EDU 6613: Meta Blog- Bringing it all together
Starting my Master’s program was a very exciting endeavor for me, I felt like I was prepared with some great teaching experience and could apply what I’ve learned and expand my knowledge. I was very eager about taking this course based on the fact that I really wanted to learn more about assessments, especially learning about assessments being standard-based. I think I woke up and smelled the standards one day when we were asked by our district to use Math Guides to piece together our math curriculum for the year. Essentially we were using the WA state standards and approved core and supplemental curriculum to teach math to our students. This is when I realized that the assessments I used were directly related to what I was teaching, the standards. It was quite the revelation. This was about 3 years ago and I’ve been making adjustments to my thinking and practice ever since.
When I first took a look at our “Confidence Questionnaire” I was very overwhelmed by the many uses of the word “assessment” and the components that it broke it down into, such as: Why Assess, Assess What, Assess How, Communicate How and Involve Students How. Truly the only component that I was even remotely comfortable and confident in was Involve Students How and that’s because for the two years that I was responsible for building my own math curriculum I utilized self-assessments and reflection pages for every learning target that my students and I explored. I was confident that I was able to: make learning targets clear to students, my students can describe what learning targets they are to achieve, give students opportunities to self-assess, and give students opportunities to reflect on their learning progress. That’s about all I had when it came to looking at my confidence with the questionnaire. Then we adopted a new math curriculum and that portion of the questionnaire went out the window along with my confidence as I struggled to implement a brand new program. Don’t feel bad though, after participating in this course all that has changed and I feel like I can embrace the Confidence Questionnaire with a higher level of assurance. In my Assessment Portfolio I actually used the components, which are coincidentally the Keys to Quality Classroom Assessment as examined in Rick Stiggins’ book, Classroom Assessment for Student Learning: Doing It Right-Using It Well, as part of my approach to assessment.
Initially, my thoughts on assessment were that they’re absolutely necessary and bring a world of communication about student learning, thinking and understanding. I believed that assessments tell us which students are to “mastery” on certain standards and can even help us to find “holes” in those that aren’t to mastery quite yet. Assessments help me to reflect on my teaching with a particular subject and then assist me to make adjustments or changes to better meet the needs of my students. This thought process aligns with the component of Why Assess, after partaking in discussions and readings that support this notion I feel that I can adequately: understand the relationship between assessment and student motivation and consciously use descriptive feedback and student involvement to motivate students to want to continue learning, balance assessment for and of learning in my classroom and have a plan for integrating them over time and use classroom assessment information to guide and revise teaching. A future goal of mine however is to continue to work on understanding the various users of classroom assessment information, including students, and can accommodate their various assessments for and of learning needs. I feel this is something I need to work on as a professional.
Another important idea and key to quality classroom assessment is communicating student learning and assessment of student learning. There are many participants in a child’s education and all of them should be aware how a student is performing. With that, there’s also the idea of what should be communicated, not just how to communicate. One way that was suggested through our readings was to keep track of tasks based on the learning targets rather than what type of assignment (Stiggins, 2006). This would then allow me to have accurate data of my students’ assessment for learning as well as having evidence on assessment of learning based on state standards. Robert J. Marzano, in his book The Art and Science of Teaching, incorporates the use of having students chart their progress on each learning goal. I believe that learning goal and learning target can be used interchangeably in that they both are referring to something a student will know or will be able to do. Marzano states, “Having each student keep track of his or hers scores on learning goals…provides them with visual views of their progress…allows for powerful discussions between teacher and student” (pg. 26). This could be a communication tool that can be used during a student-led conference or in a student portfolio. A point that was brought up within one our discussion threads was the idea of incorporating “effort” into grades and how one goes about communicating student levels versus work ethic. While having parent teacher conferences I made sure to touch on my students’ work ethic and keeping it separate from their present level of performance in content areas, Stiggins points out that effort is, “a necessary ingredient in achievement for many students”(pg. 309). Keeping to the topic of grading another discussion thread that was had during this course was looking at what grading practices might hinder learning and for this I felt that Stiggins idea of using grading as motivator would impact student learning. Stiggins states, “Tinkering with grades to cause a change in behavior is not a reliable way to effect the desired change” (pg. 308). When teachers use grades as motivators then students begin to lose sight of the learning targets and academic agenda, the classroom then becomes a battlefield or competition.
