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Many years ago as a music educator, I became interested in the use of portfolios for student assessment. I found that portfolios gave students greater opportunities for choice in assessment since they make the final determination regarding what work products are included. Students seemed to appreciate the opportunity to show their growth over time and
Many, many (far too many to admit) years ago comedian Rodney Dangerfield starred in a movie called Back to School. I don’t necessarily recommend going back to watch it, but there was one memorable scene in which Dangerfield’s character has to sit in front of his professors to complete his final exam. One professor says,
Student tests should include a variety of question types. Selected response questions allow for variety and depth of knowledge. In the book Classroom Assessment Essentials, author Susan M. Brookhart provides guidelines for writing four different types of selected response test questions as follows (pp. 121-131): As you prepare for next week, think of how you
The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey has sold more than twenty-five million copies and has been translated into forty languages. To say that it has been an influential book is probably an understatement. The second habit – begin with the end in mind – encourages people to get a picture of
John Dewey said, “We do not learn from experience, we learn from reflecting on experience.” With that in mind, we should consider how to further engage students in reflective self-assessment. Rubrics can help in that process. In the book Classroom Assessment Essentials, author Susan M. Brookhart discsusses how to involve students in self-assessment using rubrics.
There’s nothing more frustrating than being asked to complete a task or a product without having a clear sense of what really needs to be done. Unfortunately, this frustration can be a regular part of the classroom experience for many students. In the book Classroom Assessment Essentials, author Susan M. Brookhart shares the following process
Meeting the individual needs of learners is a difficult task. Doing so in a way that doesn’t elicit undue negative perceptions or reactions is even more challenging. Such is the challenge when creating quality assessments. They must demonstrate equity (individual students are having their needs met) and fairness (negative perceptions or reactions are minimized). In
Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is built around three guidelines: (1) provide multiple means of engagement, (2) provide multiple means of representation, and (3) provide multiple means of action and expression. Classroom teachers who have embraced UDL for instruction and assignments within the classroom find that it is useful for differentiating based upon student needs.
Assessment is a powerful component in student learning. It is also a powerful component in teacher instructional decision making. In the book Classroom Assessment Essentials, author Susan M. Brookhart shares the following possible instructional moves to take based upon the results of student assessment. These are noted from least formative to most formative (p. 70):
Among teachers, the topic of homework produces a variety of responses. Some fully embrace homework for students and regale its benefits, while others offer emphatic opposition and note all of the possible negatives. The most rational approach is likely somewhere between the two extremes, noting that homework does come with challenges but offers some benefits
Phil Harrison Coaching 