Assessment at the transition from primary to lower secondary education. An analysis of practices and challenges for teachers in two Swiss cantons

Abstract

Performance assessment has a far-reaching influence, especially in school transitions, and places high demands on teachers. The present study therefore examines areas of tension, degrees of freedom and challenges in per-formance assessment at the transition from primary to lower secondary level. For this purpose, the views of 22 teachers in two Swiss cantons were collected by means of semi-structured interviews and evaluated by content analysis. The results show that the teachers' assessment practices are basically similar, but at the same time they make different use of the given scope for action and discretion. The results suggest a need for professiona-lisation.