Still maintaining on the topic of communicating assessments and grading I want to bring in an author that we used during this quarter, Ken O’Connor who is the author of How to Grade for Learning:K-12. O’Connor outlined eight different guidelines to provide some insight into the problems with grading. In the preface he states, “These are practical guidelines, not just broad general principles” (O’Connor, pg. xii). In sweeping through the 8 different guidelines, Guideline 1: Relate grading to learning goals, I found this to be the most intriguing guideline. I found that using the standards to formulate: lessons, learning targets and assessments, it gave most all of my students the focus on what specific learning should be going on in the classroom. O’Connor states, “Teachers must understand clearly what learning results are expected and then base their assessment and grading plans on these learning goals. Students must also understand clearly what the learning goals are so that they know what is expected of them” (O’Connor, pg. 47). Now as I reflect on how to communicate I feel that I am confident in being able to: understand and apply principles of effective communication about student achievement, provide more descriptive feedback than evaluative feedback to students, record and combine assessment information to reflect student learning accurately, use report card grades to communicate precisely and effectively, use parent-teacher conferences to communicate correctly and efficiently. Elements in this area of teaching that I will be adding to my future goals as a professional comprise of: using other written report formats to communicate accurately and effectively, using portfolios to communicate, using student-involved conferences to communicate and improve my understanding, use, and communication of the results of standardized achievement tests.
This course has given me invaluable information to reflect on and incorporate into my teaching profession. It’s given me powerful points to bring to my grade level Professional Learning Community (PLC) when discussing assessments, grading and communicating. It has shaped the way I look at my students’ achievement and learning, while at the same time taking and using those observations to look at the effectiveness of my instruction. I will take the professional goals that I’ve outlined and weave them somehow into my practice, a little at a time.
References:
Marzano, R. (2007). The art and science of teaching, a comprehensive framework for effective instruction. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.
O’Connor, K. (2009). How to grade for learning, k-12. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
Stiggins, R., Arter, J., Chappuis, J., & Chappuis, S. (2006). Classroom assessment for student learning, doing it right–using it well. Princeton, NJ: Prentice Hall.
EDU 6613: Assessment Portfolio
Assessment Portfolio
Assessment Approach
For this course, Standards-Based Assessment, I’ve been asked to provide a Portfolio that documents entries that will demonstrate the level of mastery on the Curriculum and Instruction Standard 5. Standard 5 Assessment expects that I as an educator assess students’ mastery of curriculum and modify instruction to maximize learning. I will attempt to do this by first sharing my approach and position about assessment then I will take you through 4 entries that document my use of formative assessments in my classroom.
In my first few years of teaching it was all about surviving and developing as a novice teacher; making sure my classroom management was set in place, teaching all content areas, maintaining student relationships, evolving parent communication, etc. Giving students tests and quizzes was part of what I was asked to do in order to make sure my students were learning what I was teaching, or so I thought. As I’ve progressed through this course I’ve learned that assessments are much more than that, as well as the meaning of assessment. A diagram that Rick Stiggins uses throughout his book Classroom Assessment for Student Learning: Doing It Right-Using It Well, shows a web with clusters labeled as: Why Assess? Assess What? Assess How? and Communicate How? He describes these as keys to quality assessment and is to be used in order to develop an assessment for learning, which I have begun to adopt as a successful and positive way to set up classroom assessments.
Building Context I’ve been working at my building for the past 6 years and have been at this school for my entire teaching career thus far. Our school is a Title 1 school with a population just over 700 students and about 61% are on free or reduced lunch. We have 9% of the population in Special Education and nearly 20% are identified as bilingual learners. Our school participates in PLCs and held a Reading First grant for 3 years to help improve literacy. We currently just adopted as a district Pearson’s EnVision math curriculum and have been working very hard to work out the trials and tribulations involved with using a new program. There are 35 classroom teachers that make up part of the wonderful staff and 71% hold masters degrees with an average of 12 years teaching experience.
