School Assessment Culture - Case Study
Assessment Artefacts
Artefact 1. - Field notes
Above is a segment of a conversation had with a grade 3/4 teacher at my placement school during a planning session. In this conversation I asked about the teacher's opinion on assessment, how she goes about assessing her students at the start of the year and how much she takes on from her students' previous year reporting or other teachers' notes. This artefact touches on diagnostic and summative assessment, as well as how the teacher handles the start of year transition. I really believe in not letting past reporting or comments completely bias the way you assess and teach a student. I also like the idea of combining diagnostic and summative assessment in the same document to help the students see what they have learnt.
Above is a segment of a conversation had with a grade 3/4 teacher at my placement school during a planning session. In this conversation I asked about the teacher's opinion on assessment, how she goes about assessing her students at the start of the year and how much she takes on from her students' previous year reporting or other teachers' notes. This artefact touches on diagnostic and summative assessment, as well as how the teacher handles the start of year transition. I really believe in not letting past reporting or comments completely bias the way you assess and teach a student. I also like the idea of combining diagnostic and summative assessment in the same document to help the students see what they have learnt.
Artefacts 2&3. - Numeracy Pre-test.
Above are scans of the two-page diagnostic assessment on place value given to my grade 3/4 class in the second week of term 1 (February 4th, 10am). The pre-test uses both positivist and constructivist assessment as the first page is a simple right/wrong answer, while the second page allows the students to explore their knowledge and show the teacher what they know about each number, be it in written form or in pictures. I like the use of both types of questions as it really allows you to not only see where the student is sitting, but also how their mind works. This is especially informative on how to best teach each child.
Above are scans of the two-page diagnostic assessment on place value given to my grade 3/4 class in the second week of term 1 (February 4th, 10am). The pre-test uses both positivist and constructivist assessment as the first page is a simple right/wrong answer, while the second page allows the students to explore their knowledge and show the teacher what they know about each number, be it in written form or in pictures. I like the use of both types of questions as it really allows you to not only see where the student is sitting, but also how their mind works. This is especially informative on how to best teach each child.
Artefact 4. - Field notes
Above is a segment of a conversation had with a grade 4/5 teacher at my placement school during a planning session. In this conversation I asked about the teacher's multiple choice vs short answer assessment, and how she prefers to assess her students. This artefact touches on constructivist assessment methods such as giving the students choice on how to present their work, and the ways in which this teacher feels her students work best. I agree that multiple choice testing is not always accurate in showing a student's ability and like the idea of giving students a certain amount of freedom in their work presentation.
Above is a segment of a conversation had with a grade 4/5 teacher at my placement school during a planning session. In this conversation I asked about the teacher's multiple choice vs short answer assessment, and how she prefers to assess her students. This artefact touches on constructivist assessment methods such as giving the students choice on how to present their work, and the ways in which this teacher feels her students work best. I agree that multiple choice testing is not always accurate in showing a student's ability and like the idea of giving students a certain amount of freedom in their work presentation.
Artefact 5. - Literacy Pre-test.
Above is a scan of the diagnostic assessment given to my grade 3/4 class in the second week of term 1 (February 6th, 9:30am). The pre-test measures the student's understanding of synonyms and antonyms, as well as their writing as the answers were written in their workbooks. I like the way this pre-test was done in their workbooks, as it allows for two different kinds of assessment to take place at once (language and writing), without the students being too aware that their writing is being assessed.
Above is a scan of the diagnostic assessment given to my grade 3/4 class in the second week of term 1 (February 6th, 9:30am). The pre-test measures the student's understanding of synonyms and antonyms, as well as their writing as the answers were written in their workbooks. I like the way this pre-test was done in their workbooks, as it allows for two different kinds of assessment to take place at once (language and writing), without the students being too aware that their writing is being assessed.
Artefact 6. - Field notes
Above is a segment of a conversation had with the principle of my placement school after a morning meeting (8:30am). In this conversation I asked about the principle's view on assessment and then why he believed peer and self-assessment to be important. This artefact also talks about the value of displaying clear learning and assessment goals in every classroom. The principle told me that it is important in his school that students record and revise their own goals each term, which I observed in my placement classroom as well as in other schools in the past. I think the use of goals in the classroom really helps motivate the students in their learning and is a great form of self assessment as the students determine what their goal is, making it entirely personal.
Above is a segment of a conversation had with the principle of my placement school after a morning meeting (8:30am). In this conversation I asked about the principle's view on assessment and then why he believed peer and self-assessment to be important. This artefact also talks about the value of displaying clear learning and assessment goals in every classroom. The principle told me that it is important in his school that students record and revise their own goals each term, which I observed in my placement classroom as well as in other schools in the past. I think the use of goals in the classroom really helps motivate the students in their learning and is a great form of self assessment as the students determine what their goal is, making it entirely personal.