¶ … Learning through Social interaction
What personal experiences do you have with assessments? While teaching middle school in San Diego, California, many of my colleagues, encouraged by worried administrators (who feared a loss of funds) were simply "teaching to the test" in anticipation of standardized testing at the end of each semester. No Child Left Behind created an ongoing source of tension as schools and teachers attempted to comply by assuring that students were familiar with the material that would be on the standardized tests. I was skeptical and joined with several other faculty members in working towards an alternative kind of assessment, beyond standardized tests.
We knew what much of the material would be on the tests, so of course we also focused on those topics. But we also established portfolios, not digital portfolios (we didn't really have the technology to create digital portfolios) but rather folders with hard copies of student work (the expanding kind of folders) that I paid for out of my own pocket (many teachers bought supplies for their classes because the budget at our school was very tight). We (the two other faculty that rejected strict adherence to preparing for standardized tests) kept assessment journals that increased "…teaching...
And when I say "observer" I also mean that I rarely ever turn my back on the students. When I'm talking to the class, I work my way up and down the aisles turning to students as I pass them whenever my trajectory allows that. I don't stand in the front of the class and lecture. My eyes are constantly scanning every face to that I know who is getting it, who is distracted, and who is simply tuned out for some personal reason. A student's body language often tells a truer story about that student than anything they might say, hence, I have carefully researched body language and this is always part of the "authentic assessment" I embrace.
I keep notes on a form similar to what the authors present on page 116, and those students who did not really absorb what was being shared in the class (or an assignment on the board) are given special attention. Following my conversation with them, assessing where they are in terms of where the class…
Standardized testing vs. authentic assessment in the elementary and junior high school The role of evaluation is one of the basic issues discussed in education today, which is of main concern. Assessment may be described as a method used to better know the present knowledge that a student has. This means that assessment can be as easy as a teacher's subjective judgment based on a single scrutiny of student performance, or
American public education system has endured many changes in the last few decades. It has gone from back to basics, to whole language learning, and then back to basics again. The system is constantly being scrutinized by the parents who send their children to it, the students themselves, experts in the field and politicians who use its flaws as a springboard for change, while using its successes as a
Destructive Implications of Standardized Testing At every level education, our instincts are to prize creativity, ingenuity, individuality and competitive excellence. Never is this more so than at the University level, where a great many students are working hard to prove that their unique and individualized talents make them of value in the working world. However, over the course of recent decades, a growing emphasis on the use of standardized testing to
structure of standardized testing in K-12 education. As Wisconsin and the federal government need some manner to gauge teacher performance and student progress it falls on educators to find effective means of testing special education students. The WKCE system is discussed with a special emphasis on the alternate testing pathway. This paper will focus on my experiences dealing with special education testing through the Wisconsin Knowledge and Concepts Examination. All
"One problem with achievement testing is that a few minutes of performance time can end up directing a young child's entire educational career." (Schmitz 1991) When tests are administered to young children that take extended periods of time to complete, such as those which take six to eight hours with only short bathroom breaks, the child's naturally shorter attention span may affect performance on the tests. Many test makers
Alternative Assessments What challenges do alternative assessments present to teachers at your school? Alternative assessments (AA) are a fine means to determining the education of a student. Standardized assessment is very rigorous but allows for the system to be managed effectively and efficiently. AA's present certain challenges, not to the students but the staff and faculty. AA's require more imagination and creativity. Grading scales provide rigid guidance and it is mostly simple