Why Assess? The purpose of assessment is communication, I believe that assessments tell us which students are to “mastery” on certain standards and can even help us to pinpoint holes with those that aren’t to mastery quite yet. Stiggins writes, “These are assessments that we conduct throughout teaching and learning to diagnose student needs, plan our next steps in instruction, provide student with feedback they can use to improve the quality of their work, and help students see and feel in control of their journey to success” (pg. 31). Assessment for learning occurs during the process of learning and helps the teacher, student and parents. Assessments aid me to reflect on my teaching within a particular subject or topic that may be in my curriculum and standards; this then allows me to make adjustments or changes to better meet the needs of my students.
Assess What? Learning Targets, Learning Goals, Objectives, Standards, Grade level expectations, what we assess has many different names and labels but whatever they’re called it ultimately drives the instruction and assessment. Learning targets, what I use in my classroom to communicate with students what they’re expected to be able to do, is how I start the learning process and assess my students’ progress. Targets are in student-friendly terms and typically build off previously learned concepts to form a natural foundation of skills. These targets are also put together by using state standards that will be reflected in report cards. Therefore, the target is representative of what the state expects, informs students of expectations and decides what skills will be assessed. Stiggins communicates that, “If we don’t begin with clear statements of the intended learning, we won’t end with sound assessments” (pg. 54).
Assess How? During my time in the Bilingual Multicultural Education Department program (BMED) I was able to perceive education from a sociocultural and social justice standpoint. It was an empowering experience being one of the few Caucasian women in a program that served multiple cultures, ethnicities and backgrounds. I thoroughly appreciated everything I left with and still attempt to tie in material when I can. While taking courses I encountered many great multicultural authors such as: Sonia Nieto, Jeannie Oakes, Martin Lipton and many others. In Teaching to Change the World, Oakes and Lipton discuss a sociocultural vision of assessment as one of a Constructivist point of view. I found myself relating back to this literature because when I am deciding as a teacher how I’m going to assess my students, I have multiple types of assessments available. My attempt to utilize many different assessments parallels with my attempts to use multiple strategies when instructing my students. “Constructivist teachers take note of the knowledge and skills students display when they participate in class. They observe how students interact and how they solve problems. They follow closely the nature and appropriateness of students’ reasoning as well as the correctness of their answers” (Oakes & Lipton, pg. 247). It goes on to discuss how teachers with a Constructivist attitude about teaching and learning may give tests and assignments, however they’ll review students’ answers for holes and errors. Doing this then allows for teachers to design new strategies to fill those holes, correct those errors of understanding and push rational further. Ken O’Connor, author of How to Grade for Learning:K-12, also adds about Constructivist view towards assessment, “More varied approaches to assessment imply that teachers will not always have neat numbers that can be ‘crunched’ and converted into grades….teachers need to consider carefully how they will incorporate data from a broader array of assessments into the determination of their students’ grades”(O’Connor, pg. 4). I like to approach the use of a varietal of assessments like I approach the relationships, learning styles, personalities, outlooks, background and culture of my students, with an open mind, heart and an attitude that suggests I’m accepting to make mistakes, learn from them and improve upon them each and every day. I’ve already made it clear that there are many different methods to assess student learning and preceding my approach to assessment will be four entries that are various methods for assessing students at the grade level I teach, third grade.
