PL
Descriptive assessment – professional diagnosis and support for pupils’ abilities or an area of sterile bureaucracy? The descriptive assessment of pupils in grades 1-3 is one of the major components of the reformed Polish school system. The assessment should fully evaluate the learning abilities of the child, support their development and be an important motivational factor. Analysis of examples of school certificates containing descriptive assessment leads the author to the conclusion that this assessment does not accomplish the above. The main insufficiencies of descriptive assessment in the context of child development are: unequal emphasis upon particular areas of child development, the underlining of only partial abilities; imprecise descriptions; the inability to describe the dynamics of skills development and its directions; the pressure to make the child comply with school rules, as well as neglect of the curious and creative attitude of pupils. All the above mentioned insufficiencies significantly diminish the value of the assessment, which does not in the end support the pupil in their development, but becomes rather a mass of useless paperwork.