The 10 Most Important Things to Know About Assessment in 2008

Transcription

1 The 10 Most Important Things to Know About Assessment in 2008 Arika A. Clark TE 844: Classroom Literacy Assessment Michigan State University December 2008

2 I realize that I was curriculum teaching to help my special needs students succeed on the standardized test. I would discuss the right process of how to answer a question, not just giving the correct answer and moving on. Communicating about large-scale assessment to the parents has been something that after reading Stiggins et. al and Conley, I feel much more confidence. I am will be able to explain to them the purpose, how I am preparing their child, and what they can to do help prepare their child. Conley, Ethically Teaching And Communicating About Large Scale Assessment It is important to teach and communicate about large-scale assessment ethically and responsibly. To teach responsibly and ethically, the teacher must teach test-taking skills that matter (Conley, 2005). The student will be more prepared for a standardized test if they possess certain test-taking skills, which include: Distinguishing between big and small ideas Analyzing questions Getting organized Thinking about what you already know Taking a stand on content Proving your point Applying the process of selection and elimination Teaching test-taking skills produces better results than teaching to the test in the traditional sense. Students are not taught specific questions that are on the test, but use released test questions to familiarize themselves with the style and structure of the standardized test. Communicating about large-scale assessment responsibly is equally as important. This communication exists in two forms: teacher to students, and teacher to parents. Teacher to student When communicating as a teacher to a class, it is important to make learning targets clear to students, such as providing students with released test questions, and discussing the proper way to reach the answer and deconstructing standards into student-friendly language. A second important item for the teachers to communicate to their students is to double-check their work and to pace themselves. Too often, students rush through the test, not taking time to thoroughly think the question through and properly utilize the test-taking skills. Teacher to Parent Teachers must also communicate with parents in their classroom the standards and pertinent information concerning the test. When discussing standards, not specific test questions, the teacher has the opportunity to produce anecdotes and artifacts concerning their child s level of mastery concerning that standard.

3 2. Portfolios A collection of artifacts put together to get at the full story, to help students, teachers, and others understand in depth one or more aspects of student learning. The desire to capture and communicate the depth of student learning has been at the heart of portfolio use for years (Stiggins, 335). The five different types of portfolios each focus on a specific purpose. A project portfolio focuses on an individual project. A growth portfolio shows progress toward competence on one or more learning targets. An achievement portfolio shows the level of student achievement at a point in time. A competence portfolio offers evidence in support of a claim to have attained an acceptable or exemplary level of achievement. A celebration portfolio gives students the opportunity to decide what accomplishment or achievement they are most proud of. Each portfolio serves its own purpose. Through portfolios, teachers have a solid, direct example of communication concerning student learning and mastery, one of Stiggins Key Features of Quality Assessment (Stiggins, 30). Student involvement in selecting portfolio pieces is crucial. Students will need help in evaluating their choices, therefore, some teachers construct mini-lessons about making selections and the various reasons for selections (Conley, 141). Students are also able to see examples of strong work and weak work, assisting them in closing the gap. The distinguishing strength of portfolios, in comparison with other assessments lies in their potential for student involvement. Students can get involved in their work, organizing and interpreting it, and evaluating what they have accomplished (Conley, 140). In my experience, portfolios have served to hold anecdotal records, tests, writing samples, and pictures of projects. In my limited knowledge, I attempted to show growth, however, not in its truest form as shown by Stiggins and Conley. After reading Conley and Stiggins et al, I realize that portfolios serve a specific purpose: how a student met a specific learning target and student involvement is crucial in the selection process. In my future class, student portfolios will show demonstration of student learning that correlates with a learning standard and actively involve students in the selection process. (Stiggins, 335)

4 3. STANDARDS-BASED GRADEBOOK Traditionally, gradebooks consist of assignment grades not aligned to a specific standard, such as Quiz 1, Section Review, pg 32, etc. These assignments are then averaged together to produce a grade for the report card. Very few teachers are able to use their gradebook to determine whether or not a student has met a specific standard. The Purpose The purpose of grades is to communicate achievement (Conley, 308). Therefore, a teacher s gradebook must reflect this achievement. A standards-based gradebook reflects student achievement by providing ample evidence of student mastery based on educational standards consistent with classroom instruction. With a standards-based gradebook, students are able to be involved with keeping track of their achievements and be more in touch with their own progress (Stiggins, 288). With this, the student can ask themselves Where am I now? Where am I going? How do I close the gap? In parent-teacher conferences, a parent is not likely to understand which standard is being met in Quiz 1. However, a teacher can pinpoint the strengths and weaknesses of the student, using this gradebook as a solid piece of evidence, followed by examples of student work. The entire point of gathering and communicating assessment is not just for a grade, but for the teachers, parents and students to use the gradebook as a resource to increase student achievement. How To Setup The Gradebook A record book could show learning targets, such as adds three-digit numbers in columns and learns multiplication facts through 10 as separate categories in the formative portion then combine those learning targets into one category or strand Computation or Number Sense in the summative portion (Stiggins, 288). The summative portion, the average of the each strand, is then used to determine the final grade. The summative portion could be highlighted in a specific color, separating the strand information from the formative assessments. Table 9.2 is a sample of a standards-based gradebook. Prior to reading Stiggins et. al and Conley, sadly, my gradebook was not representative of true student learning and achievement. Like most teachers, my gradebook consisted of quiz, homework, class work, project, and test grades. For example, when I taught Spanish, I attempted to show a spread of assessments so that I might reach all learners: 10 homework questions nightly (due on Friday), vocabulary/grammar quiz (10 questions) Fridays, tests on the last Friday of the month, and one project a quarter. With the above assignments, I would provide a weekly grade report for my students and parents. In my limited view, I was able to defend (if you could call it that), my final grade, based on the average of the above grades. After reading Stiggins and Conley, I wonder why parents did not come and up to me and question what I was teaching their child. Maybe they understood how hard I was working to achieve the so-called end result of any foreign language: to speak, read, and write in that language. It is not that I was not achieving the standards, I just never called them standards. Now, I would organize my gradebook via standards and strands, and provide these clear standards to the students and parents. I believe that this would have been extremely beneficial to all parties involved so that students might be able to close the gap.

