FORMATIVE ASSESSMENTS What’s in Your Toolbox? DEBBIE: Welcome remarks. 1 hand = know some of us; both hands = all of us; no hands = none of us. Ok, we can tell from the response…
Debbie Siano Spanish Teacher, CMS Guy Tulp Sherry Sizemore Chinese Teacher, CMS Each do BRIEF bio. DEBBIE (before moving to next slide): 1. How confident are you in giving a definition of formative assessment (2-1-0 hands) How confident are you that you use formative assessment effectively? (2-1-0 hands)
Equip with usable repertoire OBJECTIVE Define Demonstrate value SHERRY: That leads us to our objective for the day… We all instinctively use formative assessment in our classrooms every day. Our objective today is to demonstrate the value of INTENTIONALLY using it in our classrooms We will define exactly what it is Hopefully all participants will leave with some techniques you can use in your classrooms Equip with usable repertoire
Formative Assessments What do you know? Formative Assessments SHERRY: Pair up and on scrap paper, come up with key elements that should be in a definition of formative assessment. Share via ball toss (GUY writes responses on white board).
Formative assessments : Are formal and informal assessment procedures employed by teachers during the learning process Are utilized to modify teaching and learning activities to improve student attainment Involve qualitative feedback (rather than scores) for both student and teacher Focus on the details of content and performance Contrast with summative assessments, which seek to monitor educational outcomes, often for purposes of external accountability Crooks,, T. (2001). The Validity of Formative Assessments. British Educational Research Association Annual Conference, University of Leeds, September 13–15, 2001. Huhta, Ari (2010). "Diagnostic and Formative Assessment". In Spolsky, Bernard and Hult, Francis M..The Handbook of Educational Linguistics. Oxford, UK: Blackwell. pp. 469–482. Shepard, Lorrie A. (2005). Formative assessment: Caveat emptor. ETS Invitational Conference The Future of Assessment: Shaping Teaching and Learning, New York, October 10–11, 2005. Retrieved 25 August 2011. GUY: “Let’s look at how close we were.” Illustrate commonalities AND discuss anything they didn’t mention.
Are we there yet? GUY: Make analogy: “It’s like the satellite signals from GPS continually looking to see how the driver is progressing and offering a new path if the driver gets lost.” …if you need to re-route/re-calculate. DEBBIE: Stand up if you have ever compared the language in your observation report to the Danielson Framework (Hand out frameworks).
Component 3d: Using Assessment in Instruction DOMAIN 3: INSTRUCTION Component 3d: Using Assessment in Instruction Element Levels of Performance Basic Emerging Proficient Distinguished Assessment Criteria Students are not aware of the criteria and performance standards by which their work will be evaluated. Students know some of the criteria and performance standards by which their work will be evaluated. Students are fully aware of the criteria and performance standards by which their work will be evaluated. Students are fully aware of the criteria and performance standards by which their work will be evaluated and have contributed to the development of the criteria. Monitoring of student learning Teacher does not monitor student learning in the curriculum. Teacher monitors the progress of the class as a whole but elicits no diagnostic information. Teacher monitors the progress of groups of students in the curriculum, making limited use of diagnostic prompts to elicit information. Teacher actively and systematically elicits diagnostic information from individual students regarding their understanding and monitors the progress of individual students. Feedback to students Teacher's feedback to students is of poor quality and not provided in a timely manner. Teacher's feedback to students is uneven, and its timeliness is inconsistent. Teacher's feedback to students is timely and of consistently high quality. Teacher's feedback to students is timely and of consistently high quality, and students make use of the feedback in their learning. Student self-assessment and monitoring of progress Students do not engage in self assessment or monitoring of progress. Students occasionally assess the quality of their own work against the assessment criteria and performance standards. Students frequently assess and monitor the quality of their own work against the assessment criteria and performance standards. Students not only frequently assess and monitor the quality of their own work against the assessment criteria and performance standards but also make active use of that information in their learning. Debbie: Where do you see these elements reflected in the Danielson Framework (3d)? Pair/share in small groups and circle where in the framework you see these elements reflected Demonstrate connection between good teaching practices and effective use of formative assessment. This isn’t just something else to try. It’s what actually forms effective teaching practices. Call out session: They point out what they’ve circled. How can formative assessment help you be a proficient or distinguished teacher Which of these ratings requires the use of formative assessment
GUY: How many formative assessments have you witnessed so far. Pair share with partner (hand up, ball toss, stand up sit down, pair share out)
GUY: Some only give finger on the pulse of what class can do. Some are actually measurable and/or more individualized. Count off by 3’s in order to put all in a group BEFORE advancing to next slide!
STATIONS Group one: Debbie at the square tables Group two: Guy at the round tables Group three: Sherry at the computers If with Sherry, please log on immediately!
The KEY to successful use of FORMative assessment… …is to use it to inFORM instruction! SHERRY: This could be this regrouping slide for right after the station break-out. Hopefully you have picked up some techniques today that you can adapt to your style and subject. But once you have the information from these techniques – what are you going to do with it?
Component 3e: Demonstrating Flexibility and Responsiveness DOMAIN 3: INSTRUCTION Component 3e: Demonstrating Flexibility and Responsiveness Element Levels of Performance Basic Emerging Proficient Distinguished Lesson Adjustment Teacher adheres rigidly to an instructional plan, even when a change is clearly needed. Teacher attempts to adjust a lesson when needed, with only partially successful results. Teacher makes a minor adjustment to a lesson, and the adjustment occurs smoothly. Teacher successfully makes a major adjustment to a lesson when needed. Response to Students Teacher ignores or brushes aside students' questions or interests. Teacher attempts to accommodate students' questions or interests, although the pacing of the lesson is disrupted. Teacher successfully accommodates students' questions or interests. Teacher seizes a major opportunity to enhance learning, building on student interests or a spontaneous event. Persistence When a student has difficulty learning, the teacher either gives up or blames the student or the student's home environment. Teacher accepts responsibility for the success of all students but has only a limited repertoire of instructional strategies to draw on. Teacher persists in seeking approaches for students who have difficulty learning, drawing on a broad repertoire of strategies. Teacher persists in seeking effective approaches for students who need help, using an extensive repertoire of strategies and soliciting additional resources from the school. SHERRY: It really is all about being flexible and responsive to student progress (refer to evidence) Refer back to GPS analogy. Look at domain 3e and see where successful use of formative assessments is necessary to be a proficient or distinguished teacher. Keep a record: what technique did you use? What information did you gather? How did you change your instruction to accommodate the needs of your students as a result? Put in annual review!
COMPETENCIES Effective Communicators Creative Problem Solver Independent , Self-directed Learner Collaborative Team Member Information Literate Researcher Globally Aware Citizen DEBBIE: The added bonus is that by using formative assessment techniques in your classrooms, you can develop the 21st Century Competencies in your students at the same time! Which competencies were addressed in the formative assessments you have experienced today? Think back to your experiences in the stations today. Which competencies did you have to demonstrate in order to be successful? Call-out session
GUY: Take a few moments to think about how you can use at least one of these techniques in your own classroom in the near future.