Uncovering the meanings of educational assessment: realities at the outset of inclusion reform in Lithuanian schools

ENThe implementation of Inclusive Education (IE) in Lithuania has highlighted significant issues regarding the educational assessment of learners with special educational needs (SEN). This article examines the potential impacts of assessment policies that aim to enhance academic performance through standardised testing and examinations on learners with SEN. A 15-month critical ethnographic study of the assessment culture carried out in one school identified key patterns in how teachers perceive fair assessment and how they grade the achievements of learners with SEN. Our study suggests that teacher-assigned grades reflect not only students’ academic performance but also their subjective judgements of students’ effort and motivation, which reduces their credibility. To address this, authority over students’ learning is increasingly being delegated to standardised tests and examinations, viewed as quick and reliable tools to measure achievement. The design of large-scale assessments, which rely heavily on selected response items, influences what is taught and how it is taught in schools, which can have long-term consequences, especially for learners with SEN. Keywords: KEYWORDS Grading; assessment culture; inclusive education; fair assessment; assessment of achievement of learners with SEN.

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