Assessment
Christy Dixon
Describe
Chapter 13 of
Slavin’s book, Educational
Psychology: Theory and Practice, discusses various ways to properly
assess (or evaluate) student learning. This chapter also discusses the reasons
behind assessments and why they are so important.
Before a teacher
can assess for knowledge gained on a new concept, the teacher must first teach
the new concept to the students. Teachers must carefully plan engaging lessons,
all the while having the end in mind. One of the first things a teacher must
decide is, what is it that I want the students to be able to do by the end of
this lesson. This is called the objective. It’s important to make sure the
objective you chose is in alignment with the assessment you will be giving.
Another words, you can’t assess a student on long division, if your lesson leading
up to the assessment was on addition. One way to plan effective lessons is by
using the backward planning approach. This is when you “start by writing broad
objectives for the course as a whole, then objectives for large units, and
lastly specific behavioral objectives.” Slavin R.E. (2012). After doing this
you can plan your lessons based on the specific objectives (goals).
When it comes to
assessments, there are basically two different types. One type of assessment is
the summative assessment. This type of assessment is usually given at the end
of a unit to evaluate the overall knowledge gained during the unit. This type
of assessment, includes chapter tests and end of year assessments (like GA
Milestone). Summative assessments allow teachers and other school officials to
rank individual students relative to a larger group of their peers.
Formative assessments
are given more often than summative assessments. Formative assessments are
usually given all throughout the unit and they allow teachers to check for understanding
and progress. Formative assessments can come in many forms such as assignments,
quizzes, activities, oral questioning/discussion, observation and even hand
signals (like a thumbs up or thumbs down). This type of assessment is very
important for teachers. These are the type of assessments where the data gained
from them can allow the teacher to see who understands and who may need more
help. Data from formative assessments can help guide teachers in the planning
future lessons and deciding on proper differentiation to meet the need of their
students.
When creating
assessments (whether formative or summative) it’s important that the
assessments are created properly. Teachers can use selective response,
constructive response and they can even include writing tasks in their
assessments. Many times (especially with summative assessments) it’s good to
include a mixture of these types of questions. One way to insure that you do
so, is by using a table of specifications. This allows the teacher to see what
Blooms level each assessment question is along with the topic of each question.
As I mentioned earlier,
there are more ways to assess students’ knowledge than just chapter test and
quizzes. Teacher may choose to use portfolio or performance assessments. These
“require students to demonstrate their learning through work samples or direct
real-world applications.” Slavin R.E. (2012). These types of assessments are
usually scored with the use of detailed rubrics.
Analyze
Over all, I found
this chapter to be quite interesting. I remember back when I was young, the
main focus (when it came to assessments) was on chapter tests and quizzes. I
feel many of my teachers only focused on these types of summative grades.
However, there is a problem with that. If teachers only focus on the summative
grades, by the time they bring up their concern about the grade, it’s too late.
The teacher has moved on to a new concept. Using formative assessment allows
teachers to stop the struggling student before it’s too late. Or as Slavin
stated, “make midcourse corrections in pace or content of instruction.” Slavin
R.E. (2012). For formative assessments
to be effective as possible, they need to be “closely tied to the curriculum
being taught, timely and frequent.” Slavin R.E. (2012).
During my groups
discussion on formative assessments, Daphene suggested wonderful idea. She said
that we can use formative assessments to teach students how to assess
themselves. “The students can contribute to the learning environment and come
up with some self-assessment strategies to help them better understand their
own thought process (meta-cognition).” This is such a great idea.
Reflect
How do you feel
about this concept?
I feel very strongly
about the use of assessments. I use assessments daily with my students. When
done properly, assessments provide teachers, students and parents with valuable
feedback.
What did you learn
about this concept that you did not know prior to its presentation?
I had never heard of
a table of specifications before. I like the idea though. It gives me the
ability to see exactly what is on the test and insures that my students have
different Bloom’s taxonomy level questions.
How might you handle
a situation or activity differently based on this learned information?
I will start
incorporating a table of specifications when building my assessments. This way
I can make sure that I am creating a balanced assessment (not too hard, not too
easy).
How did this event
change or confirm your knowledge or beliefs about teaching?
This chapter
confirmed my belief in the importance of assessments (both formative or
summative). They are beneficial in so many ways if created and used properly.
The data gained from these assessments can guide future instruction that can
better benefit the student.
Works Cited
Slavin, R.E. (2012) Educational
Psychology: Theory and Practice (10th ed.) Boston, MA:
Pearson
Class Discussion Week 9
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