Communicate How? Communicating Assessment can occur in multiple ways and who we as teachers communicate that learning to, is also very important. Communication tools for sharing assessment results and student learning encompass: portfolios, expanded report cards, report cards, progress reports, student-led conferences and exhibitions. The grading tools used for assessments should be taken into consideration when thinking about the audience it’ll be shared with as well as how it’ll be shared. O’Connor writes, “Grades should be effective communication vehicles, and the methods used to determine them need to provide optimum opportunities for student success and to encourage learning” (pg. 47). Currently I’m working on my report cards while also completing this assignment and my grade level team and I have been struggling with what assessments and other means of student work should be used to communicate their achievement in Math. We finalized our decision to having grades based on the district’s math benchmark assessment, our math curriculum’s topic tests and daily student work. We communicate this by using the Washington State math standards, which currently are not aligned with our math curriculum’s Common Core standards, as well as performance indicators based on the levels of: Advanced, Benchmark, Basic and Developing. It is very important to me to be able to have an open relationship with the parents of my students O’Connor states,” Schools and teachers have a responsibility to communicate effectively with parents and others who are interested in the achievement and progress of students” (O’Connor, pg. 234). After completing this portfolio assignment, I find myself very intrigued and interested in the concept of using portfolios and student-led conferences as a means of communicating assessment. Both require the student to be actively involved in the process of understanding the Why, How and What of assessment and learning, as well as being involved in the metacognition process, thinking about their thinking and learning. Benson and Barnett (2005) state that there are many great benefits to student-led conferences with showcase portfolios, it “involves more parents, increases student motivation, helps meet state standards, improves student and teacher accountability, celebrates learning and makes teaching more satisfying”(p. 3). Another positive is the process that students, parents and teachers go through during the portfolio building and sharing procedure. During the course of time students can achieve high-order thinking and depth of knowledge skills due to the fact that they need to organize, make choices, explain and justify those decisions on the content of their learning. (Barnett and Benson, 2005).
It’s been my goal to share with you in this Assessment Approach my feelings and beliefs about the importance of assessment. Assessment goes beyond just testing and being the teacher’s responsibility. Assessment involves planning, standards, goals, multiple methods, communicating, teachers, the students, parents and most importantly sharing student learning. I find the use of assessments to be very important and effective at planning for instruction and sharing student achievement.
Assessment in Practice
Each of the assessments shared in this portion of my Assessment Portfolio were developed by using Stiggins’ ideas and different methods of assessment.
Entry one: Selected Response
According to Stiggins selected response can be used for both assessment of learning and assessment for learning. They can be in multiple formats such as: multiple choice, true/false, matching and short answer fill in. They’re also a great way to measure reasoning and knowledge and cover a lot of content in short period of time (2006).
I chose to use this assessment with my 3rd graders to test their ability to add and subtract 3 digit numbers using the regrouping algorithm. Students will need to either need to use mental math or solve by working out each problem for their best answer choice. With selected response I’ve taught my students to use the CCC method to help them finding the best choice. The CCC method stands for “Cover, Calculate and Check”. Students are to use their “bubble bookmarks” that I designed with my grade level team to give students a successful test taking tool for keeping track of the questions and marking the correct answer number. Students use the bookmark to Cover the multiple choices they have first, so to not be tempted to just choose what “looks about right”. Then students Calculate the problem being asked to come up with their own personal answer, finally they Check to see if their answer is a choice available. If they don’t see their answer then it’s possible they calculated incorrectly and will then have to go back and try again, come back to the problem later or if they’re absolutely stuck then look for an answer choice that is close to their answer. I found that using this strategy with selected response type assessments, students take their time reading the question and actually solving for the answer and in the end have a better score.
Topic 3 lesson 7 quick check selected response
Entry two: Extended Response
Extended Response is a good way to test reasoning since students are required to “construct a written answer, at least several sentences in length, in response to a question or task” states Stiggins (pg. 167). Also, Stiggins writes in Chapter 6, “extended written response works well for assessing chunks for knowledge that interrelate, rather than individual pieces of knowledge assessed separately” (pg. 170).
I maintained using the same learning target of having my third graders using the regrouping algorithm to subtract with three digit numbers. Students were to read the problem and show their work in the box provided, then they were to explain their thinking. I created this assessment to be sure that students could reason in their own words what steps they took in order to get their answer. I reviewed with them the rubric that is attached with the document on the second page before giving them the assessment. That way, students knew what their performance expectations were prior to solving the problem. When students understand the features of performance then it’s a true example of an extended response. (Stiggins, 2006).
