Group items tagged

An awesome collection of rubrics by Kathy Schrock at Discovery Education.

Now that we are using the Internet in the classroom to support instruction, it is important the area of assessment be addressed. One usable method for teachers is to provide a rubric for student use and for both formative and summative assessment purposes. Another is to provide some type of graphic organizer. Below you will find a collection of assessment rubrics and graphic organizers that may be helpful to you as you design your own. Let me know if you have one you would like to share! A book dealing with both the theoretical and practical design of rubrics is the ASCD publication, Assessing Student Outcomes: Performance Assessment Using the Dimensions of Learning Model.

"This paper provides a set of recommendations for developing classroom performance assessments and scoring rubrics similar to the sets of recommendations for multiple choice tests provided in this journal by Frary (1995) and Kehoe (1995a, 1995b). The recommendations are divided into five categories: 1) Writing Goals and Objectives, 2) Developing Performance Assessments, 3) Developing Scoring Rubrics, 4) Administering Performance Assessments and 5) Scoring, Interpreting and Using Results. A broad literary base currently exists for each of these categories. This article draws from this base to provide a set of recommendations that guide the classroom teacher through the four phases of the classroom assessment process - planning, gathering, interpreting and using (Moskal, 2000a). Each section concludes with references for further reading."

Assessment is a huge topic that encompasses everything from statewide accountability tests to district benchmark or interim tests to everyday classroom tests. 3 In order to grapple with what seems to be an over use of testing, educators should frame their view of testing as assessment and that assessment is information. The more information we have about students, the clearer the picture we have about achievement or where gaps may occur.

A cool assessment tool for looking at 21st Century skills in school.

"NWEA Measures of Academic Progress® (MAP®) tests present students with engaging, age-appropriate content. As a student responds to questions, the test responds to the student, adjusting up or down in difficulty. The result is a rewarding experience for the student, and a wealth of detailed information for teachers, parents and administrators."

Jay McTighe offers a sound overview of assessment practices that support learning.

"Backward design begins with the end in mind: What enduring understandings do I want my students to develop? How will my students demonstrate their understanding when the unit is completed? How will I ensure that students have the skills and understand the concepts required on the summative assessment?"

Cooperative Learning Research Process/Report PowerPoint/Podcast Oral Presentation Web Page and ePortfolio Math, Art, Science Video and Multimedia Project Creating Rubrics Writing Rubrics for Primary Grades Game and Simulations

The most dreaded word in school reading for students: book reports. Teachers assign them, viewing them as a necessary component of assessing reading comprehension. Book reports can be a contributing factor to 'readicide'. "Read-i-cide n: The systematic killing of the love of reading, often exacerbated by the inane, mind-numbing practices found in schools." http://stenhouse.com/html/readicide.htm. So, how can we as teachers continue to monitor our students understanding of reading material without killing the love of reading? Enter technology. Technology can help bring some excitement and creativity to the traditional book report while still displaying students understanding of reading.

The SPARK Community is an online destination where NWEA partners can connect and collaborate. This is a community where kid-centric education is an aspiration shared by all.

"Useful Resources for First Time MAP® Users"

"Digital Media Scoring Guides First choose one of the following communication types and then customize your scoring guide by checking ONLY the traits and elements you want to use at this time. Click on each keyword for descriptors. For more detailed information on these scoring guides and further resources, see Overview of Digital Media Scoring Guides. "

""Adults vote with their feet," a favorite adage of adult educators, is frequently used to describe a characteristic of adult learners. In most circumstances, adults are not captive learners and, if the learning situation does not suit their needs and interests, they will simply stop coming. In discussing adult education, Knowles (1980, 1984) distinguished between teacher-centered and learner-centered instruction. He promoted the latter because it viewed learners as mutual partners in the learning endeavor (Merriam and Caffarella 1991). Known as the andragogical model, the use of learner-centered instruction--which supports addressing the needs and interests of learners--is regularly championed in the literature as the most effective way to teach adults. However, Merriam and Caffarella (ibid.) assert that "adult learning in formal settings, for the most part, is still instructor designed and directed" (p. 26). Given the wide support for learner involvement, the discrepancy between adult education theory and practice is perplexing. How can instructors of adults become more learner centered in their practice? This ERIC Digest suggests guidelines and strategies that can be used in formal settings by instructors of adults to involve learners more effectively. "