Five keys to assessment quality provide the larger picture
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QR Code Generator: QR Stuff Free Online QR Code Creator And Encoder For T-Shirts, Busin... - 1 views
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Great for students to be able to go to a site without having to type in URL
Web 2.0 for the Classroom Teacher - 3 views
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educational-origami - Bloom's Digital Taxonomy - 1 views
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You might like this resource for planning online. It is a digital version of the Bloom's Taxonomy.
Technology Integration Matrix - 1 views
Pearson Debuts Free LMS with Google Apps Integration -- Campus Technology - 3 views
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Online Education: Is It Right For You? [Infographic] - Edudemic - 5 views
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Pearson Prentice Hall: eTeach: Turning A Four-Point Rubric Score into A Letter Grade - 2 views
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I have completely changed the way I enter grades for students. I don't even allow students to take a 0 or forget to hand something in. No effort is not allowed. -
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Classroom Tech Learning, Education, PC, Mac, iPad, Bloom's Taxonomy - Techlearning.com - 1 views
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The Resource for Education Technology Leaders focusing on K-12 educators. Site contains a Software Reviews Database, articles from Technology & Learning Magazine, articles from Educators in Educators' eZine, Event and Contest listings, Reader suggested Web sites, and weekly news updates on education technology leaders.
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ollie4: Educational Leadership: The Quest for Quality - 5 views
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The Clear Purpose paragraph resonated with me since I just finished reading an article in Education Leadership called Know Your Target. It is all about knowing the purpose and sharing that with students and how student achievement goes up as a result. -
I would agree with you that it is important to give the students a clear idea of the purpose of the lesson and how it would impact their life or daily skills.
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Five keys to assessment quality provide the larger picture into which our multiple measures must fit
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Are results communicated in time to inform the intended decisions
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One of the "What Works in the Classroom" strategies from Marzano is: Setting objectives and providing feedback. Research shows that giving feedback improves student achievement. This statement about results being communicated in time to inform the intended decisions reminds me of the Marzano work.
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I have seen positive results in my own classroom when I have provided feedback in a timely manner that is directly to the specifics that were taught.
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This is one of the benefits of educational games if they are created well... instant feedback and another level to conquer! -
Did you read Evan's blog about gaming? I was interested in his perspective to making it synonomus with using literature to teach content.
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I completely agree! I have around 600 kids and try my best to comment more than just "good job" but with meaty feedback for my older kids in 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade and I've seen many kids work and rework their challenges out until they get it. It shows the kids they're not just a number. :) -
Teachers are becoming more data driven than ever before. Teachers will need to have a condensed curriculum if they want to provide enrichment opportunities in their classroom. Currently, there is not enough time within the school year for teachers to assess, analyze, and enrich for each and every child unless some of the content they are expected to teach is removed. This is a situation where it looks great on paper but right now doesn't work in the classroom. If we really are stressing Quality than quantity needs to be reduced. -
The time factor and choosing the right assessments is a daily struggle for teaching. I wish that there was more time in the day, week, month to evaluate past assessments and determine the effectiveness of them. -
I agree with all your comments on the value of feedback. That's what I really like about some of the online assessments I've seen - kids get the feedback right away and then are pointed to extra help or a different type of explanation if they need it.
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Who will use the results to inform what decisions?
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and...is there already and assessment in place that give you this information? Do I need to duplicate? Not only is the why important, but also the what-does it get to what I need to know for future instruction? -
Your last statement is very importatn, Barb! That question should be asked prior to giving each assessment--how will this help my students and how will this help me to change my instruction to help my students.
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four categories of learning targets
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which assessment methods are most likely to produce accurate results for different learning targets.
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It's always about working smarter, not harder and this leads us toward that.
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I agree--and I really like this chart! It really helped to enhance my understanding of this information.
