ASSESSMENT:

FORMATIVE & STUDENT ACCOUNTABILITY

Practices for the BLAST Classroom

Alliance Technology and Math, Science H.S. Richard Thomas, Assistant Principal

Think About It! Group Activity

What is the difference between teaching and telling?

What is the difference between assessing and grading?

What is the difference between teaching and learning?

What is assessment?

Assessment for learning is best described as a process by which assessment information is used by teachers to adjust their teaching strategies, and by students to adjust their learning strategies.

Assessment, teaching and learning are inextricably linked, as each informs the others.

Assessment is a powerful process that can either optimize or inhibit learning, depending on how it’s applied.

Why Discuss Assessment?

A review of the data shows that there is a lot of testing happening in most districts, but that assessment does not necessarily drive curriculum and instruction.

District educators indicated that the timeliness of receiving data impacts their ability to use it effectively.

Educators expressed a frustration related to their ability to analyze and synthesize the data.

Factors Inhibiting Assessment

A tendency for teachers to assess quantity and presentation of work rather than quality of learning.

Greater attention given to marking and grading, much of it tending to lower self esteem of students, rather than providing advice for improvement.

A strong emphasis on comparing students with each other, which demoralizes the less successful learners.

Formative Assessment

Assessment for learningTaken at varying intervals throughout a

course to provide information and feedback that will help improve the quality of student learning the quality of the course itself

1. The identification by teachers & learners of learning goals, intentions or outcomes and criteria for achieving these.

2. Rich conversations between teachers & students that continually build and go deeper.

3. The provision of effective, timely feedback to enable students to advance their learning.

4. The active involvement of students in their own learning.

5. Teachers responding to identified learning needs and strengths by modifying their teaching approach(es).

Black & Wiliam, 1998

Key Elements of Formative Assessment

Formative and summative assessment are interconnected. They seldom stand alone in construction or effect.

The vast majority of genuine formative assessment is informal, with interactive and timely feedback and response.

It is widely and empirically argued that formative assessment has the greatest impact on learning and achievement.

BALANCED CLASSROOM ASSESSMENT SYSTEM

FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENT

A process used by teachers and students during instruction that provides feedback to adjust ongoing teaching and learning to help students improve their achievement of intended instructional outcomes.

A tool used after instruction to measure student achievement which provides evidence of student competence or program effectiveness.

If we think of our children as plants …

Summative assessment of the plants is the process of

simply measuring them. It might be interesting to

compare and analyze measurements but, in themselves,

these do not affect the growth of the plants.

Formative assessment, on the other hand, is the

equivalent of feeding and watering the plants appropriate

to their needs - directly affecting their growth.

The Garden Analogy

In the past, assessments have been the measurer of instructional interventions; a new program is implemented or teaching strategy and we use an assessment to determine effectiveness. In the case of assessment for learning, assessment becomes not only the measurer of impact, but also the innovation that causes change in student achievement; assessment is not just the index of change, it is the change!

Research (Black and William,1998) identified assessment features that bring about these large achievement gains:Assessments that result in accurate information

Descriptive rather than evaluative feedback to students

Student involvement in assessments

Accuracy + descriptive feedback + student involvement = Achievement Gains

Research on FeedbackIt’s the quality of feedback, rather than its existence

or absence that determines its power. Specifically, the use of descriptive, criterion-based feedback as opposed to numerical scoring or letter grades.

Feedback emphasizing that it’s the learning that’s important, leads to greater learning than feedback implying that what is important is looking good or how you compare to others.

Descriptive feedback can focus on strengths or weaknesses, feedback is most effective when it points out strengths in the work as well as needing improvement.

Keys to Quality Assessments

Purpose-serve the specific data needs of intended users and uses

Learning Targets-clearly articulated and appropriate

Design-accurately reflects student achievement, target-method match, sampled how, avoid bias

Communicated-results effectively managed and reported to intended users

Student Involvement-develop, reflect and track progress of learning

Emily’s Scenario-What did the teacher do to enhance student motivation and learning?

Comparison: Emily and Krissy-What problems do you see in Krissy’s case? What are essential differences between experiences? Why did one work when the other did not?

Comparison: Emily and Mr. Heim’s Class – What do this case and Emily’s writing have in common as keys to effective and productive use of assessment as a teaching and learning tool?

List the similarities and compare your list to the five domains of sound and productive classroom assessments.

Classroom Assessment ScenariosReview the 3 examples of classroom

assessmentsEvaluate Assessment Quality-How do you think

the teachers met the 5 dimensions of sound practice: clear sense of purpose, clear targets, accurate assessment, and effective communication, involvement of students.

Reflect on your experience as a student, think of an assessment that was a negative experience, positive experience. Which of the 5 domains of sound practice did your teacher violate or address that made it positive.

Self-evaluation

Where would you place your assessment practice on the

following continuum?

