Assessment is defined as the monitoring of progress. Common assessments in school settings are as follows: high-stakes testing, standardized testing, psychological testing, curriculum-based assessments, and there are also other forms of assessment.
The assessment aids in:
1. Screening students. à Does performance differ from peers enough to merit testing?
2. Diagnosing students. à Is the student eligible for special education?
3. Determining program placement. à What type of setting does the special education plan involve?
4. Determining curriculum placement. à Is the student receiving the appropriate level of instruction?
5. Evaluate instruction. à Is the IEP or academic plan/modifications working for the student?
6. Determining the evaluation of any implemented program. à Should the special education continue or be terminated?
Assessment should not only occur at the end of a lesson or be examined during a test. Assessment should be incorporated as part of the learning process. This way, both teacher and student can monitor the learning process and strengthen weak areas to determine areas of improvement.
When assessing student learning it is important to keep a few things in mind:
1. Assessment is a process of professional judgment. The process is making professional interpretations of questions, essays, rubrics, participation, scores; therefore, it is extremely important to realize the quality of the assessment.
2. There are different measures of assessment. There are different interpretations depending on the measure, whether trait and description versus quantitative scores.
3. Assessment outcome is influenced by the strategies used.
4. Assessment can influence student motivation and achievement.
5. Errors are common.
6. Assessment can enhance instruction.
7. Assessment is valid.
8. Assessment should be made fair.
9. Good assessment uses multiple methods.
10 Assessment should be efficient.
Under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), all students with disabilities participate in district testing and must meet adequate yearly progress (AYP) under No Child Left Behind (NCLB).
In the classroom, teachers should develop and incorporate informal assessment to determine instructional decisions and special education decision-making processes.
Types of testing:
1. High-Stakes Testing: Comparing student performance to a specific level of performance. Under NCLB, 95% of special needs students must take the tests.
2. Standardized Testing: A measure of academic progress. Comparing a student’s performance versus the average.
3. Psychological Testing: Tests are intelligence level or learning disability related.
4. Curriculum-based Testing: A measure of students’ level of achievement in terms of what they have been taught in the classroom.
5. Alternate Assessments: Often used for those students on a more individualized curriculum who do not need to meet state or national requirements. Consider the following:
a. What are the district’s eligibility for alternate assessments?
b. Does the assessment test authentic skills, skills that highlight experiences in the community or real-life situations?
c. Is the given assessment aligned with the standards?
d. Is the assessment tied to class instruction?
e. Is the assessment linked to the student’s IEP so that the test ensures appropriate parent and student involvement?
f. Are the measured skills well integrated throughout?
g. Is the scoring clear and are test administrators properly trained?
h. Do the scores monitor to the extent that the testing can lead to better outcomes for students in the classroom?
Probingà Probes are quick and easy ways of measuring student performance in core content areas such as reading, math, and writing! They are designed to test and assess academic skills and fluency. Think task information; how you see, hear, or respond.
Four major types of probing are:
1. see-say (example: oral passage reading or identification of numbers, coins, and geometric figures)
2. see-write
3. hear-write
4. think-write (example: written expression)
Testing content knowledge of subject areas to grasp students’ prior knowledge through content-area assessments is important. Students who are lacking in background knowledge or independent learning skills are much more likely to struggle in class and it is best to determine that in the beginning.
Teachers may develop their own probes and administer them to students. Set a minimum score based on the probe used. It is best to create a range, rather than a single score because no one score should be the basis in determining student content knowledge.
Gage a student’s independent learning skills, or learning strategies, because it can make it or break it for a student. These skills include note taking, textbook reading, test taking, written expression, and time management, which are all especially important for higher level grades and further education. In order to test for these skills, select a task, decide how to measure the skill, and record student performance.
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