In the spring of 1999, I was teaching elementary music and had just completed a year-long professional development series related to assessment in the arts. Eager to use my training, I decided to engage my 4th grade composition students in the process of developing a rubric for assessing their works (even though many of my well-intended colleagues said it was going to be a disaster). As we worked through the process, I found the students to be excited and much more demanding of themselves than I might have been. They could articulate the elements of composition, and they could qualify how varying levels might appear and sound. It was an incredibly powerful experience that I carry to this day.
I believe author Laura Porosoff might approve of our exploration of student generated assessments. In the book Teach for Authentic Engagement, Porosoff writes about such assessments, calling them “co-constructed definitions of success” (p. 119). Porosoff goes on to state, “When we create a rubric, we communicate what we think is important. If we ask students to create their own rubrics, we are giving them an opportunity to communicate what they think is important.” That’s powerful!
I believe that we can combine our thoughts with the thoughts of students into a tool that
informs their practices as they engage in the lesson or activity and provides them with a reflective guide for assessing their completed work. As you prepare for the week ahead, think about how you might co-construct a meaningful assessment with your students. Give it a try. You and your students will be glad you did!
Phil Harrison Coaching 