What is a defining characteristic of criterion-referenced assessments?

Criterion-referenced assessments are designed to measure a student's performance against predefined standards or specific criteria rather than comparing their performance to that of their peers. The primary focus of these assessments is to determine whether students have attained a certain level of knowledge or skill as laid out by educational standards. This means that the success or failure of a student is based on their ability to demonstrate mastery of certain content or skills, as defined by the benchmarks rather than relative performance in comparison to others.

In educational settings, criterion-referenced assessments are often used to assess proficiency in specific areas, such as state standards in mathematics or literacy. This provides valuable information regarding individual student learning and helps educators identify areas that may need more focused instruction or support tailored to those defined standards.

Other assessment types, such as norm-referenced assessments, would focus on comparing students' performance to that of their peers, which is not the intent of criterion-referenced assessments. Thus, the key defining characteristic is the alignment with specific standards aimed at gauging individual achievement rather than comparative performance.