2.7 Assessment
Candidates model and facilitate the effective use of diagnostic, formative, and summative assessments to measure student learning and technology literacy, including the use of digital assessment tools and resources. (PSC 2.7/ISTE 2g)
Artifact: Data/Assessment Inventory
Reflection: For the artifact for standard 2.7, I chose the data inventory
that I created for ITEC 7305, Data Analysis and School Improvement. For the
data inventory, I interviewed the principal of my school and the assistant
principal who serves as the testing coordinator. They helped me to fully
understand the different assessments available to teachers at our school and
the students whose progress those assessments help track.
In the course of creating the data analysis, I was struck most by the number of assessments that the students are faced with in their three years of middle school. Through the course of the Data Analysis course and from my enrollment in a gifted endorsement program through Metro RESA, I was also able to learn about the different assessments that students take. The Data Analysis course dealt heavily in the different requirements and the different uses of both nationally normed and criterion referenced tests. With that knowledge in hand, I was able to understand the purpose of the various tests. For example, the IOWA assessment can be used to compare the performance of students to those in other areas of the country while the CRCT is used to compare the performance of students to what they should have learned.At my school in particular, we also employ several databases that house the results of those assessments. Those databases allow teachers to have access to the results for the whole school or a single student or any combination in between. This access to achievement data allows teachers to have a basic understanding of the needs and abilities of our students so that we can teach and reach them better. In addition, the results of new assessments are added to the data base in a timely manner which will allow teachers to change their methods in order to better suit the needs of our students.
In the process of creating this artifact, I learned a lot about the assessments that our students take. I also learned that, at least at the middle school level, different grade levels take different assessments. In the future, if I complete another similar assessment inventory I will include interviews with other teachers, preferably one in each grade level, to include the different ways that they use the assessment results in their classrooms. These interviews would provide me with a window into the other grade levels with which I’m not familiar and would allow me to better understand the impact of the assessments on the school as a whole.
Data inventories like this one can be useful in planning for both student learning and teacher development. An understanding of the assessments that students will be taking can help teachers understand what they need to learn and how they prefer to learn it. Teachers can then use that information to better plan lessons to reach students and improve the overall achievement of all students. A thorough understanding of what students need can allow teachers to help all students reach their fullest potential.
In the course of creating the data analysis, I was struck most by the number of assessments that the students are faced with in their three years of middle school. Through the course of the Data Analysis course and from my enrollment in a gifted endorsement program through Metro RESA, I was also able to learn about the different assessments that students take. The Data Analysis course dealt heavily in the different requirements and the different uses of both nationally normed and criterion referenced tests. With that knowledge in hand, I was able to understand the purpose of the various tests. For example, the IOWA assessment can be used to compare the performance of students to those in other areas of the country while the CRCT is used to compare the performance of students to what they should have learned.At my school in particular, we also employ several databases that house the results of those assessments. Those databases allow teachers to have access to the results for the whole school or a single student or any combination in between. This access to achievement data allows teachers to have a basic understanding of the needs and abilities of our students so that we can teach and reach them better. In addition, the results of new assessments are added to the data base in a timely manner which will allow teachers to change their methods in order to better suit the needs of our students.
In the process of creating this artifact, I learned a lot about the assessments that our students take. I also learned that, at least at the middle school level, different grade levels take different assessments. In the future, if I complete another similar assessment inventory I will include interviews with other teachers, preferably one in each grade level, to include the different ways that they use the assessment results in their classrooms. These interviews would provide me with a window into the other grade levels with which I’m not familiar and would allow me to better understand the impact of the assessments on the school as a whole.
Data inventories like this one can be useful in planning for both student learning and teacher development. An understanding of the assessments that students will be taking can help teachers understand what they need to learn and how they prefer to learn it. Teachers can then use that information to better plan lessons to reach students and improve the overall achievement of all students. A thorough understanding of what students need can allow teachers to help all students reach their fullest potential.