1.1. a ‘low stakes’ type of assessment that is ongoing throughout the learning process, providing data to guide instruction and improve student performance.
1.2. Formative assessments are not graded, which takes the anxiety away from students. It also detaches the thinking that they must get everything right.
1.3. Some teachers complain about sacrificing time to assess during the lesson and fear that they may not even finish the lesson. Teachers then feel the need to rush through a series of units, which causes students to lack mastery once the assessment is given at the end of the unit
1.4. example
2. summative
2.1. a ‘high stakes’ type of assessment for making final judgments about student achievement before moving to a new topic.
2.2. Though they aren’t necessarily fun for teachers and students, summative assessments have a lot of advantages. They provide motivation for students to study and pay attention in class, particularly as they get older and grades become a major indicator of success in college or the working world. They also give great insight to teachers: if none of the children in a class score above a 2 or 3 on an AP exam, it is much more likely to be the result of poor or off-topic instruction than a class of students unable to complete the work.
2.3. Precisely because summative assessments reflect so closely on teacher performance, many instructors are accused of “teaching to the test.” In other words, if a state test is known to heavily favor anagrams or analogies, students may be asked to spend hours drilling those exercises instead of reading and writing to grow their vocabularies naturally. Conversely, no assessment is perfect, so even students with excellent knowledge of the material may run into questions that trip them up, especially if they get nervous under pressure. As a result, summative assessment is not always the most accurate reflection of learning.
2.4. example
3. performance-based
3.1. an alternative assessment that relies on observation of a student’s performance, or the product of a performance, requiring the student to demonstrate directly the specific skills and knowledge being assessed.
3.2. Can be used to assess from multiple perspectives. Using a student-centered design can promote student motivation. Can be used to assess transfer of skills and integration of content. Engages student in active learning. Encourages time on academics outside of class. Can provide a dimension of depth not available in classroom.
3.3. Usually the mostly costly approach. Time consuming and labor intensive to design and execute for faculty and students. Must be carefully designed if used to document obtainment of student learning outcomes. Ratings can be more subjective. Requires careful training of raters.
3.4. example
4. high-stakes
4.1. is any test used to make important decisions about students, educators, schools, or districts, most commonly for the purpose of accountability—i.e., the attempt by federal, state, or local government agencies and school administrators to ensure that students are enrolled in effective schools and being taught by effective teachers.
4.2. High-stakes test results can be used to help teachers create a learning plan based on your kid's needs helping her in the long run. Data from statewide testing is almost always publicly available. Access to this information will help you make more informed decisions about where and how your child will get the best education. Your child can benefit by learning how to handle pressure, and developing the skills and strategies necessary to meet the school's and parents' expectations.
4.3. High-stakes tests cause any subject that isn't math or language arts to be pushed out of the classroom. Subjects like science, social studies and the arts are sacrificed to make time for more test prep. Pressure on teachers can clamp down on creativity and innovation. Thanks to pressure from the government, teachers often feel compelled to "teach to the test," resulting in less flexibility to tailor lesson plans to individual students or class groups. Increased pressure on parents and students is counter-productive.
4.4. Standards-Based Accountability Assessments The Minnesota Comprehensive Assessments (MCA) and alternate assessment Minnesota Test of Academic Skills (MTAS) are the state tests that help districts measure student progress toward Minnesota’s academic standards and also meet the requirements of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). Students take one test in each subject. Most students take the MCA, but students who receive special education services and meet eligibility requirements may take the alternate assessment MTAS instead.
5. portfolio
5.1. a purposeful collection of student work that provides a long-term record of a student’s best efforts, progress, and/or achievement in a given area.
