Assessments for gauging student learning

Key Focus Question: How can you assess what the students are learning in class?

Learning Outcomes By the end of this section, you will have: Identified different methods of assessing your students Reflected on your current methods of assessments Brainstormed formative assessments you can use in your classroom starting tomorrow As we go over these activities and techniques, keep your classroom in mind and think about how you can use these in your own teaching

What is an assessment? A method of measuring students’ knowledge or skills on a topic at any given time during their education.

Types of Assessments: Initial Formative Summative

Types of Assessments: Initial Formative Summative

Initial Assessments What is it? An assessment you give the students at the start of a unit Why do we do it? To see what your students already know about the unit Establish a baseline for which individual growth can be measured Warning: Can discourage the students before the start of the unit

Types of Assessments: Initial Formative Summative

Do these sound familiar? Do you understand? Does anyone have any questions?

Formative Assessments What is it? An informal way of checking students’ understanding Why do we do it? Provides insight on how much the students are learning on a daily, or on-going, process. Intended to find areas of improvement before moving forward

Formative Assessments What do they look like? Whole-group discussions Exit Ticket / Mini-Quiz Drafts Fingers 1-5 for understanding, hold up a letter A-D,

Activity Be sure to time yourself on this task: For the next two minutes, think about a class you currently have and reflect on the way(s) you have assessed their learning. Then, take two more minutes to add at least 3 new ways you can assess your students, either as an initial or formative assessments. Pause this video and begin.

Types of Assessments: Initial Formative Summative

Summative Assessments What is it? An formal way of determining how much a student has learned over a long period of time Why do we do it? To summarize student learning To assign a grade or pass/fail the student

Summative Assessments What do they look like? Tests / Exams Large projects

Seeing Assessments Visually… Summative Formative Formative Formative Formative Formative Formative Formative Formative Formative Initial

Characteristics of Assessments Valid Reliable Accessible Informative

Valid The learning objective or key concepts are addressed in the assessment

Reliable The results should reflect the students’ abilities If the assessment was repeated, similar results should be seen

Accessible The assessment uses scenarios and language that the students know The amount of work is appropriate for the given time frame, students’ age group, and abilities.

Informative Allows students to see what she/he knows Informs you about students’ knowledge guide your teaching

Learning Outcomes By the end of this section, you will have: Identified different methods of assessing your students Reflected on your current methods of assessments Brainstormed formative assessments you can use in your classroom starting tomorrow As we go over these activities and techniques, keep your classroom in mind and think about how you can use these in your own teaching

Assessing Student Learning Thank You! Assessing Student Learning