#whatisassessment

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The procedure through which teachers gauge and recognize students’ understandings of content materials before, during, and after instruction. Assessment is conducted so as to understanding if students are learning through their teacher’s instructions, how they are learning, and whether the manner through which material is being taught is conducive to the classroom and individual students’ needs.

Assessment is not synonymous with testing because not all assessments are meant to test students on their understanding or comprehension. The idea of assessment is not to test students on their knowledge but to assess whether they are picking up the knowledge and information and if they are not, to figure out what educators can do to remedy that situation.

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Assessment literacy consists of an individual's understanding of the fundamental assessment concepts and procedures deemed likely to influence educational decisions.

W. James Popham’s “Assessment Literacy for Educators in a Hurry”

The students who enter my classroom with have diverse backgrounds and learning styles and it is essential that I have the tools and resources as their teacher to recognize and adapt to the ways that they learn best so that my instruction can be differentiated and support all of my students in their academic endeavors. Having a high assessment literacy will mean that I have the tools to assess my students at all stages of learning and recognize the different supports and needs my students need through those assessments to help them through the rest of the class content.

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My Favorite High School Assessment

In my freshmen year literature class, we were tasked with creating tableaux of a scene from Shakespeare’s The Tempest. 

In small groups, we had to select a scene, assign characters, create costumes and props, and block out a living picture that displayed a theme or idea from the text.

On the final day, I came into class in a torn-up shirt, my hair ravaged, and shackles binding my hands and feet, scrunched at the bottom of the heap, the Caliban to my peer’s Prospero who stood high above me, regal and refined.

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Formative assessment example from a lesson on quote integration. Students were tasked with highlighting transitional phrases and properly integrated quotes. The objective was to assess what students knew about quote integration and what proper formatting should look like. This diagnostic activity provided us with insight into what they already knew about quote integration and if they can identify integrated quotes.

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Summative Assessments

In an ELA classroom, selected responses questions and quizzes are not the ideal method for student assessment as they focus on “recognition and recall” skills which are often not at the heart of Common Core standards or at the heart of good teaching. If students are going to take quizzes and tests, they should be allowed to display their knowledge through their thinking process. This is why extended and short responses are key to summative assessments in ELA classrooms.

Examples include: unit quizzes and tests, essays, projects, tableaus, skits, adaptations, presentations, debates, speeches.

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Formative Assessments

These types of assessments are meant to determine if students are engaging with the instructional materials.

Formal examples include: Quick-writes, class discussions, bellringers, diagnostic worksheets, surveys and polls, placemats, mind-maps, entry and exit slips, “tweets”, art analysis, self-assessments.

Informal examples include: “Thumbs up if you understand”, post-it notes with questions or comments, class vote, PSAs.