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Minutes with Charlie Vol 2 No 4
By Charlie | September 14, 2008
Classroom assessment offers teachers a tool which if used correctly makes the student a great benefactor and if used incorrectly makes the student a victim.
Generally speaking when we have discussed classroom assessment for student learning we focus upon the quality of the assessment instrument.
The development of quality classroom assessments, while essential, is not sufficient to reap the full promise of student involved classroom assessment for learning. We must use those quality assessments in the right way.
There are many elements involved in using classroom assessment in a right way. There are certainly others that are important, but in this Minutes we will only examine four essential ones.
First, if we are to use classroom assessment correctly we must have a purposeful focus of the assessment. We simply as the question of each assessment, formal and informal, “What information do I need to gain from this assessment?” or “Why am I giving this assessment?” If we cannot clearly articulate the purpose of a given assessment, the odds of us using it in a productive manner that supports student learning greatly reduce.
The second element in using assessments correctly links directly to the first: we must use the information gained from the assessment to make quality instruction decisions regarding the next stages of learning for our students. If we do not use assessment derived information to guide instructional decisions in the classroom, we become like the physician who, upon receiving results of medical tests, ignores the results and proceeds with the same treatment he had already planned. Such action would be clear case of malpractice in the field of medicine, yet common practice in the field of education.
If we have a clearly focused purpose, the information gained in the assessment is much more likely to be useful for instructional decision.
The third element in using classroom assessments correctly relates to communication. Our communication of the results of these assessments must be both accurate and meaningful to the recipients. The information we gain in these assessments is not intended solely for our use. We must communicate them clearly to others such as the parents and students.
Finally, the fourth element in using classroom assessments correctly involves the inclusion of the students actively in the assessment process. If we succeed in gaining the desired information about learning from the assessment (focused purpose) and use that information to make decisions about instruction for learning, communicate it well, yet fail to include the learner in that process we close the door to truly maximizing student achievement.
As a reminder in the last Minutes with Charlie we addressed the four most essential avenues of student involvement:
· Involvement with the clearly defined learning target,
· Involvement in the form of self-assessment,
· Involvement in tracking his own progress in the learning process, and
· Involvement in communicating with others about his learning.
In our quest to achieve both assessment literacy and competency we must achieve as common practice both quality and the correct use of those assessments. When we succeed in this, our students will be the greatest benefactors.
Personal Reflection: Do I, have focused purpose for my assessments? Do I avoid educational malpractice in my use of assessment data? Are my students regularly engaged in the assessment process?
Topics: Assessment FOR Learning, Data, Student Involvement |