Assessment Conference

Ahead of the curve The Power of Assessment to Transform Teaching and

Learning

synopsis created by Krista Rundell

conference SPeakers

5. Richard DuFour

6. Anne Davies

7. Dylan Wiliam

8. Richard J. Stiggins

1. Wayne Hulley

2. Douglas B. Reeves

3. Thomas R. Guskey

4. Larry Ainsworth

Why is this change necessary?Our profession is in middle of paradigm shift (8)

Current system designed to leave students behind (7) - purpose of ranking

History has shown if the stakes are high enough, change occurs (corporal punishment) (2)

What we have been doing has increased the achievement gap (8)

Have you ever known a student you thought wasn’t going to do well on a test...? (1)

men in black - exam sceneMovie Clip

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are needed to see this picture.

men in black - exam scene

Wouldn’t it be nice if every student had a Tommy Lee Jones backing him up?

W. Edwards deming

It’s not enough to do your best; you must know what to do, and then do your best.

Dylan wiliam

The hard thing is stopping people from doing good things in order to get them to do better things.

raising achievement mattersOne year of schooling adds 1.7 years of life. (7)

Students use assessment to form ideas of themselves as a learner -

and sense of self as successful...

... what if you were wrong about your assessment of student work and performance? (8)

Why is this change necessary?

Strong evidence exists that formative assessment is the most successful strategy to increase student achievement. (5)

“There is nothing else we can be doing that is more effective than assessment”. (7)

Assessment can be controlled by the teacher - teacher quality is of the utmost importance. (7)

Effective assessment is a powerful tool for informing teachers of learning and improving their teaching process. (5)

Why is this change necessary?

The Bridge (7)Assessment

Teaching Learning

“It’s not about what you are teaching,It’s about what the students are LEARNING.”

Why is this change necessary?

What should this change look like? (1)1. past performance predicting future success>> using assessment info to ensure future success

2. assessment as a reward or punishment>>>>>> assessment to gather critical evidence

3. focus on rote memory and quantity>>>>>>>> focused on targeted learning outcomes

4. teaching through transmission>>>>>>>>> >> teaching through interaction

5. focus on marks >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> focus on learning

6. competitive activity>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> cooperative activity

7. summative focus>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> diagnostic, formative, and summative focus

8. teacher driven >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> teacher and student driven

9. lack of clarity of purpose for teaching & assessing >> clarity of purpose of teaching & assessing

FORMATive assessments

Assessment FOR learning (1)

showing process towards the learning target

“Evidence about student achievement elicited by assessment is interpreted and used to make decisions about the next steps in instruction that are likely to be better... than the decisions taken in the absence of that evidence.” (7)

why cFas? (5)

huge positive impact on professional practice

are time-efficient

provide educational equity for students

informs of individual teacher practice

builds team capacity

allows for collective response

results in increased student achievement

Professional Learning Communities (PLC)

Side Note on:

the Marathon Runners

What are the similarities and differences between

and

the Rowers?

What are PLCs?

a collaborative culture within a school wherein all teachers take mutual responsibility for student learning and achievement (5)

PLC team seeks relevant data and uses that information to create an improvement plan (5) and determine individual student needs (4)

PLC & Common Assessment

Breaks teachers out of “working in isolation” mentality (5)

Creates a shared purpose for student learning (5)

Team develops and analyzes assessments (4)

Provides teachers with a support group (6)

Plays to teachers’ strengths and works collectively to improve other areas (7)

Must meet the needs for all those involved. (7)

Proof of learning shown through qualitative and quantitative data. (6)

Administered to all students several times throughout the year: (4)

Long- end of unit/term/annual: 4 wk- 1 yr

Medium- between units/interim/benchmark: 1 - 4 wks

Short- within/between units/classroom: minute to minute - daily

Stiggins: Action 1 - Balanced Assessmentthree types of assessments

Long, medium and short range assessments all have dual roles: (8)

support learning (formative)

verify / certify learning (summative)

three types of assessmentsStiggins: Action 1 - Balanced Assessment

Classroom assessment

TO SUPPORT LEARNING TO VERIFY LEARNING

Continuous Periodic

For learning For accountability

Informs teachers and students Informs teacher

Progress towards each relevant standard

To assign report card grades or report standards met

three types of assessmentsStiggins: Action 1 - Balanced Assessment

interim/benchmark assessment

TO SUPPORT LEARNING TO VERIFY LEARNING

Periodic Periodic

ID standards that our students consistently struggle to master -

spotlight NOT on student

Evaluate program to determine if continuing or abandoning

For immediate program improvement

three types of assessmentsStiggins: Action 1 - Balanced Assessment

annual assessment

TO SUPPORT LEARNING TO VERIFY LEARNING

Once a year Once a year

ID standards that students struggle to master

Holds schools accountability for learning

Improve the program for next year

three types of assessmentsStiggins: Action 1 - Balanced Assessment

Student involvement

Create hope/motivation through success (1, 8)

Post essential questions & big ideas around room

refer to them before & after every lesson (6)

Create a shared understanding of “learning intentions” (7)

identify key words

Stiggins: Action 2 - Refining Standards and Action 6: Build Learner Confidence

Post exemplars AND work that shows different levels of the learning process. (6)

Develop a shared understanding of quality (6)

Provide students with information necessary to self-monitor and self-assess to assist in closing the gap between their work and standards of excellence (6)

Turn learners into their own assessors. (8)

Student involvementStiggins: Action 4 - Learners Become Assessors

Increase student engagement by:

Building criteria for assessment with students. (6,8)

Ask students to supply evidence that indicate the learning objectives have been reached. (6)

Student involvementStiggins: Action 4 - Learners Become Assessors

Creating quality assessments

Balance of classroom, interim and annual assessments (4,8)

Aligned to standards, big ideas, and essential questions (4,8)

Includes pre- and post-assessments (I.D. DI needs)

Addresses different levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy (4)

Represents an accurate assessment of student learning - provides valid & reliable data (4,8)

Stiggins: Action 3 - Creating Quality Classroom Assessment

Creating quality assessmentsStiggins: Action 3 - Creating Quality Classroom Assessment

Blend of appropriately-selected item types: (4,8)

selected response (T/F, MC)

constructed response (short answer/essay)

performance-based (projects w/ rubrics)

personal communications (Q&A)

Provides a range of student work from beginning stages to exemplary pieces (6,8)

BEST PRACTICES INFORMATIVE ASSESSMENT

Feedback is crucial to learning process: helps with the largest gains in student achievement. (8)

Should open communication lines between students and teachers (7)

Should balance the reporting needs of assessments with instructional purposes (3)

Should “promote and organize collective inquiry into and discussion of student progress and achievement” within PLC (J. Little as cited by 5)

Stiggins: Action 5 - Provide Descriptive Feedback

BEST PRACTICES IN FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT

Takes many forms (written, oral, project-based)

Written and project-based feedback does not need to be evaluative; can just include comments (6)

Oral feedback should include numerous class members, not a volley back and forth between student and teacher

Can determine the DI needs of students (8)

Stiggins: Action 5 - Provide Descriptive Feedback

BEST PRACTICES IN FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT

Feedback should:

be immediate

be continuous

be specific - identifies what student needs to do more of, do less of or do differently (8)

be descriptive - details strengths upon which further learning can build (6)

Stiggins: Action 5 - Provide Descriptive Feedback