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Minutes with Charlie - 17
By Charlie | May 5, 2008
Common assessments have been part of the educational landscape for many years. Many campus, grade level or subject area teams have engaged in developing and using common assessments. Both research and most instructional leaders recognize that common assessments, properly developed and used promote increased student achievement. However, the common understanding regarding common assessments is anything but “common”.
In the next few Minutes we are going to examine the concept, development, and use of common assessments.
In essence common assessments are collaboratively developed formal measures of essential student learning, standardized across the discipline that are administered in a systematic, timely fashion whose results are disaggregated, analyzed, compared and contrasted for the specific purpose of improving student achievement.
Let’s look at the important components of that definition. Collaboratively developed means it is not a test made by one teacher and used by many. It is developed specifically by teachers of that discipline on that grade level. Essential student learning means that not every possible student expectation is assessed on a common assessment. Common assessments address the more important (essential) standards or power standards. Standardized across the discipline refers to standardized across the district. For now, we are going to be really happy to have quality common assessments across a campus. Administered in a systematic timely fashion refers to the administration as guided by the district scope and sequence of learning. Results that are disaggregated, analyzed, compared and contrasted means the results of the common assessments are examined somewhat differently than classroom assessments in one classroom. They provide information useful in various arenas by several stakeholders. Finally, for the specific purpose of improving student achievement refers to the primary purpose of developing and using common assessments - improving student achievement.
There are a couple of prerequisites that need to be in place prior to developing and using common assessments.
First, there must be a commitment on the part of the teachers to collaboratively produce and use an assessment that focuses upon what students need to learn and not upon what teachers may or may not have taught. These assessments, as are most assessments, are developed prior to instruction. This commitment to collaboration extends beyond the development and administration of the assessment. It must also be in place during the examination of the results and the implementation on needed changes as indicated by results. This entire process brings a new dimension to teacher collaboration.
Second, it requires the identification of the essential student learning. This, if not done on the district level, must be done on the campus or discipline level. Doing so is no small process but its completion brings a great clarification for assessment and instruction.
In the next Minutes we will begin an examination of the development of common assessments. As with the development of any assessment, we will look at the purpose of common assessments, clear targets, matching they assessment type to the targets (design), the communication tools of the assessments, and student involvement. If you want a review see Minutes 2, 3, and 4.
Personal Reflection: Do I as a teacher recognize the value and importance of common assessments? Am I committed to work collaboratively with fellow educators to accomplish this?
Topics: Assessment OF Learning, Minutes with Charlie |