3 Quick Thoughts on Assessment

"...grading should be directly linked to an explicitly defined set of instructional goals."
                                                                                       - Marzano, 2000, 22
                                                                                           citing Terwilliger

Assessment and grading in the world of interactive learning is difficult. The days of teacher speaks, children read, teacher speaks, children read, teacher gives exam, students write exam, teacher gives grade, rinse and repeat, are over! Grading was simple then. Mark the test, give a grade. Again, thankfully this is not the case anymore.

This said, I still believe it is entirely possible for students to be assessed and graded while maintaining a clear link to curriculum. As a budding educator I have a long way to go to be proficient in this process; however, a few things stand-out as important to attain to in my quest to becoming an excellent educator:

1. Don't simply read the Program of Studies (POS) but study and synthesize it.
2. Be an adept student of project-based learning (PBL), understanding by design (UBD), integrating curriculum, and the like, and
3. Discover the myriad world of assessment and understand when to apply which and what.

The POS is the foundation for what a teacher teaches. It is important to not simply read it, but to understand the intent of each curricular outcome - in order to apply it to the classroom correctly. I have spent a lot of time in my previous job as an income tax auditor doing this with the income tax act, so I can be confident in my ability to do this!

As we move deeper and deeper into the waters of interactive delivery of curriculum, PBL, UBD, integration of curricular areas thematically, and the like, will be at the forefront. It is essential to be a continuous learner of such tools of curriculum delivery and how to assess appropriately using these tools.

Finally, the world of assessment is complex and changing. It is alive and hungry for adaptation. I need to discover how to adapt it and use it appropriately.

These are not easy tasks, but I didn't get into teaching because it is easy. That is why I left my last job!

Navigating the Maze

"Students can hit any target they can see and holds still for them."
                                                                                         - attributed to R. Stiggins

From my own experience, I am a true believer in clear expectations and goals being essential for success as a student. A student needs to see the path for success and be reassured that he has the ability to walk the path. A teacher needs to lay out the path clearly and then walk alongside with encouragement and correction to shepherd their students along the way.

There are a lot of different ways a teacher could lay out a course for a student. As I am in my 6th year of post-secondary, one of my least favorite is the typical "course-outline". They are so full of information that the important information is easily lost and the most-important information tends not to be included. Also, oftentimes the "path" given in a course-outline is simply course-outcomes that are written too formally to be of any use coupled with due dates and weighting of assignments. During my recent practicum experience I realized students were in need of a clear graphic-organizer for each course which clearly and simply communicates and breaks-down the course content.

This used to exist for students in the form of a textbook table of contents. Instructors simply followed the assigned textbook and tested in accordance. As we have thankfully begun to move away from this, this step-by-step course breakdown simply doesn't exist anymore unless created by the teacher.

In my experience, students are left with course outcomes, a textbook, supplementary readings, hand-outs, class discussions, class activities, classmates, class websites and twitter feeds, Edmodo, etc... to piece together what they are going to learn and how they are going to succeed. What they really need is a table of contents and timeline. This is something I plan to ensure my students have. It will look different depending on the age and abilities of the students and the course content, but it will be given.

That last statement is easier to say then do. The challenges of new courses and grades to teach without appropriate preparation time likely lays ahead of me, but I am making it a priority to provide students with a course "table of contents" and timeline. They need to know how to get through the maze!

Brooks

The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.

                                             Alvin Toffler

Brooks. Brooks is the kindly, old gentlemen character who ran the Shawshank library in the movie Shawshank Redemption. Brooks could read. Brooks could write. However, 50 years in prison did not prepare him well for the 21st century. The routine of prison life had worn a groove so deep he couldn't adapt; he couldn't get along with life on the "outside" anymore. I could speak to this further and how it supports the quote above, but then you might not watch the clip and the clip says it best...

The Butterfly Effect

We are not preparing children for our future, we are preparing them for their future.

                                                                                                              David Warlick

An interesting statement. In one sense true and in another sense not true. In the sense of each of us leading our own separate lives that take a unique path, it is true. However, in the sense of the interconnectedness of each of us and the convergence of our paths on our journeys it is not true.

Most often, teaching is a selfless act of directing, nurturing, guiding, and imparting that enables or prepares a student for life to come. It helps them to acquire the knowledge, skills, and attitudes necessary to find certain measures of success along the way. It is altogether probable that a given students life simply carries forward after a grade or school completion and moves beyond the scope of the teachers life. It is also altogether probable that the students future choices, successes and failings may actually have an impact on the teachers future.

I don't point this out to simply be argumentative towards Mr. Warlick's thought, but to ensure that a slick quote doesn't fool me into believing I'm off the hook or disconnected from the students I will be shepherding. While their future is largely what a teacher prepares a student for, he must be careful to understand that roads intertwine and one cannot simply take themselves out of the equation. Each action causes a reaction not only for a single student's future but maybe even for theirs...