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The chart is very helpful. I like how it shows that perfomance assessments aren't always the best, it depends on what you are assessing. I am glad selected response is still acceptable for knowledge mastery. -
I am always looking for "filters" that I can use when developing a course. This is a great filter when reviewing the assessments used in the course.
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more assessments
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If the additional assessments were mostly formative, I do believe that we would be more accurately estimating student achievement.
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And...if those formative assessments are linked directly to the learning of the skill, it wouldn't take time away from the learning to assess. -
Currently I think the students feel like they are being assessed all day long. Think about how many classes they have in a day. If those teachers are being asked to provide data showing progress/mastery in each of their subject areas they will be overwhelmed with assessments. A balance is key but at the same time we need to think about our students and think about what it might be like to be assessed this much.
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Balance being the operative word here...assessment for assessment sake is not time efficient or effective. Assessment for adjusting instruction is highly valuable. -
I think more assessments can help teachers estimcate student achievement, but only if it is not taking away teaching time. We need to assess in ways that don't interupt class time. I know there are times that I have had to spend assessing my students when I felt I could of been giving them more by teaching....
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The assessor needs to have a clear picture of what achievement he or she intends to measure. If we don't begin with clear statements of the intended learning—clear and understandable to everyone, including students—we won't end up with sound assessments.
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Clear learning targets are so important--and so often not understood by teachers. I still work with so many teachers who don't question learning targets, as they just go from page to page in the textbook and teach what is next regardless if students already know the information or would need background knowledge in order to understand the concepts.
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So often we assess and we truly don't know what our learning targets were. Often our assessment doesn't even match what we thought our learning targets were.
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I would agree that many of us do not take the time or effort to evaluate if the assessments actually measure what we are teaching in the classroom.
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The alignment between curriculum, instruction, and assessment is critical. If we don't take the time to clarify our intended outcomes, how can we expect students to perform to expectations?
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Or, you can highlight the phrases on the rubric that describe the hypothesis's strengths and areas for improvement and return the rubric with the work.
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In the first class I took towards my Master's in Educational Technology, the professor did this--not just for our assignments, but also for our participation in our forums. Since then, I have "borrowed" this strategy for my own students. It definitely encouraged me to work on improving my responses in the weekly forums!
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Might we be suggesting the end of grades and the beginning of standards based assessment? How would that affect colleges and universities? Would they be willing to accept a student who met all the standards at a school over a student who got a 4.0?
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I think it depends on the discipline. Art and graphic design--and perhaps music--are probably going to be much farther ahead here. Students have to prepare portfolios of their work and that is what is looked at, at least at Morningside College. They also look at GPA, but there is more weight put on the portfolio.
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More and more former students are telling me they needed to submit a portfolio of past work for colleges. Whether it be for scholaraships or acceptance into a certain program.
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assessment literate
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I'm finding the sessions I've attended in Des Moines by Margaret Heritage to be very helpful in understanding what "assessment literate" means!
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That is a term I've not heard before. It makes sense, however. Data used inappropriately can have disastrous results. -
The state will need to spend a lot of money and time training teachers how to assess, use the data, and enrich students. As my district begins its transition into this new data-driven age, I am noticing more and more teachers struggling to analyze data. They are also struggling to find enough time to check assessments, analyze data, and provide meaningful enrichment activities to help students reach proficiency.
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Stiggins has a great plan to move a district and a school toward assessment literacy. He calls it the 7 actions for school leaders.
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four assessment methods (selected-response, extended written response, performance assessment, and personal communication
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I'm not sure I've seen these four assessment methods listed like this. This is good information to have and to help in creating assessments.
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I have used all of these methods in my art class room, but not on a regular basis. Our 4th grade assessment assignment includes two methods. Students answer a written test with true/false and multiple choice answers to identify concepts the children know. Students make a drawing of a landscape and then go pack to paint the landscape. Teachers keep wanting to add the personal communication componant where the students discuss the choices they made in their landscape painting.
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Do the results provide clear direction for what to do next?
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Selecting an assessment method that is incapable of reflecting the intended learning will compromise the accuracy of the results.
