On the Assessment of Musical Behaviors in Ghanaian Public Universities: A Critical Reflection

Abstract

Assessment, broadly conceptualized to encompass the scopes of measurement and evaluation, is an indispensable part of any educational endeavor. It providesthe necessary information base for diagnosing various teaching and learning related problems, for evaluating the performance of students and teachers, for placement, for counseling, for certification and accreditation, among other things. Considering the magnitude of the decisions that are made on the basis of assessment outcomes, it stands to reason that some meticulousness ought to be put into the various assessment procedures. But is this really the case? In this paper, I focus on the assessment of musical behaviors in Ghanaian Public Universities. I examine the extent to which the assessment items cover the three broad learning domains (cognitive, affective and psychomotor) as well as the level of their cognitive demand. Data for the study was gathered through a critical content analysis of music examination past questions spanning over twenty-six music courses mounted between 2005 to 2015.The analysis was done within the aegis of Bloom, Krathworl and Simpson’s assessment theories and taxonomies. It emerged from the analysis that most of the examination questions tested low level cognitive behaviors and only some middle-level psychomotor behaviors. The affective domain was mostly left unexamined. Again, the forms of assessment fell under achievement tests and performance tests. Aptitude tests were largely absent. Based on these findings, I recommend that workshops on assessment procedures should be organized frequently for music lecturers. Furthermore, systematic steps must be put in place in these Departments to examine assessment materials before they are administered.