Standard 5

	Standard 5. Assessment in a multi-racial, multicultural democracy
5.1	Understand that assessment is an integral part of teaching and that children’s developmental and academic interests, accomplishments and challenges should drive their daily instructional decisions
5.2	Know the different uses, advantages, limitations and biases of different types of assessments and understand that appropriate assessments must consider cultural, familial and community contexts from which children come
5.3	Know how to use a variety of formal and informal assessment tools and strategies to monitor and promote each student’s learning and development
5.4	Use formative and summative assessments to determine students’ understanding in each subject area, and be aware of technological tools that can facilitate assessment

Assessment, as stated in Standard Five, is an “integral part of teaching”. Assessments can be used to assist teachers in planning curricula and also providing a means for students to be accountable for their learning. In a classroom, assessments of student learning can be completed in a variety of ways. It is ultimately the teacher’s responsibility to choose the most appropriate format to accomplish the desired end result. 

Typically, assessments can be categorized into two types: formative and summative. Summative assessments are mostly associated with standardized and state testing. However, summative assessments can also include: end of chapter or unit tests, and district-wide benchmark assessments. These types of assessments are given at a planned time and are intended to thoroughly assess student learning up to that point in time. While a great deal of information is obtained from the scores of these tests, it is very important that the teacher giving and grading them understands some of the fundamental issues with the test structure.

In my time at Wheelock and student teaching in the Boston Public School system, I have learned and witnessed a lot of what makes summative assessments effective and ineffective. The summative assessments I have been a part of at Mission Hill have been focused on mathematics. My first observation completed by my practicum supervisor was during an end of unit Math assessment. I was assigned to a group of three students; whose Individualized Educational Plan (IEP) stated that during an assessment, they may have a facilitator read the questions to them. While reading the questions aloud, I became very aware of just how “wordy” the questions were. Even though I was reading the question to them, my students had a very difficult time deciphering what information was necessary to solve the problem. In addition, my students would ask me clarifying questions that I was not allowed to answer. From the teacher perspective, I also had a difficult time upholding my responsibilities. Artifact 5A is the observation notes from my supervisor. She captures my responses to students while in the moment, and my immediate reactions after. As an educator, I believe it is my job to create motivating learning experiences. The assessment given to these students detracted from their academic motivation and self esteem. It also stripped away my natural instincts as a teacher. I was unable to effectively respond to student questions, confusion and frustration. 

Formative assessments are used to evaluate student learning during the instructional process. These assessments are used when something can be changed or guidance can be given students to assist their understanding of the lesson(s). “Inside the Black Box: Raising Standards Through Classroom Assessment” is an article written by Paul Black and Dylan Wiliam. The article speaks to the possibility of by improving the formative assessment process. The article states how important assessments are to the success of a classroom. Many assessments are used by teachers to collect data about student learning. However, these assessments become formative when the teacher uses the information to actually make a change in their instructional methods. I believe that this is the break down point. Various assessments are done numerous times a day by many teachers across the globe. However, it is the effective ones who take the information they collect and do something with it. All teachers should be made aware of these obvious opportunities to better the academic lives of their students. 

Artifact 5B is a formative assessment that I constructed to monitor student learning throughout a unit being taught on modern Egypt. Across the top of the rubric there are three categories: No Understanding, Some Understanding, and Full Understanding. Under each heading are the criteria. After every lesson of the unit, I would categorize each student. I used mental notes from classroom discussion, and student work to place students into the appropriate categories. While this rubric is very brief, it allowed me to have a quick means to document and track student learning. As I move on in my teaching career, I believe rubrics like these are going to become a critical piece in monitoring the understanding of my students in various content areas.  

Kathy Schrock, a professor at Wilkes University and district Director of Technology, strives to include technology into every grade levels curricula. To help teachers she created a website called, “Schrock’s Guide For Educators”. Within this site, she has a page devoted to assessments. On that page she has many links for ready to use rubrics for various content areas. As someone new to the field, I believe a site like this can be very helpful. Assessments are such a critical piece of the teaching and learning process and using technology to access various resources can only improve my chances on becoming successful. 

Lastly, the experiences and classes within the Wheelock Education program provided me with a great deal of insight on the overwhelming topic of assessment. It is clear to me how critical effective assessments and use of such tests, within a classroom directly affect the teaching and learning process. As I graduate from Wheelock, I want to constantly keep in mind the mission of improving lives of children and families in all aspects of my work. I expect this to be particularly difficult with assessments. However, with the constant research and resources available, I plan to develop a method that upholds the integrity of my own teaching philosophy.

References:

Schrock, K. (1995). Kathy Schrock's Guide for Educators.

Retrieved May 5, 2011, from http://school.discoveryeducation.com/schrockguide/.

Black, P. and Wiliam, D. (1998) Inside the Black Box: Raising Standards Through Classroom Assessment