case studies and instructor checklists are vital and suitable in evaluating the achievement of the unemployed youths. The proposed assessment plan is vital for employers who will be in a better position to understand what employment needs youths have, therefore, develop, and implement necessary measures to avert the issue of unemployment. In addition, the unemployed youths are able to identify ways and means they can use and contribute to reduce unemployment rates and help themselves earn an honest living. The community through the help of the proposed assessment plan will be able to establish a favorable environment and initiatives to help youth create employment opportunities, empower them and learn ways of inspiring, motivating and improving the self-esteem and confidence of unemployed youths. In general, the assessment plan have all the required elements of an effective assessment plan which includes validity, reliability, consistency, fairness and cohesive. Additionally, the assessment plan is able to equip experienced teachers with the ability to teach unemployed youths in a bid to enhance the youth’s employment prospects. This illustrates the ability of the assessment plan to attain the anticipated outcome and achieve set behavioral objectives. The assessment plan is objective and learner-centered, the two elements necessary for a quality assessment plan (Gronlund, 1985). Conclusion Learning assessment helps in developing instructions aligned to the needs of the leaner in a bid to help the leaner to best, exploit their skills, knowledge and abilities. Development of an assessment plan is essential in achieving anticipated outcomes. This report has designed a quality assessment plan to help unemployed youths enhance their employment prospects. In addition, the report has described the drawn assessment plan and assessed the validity, reliability, cohesiveness and fairness of the assessment plan designed. References Banta, T.W., Jones, E.A., Black, K.E. 2009. Designing effective assessment: principles and profiles of good practice. New York: John Wiley and Sons. Ekbatani, G. 2008. Measurement and Evaluation in Post-secondary ESL. New Jersey: Taylor & Francis. Gronlund, N.E. 2006. Measurement and evaluation in teaching. 8th ed., New York: Macmillan Gronlund, N.E. 1985. Measurement and Evaluation in Teaching. New York: MacMillan Publishing Company, Inc. Lal, J.P. 2008. Educational Measurement and Evaluation. Sidney: PVT. LTD. McCullough, C.A. & West Virginia University. 2007. Factors that influence the effectiveness of assessment plans in the improvement and sustainment phase in colleges and universities. Virginia: West Virginia University. Rani, J.S. 2004. Educational Measurement and Evaluation. London: Discovery Publishing House. Razon, A. 1993. Educational Psychology. London: Rex Bookstore, Inc. Singh, B. 2005. Modern Educational Measurement and Evaluation System. New Delhi: Anmol Publications PVT. LTD. Read More