Knowing the intentions, meaning and context of classroom assessment: A case study of Singaporean teacher's conception and practice

With the articulation of new 'Holistic and Balanced Assessment' initiatives in Singaporean schools, a new standard of conceptualising and enacting classroom assessment is expected of Singaporean teachers. This paper draws on findings from a larger study of 'high-achieving' Singaporean teachers' deliberations and transactions of assessment activities. The use of case studies as a central methodology to investigate a contemporary phenomenon of education assessment extends the studies of conceptions and implementation of new classroom assessment practices in Anglophone and Western European countries. The findings from one of the 'high-achieving' case-study Singaporean teachers reveal that any quality assurance framework or guideline for evaluating teachers' assessment practices needs to be sensitive to their intentions, meaning and context of teaching.