Day 1 - Jan 6th - Assessment and
Evaluation
Although the two words may seem to
be synonymous, within the specific context of education they have deeper
meanings. Evaluation is a part of assessment and is more closely related to
reporting. In the standard for of education evaluation takes the form of report
cards. Reporting periods are used several times throughout the year. The
learning process is paused while the teachers and students work together to
discover where the students are in the learning process and what still needs to
be learned. Evaluation and reporting are used to monitor how well the students
are learning, what needs to change and the level the students work should be
at.
Evaluation/reporting is a process that
allows the teacher and students to monitor and manipulate the classroom
experience to further enhance the learning process. Evaluation is a critical
part of the assessment process as it keeps the students on track to succeed.
Assessment is possible without evaluation periods, but it would be more
difficult and unfair.
Assessment of Learning could be
considered the more traditional form of assessment. Nearly every teacher in
every school around the world uses Assessment of
Learning. It is the easiest way to show proof that learning has occurred which
is required for evaluation and reporting processes. Some Assessment of Learning processes include
rubrics, tests, essays, end projects, and portfolios. This assessment method is
typically used at the end of a term or unit. Although all of these assessment
tools are traditional used as Assessment of Learning they are not confined to
this area. It is how assessment
is used that determines which classification it should be in.
Assessment for Learning is the assessment type that seems
to be popular at the moment. It benefits the students learning and personal
needs over the general needs of the class for the sake of efficiency.
Assessment for Learning
is a way to determine what is working or what needs to change for the students
to further succeed in the future. This assessment form is most useful when
implemented at the beginning of a term. Assessment for Learning methods include surveys,
reviews, midterm/unit exams, class discussion, anecdotal notes, juries/competitions
and peer reviewed papers. All of these methods provide suggestions for
improvement and when implemented in the early stages of a unit the suggestions
can be used to improve the students product, process and skills.
Day 2 - Jan. 13th - Building the
foundation for Classroom Assessment. Beginning with the end in mind. Describing
success. Evidence of Learning
The idea of beginning with the end in
mind is, as the textbook says, an old idea. But new challenges have begun to
arise, and with those, new techniques to be successful. Two of these challenges
(qualify expectations are unclear and students arrive at different levels) can
be approached by being prepared. Students need to understand what they are
required to do. This can be demonstrated with models. When we start a class we
must pre-assess to determine where the students are at. This, combined with
keeping the end in mind will help the teacher know where and how to begin.
It is equally important for all members
of the learning process to understand the learning process and destination.
This team includes the teachers, students and parents. If the students
understand what they will be learning they can be held accountable for their
learning. It will also help them understand what the class is about; the
purpose for taking the class. If the parents understand these same things they
can help keep their children on track and provide motivation and commendations
for the children.
Although all members of the team have a
purpose, the teacher has more work in this process. The teacher is the tour
guide for the parents and students, making sure everyone understand where they
are going and how they will get there. The teacher has to create and provide
the map and ensure that all team members can understand what will happen. The
important thing to remember is that all of this extra work will pay off in the
end with the students receiving better education and the parents being an
active part in their children’s lives.
Describing success is an invaluable way
to help students understand, create and learn. Many students are visual
learners; providing them with samples will help them understand what needs to
be done. This was done in our class with the portfolios. Peta created an
example of what one might look like. The problem for many of us was that this
was a completely new concept in a new class. There was only one example of what
our portfolios might look like. Although many people have the ability to
conceive and create an idea without any help, many people need multiple
examples. The lack of multiple examples in our university class made it very
obvious how useful and necessary examples can be for all students, especially
inexperienced ones. We as beginning teachers can identify with our own class
experiences and understand that it is necessary to help the students in this
way, even if it means creating examples where none exist.
Keeping evidence of learning is
important for all education team members including a fourth: administration. If
the student and the parents are continually a part of the team there shouldn’t
be any surprises come reporting periods. But the administration needs to be a
part of this team during evaluation time. All members of the team (students,
parents and administrators) want to see proof and evidence of learning and
achievement (or lack thereof). This is why providing proof is necessary. As
with other steps in the education process, the students should play a crucial
role in this process. This not only makes the teachers job easier, it keeps the
students involved and engaged in their own learning which guarantees further
understanding and education.
It is obvious to most educators I’ve met
that keeping evidence of learning is the right thing to do for all the reasons
listed above. What is not so obvious is how to use it. Recording all of the
evidence is important if anyone ever questions grades/marks. But this
information should be used as assessment for learning as well. This is
something I would like to look into more, but I think this will come with time
and experience.
Day 3 – Jan. 20th – Ministry
of Education Assessment Policies, Formative Assessment, Research Paper Criteria
– establishing criteria, Backward Design.
Chapter 7: Using Assessment to Guide
Instruction and the article Backward Design present two ideas that, when used
together, can help to positively change or effect learning. Backward Design
states similar ideas from Chapter 3: Beginning with the End in Mind. We as
teachers need to know what we want/need the students to know by the end of the
unit so we are able to provide proper instruction. If we work day by day the
education process will be choppy and difficult for the students to follow (as
well as being difficult for the teacher to keep up with). If we take the time
to develop our ideas into unit plans before the unit starts the education we
provide for the students will be better in every way.
