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Importance of assessments to students
Essays on the importance of assessment
What is the importance of assessment
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During a person’s life, there will be various forms of assessments that we will have to face. From the very first breath of life, a baby’s Apgar score is assessed at the first minute after birth and again at five minutes’ post-birth. All public schools use some form of formal assessment to track the student’s development in basic areas of science, reading and math. Assessments are just a way of life; they are the way society measures progress and growth. Assessments also are used to check for a lack of understanding and help define any problems that may not be so obvious to the naked eye. There are various forms of assessments that a student will experience while in school; some they may not even know are taking place, while other forms require …show more content…
One way to ensure that a student has developed an understanding of the information that the teacher is teaching is through various assessments. Assessment Rubrics are one form of assessment that helps to give a clear expectation, feedback, are easy to use and explain, and helps to ensure consistency and reliability for every student (Gange’, Golas, Wagner, Keller, 2005, p268). A rubric is similar to a checklist that follows a certain list of criteria that the teacher feels the student must meet within the assessment. Next to each criteria, is a scale or point system. The more a student meets the criteria, the more points they will receive. This type of assessment allows the teacher to breakdown each area of importance, and give points based on that area. This helps the student understand what is correct, and what areas need improvement. Assessment Rubric can also be used as a form of self-assessment; this allows a student to check his or her own work (Gange’, Golas, Wagner, Keller, 2005, p …show more content…
If used properly, rubrics help teachers teach by avoiding any confusion within the assignment, and thus helping keep the students focused on what the criteria is and how to achieve it. Rubrics also help coordinate instruction and assessment by making the “path to learning more cohesive than a string of assignments with related but different criteria” (p. 8). With the use of rubrics helping teachers teach more effectively and helping coordinate the instruction of assignments it is only natural with these to working together that you would see an improvement in students learning. With effective rubrics showing students what is expected and how to achieve each level of criteria there will be an increase in the knowledge of the students understanding of what they are to
The district is now making all teachers use an assessment tool called iReady. It is a website that assesses students in math and reading. They are first tested on a kindergarten through fifth grade range to find out what they know. Then the program takes that score and determines the right level for the child and they are tested again on the level. Once all students have been assessed the program orders the students from highest to lowest and by average grade level skill they are on: early second grade, middle second grade, late second grade or any other grade. The teacher uses those scores to create her reading groups, math groups and the students she will give extra assistance to. They haven’t officially established how many times and when they will do this iReady assessment but for now they are doing it once a week for forty five minutes. The test also flags if they spent too long or too little time on a question. The ones that spent less than 15 seconds per problem are to go back and do the assessment again.
In the society of today, there are various educators who believe in assessment as proper method to measure the performance of a child in school as well as the overall achievement of a specific school system. The assessment may be presented in the form of verbal, written, or multiple choice, and it usually pertains to certain academic subjects in the school curriculum. Recently, many educators began to issue standardized tests to measure the intelligence of a common student body. (Rudner, 1989) These standardized tests were initially created to reveal the success in institutional school programs, and exhibit the abilities of students today. The standardized tests can reveal the strengths and weaknesses of a student as well as the admission into certain programs. The test results also assist various schools in determining the proper curriculum, evaluate a specific school system, or a particular school related program.