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Selecting the best assessment method makes a difference. If we are using the data to guide our instruction, it's imperative we use the right assessment tool.
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I agree, Pam! So is ITBS or ITED ever the "right assessment tool"? Can they truly reflect the intended learning?
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We are told at my school that, at minimum, they are going to be better than what they were as the ITEDs are now supposed to be aligned with the Common/Iowa Core. We shall see how this will end up. -
We are so messed up on our standardized tests when it comes to 21st century skills and their measurement.
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So much seems to be a matter of alignment. A misalignment between assessment method and intended learning leads to inaccuracy of results.
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What decisions will the assessment inform?
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The following paragraph highlights the way formative assessments should guide our instruction. Changes may not be immediate, but they certainly provide a way to plan for the future.
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Use SAT scores to determine instructional effectiveness
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Just a sidebar....could this mean we need to be very careful when we use ITBS scores to measure teacher effectiveness?
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Why doesn't NCLB consider the many other "X" factors that could influence ITBS scores when they make the SINA list or use data like this to determine teacher pay? Great on paper but not in practice.
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For instance, if students will be the users of the results because the assessment is formative, then teachers must provide the results in a way that helps students move forward. Specific, descriptive feedback linked to the targets of instruction and arising from the assessment items or rubrics communicates to students in ways that enable them to immediately take action, thereby promoting further learning.
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I am going to play devil's advocate here.....how can we motivate students to take action in order to promote learning if that is not within their goals? I agree that descriptive feedback linked to targets will give more meaning to the assessment, but in all reality, don't we often deal with students who can't see the reason for the writing? -
Why do you think that is? How many K-2 students are not excited about coming to school and learning? What happens that kills thier love and devotion to learning?
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Do you see this attitude of "this doesn't fit my goals/needs" as more prevalent at the secondary level or the elementary level? I know I have seen this with adult learners until they understand they tune to WII-FM (What In It For Me?). Once they do, then the learning "takes off" like gangbusters when provided the specific type of feedback described here.
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Teachers should design the assessment so students can use the results to self-assess and set goals. A mechanism should be in place for students to track their own progress on learning targets and communicate their status to others.
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Self-assessment is a vital step in setting personal goals. How many of our students have actually been asked to look deeply into their skill set? Would many students willingly "communicate their status to others?" Hmmmmm
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I think this is a great reason why students should have input into what is being assessed in a rubric... what is important and how will you know what you know?
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Well-designed rubrics not only set targets but also help students monitor their progress. It has been my experience that middle school students are quite honest and perceptive in self-evaluations when "communicate their status to others" means sharing the self-assessment exclusively with me (their instructor) or with me and their parents or guardians. -
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data from these assessments
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The caution about data is using it appropriately. It is an intensely powerful tool if used to make decisions about instruction and assessment. The more data, the better!
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The more data, the better....this makes sense to me. We need to make sure we are using the right data in making decisions; making decisions based upon poor or incomplete data leads to poor decisions. Here lies another challenge...it sometimes seems like we are "drowning in data." How do we choose the data we use? -
It seems obvious...the data you get from assessing should show you what your students are learning and what you need to work on more. I like your comment Cheryl...it does seem like sometimes I have more data than I know how to organize or what to do with it!
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Assess learning targets requiring the "doing" of science with a multiple-choice tes
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I've seen this many times - the assessment doesn't fit the learning expectations.
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meeting student, teacher, and district information needs
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a reading score from a state accountability test as a diagnostic instrument for reading group placement.
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Or expect that decisions regarding eligibility for special education is based on diagnostic assessments alone!
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Using misinformation
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his means that teachers need to write learning targets in terms that students will understand.
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Parent involvement is an important component when children are young. Parents help a child budget time. If they are not aware of what the child is involved in, or needs to set aside time for, then the child will not accomplish much. parents also need to be able to understand the terms involved and the intended outcome.