5.2. Shows sophistication in student performance Illustrates longitudinal trends Highlight student strengths Identify student weaknesses for re mediation, if timed properly Can be used to view learning and development longitudinally Multiple components of the curriculum can be assessed (e.g. writing, critical thinking, technology skills)
5.3. Portfolio will be no better than the quality of the collected artifacts Time consuming and challenging to evaluate Space and ownership challenges make evaluation difficult Content may vary widely among students Students may fail to remember to collect items Transfer students may not be in the position to provide complete portfolio Time intensive to convert to meaningful data Costly in terms of evaluator time and effort
5.4. example
6. authentic
6.1. a form of performance assessment in which students demonstrate their knowledge and skills in ways that resemble ”real world” situations.
6.2. Focuses on analytical skills and the integration of knowledge Promotes creativity Reflection of real-world skills and knowledge Encourages collaborative work Enhances written and oral presentation skills Direct match of assessment, instructional activities, and learning objectives Emphasizes integration of learning over time
6.3. Time-intensive to manage, monitor, and coordinate Difficult to coordinate with mandatory educational standards Challenging to provide consistent grading scheme Subjective nature of grading may lead to bias Unique nature may be unfamiliar to students May not be practical for large enrollment courses Challenging to develop for various types of courses and ranges of objectives
6.4. Standards: 6, 7 Task: Satire Assignment You have had a lot of experience with satire over the course of your year in IH. From Mark Twain to Kurt Vonnegut, Ken Kesey to The Onion, you’ve seen firsthand the forms and functions of the powerful literary technique that is satire. In addition, as a class we have listed “satirizable” elements of our world today. Now it is time to put your knowledge into practice. Your task is to write a 3 - 4 page satiric piece that examines either a political, cultural, or social phenomena. Don’t let the sound of that scare you; consider Dave Barry’s article on SUVs (cultural), the Onion article on teenagers, and “hanging out” (social). You may choose to use an article form like The Onion, the satiric newspaper, or model it after Barry’s SUV piece.
7. self-assessment
7.1. a reflective practice in which students make observations about their own performance relative to criteria and standards.
7.2. Encourages student involvement and responsibility. Encourages students to reflect on their role and contribution to the process of the group work. Allows students to see and reflect on their peers’ assessment of their contribution. Focuses on the development of student’s judgment skills.
7.3. Potentially increases lecturer workload by needing to brief students on the process as well as on-going guidance on performing self evaluation. Self evaluation has a risk of being perceived as a process of presenting inflated grades and being unreliable. Students feel ill equipped to undertake the assessment.
7.4. example
8. diagnostic
8.1. a type of assessment that determines knowledge, skills, or misconceptions prior to instruction in order to identify specific student need.
8.2. The benefits of diagnostic exams are multiple. Most importantly, the assessments can help faculty and counselors determine the level and type of instruction necessary to bring students up to speed and increase the chances that they will complete their degree or certificate programs. A Getting Past Go blog post, March Madness and Remedial Education, captures how assessments can differentiate student skill levels, direct them to various delivery and instruction options, and set them on a course for success.
8.3. Many teachers resist using these tools because they can be time-consuming to administer, grade, record, and analyze. Some teachers avoid diagnostic assessments because these teachers exclusively focus on grade-level standards-based instruction or believe that remediation is (or was) the job of some other teacher. To be honest, some teachers resist diagnostic assessments because the data might induce them to differentiate instruction—a daunting task for any teacher. And some teachers resist diagnostic assessments because they fear that the data will be used by administrators to hold them accountable for individual student progress.
8.4. example
9. peer assessment
9.1. a reflective practice in which students make observations about their peers’ performances relative to expectations or specific criteria
9.2. Encourages student involvement and responsibility. Encourages students to reflect on their role and contribution to the process of the group work. Focuses on the development of student’s judgment skills. Students are involved in the process and are encouraged to take part ownership of this process
9.3. The process has a degree of risk with respect to reliability of grades as peer pressure to apply elevated grades or friendships may influence the assessment, though this can be reduced if students can submit their assessments independent of the group. Students will have a tendency to award everyone the same mark. Students feel ill equipped to undertake the assessment.
