What type of assessment measures a student’s ability to perform compared to peers?

The assessment that measures a student's ability to perform compared to peers is norm-referenced assessment. This type of evaluation is designed to rank students against each other, providing a comparative analysis of performance within a specific population.

Norm-referenced assessments typically utilize a representative sample to establish average performance levels, and students' scores are reported in terms of percentiles or standard scores. This allows educators to determine how a student’s performance compares to that of their peers, indicating whether a student is performing above, below, or at the average level for their age or grade group.

In contrast, criterion-referenced assessments focus on whether a student meets specific learning criteria or standards, without comparison to others. Formative assessments are used to monitor student learning and provide ongoing feedback to adjust instruction, while summative assessments evaluate student learning at the end of an instructional period, typically measuring away from peer comparison. This distinction highlights why the norm-referenced assessment is the correct choice in the context of comparing a student's abilities to the performance of their peers.