Share with a tablemate…What was the most challenging “test” you have ever taken and why?
Essential Questions
How do we assess student learning? Understanding the difference between Formative and Summative Assessment.
What are the major reasons we use report cards and assign grades to student work?
What purposes do report cards or grades should serve?
Should Non-achievement factors impact grading?
Our Agenda…
Assessment – The Big PictureFormative and Summative Assessments
What, why how!
Using Assessments to Guide Instruction
Grading – Moving Beyond the Mystery
Divide into “Level Groups” to talk about specific grading issues and concerns.
Questions
What color car do you drive?
Are we the car we drive?Black: Powerful, Classic, Elegant
White: Pure, Pristine, Direct; Pearl: Glamorous, Exciting, Sophisticated
Silver: Futuristic, Prestigious, Elegant
Red: Sensual, Dynamic, Outgoing
Gray: Neutral, Sober, Practical
Blue: Light-Mid Blue: Calm, Faithful, True; Dark Blue: Confident, Credible, Authoritative
Orange: Artistic, Individual, Complex
Brown: Powerful, Unique; Beige: Natural, Down-To-Earth
Yellow: Joyful, Sense Of Humor; Gold: Warm, Intelligent, Glamorous
Green: Dark Green: Well-Balanced, Trustworthy, Traditional; Light Green: Organic, No-Fuss, Understated
Driving in the Fast Lane
Driving in the Fast Lane
Two Types of Assessment
Summative Assessment – The collection of information at the end of an instructional unit/course to judge the final quality and quantity to student achievement and /or the success of the instructional program.
Formative Assessment – The periodic collection of information to provide feedback concerning progress toward achieving learning goals. Along the way information – during learning!
What formative assessments have you used to inform your instruction and measure student understanding?
https://www.teachingchannel.org/videos/show-your-cards-student-assessment
https://www.teachingchannel.org/videos/daily-lesson-assessment
https://www.teachingchannel.org/videos/teacher-assessment-strategy
Formative AssessmentEPR
Number/Letter Cards
whiteboards
Exit slips/Exit Passes/Exit Placemats
Stoplight or Red, Yellow, Green Cards
Colored cups
Learning Logs
Clickers
Kahoot
Observations
Plickers
What other types of formative assessments did you and your group come
up with?
What summative assessments have you used to inform your instruction and measure student understanding?
What did you learn about your teaching? Your students?
Driving in the Fast Lane
Which one do you believe is the
A. diagnosing students’ strengths and weaknesses
B. monitoring students’ progress
C. guide or “drive” instruction
D. determining one’s own instructional effectiveness
E. district curriculum monitoring
F. assigning grades, placement
Tell your partner which one you believe is most important and why?
Why do we assess?
diagnosing students’ strengths and weaknesses
monitoring students’ progress
guide or “drive” instruction
determining one’s own instructional effectiveness
district curriculum monitoring
assigning grades, placement
Driving in the Fast Lane
Which one do you believe is the
A. Aligned to the curriculum
B. Designed prior to instruction
C. Matches the instruction provided
D. Tests what is taught
E. Used to drive instructional decisions; helps us know what needs to be taught and re-taught
F. Not sure/Undecided
Aligned to the curriculum
Designed prior to instruction
Matches the instruction provided
Tests what is taught
Used to drive instructional decisions
Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment is what happens in the classroom on a daily basis!
Grades are a reflection of the assessment that happens in the classroom! Both formative and summative
Curriculum
Instruction
Assessment
Decide if you Agree or Disagree if this is an appropriate assessment of student learning and is it appropriate to use for a grade in the grade book:
You have been studying about insects. You decide to have students complete a word search to look for all of the different kinds of insects and the different parts of an insect.
Aligned to the curriculumDesigned prior to instruction
Matches the instruction providedTests what is taught
Used to drive instructional decisions
Decide if you Agree or Disagree if this is an appropriate assessment of student learning and is it appropriate to use for a grade in the grade book:
You have been studying about fractions. You decide to have students complete 50 fraction problems so that you see if they really understand the concept you have taught.