Assessment has been the greatest challenge in my development as a professional. My coursework as supported my growth in this area, especially in understanding the broad range of assessments used to support students’ growth and development. My courses have also supported my understanding of how ongoing observational assessment and standards-based measures can be used to inform instruction and support the cycle of observation, reflection and planning. Coursework
The 21st Century Educator is inundated with a plethora of assessments which dominate the education landscape from one side to the other. Whether one is assessing formatively or summatively, educators are evaluating on a weekly basis. In fact, in Citrus County, students take a reading comprehension test called Fast Bridge three times a year, which helps them see their potential college readiness skills and what improvements they need to work on. They also take a District created assessment twice a year, which consists of 9 grade level passages that they must take over a 2-month period time. This test focuses mainly on all of the standards that our students will be tested on in the Spring FSA. Not to mention, the formative assessments given on a
In the following unit the two main things we learned about was rubrics, how to make them and what exactly does engineering mean in science. I really liked how we are focusing on rubrics because all my life that is how I have been graded but I do not see how they are made and the different types of rubrics there are. The first rubric we talked about was the holistic rubric. “Holistic rubrics are constructs that contain different levels of performance that describe the quality, quantity, or quantity/quality of a task” (Luft, pg. 25). Holistic rubrics are to help the teacher find the appropriate fit for the student’s work. This is usually based off a score of 1-4 or a letter grade which is divided into a broad category and helps the teacher find
Assessments are an important part of teaching. Assessments are a good way for teachers to monitor students’ learning and understanding. Knowing students’ level of understanding can help teachers improve students’ learning and guide their instructions. In the future, I plan to continue assessing students in multiple ways such as, asking questions, illustrations and writing to adjust my instruction. I also plan to encourage students to assess their own work so they are involved in their own learning as well as look for ways to “employ technology to support assessment
The goal of education is to provide children with the opportunity to amass a wealth of knowledge, love for learning, and academic strength. Children go to school to read, write, and learn a variety of subjects. While education is meant to be exciting for children, there have to be standards in order to make sure that progress is being and those children are where they need to be in order to move onto the next phase of their education. Education builds as it grows, and students need a strong foundation in order to succeed and continue. Without those strong building blocks, students will continue to fall back and repeat the same material again and again. And so, testing and assessment come into play to make sure children are where they need to be. However, in early childhood settings testing is almost non-existent because of the stigma around testing. The current debate in our education system argues that testing is not a good measure of a child’s actual knowledge. Rather, assessment gives teachers a better picture of a student’s abilities and capabilities in the classroom. Thus, currently the debate continues over assessment versus testing in the classroom due to the demand for knowledge on whether or not testing is a good way of measuring a student’s progress in school.
I always help students identifying their learning and progress and give them feedback. Students need to be aware of their achievement and progress. I adapt practice and plan further learning, this will make the assessment meaningful and effective as it will answer to the learner needs. 6.3 Use types and methods of assessment, including peer and self-assessment, to: - Involve learners in assessment - Meet the individual needs of learners - Enable learner's to produce assessment evidence that valid. Reliable.
In the past, assessments were popularly conducted for the purpose of accreditation, but with the growing change in the quality of education, it has become evident that assessments aren’t just products to qualification but as Sieborger (1998) identifies, is that assessment is the process of gathering and interpreting knowledge to make valid and justifiable judgements about the learners performance and the assessors ability to transfer and establish knowledge to the learners. What is pivotal in assessment is that it enhances teaching and learning; it is also the crucial link between learning outcomes, the content that is taught and learning activities. Furthermore, Sieborger (1998) states that assessment is a reciprocal process; as it is used by both learners and teachers to decide where the learners are at in their learning and where they need to go and how best to get there. The characteristics that Sieborger identifies to be contained in assessment are made up of: tasks, exercises, tests and exams, which are set and assessed by educators. There are different methods and uses of assessment that are used in the Education system, the reason for this, is that not all assessments serve the same purpose for its methodologies, the feedback that learners receive needs to correspond with the purpose of the assessment.
Assessments are according to Edglossary.org (2014), “the wide variety of methods that educators use to evaluate, measure, and document the academic readiness, learning process, and skill acquisition of students”. Assessments can be used to identify several important aspects of learning and development. First, they can be used to distinguish a child’s strengths and weaknesses as well as measure specific knowledge and skills. Assessments can also be used to demonstrate what a child has learned and what they understand (“Assessment,” 2014). My opinion of assessment has not changed; however, now I understand how to use assessments that will help ensure that I am providing the most benefits for my students.