The Ministry of Education’s policy on
young teachers creating final exams is interesting. I understand that young
teachers often do not possess the skills to create exams, but removing this
task from them completely may not be the best answer. These teachers are not
going to learn how to write exams in the first two years if they are not
allowed to practice this. It is strange to assume that these same teachers will
posses these skills two years later when they are allowed to write the exams if
they receive no formal training on the matter. This is a skill that we should
be learning at university (something we never really cover) so we can provide
the best education and assessment of the education for our students. Young
teachers should also be provided the opportunity to co-write exams in the field
in their first years as teachers. There are many ways these exams could be
deemed legitimate. The young teacher could work off of an experienced teacher’s
old exams, changing what is necessary according to content covered in the unit.
The new teacher could write an exam and submit it to a department head or the
ministry along with the unit plan and samples of assignments. Regardless of how
it is done I think it is important that young teachers be allowed to develop
these skills.
Developing the research paper and presentation
criteria together was a great way to ensure we all know what is expected. This
is a process that I’ve discussed and have been a part of many times in my
university classes, but it is not something I’ve been able to employ in the
field. It is interesting, and I think that students would really enjoy the
process, even if it had to be altered slightly. Students enjoy being a part of
the decision making process. They also need to fully understand what is being
taught and what is expected of them. If the students are included in this
process from the beginning they can be held accountable for the quality of
their work. This activity also employs the idea of working backward and keeping
the end in mind.
Formative and summative are new concepts to many of us. As with assessment for and of learning, both formative and summative assessment have a place in the classroom. Formative assessment is more closely related to assessment for learning, where summative is related to of learning. Although both have a place in the classroom, I think formative assessment is more useful to the students and the teacher. The students receive assessment that is used to increase their comprehension and education. It is also practical when the teacher uses the results to alter the instruction process so the students can learn better. Formative assessment can only be categorized as such when the teacher and students use the assessment results to improve themselves and the processes. This can be difficult for beginning teachers as we do not have a large knowledge of instructional methods, but the fact that we understand this idea is a good starting point. We cannot allow ourselves to fear change because this only lessens the experience for the students. This idea ties in with Chapter 7 from the Davies text.
The group projects and collaboration of ideas with our research projects was an interesting way to share our information with all members of the class. Working with the other papers was good practice for my future as an English teacher. Working with Microsoft word, track changers and the comment balloons was new to many of us. It is a great way to accurately and effectively edit and grade papers. This is a technique I would like to implement in the future. It is a great way to save paper, especially for teachers who require multiple drafts of papers. This process worked very well for our group, but we only had three members. I think this would be difficult for students to do if they had to edit more than two papers.
This semester we have learned a lot about assessment for learning and formative assessment. These techniques are both used and designed to benefit the student and the education process. I find it difficult to see the value in standardized tests. These tests are submitted by the government or a third party and the results are never returned in time to be used effectively (if they are returned at all). These tests are all too often tools of the government that have no benefit for students and subsequently make the students’ and teachers lives more difficult. The teachers have to teach to the test in these scenarios which is the opposite of what we’ve been learning. The tests take a lot of time in preparation and execution. I think that this time could be used better. After all we’ve learned about assessment for learning I find it difficult to see the value is standardized testing, even after the time we spent learning about them.
Day 5 - 3rd Feb: Involving students in classroom assessment. Using assessment to guide instruction. Collecting, organising, and presenting evidence. Communicating about learning. Evaluating and reporting. Laurie Gatski (Guest speaker) from the Regina Public School Board - to present the current assessment policy and practice in this school division.
One of the key things I’ve learned this semester is that students can be involved with almost every aspect of their education. When they are involved they further their ability to learn as well as cutting down the teachers work load. When we involve the students in classroom assessment we can do both of these things. My research paper focused on this, particularly self, peer and group assessment. All three of these tools can be used to involve the students. They all have their own benefits and should be used throughout the year. The students can also be involved by creating the criteria for which their work will be graded. The students can then be responsible for collecting and saving evidence of learning in portfolios or files which can then be used by the teacher and teaching team to monitor learning and prove/validate assessment/evaluation.
The evaluating and reporting process is made easier when we collect evidence of learning. This can and should be done all year by the education team, specifically the teacher and the students. If this task is done all year long it makes the task easier to complete. It also puts less stress on the teacher come reporting time. I found these chapters to be rather interesting. When I first decided to become a teacher I didn’t really think about the behind the scenes aspects of education. These chapters helped to shed light on these things and provided some very helpful ideas on how to execute them. They further confirmed the idea that everything must be recorded, which can be a daunting task. Using the teaching team of the students, parents and teachers is a great way to make everything in education easier on the teacher and more useful for the student. Communicating about this learning between all three members throughout the term is a crucial part of this new idea of educating the students to the best of our ability.
Days 6 and 7 were dedicated to working on group projects and presentation on the second day. Day 8 was used to discuss the expectations for field experience. We created and discussed our plans for assessment techniques which is posted under Pre-internship Assessment Techniques. We also developed the criteria for our final two assignments, further demonstrating the importance of including the students in the assessment process.
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