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all assessment users have access to the data
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Our art department currently grades all children, but only assesses 4th grade students with a February drawing, painting, and multiple choice test. Children and Parents should have an idea before then about how their child is picking up one the curriculum.
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From that foundation
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groups of students
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Our distirct is really focused on SES and IEP students since that is where our lowest ITED scores are.
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We would have to add African-American in our district in addition to SES and IEP.
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unprecedented overflow of testing
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Our department had to create a math assessment that would test what the average 10th grader should know. Then we were told the test should be about what all 10th graders should know. We have spent countless hours debating, rewriting and trying to come up with methods on how to help our students that are not proficient on the test.
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Today on the radio, I hear Jason Glass say that all 11th graders need to take the ACT and the state needs to help pay for this. I don't think I agree with adding another required assessment for our students...I do agree we need to provide a rigorous curriculum for our secondary students, but do they need to demonstrate their knowledge by taking the ACT??
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In response to Deena, I have struggled as the leader of the curriculum and assesment efforts on WHAT to ask people to do. I have hesitated developing any local assessments due to the movement from local standards...to Iowa Core and not the common core. Hope we have stopped changing because up to now it has been a moving target!
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In math
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This is the first time I have actually seen a math example when discussing assessment. Usually the examples I see are for english or social studies.
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A grade of D+, on the other hand, may be sufficient to inform a decision about a student's athletic eligibility, but it is not capable of informing the student about the next steps in learning.
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Thus the term "assessment FOR learning." The intent is to provide guidance for improvement.
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It's amazing the number of assessments that I have received in my formal learning that involved only a grade or pass/fail. It makes me wonder if I retained very much from those learning opportunities.
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Teachers have choices in the assessment methods they use, including selected-response formats, extended written response, performance assessment, and personal communication.
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Wouldn't matching method of assessment to method of practice be a consideration?
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which require students to use their knowledge to reason and problem solve
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This is an area that I am currently working on. I am trying to come up with more projects so that students can apply what they are learning.
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When I took my first college stat class, I could follow the directions just fine and get the right answer, but I had no idea why we were using the particular statistic or what it actually meant. When I asked my stat lab instructor, he looked up my grade and said, "What do you care, you're getting an A." I cared because I wanted to know how to use the stuff, not just get through the class!
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What information do the decision makers need
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This paragraph makes a distinction between decision makers that we might forget when edited our assessments. There is a definite difference in level and approach between classroom and school or community assessments.
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Agreed. I think not recognizing that distinction can lead to misuse of the data. For example, a school or community use of classroom level data when they don't know the circumstances or environment under which the data is collected can lead to some inappropriate conclusions.
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use of clear curriculum maps for each standard
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Although time consuming, the importance of curriculum maps becomes clear when writing essential questions and revisiting the teaching strategies we use to improve student learning.
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instructional hours sacrificed to testing will return dividends in the form of better instructional decisions and improved high-stakes test scores.
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This is our hope as educators. I truly hope that the valuable time spent testing will return dividends. -
I find the information gathered to be very useful to my teaching, and to the students and parents.
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Ongoing classroom assessments serve both formative and summative purposes and meet students' as well as teachers' information needs.
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provide information about student progress not typically available from student information systems
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Time involved is major...classroom teachers will tell you it is very labor intensive.
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high-stakes tests were common in schools
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Seems like the public would say this isn't true. They would believe that there was no accountability before NCLB.
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if the teacher wants to assess knowledge mastery of a certain item, both selected-response and extended written response methods are good matches
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At muy school our science assessment is of this variety with both extended response and multiple choice answers for teh questions asked.
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I agree that a variety should be used in accurate assessment. Students respond differently to different assesment methods. Some students have a very anxious response to timed tests, or written tests, but may do fine in showing their knowledge on multiple choice or matching.
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Students learn best when they monitor and take responsibility for their own learning.
