Evaluación educativa y justicia social: Desafíos y horizontes desde una perspectiva internacional

Group Submission Type: Book Launch

Description of Session

This book takes a unique approach to the topic of educational assessment. It delves into the debate on whether assessment is a neutral tool for measuring learning or a power instrument that perpetuates social inequalities. The book explores the complex relationships between educational assessment and social justice, questioning the current practices' ability to promote equitable opportunities and recognize classroom diversity. It offers a comparative analysis of Latin American and European cases, illustrating how the relationship between assessment and social justice varies across contexts. Through this unique perspective, the authors identify the limitations and potentialities of current evaluation systems and propose paths toward a more just evaluation.
Since the end of the 20th century, we have witnessed a growing influence on the logic of educational accountability. In this context, learning assessment has become a vital tool for measuring the "success" of schools and students, often linked to incentive and punishment policies. While this approach may appear to be a way to ensure educational quality, in the book, we discuss how this approach has had perverse consequences, exacerbating inequalities in the educational system. The book also warns about the impact of assessment thus designed on social segregation. Assessment systems that classify and rank students can contribute to the creation of "elite" schools and "marginalized" schools, perpetuating social inequalities and limiting opportunities for students from disadvantaged backgrounds. In this sense, educational assessment can become a mechanism for exclusion rather than a tool for inclusion. Moreover, standardized assessments may need to adequately recognize the diversity of identities, cultures, and learning paces in contemporary classrooms. Ethnic minority students, students with disabilities, and students from disadvantaged socioeconomic backgrounds may face additional barriers on these assessments, which can lead to an underestimation of their abilities and a perpetuation of negative stereotypes.
The book's authors, considering the comparative analysis of cases from Norway, Argentina, the United Kingdom, Chile, and Mexico, highlight the importance of participation in the design of assessment policies. For a long time, the lack of involvement of school communities, including students, teachers, families, and other relevant actors, can lead to a disconnect between policies and the reality of the classroom. Evaluation must be a transparent and participatory process that considers the voices and needs of all stakeholders.
This book challenges us to reconsider educational evaluation from a critical and transformative perspective, focusing on a new paradigm of action in education and assessment: social justice. This concept, a fundamental principle, seeks to ensure an equitable distribution of educational opportunities and recognize classroom diversity. It suggests that educational assessment can be a tool that promotes equity, inclusion, and recognition of diversity in the classroom, overcoming market logic and encouraging the active participation of all actors in the educational community

Sub Unit

• Book launches and Workshops / Book Launch

Chair

• Felipe Hevia, CIESAS

Book Launch Presenter

• Gonzalo Almeyda, IADB

Non Presenter

• Arcelia Martínez-Bordón, Universidad Iberoamericana CDMX