The main focus is on:

Quantity of work/Presentation Quality of learning

Marking/Grading

Comparing students

Advice for improvement

Identifying individual

progress

Assessment Confidence Questionnaire

To provide a baseline of your current understanding of classroom assessment for learning, take a moment to answer the Confidence Questionnaire

Discuss at your station your ratings and priorities

7 Strategies of Assessment for LearningWhere Am I Going?

1) Provide Clear and Understandable Vision of Learning Targets

2) Use Examples, Models of Strong/Weak work

Where Am I Now?

3) Offer Regular Descriptive Feedback

4) Teach Students to Self-Assess and Set Goals

How Can I Close the Gap?

5) Design Lessons to Focus on One Aspect of Quality at a Time

6) Teach Students Focused Revision

7) Engage Students in Self-Reflection, Have them Keep Track of and Share Their Learning

Critique an Assessment for Clear Purposes

Download Assessment Quality Rubrics for each of the Keys (traits) from Figure 2.1-

Clear Purpose Clear Targets Sound Assessment DesignGood CommunicationStudent Involvement

Download Assessments to Evaluate(Activity 2.3)

Download Assessments Critiques

Download Student Surveys

Activity 2.5 (Determining Where I Am Now–Fig 2.3)

Knowledge - facts and concepts students are to know

Reasoning – students use what they know to reason and solve problems

Skills – students use their knowledge and reasoning to act skillfully

Products – students use their knowledge, reasoning and skills to create concrete products

Dispositions – students’ attitudes about school and learning

Assess What? Identifying Clear Learning Targets

Assess What? Identifying Clear Learning Targets

Table 3.1 – Examples of Learning TargetsTable 3.2 – Content Standards-Key WordsReasoning Targets-What kind of reasoning do you

want your students to be able to do?Inductive and Deductive ReasoningAnalytical ReasoningComparative ReasoningClassifying, Evaluative and Synthesis ReasoningTable 3.3-Examples of Reasoning TargetsActivity 3.11 Critique Assessment for Clear Targets

compare individual scores, discuss discrepancies

Assess How? Assessment MethodsSelected Response and Short Answer

Extended Written Response

Performance Assessment

Personal Communication

Knowing what you want to assess, then choosing the best method, depends on purpose and learning targets being assessed.

Table groups discuss examples of these methods

Which Method? Target-Method Match

Given the following learning targets (Table 3.1) which assessment method would you use?

1)Ability to write clearly and coherently

2)Group Discussion Proficiency

3)Reading comprehension

4)Proficiency using specified mathematical procedures

5)Proficiency conducting investigations in Science

Download Target-Method Match directionsRead through scenarios and determine

which assessment method is best match for each of the four kinds of learning targets:

(knowledge, reasoning, skills, products)

Consider how you would assess each learning target using a particular assessment method

Compare your selections with Table 4.1, note and discuss discrepancies

Which Method? Target-Method Match

Analyze Samples for Target-Method Match

Stages in Assessment Development

1) Plan: Assess Why? What? How? How Important?

2)Develop: Determine Sample. Select, create/modify test items and scoring mechanisms

3)Critique: Evaluate for quality

4)Administer: Administer the test or assessment

5)Revise: Evaluate test quality based on results, revise as needed

Design BLAST Assessments

Using Learning Targets discussed, apply theses Learning Targets to each BLAST station (Direct, Collaborative and Independent).

Apply specific Assessment Methods that work best for each station.

Be prepared to share out

Student Accountability

Activity 5.7-Goal Setting with TestsFigure 5.12 –Learning Targets TestedFigure 5.13a and 5.13b – Student Identification

of Strengths and Focusing Further StudyFigure 5.14 – Student Analysis of Test ResultsFigure 5.15 – Student Goal-Setting Frames

Road to Mastery, Student-Involvement, Portfolio of Success

ClosureHow has the information shared today

changed your views/thoughts about assessment?

What questions do you still have regarding assessment?

Do you feel confident that you can add the assessment (s) to your lesson plan to increase effectiveness and assist students in mastery of the intended objectives?

Planned and Communicated

Assessment for learning should be built into teachers’ planning as a part of everyday classroom practice.

Learning goals, teaching strategies and assessment criteria should be carefully matched. Students should know in advance what they will learn, as well as how and why they are to be assessed. Teachers’ plans should be flexible so that they can make changes in response to new information, opportunities or insights.

FORMATIVE SUMMATIVE

•Occurs During Instruction•Not Graded•Process•Descriptive Feedback•Continuous

•Occurs at the end•Graded•Product•Evaluative Feedback•Periodic

COMPARISON OF ASSESSMENTS

Possible Assessment Methods

Formative Assessment includes

Questions Classroom Discussions Learning Activities Feedback Conferences Interviews Student Self-Assessment

Summative Assessment

Selected ResponseMultiple ChoiceTrue/FalseMatchingFill-in

Extended Written Response Performance Assessment

Planned and Communicated

The planning needs to include strategies to check students’ understanding of the goals they are pursuing and the criteria that will be applied in assessing their work.