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Best parent teacher conference I ever attended was a student-led one for my 5th grader. Each student built their portfolio and was in charge of explaning it to their parents. Most honesty and responsibility I've ever seen in kids!
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I have been to the same kind of Open House led by students in the class. It really gives the students ownership to what happens in that classroom.
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to triangulate on student needs defeats the purpose of bringing in more results to inform our decisions.
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Multiple measures have been used for years to establish whether assessments are valid. Very important to note that if the measures are not valid, multiple measures do not indicate validity.
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For example, suppose we are preparing to teach 7th graders how to make inferences. After defining inference as "a conclusion drawn from the information available," we might put the learning target in student-friendly language: "I can make good inferences. This means I can use information from what I read to draw a reasonable conclusion." If we were working with 2nd graders, the student-friendly language might look like this: "I can make good inferences. This means I can make a guess that is based on clues."
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Bias can also creep into assessments and erode accurate results. Examples of bias include poorly printed test forms, noise distractions, vague directions, and cultural insensitivity.
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I believe we are OK at reviewing materials with a "traditional" sense of bias but when it comes to cultural sensitivity...I'm not sure my district has a handle on the work.
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I agree. Some cultural sensitivity can't be easily understood by other people. I've been surprised often by what kids say about the way their family opperates.
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What are the essential assessment conditions?
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When we do our annual assessment for 4th grade artists effort is made to provide clear instructions and visuals, with the same materials available to all teachers. The other factors that enter into a student's performance vary widely. Some teachers deliver the test in their own art room, others in the classroom because they teach there. There are many factors that affect performance.
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No Child Left Behind
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The assessor must plan to manage information from the assessment appropriately and report it in ways that will meet the needs of the intended users,
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i would assume this would mean that information should be shared in user-friendly language for parents and students, and be shared in a timely fashion.
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Common Formative Assessments Built by PLCs - 3 views
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ollie1: Iowa Online Course Standards - 0 views
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learning styles and preferences.
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How can you address multiple learning styles and preferences with a single technology? Are some tech standards idealistic? -
I agree with your question of how to do this. Perhaps we will learn more as the course progresses... -
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Instructions make clear how to get started and where to find various course components.
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Ideally accomplished by single entry points to information. When there are multiple ways to get to information, it leads to confusion.
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The course instruction includes activities that engage students in active learning.
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Building in wikis, blogs, and opportunities for small group meetings will be an exciting and critically important part of the design of the class. Otherwise, online learning could be no different than reading a textbook (only on a computer screen)
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Don't forget conversations on SKYPE. Great way to communicate in a visual way with others.
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• The course meets universal design principles, ADA compliance, Section 508 standards and W3C guidelines to ensure access for all students.
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Will we learn about these standards and how to ensure we are meeting them?
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The course design provides opportunities for appropriate instructor-student interaction, including timely and frequent feedback about student progress based on the learning targets.
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I will be curious to learn from others the amount of time that it takes for an instructor to teach an online class and respond to the needs of students.
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Sufficient learning resources and materials to increase student success are available to students
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Making resources and materials available to participants is an important component of the design of a class. Resources and materials supplied by the instructor support the learning that is intended. I think there should be a sufficient amount of resources and materials but not overwhelming amounts. The information provided needs to be useful, enhances understanding, and contains examples to support the expected outcomes. These resources and materials need to be easily accessible to the participants.
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Finding the right balance between sufficient resources and "not overwhelming" seems like the key
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requirements for student work, including student interaction, are clearly articulated.
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Set the expectations at a high level. Participants need to know what is expected of them each week. This piece should be very clear and concise.
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Information literacy and communication skills are incorporated and taught as an integral part of the curriculum.
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When teaching online we need to also focus on how the course contributes to the learners information literacy and communication skills, not just the content of the course.
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Ongoing and frequent assessments are conducted to verify each student’s readiness for the next lesson.
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This is a challenge with face to face learning also. With the online environment, new tools and different methods to assess will need to be used. I have much to learn in this area.
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