Aligned to the curriculumDesigned prior to instruction
Matches the instruction providedTests what is taught
Used to drive instructional decisions
Decide if you Agree or Disagree if this is an appropriate assessment of student learning and is it appropriate to use for a grade in the grade book:
You have been studying about the South America. You decide to have students draw a map and label it with important you have covered during the lesson so that you see if they really understand the concept you have taught.
Aligned to the curriculumDesigned prior to instruction
Matches the instruction providedTests what is taught
Used to drive instructional decisions
Assessment Thoughts!
1. Don’t ask if you don’t want to know!
2. Don’t simply adopt methods and techniques from others, adapt them to your class.
3. Don’t ask students for feedback unless you can and will respond to it.
4. Don’t collect more data than you can easily and quickly turn into information.
Assessment Thoughts!
5. Ask first, which assessment strategy is appropriate to measure the learning; not which questions are appropriate to fit the assessment strategy.
6. Ask, how will knowing the answer to this question help me improve student learning? (If you can’t answer this question, the assessment is probably not worth doing.)
Assessment Thoughts!
7.Remember: If an assessment is worth doing, it’s worth teaching students how to do it well.
Driving in the Fast Lane
“Until you have data as a backup, you’re just another person with an opinion.”
Dr. Perry Gluckman
Think time…
What do you believe are the major reasons we use report cards and assign grades to students’ work?
Purposes of Grading
Provide information or feedback to students and parents (academic).
Provide information for student self – evaluation
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Select, identify, or group students for educational programs.
Provide incentives for students to learn (motivation)
Document students’ performance to evaluate the effectiveness of instructional programs
Provide evidence of students’ lack of effort or inappropriate “responsibility”
Failing…is NOT an option for our students!
If our students are failing we as educators are failing our students.
Mary Matthew
Some thoughts to consider…
• Grades do not prepare our students for the next grade – we do as educators!• What does an elementary student know about a
“D”?
• What does a “D” mean to a middle school or high school student?
• What does an “F” tell any student?
• How do we deal with students who refuse to do their work? Have we asked – why do kids refuse to do the work assigned?
Current Grading Scales: Elementary
Non-achievement Factors
Effort
Behavior
Attendance
Should never be part of the grading process!
Conversation Cafe
What Would You Do?
John Quiñones
You do not have to grade everything or put a grade in the gradebook for everything, but you must provide feedback to students about the learning!
Grading and Reporting will Always Involve some degree of Subjectivity!
No One Method of Grading and Reporting Serves All Purposes Well! Be strategic!
Comment SectionTo comment or not to comment…that is the question!
Grades with Comments are better than Grades Alone! (Appropriate Comments)
Report Cards (Grades) – should never be a surprise for the student or the parent!
Guidelines for Better Practice
Begin with a clear statement of purpose and specific learning goals. Use your curriculum.
Think About:Why are grading and reporting done?
For whom is the information intended?
What is the purpose?
What are the desired results?
What will you do if your students don’t understand or grasp the content/concept(s)?
Reteaching? Enrichment?
When determining what to grade..
Give priority to evidence related to most important learning goals or standards.
Give priority to most recent evidence
Never “grade” students when they are still learning (guided practice)
Eliminate “questionable” practices: Assigning a “zero” to work that is late, missed, or
neglected.
Taking credit away from students for behavioral infractions.
Using pop quizzes
Do NOT use Grades as Weapons!
Guidelines for Better Practice
Ensure that grading and reporting methods provide accurate and understandable descriptions for student learning.
Use grading and reporting methods to enhance teaching and learning.
Involve students when possible. Student self-reflection.
REMEMBER…The Report Card is only one way in which we communicate student progress and specific points in time throughout the school year!
Essential Questions
How do we assess student learning?
What are the major reasons we use report cards and assign grades to student work?
What purposes do report cards or grades should serve?
Should Non-achievement factors impact grading?
Questions…