Commentary on Critical Issues in Mathematics Education: WHAT ABOUT THE ASSESSMENT GAP? WE NEED TO ADDRESS IT—NOW!

The article was influenced by sessions related to assessment presented at the 11^th International Congress on Mathematics Education (ICME) held in Monterrey, Mexico in July 2008. It discusses challenges related to assessment and teaching practices that overemphasize high stakes assessment in the United States, as the country was about to release the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics (CCSS-M) and a plan to create rigorous assessments linked to the CCSS-M. The manuscript discusses a continuum of assessment distance and defines the assessment gap as the distance between types of assessments provided (e.g., classroom-based formative assessments, formal classroom exams, state-required assessments), noting that we are over-assessing far too many of our students and that while the assessments are many and varied, they are too often not connected to teaching and learning, suggesting that teachers need to regularly use assessment to help inform their teaching, and to assist them in determining student needs. To do this, the mathematics education community in the United States must focus on issues of student access and equity, and blend formative and summative assessment opportunities, if we are to honor and celebrate student knowledge and the knowledge base of the communities to which our students belong. The article closes with a series of questions for mathematics education leaders as they consider their own school or school district assessment plan and how they link such assessment opportunities to teaching and learning.