Goodhart's Law in Educational Assessment and The Subversion of Learning
Location
SU-217
Start Date
1-5-2026 10:50 AM
Department
Philosophy
Abstract
The essential objective of education is learning, and our assessment practices subvert that. In the United States, assessment has become ubiquitous with education. Students are presented with exams and assignments that are judged by their teachers and returned to them, usually graded and occasionally with feedback. Taking and passing these assessments has become a central focus of our educational system. The idea behind measuring learning in this way is that doing so will support a higher aim: learning. Therefore, if our assessment practices have negative consequences on learning, then it is important to understand those consequences and how they work. However, thus far, little has been written about how assessments’ attempts to measure learning can have negative consequences on learning. Some of these consequences have been considered at a high organizational level, mainly, federal & state, universities, academic publishing, and specific educational programs. The following project analyzes Goodhart’s law – “when a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure” – in the context of our assessment practices. By utilizing a theoretical and conceptual analysis, this project explains how our assessment practices fall under the purview of Goodhart’s law, the negative consequences this has had, and will conclude by exploring what would have to be true about our assessment practices in order to escape these negative consequences.
Faculty Sponsor
Mark Rockwell
Goodhart's Law in Educational Assessment and The Subversion of Learning
SU-217
The essential objective of education is learning, and our assessment practices subvert that. In the United States, assessment has become ubiquitous with education. Students are presented with exams and assignments that are judged by their teachers and returned to them, usually graded and occasionally with feedback. Taking and passing these assessments has become a central focus of our educational system. The idea behind measuring learning in this way is that doing so will support a higher aim: learning. Therefore, if our assessment practices have negative consequences on learning, then it is important to understand those consequences and how they work. However, thus far, little has been written about how assessments’ attempts to measure learning can have negative consequences on learning. Some of these consequences have been considered at a high organizational level, mainly, federal & state, universities, academic publishing, and specific educational programs. The following project analyzes Goodhart’s law – “when a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure” – in the context of our assessment practices. By utilizing a theoretical and conceptual analysis, this project explains how our assessment practices fall under the purview of Goodhart’s law, the negative consequences this has had, and will conclude by exploring what would have to be true about our assessment practices in order to escape these negative consequences.