5 Table 9.2: Elementary Gradebook Arranged by Learning Target (Stiggins, 289)

6 4. Integrating Standards and Assessment Through Daily Practice Steps for integrated lesson planning Select a single standard; select a single, related test-taking skill; identify appropriate teaching practices; and brainstorm what teaching and learning will look like (Conley, 90). To begin, it might be helpful to organize in chart form the standards and the essential test-taking skills. This approach makes it easier to see natural relationship between standards and test-taking skills. When the standards and skills intersect, there is considerable potential for getting students motivated and engaged to read, write, and think beyond what they are reading (Conley, 100). With this context in mind, it is easy to integrate test-taking skills on a daily basis. Revising and redesigning published materials Modifying published materials in terms of standards and the essential test-taking skills starts by examining the materials for an overall focus and range of activities. Use the standards and assessment skills charts, modified for standards and assessments in the specific subject area, to select, revise, and supplement, what publishers provide. Finally select or redesign tests so they are more consistent with your integrated focus on standards and assessment skills. These materials will then work for the standards-based gradebook. It is truly amazing how all of this works together! This course has helped me to realize that it is possible to integrate test-taking skills into daily lesson plans. Prior to reading the course selections, I would individualize the lessons on certain test-taking skills. With the help of Conley and Stiggins et al, I realize that it is possible to incorporate these test-taking skills on a daily basis, which correlate to the various standards being taught in the class. Conley also discusses revising published materials. Through my work with special students, I have revised many-a-worksheet. For example, in math, I would create a worksheet that gave the students 3 new problems, 2 story problems and 5 mixed review questions. I would find the questions either in the textbook edhelper.com, Teacher Created Materials, or self-created. When finding the questions, I would look for the questions that they seem to struggle with the most, not in terms of standards and the essential test-taking skills. On the positive side, the items I was emphasizing, were standards (for example 2 digit division). In the future, I would align these various worksheets that I created with standards and test-taking skills. I am anxious to see the difference in student work when they see they are working towards a goal or standard, not just for the teacher.

7 Figure 8.1 Assessment Skills and Reading & Language Arts Standards (Conley, 91)

8 5. CREATING STANDARDS IN STUDENT-FRIENDLY LANGUAGE The Importance Because standards can affect all areas of teaching and assessment, it is vital that parents, students, and educators comprehend the standards and be able to communicate about them (Conley, 27). When constructing a unit, it is prudent to clarify standards by clearly communicating targets in an easy-to-understand language. When students are aware of the standards, the likelihood of their success increases exponentially. One way to communicate these standards is to post a statement of intended learning for all students to see. Posting the Purpose of the Day on the board for the various subjects might help brighter children focus on the aspect at hand and not get distracted by other things. Less able children [look] up at the board to remind themselves of what they are supposed to be doing (Stiggins, 59). By providing clear standards, students are able to see where they are now, where they are going, and how to close the gap. What I ve Learned Prior to reading Stiggins et. al and Conley, I had no idea that students should be informed of the standards they should be learning. In my lesson plans, I aligned the lesson with a standard, however, I neglected to inform students of the specific standard being taught. After reading Stiggins et. al and Conley, I realize the significance of informing students so that they might better know where they are going and how to get there (i.e. Stiggins Seven Strategies). After all, isn t the goal of education to create independent thinkers? During my Assessment Project, I posted the Purpose of the Day on the board. I was able to see such a visible interest in their purpose. They began asking Why do I need to know this? Not in a disrespectful way, but in a curious way. One example occurs in a mini-lesson on summarizing. The students wanted to know why they were learning how to summarize text. I was able to use this as a teachable moment and explain to them that this skill will teach you how to take notes for reports, summarize information for a job, etc. They were amazed at all the different uses of summarizing.

