Transcript Balanced Assessment Systems for Improved Student Learning

Assessment Literacy:
From Theory to Practice
Webinar Series
February-April 2009
Facilitated by Deb Farrington
Participant Poll 1 & 2
We are participating
as a team
2) I am participating on
my own
1)
1) Elementary level
2) Middle school level
3) High School level
4) Other
Participant Poll #3
My team is comprised of:
1) Teachers
2) Administrators
3) Curriculum/Assessment Coordinator
4) Coach
5) Other
4 Part Webinar Series
1. Developing a Standards-Based
Assessment System
2. Using Standards and Learning Targets to
Assess Student Understanding
3. Analyzing Effective Assessment
Practices
4. Implementing Classroom Formative
Assessment Strategies
Essential Learning for Making
Assessment Work for Everyone
Develop assessment literacy
by recognizing the purposes
and uses of various
assessments and the
information they reveal.
Identify the elements of
practice that support data
use within a comprehensive
assessment system
A Standards-Based Model
DATA
Using Assessment Data is like…
1. HIKING
2. KAYAKING
3. FISHING
4. FLYING
It’s time to
“seize the data!”
Data = Information
Assessment is information gathering.
Assessment is derived from the Latin word assidere
meaning…
to sit with or beside.
“Assessment is something we do with and for a
student, not something we do to them.”
Wiggins
Assessments have various purposes,
provide answers to different
questions, address different users,
and have varying implications for an
assessment system.
Levels of Assessment Data
Federal
State
District
School
Classroom
Each level adds to the big picture
Split Screen
Chalk Talk
What is assessment data
being used for…
1.
2.
3.
4.
…in your State?
…in your District?
…in your School?
…in your Classroom?
Data Use
State level for accountability and informing
policy decisions
District level for guiding resource and
professional development decisions
School level for showing student progress
towards meeting standards
Classroom level for guiding teachers’ day-today decisions about student learning and
instruction
Assessment Data
Knowledge
In-depth knowledge of
specific students
National
Assessments
State
Assessments
District
Assessments
Classroom
Assessments
Marzano, 1996
How do you know what they know?
What data do you collect to:
verify student understanding?
monitor progress?
inform instruction,
curriculum or program
needs?
Assessment Inventory
List the different
assessments used in
your state, district,
school and classrooms.
List each assessment
on a separate sticky
note.
Valid assessment
requires multiple sources of
evidence, collected over time.
High Stakes Accountability Tests
Provide broad domain or sub-domain
coverage
Usually constructed by an external source
Results raise programmatic questions that
require further investigation
Satisfy accountability requirements – state
and federal
Can give the “big picture” view of state and
school performance
Interim / Common
Progress Monitoring Assessments
Are usually a form of summative assessment
Can be used as an early warning of
performance on later high stakes tests
Often constructed by external sources
Can cover some or all of a year’s curriculum
Provides broad domain or sub-domain
coverage (minimally diagnostic)
Results raise programmatic questions that
require further investigation (*formative for
program – not current student)
Summative Assessment
(Assessment OF Learning)
Occurs after material is
taught
Includes unit tests and
other graded
performances
Can be developed locally
or purchased
Counts toward grades
Isn’t diagnostic
Formative Assessment
(Assessment FOR Learning)
Includes instructionally
embedded activities
Usually teacher/locally
developed
Yields rich diagnostic
information
Happens while material
is being taught
Informs and focuses
instructional decisions
Isn’t used for grades
Formative Assessment
CCSSO FAST SCASS
Formative assessment is a process
used by teachers and students
during instruction that provides
feedback to adjust ongoing teaching
and learning to improve students’
achievement of intended outcomes.
Crucial Distinction
Assessment for Learning:
How can we use assessment to
help students learn more?
(formative)
Assessment of Learning:
How much have students learned
at a particular point in time?
(summative)
Three Types of Assessment
“(In)formative Assessments,” Harvard Education Letter, 2006
Summative
Interim
Formative
Key
Question
Do you
understand?
(yes or no)
Is the class on
track for
proficiency?
What do you
understand?
