10) Assessment and Evaluation

Assessment and Evaluation

To ensure that assessment, evaluation, and reporting are valid and reliable, and that they lead to the improvement of learning for all students, teachers use practices and procedures that:

•are communicated clearly to students and parents at the beginning of the school year or course and at other appropriate points throughout the school year or course;

One of the most important characteristics of a good teacher is great communication skills. Teachers need to communicate with themselves, other teachers, students, and parents in an effective and timely manner. At the beginning of the school year the teacher should send home a welcome letter to parents with important information about the class, what students will be learning over the next few weeks, ways that parents/ guardians can get in contact with the teacher, and ways in which parents/guardians can help their child have a successful year. Students need to know what they are being assessed on, how they will be evaluated, and ways that they can improve their own study skills and learning habits. This can be done through a syllabus at the beginning of the year, a unit outline at the beginning of a new unit, and informal/ former conferences with students and parents. Teachers need to make sure that students have the opportunity to evaluate and reflect on their progress and set goals for improvement consistently throughout the year.

•provide ongoing descriptive feedback that is clear, specific, meaningful, and timely to support improved learning and achievement;

Meaningful feedback is critical to student success and teacher success. Students need to be encouraged and challenged throughout the school year. Giving descriptive feedback through meetings with students, written responses on assignments, and regular reports will ensure students have the strategies to help them grow and progress as learners. Teachers should individualize their responses to their students and not simply state that a student is at a certain level or grade. A Level 2 on an assignment does not give a student much information about ways to improve their learning skills. A tailored response from a teacher coupled with the grading will allow the students to reflect and create meaning that relates to their own learning.  

•develop students’ self-assessment skills to enable them to assess their own learning, set specific goals, and plan next steps for their learning.

Self-assessment is a challenging but vital skill to teach. Our students need to be setting clear, achievable, and measurable goals in their schooling, and in their lives, in order to be prepared for a successful future. This can be done in many ways. Have students keep a learning log, skills for success booklet, or a goal-tracking sheet. Teachers need to model how to set short term and long term goals that are realistic with their class. A teacher should set goals their own teaching goals with their students. Perhaps every 2 weeks the class could discuss “classroom goals” related to learning. Students can brainstorm with the teacher, discuss what they would like to achieve as a classroom, and then write their goals on paper. The “classroom goals” could be made on chart paper and posted in the classroom for reflection and review. After 2 weeks the goals could be revisited and assessed and new goals could be determined.

Diagnostic Assessment

•    Strategies for engaging in diagnostic assessment

Diagnostic assessment is pivotal in creating a successful learning environment. Teachers need to determine what their students know, what preferences they have in terms of multiple intelligences, and what ability level they are working at. This can be done in many ways but does require a bit of planning. A teacher needs to make sure to have an organized planner/binder where observations regarding assessments can be recorded and utilized. A teacher can ask open ended questions at the beginning of the unit and allow the students to brainstorm and demonstrate their previous knowledge. A working class definition of any topic is a great way to prep for a unit. As the unit progresses the working definition can be altered or amended based on learning.   

•    Tools for recording diagnostic assessment

Some tools for recording diagnostic assessment include anecdotal comments, a rubric, rating scales and a checklist. Students can keep a portfolio throughout the unit in which their best work can be kept, celebrated, and discussed. A learning log can be used for self-reflection, goal setting, and next steps. These can also be assessed for the next unit of study to see what level the students were working at and what they can do.

•    How to use the results of diagnostic assessment

A teacher can use the results of diagnostic assessment to supplement the unit plan. If students are struggling with concepts as demonstrated in the diagnostic assessment then extra lessons can be added in to help build the foundations required. Teachers need to use the diagnostic assessment to see what their students know so that the curriculum can be compacted if students already have a mastery of some of the curriculum expectations. Diagnostic assessment can give teachers valuable information about the learners in their classroom. The document list is comprehensive in regards to how teachers can use the results of diagnostic assessment; however, I would also mention that it can be helpful to service students with exceptionalities or learning needs so that effective scaffolding and accommodations/modifications can be put into place.