9 6. STUDENT INVOLVEMENT Administering the standards actively involves the students. This can be as simple as posting the learning intentions and success criteria in the front of the classroom, as intricate as creating a rubric, as a class, that would be used to analyze a project or paper (Conley, 3) or choosing a portfolio artifact (Stiggins, 344; Conley, 140). Stiggins (57) states that a key feature to student success is students knowing where they going, that is understanding, what they are to learn Students can hit any target they can see that holds still for them. The more students are involved, the more the students learn. We want all students to engage in and take active responsibility for their learning (Stiggins, 41). I never realized the importance of student-involvement in their assessment. Naively, I assumed that teacher-knows-best. In the future, I will actively involve the students in the administration of the standards. The first way to involve them is to engage them in their portfolios. Second, I will involve students in the Purpose of the Day. Third, I will create rubrics as a class. These easy, yet fundamental actions, will allow students to know where they are going and why. Answering these two fundamental questions will allow students to grow and mature academically.

10 7. Assessment for learning Assessments for learning happens while learning is still underway. These are the assessments that we conduct throughout teaching and learning to diagnose student needs, plan our next steps in instruction, provide student students with feedback they can use to improve the quality of their work, and help students see and feel in control of their journey to success. It s this descriptive feedback and studentinvolvement aspect of assessment for learning that results in the remarkable achievement gains (Stiggins et. al 37). Examples: Kidwatching (Conley), creating rubrics with students, student self-assessment, and descriptive feedback to students. Prior to this class, I never realized the difference between assessment for and of learning. I now realize how important each are in their own unique way. In assessment for learning, I have come to realize that these are the non-graded assignments that help both teachers and students understand where they are now and how to close the gap before the summative assessment. In my classroom, I will be able to distinguish between the two assessments in my lessons and gradebook. Being able to show this distinguish between the two will also help in parent-teacher conferences. Second, I will be able to provide more descriptive feedback on these assessments conducted through teaching. In this way, I will be able to help students close the gap more efficiently prior to the final assessment.

11 8. Assessment of Learning Assessment of learning are those assessments that happen after learning is supposed to have occurred to determine if it did. They are used to make statements of students learning status at a point in time to those outside the classroom, as when making student referrals or making decisions about programs. These assessments must be crafted carefully, being free of bias, accurate, and appropriately covers the material presented in the unit. Creating a test plan answering How Important (Stiggins, 132), will guide and direct the unit in the appropriate manner. Examples: Achievement tests, final exams, placement tests, short cycle assessments Assessment of learning is the most common form of assessment in schools. Prior to this class, my assessments never specifically aligned with curricular standards or learning targets. I trusted our textbook publisher to assess the proper standards. However, after reading Conley and Stiggins, I realize that this is not always the case. I will now examine the tests prior to distributing them to the class. It begins with providing standards in student-friendly language, moves to showing students how to see where they are now, where they are going, and how to close the gap, and finally a test that assesses the standards presented at the beginning of the unit.

12 9. Communicating Assessment Results Conditions for effective communication: Targets are clear Everyone understands the learning targets in question Information is accurate Information was collected in an appropriate method, sampled will, and free of bias. Symbols are clear everyone understands the meaning of summary symbols. Communication is tailored: the communication is tailored to the audience (parents, students, or others) When creating a summary of student learning, we answer a series of questions: Will the information be summarized as a single score or as a group of scores, such as profile of analytical learning? Will the information be converted to a letter grade, a percentage or a proficiency level Who will do the summarizing teacher, student, gradebook software, parents, or someone else? When communicating assessment results, I believed that to be grades. I now realize how limited my view was! Prior to the readings, I believed that it was necessary to only communicate assessment results when it was necessary or requested. After reading Stiggins and Conley, communication is a vital link (as seen in Stiggins et. al Keys to Quality Assessment) between parent-teacher-student. (Stiggins, 291)

13 10. Stiggins et al. Where am I going Seven Strategies Provide a clear and understandable vision of the learning target. Use examples and models of strong and weak work. Where am I now Offer regular descriptive feedback Teach students to self-assess and set goals How can I close the gap Design lessons to focus on one aspect of quality at a time Teach students focused revision Engage students in self-reflection, and let them keep track of and share their learning. In almost every section of this paper, I have referred to Stiggins et al Seven Strategies For Student Learning. It is imperative to teach these steps of self-assessment to students so that they might become better learners. Using Stiggins et. al Seven Strategies will assist students in their academic pursuits by helping them be come more conscious of what they are learning and why they are learning it. This consciousness will lead to increased learning, the entire goal of education! In sum, my view of assessment has changed dramatically based on what I have read from Stiggins et. al and Conley. I believe that students are to be actively involved in their assessment, including, but not limited to creating standards in student-friendly language, communicating assessment results, and teaching test-taking skills on a daily basis. This reinvention of my view assessment will assist me in teaching and my students in learning.