Learning how to learn for life - assessment literacy in senior cycle education in the Republic of Ireland

tudent assessment literacy is defined as an understanding of the process and purpose of assessment and how it connects with learning and achievement (Hannigan, C., D. Alonzo, and C. Z. Oo. 2022. “Student Assessment Literacy: Indicators and Domains from the Literature.” Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy & Practice 29 (4): 482–504.). It is aligned to assessment for learning (AFL) in that students understand the nature of learning as an intentional process and the evaluation of learning as an informed and systematic judgement. In post-primary education in Ireland, there is much emphasis on the development of skills, values and dispositions that will enable students to participate in a meaningful way in the world beyond school. This paper explores how teachers' values and assessment pedagogy determine their approach to AFL in the classroom. It also examines how agentic student participation in AFL activities develops their assessment literacy. It is based on a qualitative multiple case-study comprising observation of classroom practice and interviews with students and teachers to examine the interplay between the language and practice of AFL and student participation in the process. One of the main findings of the study is that, despite the pressures of high-stakes examinations, effective AFL pedagogy has the potential to enhance students’ assessment literacy and consequently their capacity for autonomous and self-directed lifelong learning.