Topic 3 lesson 7 quick check extended response
Entry three: Performance Task
Performance assessments are “based on observation and judgment. Students engage in an activity that requires them to apply a performance skill or create a product and we judge its quality” (Stiggins, pg. 191). Performance assessments have been used for thousands of years. Something to be taken into consideration when developing this type of assessment is the age of the students as well as the reading and writing ability of the child.
This math task requires third graders to use their reasoning and communicating skills with the concept of multiplication. My students prior to doing this independently have opportunities to participate in solving a problem in this format. My students get the “I do, We do, You do” method for modeling on how to complete this performance task. I will work on and model my thinking on a task in a similar format, then students as a whole group will solve a different problem in the same fashion with me and finally they’ll complete a performance task on their own. This is done over the span of a few days. This method of instruction helps to ensure that students understand all components as well as the criteria that are involved with this type of assessment.
Entry four: Personal Communication as Assessment
There are multiple contexts and conditions to use the form of personal communication as assessment as defined by Stiggins (2006), they include: teacher and students share common language and vocabulary, it’s executed in a safe learning environment and students understand they’re to provide an honest and personal answer. Personal communication can occur in multiple formats as well, Stiggins comments, such as, “questioning, conferences and interviews, class discussions, oral examinations, journals and logs” (pg. 256).
I used my Math focus wall as this type of assessment; it’s something I do it daily with my students in a whole group setting. Calendar Math was something my district expected for about 10-15 minutes every day using the curriculum box provided. I wasn’t very successful with following the prescribed skills and concepts that went with every month and most months I improvised and added my own pieces. This year our Calendar Math has changed to being Math Focus Wall and we aren’t expected to use every aspect of the old curriculum, which I much prefer. I use Math Focus Wall as a way to reteach concepts that my students, as a class, averaged a low score on an assessment of learning. For example, my students on our district math assessment didn’t score very well on the standard that tested equal expressions, therefore in December’s packet I added a piece where we practice equal expressions every day. I also use the Focus Wall as a way to preview concepts to come and review current concepts and skills. After the first few days my students are able to complete most of the parts independently and it’s a consistent and dependable routine in their school day.
Personal Communication Assessment Calendar
Reflection and Summary
Due to my ELL background from my Teacher Credential program I find myself doing a lot of modeling, scaffolding and direct, explicit instruction. I can identify the students who may need accommodations in order to be successful on the grade level assessments and I make sure to understand the needs of each and every child in my classroom from needing special seating arrangements to having a piece of gum to help stay focused. My students know that they’re in a safe environment that fosters to their individual needs and that their teacher is proud of the work they produce. I expect my students to complete every task to their personal best and will grade based on the criteria and rubrics we agree upon as a classroom of learners. I will assess and grade my students on the standards and grade level expectations provided to me by the state and district I work for and will collaborate with my team to ensure we have a common understanding. I will communicate efficiently to my students, their parents and my colleagues the effectiveness of my instruction and the outcomes that are my students’ achievement. My goal with assessment is to do as Stiggins so nicely states in the beginning of chapter one, “motivate the unmotivated, restore the desire to learn, and encourage students to keep learning, and it can actually create increased achievement” (pg. 3).
References:.
Barnett, S., Benson, B. (2005). Student-led conferencing using showcase portfolios. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
Lipton, M., Oakes, J. (2003). Teaching to change the world. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Companies
O’Connor, K. (2009). How to grade for learning, k-12. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
Stiggins, R., Arter, J., Chappuis, J., & Chappuis, S. (2006). Classroom assessment for student learning, doing it right–using it well. Princeton, NJ: Prentice Hall.
EDU 6613: Blog 4- Communicating Assessment Results
In the past 2 weeks we’ve done a lot of reading, discussing and reflection about how we communicate student assessment results, I have to say that this year in teaching for me I haven’t been able to do as much as I have in the past. However, knowing that only encourages me to find a way to make it work so that I’m able to better communicate with my students and their parents for the rest of the year. Looking at the multitude of examples of communication such as: expanded format report cards, student-led conferences, portfolios and exhibitions. These give me something to look forward to and trying in my own way with my students and their parents. In the past I’ve used a strategy of communication known as an “I can” progress sheet, the purpose was to keep parents updated on the state math standards that their child either “M” (mastered) or “P” (needs practice) and the standards were written as I can statements or our learning targets. It was a very helpful tool for parents as well as students. This is something I’m considering using again this year but changing it a bit to fit the new curriculum. It is very important to me to be able to have an open relationship with the parents of my students, O’Connor states,” Schools and teachers have a responsibility to communicate effectively with parents and other who are interested in the achievement and progress of students”(O’Connor, pg. 234).