Through assessment students and teachers are able to determine the level of mastery a student has achieved with standards taught. Both formative and summative assessment should be purposeful and targeted to gain the most accurate data to drive further instruction (Ainsworth, 2010). While this syllabus does a good job of identifying the need for both formal and informal assessments, the way in which this is communicated does not provide enough detail for understanding. Simply listing assessment types does not give any insight into how these assessments fit in the learning process of this course. While some of the assessments mentioned could be common assessments chosen by the school or district to gain insight into the effectiveness of instruction, the inclusion of authentic assessments is most beneficial to students and demonstrates learning in a context closer to that of a work environment (Rovai, 2004). Unfortunately, this particular course, according to this syllabus, relies heavily on quizzes and traditional tests and essays to form the bulk of assessment opportunities. While other activities, such as formative assessments, journaling and discussions are mentioned as possible avenues for scoring, they are given a very low percentage of the overall grade. This shows that they are not valued for their ability to show progression and mastery. If this is indeed the case, this puts the students as a
As teachers, we have to monitor the progress our students make each day, week, quarter and year. Classroom assessments are one of the most crucial educational tools for teachers. When assessments are properly developed and interpreted, they can help teachers better understand their students learning progress and needs, by providing the resources to collect evidence that indicates what information their students know and what skills they can perform. Assessments help teachers to not only identify and monitor learners’ strengths, weaknesses, learning and progress but also help them to better plan and conduct instruction. For these reasons, ongoing classroom assessment is the glue that binds teaching and learning together and allows educators to monitor their efficacy and student learning.
As it is, examinations are timed written or oral assessments held at the end of an academic term. It serves to asses a student’s knowledge and comprehension of all the subjects he has studied over the course of the term. Rather than tracking a student’s progress over the course of the term, it judges his/her ability over a handful of written or oral pieces. This is obviously not an accurate indication of one’s progress. Take for example the case of an intelligent and dexterous student who never fails to impress teachers and peers alike in his daily homework and assignments, but fell miserably short of the marks when it comes to the examinations, due to unforeseen circumstances that are not within his influence. These so-called “unforeseen circumstances” might be familial problems t...
As I reflect on my past assessment process, I realized how much my assessments have changed over the years. In my early years, I used tests for informational recall as my assessments. I felt these were appropriate guidelines in which I needed to follow in order to substantiate a student’s grade. Every assignment or tests was given a point value and then based on the amount of points, a grade was given. Every student’s assessment was exactly the same, and the assessments did not contain any subjectivity. I felt confident in giving the grade based on a valid point system. However reflecting back, I see that I did not include any performance-based assessments or individual learning styles in my early assessment. I also did not take into consideration the individual needs of my students. My assessment approach was awful. I am embarrassed that I use to assess students in this manner.
The sixth factor is “Assessments” (McBer, 2000). Assessments and instructions are inseparable. This is the factor that decides if the effective learning has taken place, which I will cover in the latter part of the essay. Effective teachers employ different assessments techniques and tools to know the understanding of their pupils. Assessments not only serve as the tool for measuring students’ understanding, it is also for the teachers to improve their teaching. They also need to differentiate their assessments based on the cognitive needs of the students. Effective teachers use three types of assessment. Diagnostic Assessment (DA), which is widely known as pre-assessment or prior knowledge assessment is used by the teachers to check the skills of the students, which will be helpful for the planning and guide DI (ASCD website). Formative Assessment (FA) is those ongoing assessments, helps teachers understand the grey areas, and helps them to clear the misconceptions by immediately acting on it. FAs can include both formal and informal ways such as written test, oral questioning, quizzes, and group discussions. It is not necessarily being graded. There are also few modern differentiated FAs such as ThinkDots, Cubing, Tic-Tac-Toe used by formally trained and trainee teachers in IIS. Using these differentiated FAs breaks the monotony of the class, and students find these FAs to be interesting activities. The fear of failure is reduced here. The Summative Assignments (SA) is nothing but the traditional way of assessing the students at the end of the topic/course. Though the SAs are important, it does not give opportunity for the students to rework on it or for teachers to support the students in building the concept. But the teachers ...