By Jennyfer B. Nipales, Teacher III, Palayan City NHS
Assessment and reporting of the learning outcomes of the learners are critical
components of the teaching and learning process. Thus, the quality of assessment strategies or
techniques used and employed by the teacher in the instruction has an impact on the learning
acquisition and outcome of the learners. Furthermore, the teacher’s method of reporting learners’ progress serves as a guide that encourages learners to focus on attaining the desired learning
objectives so that they can be effectively guided on the development of desired skills and
competencies in the teaching and learning process. However, the present public health crisis caused by the Coronavirus Disease 2019
(COVID-19) has posed a significant burden for the education sector, particularly in the
assessment of learning outcomes and their reporting among the learners and their learning
facilitators. In this regard, aside from the adjustment of assessment and reporting of the learning
outcomes, the education sector has undergone numerous changes in its curriculum, including the
competencies to be taught, delivery of learning resources, teaching methods and strategies, distribution and retrieval of learning resources, embracing different modes of learning modalities, and integrating technology into the teaching and learning process.
These adjustments and enhancements were employed to meet the gaps generated by the
shift in the learning environment and to aid learners, teachers, and other key stakeholders in the
educative process. As a result, one of the Department of Education’s interventions has been used
to ensure that all teachers acquire the necessary competencies in the delivery of instruction
during the pandemic by developing high levels of competencies in assessing the learners’ learning outcomes and their effective reporting among the key stakeholders through various in- service training (INSET), capacity-building programs, and learning action cell (LAC), whether
virtual or face-to-face set-up. These initiatives were focused and utilized to improve the
procedures for assessing and reporting the learners’ learning outcomes while implementing
remote learning amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Thus, the Department of Education mandated the implementation of Basic Education- Learning Continuity Plan (BE-LPC) in its education system in response to the COVID-19
pandemic. This provided detailed guidelines and set the course for a smooth transfer of learning
from face-to-face instruction to distance learning (DL) using a variety of learning delivery
modalities customized to the needs and interests of learners and the communities in which they
live. Thus, recognizing the aims of distance learning, measuring the learning among the
learners is essential as this will help teachers and school administrators in determining and
crafting applicable interventions to address the possible gaps in the acquisition of desired
learning outcomes amid the varied learning modalities employed by the school. Learners and
learning facilitators, on the other hand, will be guided along the path of their learning through
distance education, allowing them to cope with changes in the curricula through understanding of
the assessment of learning outcomes and the reporting strategies used by teachers. In this regard,
learning is considered as one of the most important qualities and characteristics of the teaching
and learning process, as it is one of the most important factors in a country’s advancement and
development. It has a beneficial and broad impact on the lives of future generations while
depending on contemporary and innovative underpinnings. Therefore, the teachers’ understanding of assessing and reporting techniques, along with the tactics, theories, and
knowledge of how to employ current teaching orientations and approaches in the learning
environment, are used to gauge learners’ outcomes and progress.