Portfolios involved with student-led conferences was another topic we looked at this last week. I’ve actually not had experience with portfolios or student-led conferences so I was interested in learning more and reading about others’ knowledge in this area of communication. Stiggins dedicates Chapter 11 to Portfolios and out of the types that he discusses, I would say that I would probably utilize the Growth Portfolio. A growth portfolio shows progress towards proficiency on one or more learning targets, it documents achievement and students choose the evidence over the course of some time to place inside the portfolio based on the learning target (Stiggins, 2006). Students should be making connections on the achievement shown for each artifact and its relation to the target. I think that growth portfolios would be best for student-led conferences because a student would be able to use it as a guide for an informal meeting or exhibition. I also don’t think I would use this strategy until the end of the year to give students time to gather the appropriate artifacts needs, complete reflections and annotations. After doing some research on the topic I found that Benson and Barnett (2005) state that there are many great benefits to student-led conferences with showcase portfolios, it “involves more parents, increases student motivation, helps meet state standards, improves student and teacher accountability, celebrates learning and makes teaching more satisfying”(p. 3). Another positive is the process that students, parents and teachers go through during the portfolio building and sharing procedure. During the course of time students can achieve high-order thinking and depth of knowledge skills due to the fact that they need to organize, make choices, explain and justify those decisions on the content of their learning. (Barnett and Benson, 2005). Regardless of what format, how often or who does it, the bottom line of this module is that communication is of the utmost importance, especially about results.
Barnett, S., Benson B. (2005). Student-led conferencing using showcase portfolios. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
O’Connor, K. (2009). How to grade for learning, k-12. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
Stiggins, R., Arter, J., Chappuis, J., & Chappuis, S. (2006). Classroom assessment for student learning, doing it right–using it well. Princeton, NJ: Prentice Hall.
Grading Policy Draft
After some careful consideration and time to reflect, here’s the draft of my Grading policy. Grading Policy draft
EDU 6613: Blog 3- Grading for Learning
This module we got to dive into our other textbook and really compare and contrast the two writers and the way they approach Learning. Stiggins and O’Connor, two very intelligent men both write about learning, grading, assessment and all that goes into teaching. O’Connor coincidentally enough, had Rick Stiggins do the foreword of his textbook as well as cite many of his ideas, quotes and opinions throughout the Introduction. Many of my peers recognized that both writers have many similarities in their approach to the topic of teaching, such as: grading, communicating grading, assessments of learning vs. assessments for learning, feedback to students and using grades as motivators. While there were many similarities there are also differences in the way the authors share and express their opinions, as one of my peers and I discussed O’Connor seems to put a lot more emotion and subjectivity into his writing, whereas Stiggins seems much more academic and objective in his presentation. Also O’Connor made heavy connections to the constructivist view on theories of learning and shared some insight on brain-based research.
Based on the need to review the issue of grading, O’Connor outlined eight different guidelines to provides some insight into the problems with grading. In the preface he states,”These are practical guidelines, not just broad general principles” (O’Connor, pg. xii). Practical they are, enticing as well. In sweeping through the 8 different guidelines, I found that the principle of grading that was of most interest to me was Guideline 1: Relate grading to learning goals. I found this to be the most intriguing guideline because as of a year ago, at my building we were expected to use core curriculum materials and supplemental materials to help students master the Washington state math standards. I found that using the standards to formulate lessons, learning targets and assessments gave most everyone focus on what specific learning should be going on in the classroom. O’Connor states, “Teachers must understand clearly what learning results are expected and then base their assessment and grading plans on these learning goals. Students must also understand clearly what the learning goals are so that they know what is expected of them” (O’C onnor, pg. 47).