How students will receive feedback, how they will take part in assessing their learning and how they will be helped to make further progress should also be planned.

A teacher’s planning should provide opportunities for both student and teacher to obtain information about progress towards learning goals, and use it to direct the learning process.

Assessment in education is the process of gathering, interpreting, recording, and using information about pupils’ responses to an educational task. (Harlen, Gipps, Broadfoot, Nuttal,1992)

1. Teachers value and believe in students.2. Sharing learning goals with the students.3. Involving students in self-assessment.4. Providing feedback that helps students

recognize their next steps and how to take them.

5. Being confident that every student can improve.

6. Providing students with examples of what we expect from them.

Values and Attitudes about Assessment

“…learner-centered, teacher-directed, mutually beneficial, formative, context-specific, ongoing, and firmly rooted in good practice" (Angelo and Cross, 1993).

Provides information on what an individual student needsTo practiceTo have re-taughtTo learn next

Summative Assessment

Assessment of learningGenerally taken by students at the end of a unit

or semester to demonstrate the "sum" of what they have or have not learned.

Summative assessment methods are the most traditional way of evaluating student work.

"Good summative assessments--tests and other graded evaluations--must be demonstrably reliable, valid, and free of bias" (Angelo and Cross, 1993).

Formative

‘… often means no more than that the assessment is carried out frequently and is planned at the same time as teaching.’ (Black and Wiliam, 1999)

‘… provides feedback which leads to students recognizing the (learning) gap and closing it … it is forward looking …’ (Harlen, 1998)

‘ … includes both feedback and self-monitoring.’ (Sadler, 1989)

‘… is used essentially to feed back into the teaching and learning process.’ (Tunstall and Gipps, 1996)

Summative

‘…assessment (that) has increasingly been used to sum up learning…’(Black and Wiliam, 1999)

‘… looks at past achievements … adds procedures or tests to existing work ... involves only marking and feedback grades to student … is separated from teaching … is carried out at intervals when achievement has to be summarized and reported.’ (Harlen, 1998)

Forms of Summative Assessment

Performance AssessmentPortfolioTraditional TestsNC End of Grade/End of Course Tests

Implications for classroom practice

Share learning goals with students.

Involve students in self-assessment.

Provide feedback that helps students recognize their next steps and how to take them.

Be confident that every student can improve.

Formative Assessment:Cooperative Learning

Think about the characteristics of formative assessment.

Does cooperative learning demonstrate any of these characteristics?

Cooperative/Collaborative Learning

Cooperative and collaborative learning differ from traditional teaching approaches because students work together rather than compete with each other individually.

Collaborative learning can take place any time students work together (individual and group accountability)

In a world where being a "team player" is often a key part of business success, cooperative learning is a very useful and relevant tool.

Cooperative/Collaborative Learning

Research suggests that cooperative and collaborative learning bring positive results such as deeper understanding of content, increased overall achievement in grades, improved self-esteem, and higher motivation to remain on task. Cooperative learning helps students become actively and constructively involved in content, to take ownership of their own learning, and to resolve group conflicts and improve teamwork skills.

Formative Assessment

Observing cooperative learning groups in action allows you to effectively assess students' work and understanding. Cooperative learning groups also offer a unique opportunity for feedback from peers and for self-reflection.

Research has shown that when implemented properly, students in cooperative learning classrooms outperform their peers in traditional classrooms.

Cooperative Structures

Fan-N-PickPlayed with higher-level

thinking Q cards. #1 fans, #2 picks, #3 answers, #4 praises. Students then rotate roles.

Cooperative Structures

Numbered Heads TogetherStudents huddle to make sure all can

respond, a number is called, the student with that number responds.Paired Heads Together: Students in pairs

huddle to make sure they both can respond, an “A” or “B” is called, the student with that letter responds.

Cooperative Structures

Pass a Problem ReviewTeams discuss topic written in the middle of

the map, and then cover with sticky notes.Teams record definitions, synonyms or

antonyms, symbols, graphs, etc. to describe the topic or concept.

With the word covered, the charts are passed to another group to see if they can guess the word.

Cooperative Structures

ShowdownTeammates each write an answer,

then there is a “showdown” as they show their answers to each other. Teammates verify answers.

Cooperative Structures

Talking ChipsStudents place their chip in the

center each time they talk; they cannot speak again until all chips are in the center and collected.

Cooperative Structures

Think-Pair-ShareStudents think about their response to a

question, discuss answers in pairs, and then share their own or partner’s answer with the class.Think-Pair-Square: Same except students

share their answers with teammates rather than with the class.

Assessment

How can you use cooperative learning activities to effectively assess your students?