Why classroom tests?

Why do we give tests? What purpose does it serve? Well,  to  start  with  because  we  need  to  know  how  children  are  doing  in school.  Ever since there have been schools, teachers have used tests of various  kinds  to  find  out  how  well  students  are  learning  and  if  their instruction has been successful or not.   But the reasons for testing don’t stop there.

In general, teachers use classroom tests to:

• Diagnose student strengths and weaknesses.
• Monitor each student’s progress.
• Assign grades.
• Determine the teacher’s own instructional effectiveness.
• Provide information to inform instructional and curricular decisions.
• Help teachers clarify their instructional intentions.