Assessment Program Alignment: Making Essential Connections Between Assessments and Student Learning

Assessment Program

Alignment

Making Essential Connections Between Assessments and Student Learning

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Using the Right Tool

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How familiar are these statements? We have too many assessments.

We are giving assessments and interrupting our instruction all year long.

We have too much data and too little time to make sense of it.

We haven’t prioritized what data we are supposed to use.

We have too many different opinions about which assessments are most important.

We are using assessment data but don’t seem to be seeing improvement in our results.

We’re frustrated that teachers don’t seem to understand their assessments.

We’re frustrated our district doesn’t provide teachers with enough guidance in using assessments.

With so many assessments, just analyzing the data takes all of our focus.

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Choose a question that you connect with…

How can a common understanding of assessment vocabulary support a commitment to improved student outcomes?

What is the purpose of our assessments? What kind of data do our assessments generate?

What do our assessments reveal about student learning? How do they support our instructional choices?

What constitutes an ideal assessment program? What does it look like and sound like? What are the strengths and areas that need improved in our current system?

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Consider these steps:

Connecting Assessments and Student Learning

1. Create a shared knowledge of assessment literacy

2. Examine your assessment program for purpose, utilization, alignment and accountability

3. Examine your actions to ensure they reflect a shared vision

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Assessment Literacy

1. Create an activity to build a common understanding of assessment vocabulary

2. Establish norms to ensure it is safe to say:

a.Don’t know

b.Think I should know, but I don’t

c.Think I know but want to check it out

d.No comment

e.Think I have it

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Assessment Literacy Activity

A. Benchmark Assessment

B. Criterion- Referenced

Tests

C. Diagnostic Assessment

D. Percentile

E. Summative Assessment

1. A culminating assessment which give information on students’ mastery of

content, knowledge or skills.

2. Used in NRT to indicate a score below which a certain percentage falls. [Used to compare students to other students]

3. Given periodically to establish baseline data and measure progress toward a standard.

Provide data about standards that have been mastered and which need additional instruction.

4. Tool that assesses student strengths and weaknesses to inform instructional

decisions. Usually administered in advance of instruction.

5. Assessments where individual’s performance is compared to specific learning objective or

performance standard and not to performance of other students. [student-to-standard data]

1. A culminating assessment which give information on students’ mastery of

content, knowledge or skills.

2. Used in NRT to indicate a score below which a certain percentage falls. [Used to compare students to other students]

3. Given periodically to establish baseline data and measure progress toward a standard.

Provide data about standards that have been mastered and which need additional instruction.

4. Tool that assesses student strengths and weaknesses to inform instructional

decisions. Usually administered in advance of instruction.

5. Assessments where individual’s performance is compared to specific learning objective or

performance standard and not to performance of other students. [student-to-standard data] Do we agree

on the definitions?

What do I need to know or to learn?

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Examine your Assessment Program

To examine your program for purpose, utilization, alignment and accountability, begin with the question:

What do we believe is important about assessing for learning?

1. Self reflect

2. Examine your beliefs

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Self Reflection

1. What is my goal in terms of understanding our assessment program?

2. What is my current reality?

3. What do I need to do to address the gap?

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Activities to Examine Your Beliefs

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Considering Purpose - Dig Deeper

• Conduct a data inventory• Complete a district assessment review

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Examine Your Actions

• Improvement plans contain areas of focus, actions

and timelines reflecting the hard work of educators.

• Revisit your plans through the lens of having a

shared assessment vision and prioritize actions

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Addressing the Gaps

• What competencies do we need to learn that will

address gaps in reaching our assessment goals?

• When we build these competencies, what practices

will we see on a regular basis throughout the school?

• As our practices change, what student outcomes will

help us measure the affects of these changes?

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Aligning Plans with Vision

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Sustaining Capacity

You have created a common assessment literacy

You have examined your assessment program

You examined your improvement plan to align actions and address gaps

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Questions for Ongoing Dialogue

Are we painting pictures of our students using multiple points of data?

With what with know about assessment purpose now, how do we “weight” the information?

How are we using assessment data to design specific actions we need to take?

How are we supporting student growth with the data?

Thank you for your attention!

BIE Schools: katie.redden @nwea.org

AZ Schools: tracy.jones@nwea.org