When
Asked
End of unit/
term/year
6 – 10 times
per year
Ongoing
Timing
of
Results
After
instruction
ends
Slight delay
Immediate
Assessment Inventory Revisited
Now categorize your
assessment sticky
notes into the following
groups:
Summative
Interim
Formative
Comprehensive Assessment System
Summative
TYPE
WHEN
PURPOSE
WHAT
Formative
State/National
Summative
Assessment
District Level
Summative
Assessment
Interim
Common
Assessment
Classroom
Formative
Assessment
Annually
Annually,
Bi-annually
semester
Semester,
Monthly,
Unit
Daily
Accountability,
Ranks,
School
Improvement
Identify groups of
at- risk students,
Entrance and Exit
Criteria, PD needs,
Curricular and
Programmatic
Changes
Collaboratively
developed and
Curriculum
embedded,
track proficiency
towards standards
Provides on-going
student and teacher
feedback of current
levels of
understanding
and learning needs
SBA, NWEA, ACT,
SAT, MAP, CAT,
Terra Nova, NAEP,
TIMMS
Benchmarks,
Pre/post tests
End of unit tests,
projects,
Performance tasks
Aims Web
Effective questioning,
descriptive feedback,
self assessment,
reflection
Balanced Assessment System
“To maximize student success, assessment
must be seen as an instructional tool for
use while learning is occurring, and as an
accountability tool to determine if learning
has occurred. Because both purposes are
important, they must be in balance.”
From Balanced Assessment: The Key to Accountability and Improved
Student Learning, NEA (2003)
Balanced Assessment System
Assessment as Feedback
From…
Teach & Test
Grade & Move On
To…
Assess Teach
Assess
Adjust Assess
Assessment in Support of Learning
Assessments must:
go beyond merely providing judgments about
student performance to providing rich
descriptions of student performance,
evolve from being isolated events to
becoming events that happen in ongoing
series to reveal patterns,
go beyond merely informing instructional
decisions of teachers to informing
decisions also made by students.
Rick Stiggins, 2006
Team Talk
How is assessment being used to
support learning at your school?
The Data Divide
A Data Coach’s Guide to Improving Learning for All Students: Unleashing the Power
of Collaborative Inquiry © 2008 by Corwin Press. All rights reserved.
Using Data Requires Leaders to:
Develop and inquiry habit of mind
Become assessment and data literate
Create a culture of inquiry
Earl and Katz- Leading Schools in a Data Rich World
Collaborative Inquiry
The process by which teams use data to
develop their understanding of a studentlearning problem and test out solutions
together through rigorous use of data and
constructive dialogue.
Group Discussion
• What effective data practices have
you been using?
• What would create a bridge between
the data and results shores?
A Data Coach’s Guide to Improving Learning for All Students: Unleashing the Power
of Collaborative Inquiry © 2008 by Corwin Press. All rights reserved.
Elements of High Quality
Local Assessment Systems
 System of Collaboration
 Committed Leadership
 Aligned Curriculum
 Intentional Assessment
 Data Informed Instruction
 Relevant Professional Development
Building the Bridge
Between Data and Results
Leadership
& Capacity
Collaboration
Data Use
Instructional
Improvement
Culture/Equity/Trust
A Data Coach’s Guide to Improving Learning for All Students: Unleashing the Power
of Collaborative Inquiry © 2008 by Corwin Press. All rights reserved.
Shifts That Are Evident in Using Data
Schools
Less Emphasis
External accountability,
Culture,
Equity, Trust cultural blindness, little trust
Instructional
Improvement
Data Use
Data to sort,
learning left to chance
Punishment/reward,
avoidance
Collaboration
Top-down, data-driven
decision making
Leadership &
Capacity
Individual charismatic
leaders as change agents
More Emphasis
Internal and collective
responsibility, cultural
proficiency, trust
Data to serve, expanding
opportunities for all
Feedback for continuous
improvement, frequent and
in-depth use by teachers
and students
Ongoing Data-Driven
Dialogue and
collaborative inquiry
Learning communities
with many change agents
A Data Coach’s Guide to Improving Learning for All Students: Unleashing the Power
of Collaborative Inquiry © 2008 by Corwin Press. All rights reserved.
The Using Data Process
A Data Coach’s Guide to Improving Learning for All Students: Unleashing the Power
of Collaborative Inquiry © 2008 by Corwin Press. All rights reserved.
Using Data to Identify Learning Gaps
 Large scale test data can identify major areas of curricular
concern, sub-group analysis, and patterns over time.
 Benchmark or interim test data can identify areas of concern
with programs, staffing, sub-groups, and more specific
curricular alignment or gap issues.
 Classroom summative assessment data can identify which
students have not learned specific chunks of content or skills
and will need to have these become part of their personal
learning goals.
 Formative assessment can identify specific students’ learning
gaps at a time when the learning is still taking place and
timely interventions can be made.
Next Steps
1) What questions do you have about
student learning at your school?
2) Identify sources of data you have to
verify your concerns.
3) Dig into the data. What is it telling
you? What other questions are
being raised?
Reflection Question
How has the
information
discussed in today’s
webinar impacted
your thinking and/or
use of data and
assessment.