Using Assessment to Promote Learning

     

Job89

Opening a Discussion About 

Assessment Literacy

@JoeTaylorDHS

At least in remote learning situations, assessment has become a hot topic. It just doesn't make sense to test students in a traditional, high stakes way when they are learning online. What would a traditional test measure right now? It is impossible to ensure any kind of test security, and if we add layers and layers of hoops for students to jump through in order to take a test, I think we have to ask ourselves if we are measuring knowledge and skill development, or are we measuring a student's ability to navigate technology and deal with added stress?

So, we have to do something different this year. The question is, are we going to fill the gap with some sort of emergency measure and hope that we return to normal next year, or is this the time to take a step back and reassess our assessments? What is our ultimate goal in the classroom, and does our current testing model move us towards that goal or does it actually build barriers to success?

Consider the following experiment from Mark Rober, NASA engineer and inventor of the package glitter bomb:

If you apply this experiment to the classroom, what does it say about students who don't score well on your very first exam? If you grade based on an average of scores, one bad score at the beginning can put you behind the 8-ball for a long time. Maybe for the entire term. What might that do to a student's motivation? Even if you think that the test is a valid and reliable tool to measure a student's academic achievement, is it possible that there were outside factors that impact student success? Especially if it is the first test of the year?

A few years ago, in another district, I was working with an AP science teacher who decided he was going to take a different approach to technology and assessment. His class was 1:1 with iPads (it's not about the device). He decided to fully implement a model of technology-enhanced formative assessment. Every day, he would have the students complete a formative assessment quiz on something they learned that day, based on standards that would ultimately lead to a summative assessment. Utilizing some simple programming, students could take the formative assessment as many times until they got all of the questions right. They were fighting for understanding, not for points, but they knew they'd see these questions again on their summative assessments.

The results were fantastic. Even with significantly higher enrollment (some kids took the class so they could have the iPad), his AP scores skyrocketed. They were the highest AP Environmental Science scores the district had ever seen. 

It is backed up in research. This particular teacher's plan was based on a methodology researched by instructional technology researchers Beatty and Gerace in 2009. The basic idea is that assessment can and should be used to promote learning in the classroom, not simply measure a moment in time. High stakes summative assessments makes everything about a grade, takes the focus off of learning, and may even prevent students from taking academic risks.

Of course, we are all pressed for time, but this seems like the perfect moment in history to reevaluate what we are doing. In my opinion, that all starts with assessment. I've decided to take a PD class from our friends in D207 on Assessment Literacy. In the course, teachers and administrators are going to talk about assessment practices and policies that promote learning, and our study is centered around Classroom Assessment for Student Learning by Jan Chappuis and Rick Stiggins. 

COVID-19 forced us all to adjust. It will be worth it if we can reassess the assessments.