Children need to be motivated and engaged in the classroom or there will be no higher order thinking going on. Also, a child needs to be safe and healthy for any learning to be had. Looking at assessment in regards to the whole child seems to be a way for every aspect of a child’s developmental needs to be addressed. I came across a website the other day while doing some research on assessments, and I found an article that speaks about assessing through the student’s eyes. I was hooked to read further into what they had to say. Rick Stiggins is the author that talks about a new vision for assessments that taps into the confidence, motivation and learning potential within each student. What they did was examine assessments through the eyes of the assessment winners and assessment losers. They want to make the dynamic of assessments to support learning, which they call this assessment for learning.
Extensive research conducted around the world shows that by consistently applying the principles of assessment for learning, we can produce impressive gains in student achievement, especially for struggling learners (Black & Wiliam, 1998). The starting point of assessment for learning is the teachers sharing achievement targets with students. The teachers will present to the students the expectations in a language that they are able to comprehend and process, as well as examples of commendable student work. What makes this type of assessment great for students is that there are frequent self assessments that provide them, as well as their teachers, with continued descriptive feedback they can manage effectively. This way the students can track their path toward the achievement targets that have been established by the teacher. I love when the students are in full control of their educational development. They get to use the feedback gained from the assessments to see where they are now in relation to where they want to be and discover how to do better the next time. Students are able to set their own goals on their journey toward achievement. This assessment for learning gives the teachers and students the opportunity to work together and it provides them both with information they can use immediately to improve the students’ performance.
Unfortunately, I have seen so many children fail under the pressure of standardized tests. I feel there should be some alternative to these old fashion tests, something that is geared more toward the student and the age level. There were so many times I knew some of my students knew the information, but froze when the test was in front of them. Looking at the whole child perspective on things seems to be a better way of looking toward assessing children with their academic and emotional status in mind.
When I was researching information about assessments in other areas of the world I was intrigued about how high student achievements rates are in Finland and why that was. FInnish citizens hold teachers in high regard and is one of the most competitive fields, even above medicine and law. In the 1980’s Finland abolished standardized tests and went with a trust based system where teachers have a certain freedom to teach with creativity. Also in Finland students are in school 2 to 3 hours less than students in the U.S., which gives the students more time to work on their studies and teachers more time to prepare fantastic lessons. With that said Finland is the highest performing nation.
What Accounts for Finland's High Student Achievement Rate?, Asia Society. Retrieved from: http://asiasociety.org/education/learning-world/what-accounts-finlands-high-student-achievement-rate
Stiggens, Rick. (2007) Assessment Through the Student’s Eyes. Educating the Whole Child, Volume 64 (8), pages 22-26.
Kristen, I agree that all schools should do away with standardized testing. I personally always do bad on these tests because I freeze up and clock watch. If standardized testing will be used, these test should obtain authentic content and mirror what a child is learning in the classroom. Children should be assessed as they are learning and this assessment should be the baseline for the curriculum. A developmental assessment is a process designed to deepen the understanding of a child's competencies and his resources. Assessing young children is very different from assessing older children, but I feel assessment is critical for every child. I researched students in China and they spend at least nine hours in the classroom, not to mention the homework after school. Hooray for Finland for letting children have free time and let them "be children."
ReplyDeleteJill
Reading your blog I thought about a news story I just watched. The one thing that stood out the most is a protester that was standing on the street. She held a sign that said Kindergarteners should be blowing bubbles not filling them in. I loved this. It is hard to believe that we feel children especially this young should be held up to such stressful standards and not just learning their ABC's. I think that these new extreme stressors in school are emotionally damaging as well.
ReplyDeleteAssessments, standardized testing, and high-stakes testing is something that I have debated for years. Both of my children have had to take standardized testing. I am totally against standardized testing. I agree that assessments are necessary in order to find out what the child knows and the areas that they may need help with. My son was a honor roll student and my daughter was a principal list student. They both failed the standardized test. This was devastating to both of my children. They could not participate in the 8th grade graduation ceremony. This was especially hard on my daughter because she lost her dad to lung cancer during that same year, so she had a lot that she was trying to deal with as a child. This test determines if the 8th grader will move on to the ninth grade. They have a chance to go to tutoring during the summer and re-take the test. If they past during the summer, they can move on to 9th grade. If they don't pass the test, they will have to remain in the 8th grade. Thank God both of my children passed during the summer and were able to move on to the 9th grade. But if she would not have passed during the summer, how do you explain to a student that has all A's that she did not pass.
ReplyDeleteIf standardized test are so important, teach what is on the test. In my school district, the teachers use the first 15 minutes of each class period to teach a lesson on something that is on the standardized test. Fifteen minutes per class period is not enough time to teach anything.
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ReplyDeleteKristen,
ReplyDeleteChildren do feel the stress of tests. I have seen this in the after-school program that I work. These children (at 8 years old) are stressing over a test that is above their level of knowledge and thinking they will not be able to become what they dream if they do not score well. Those some children are stressing after the test is complete about the scores they receive. One thing I truly believe is that children should not be compared to each other without an understanding that all children are unique. The new common core structure and testing methods create a "one size fits all" mentality that is not accurate in the world of education and child development.
Hi Kristi,
ReplyDeleteyou are right on target when you speak about the number of children who are knowledgeable of the information on these standardized tests, but experience extreme anxiety when it comes time to perform, causing them to do less than their best. I was one of those children and it bothered me. I was never a good test taker, but an excellent writer. When it came time to take a test, I just seemed to freeze up and forget all the information just in those moments. When an exam was essay based or required that we write a paper I aced it. If we created assessments that examined the weaknesses as well as the strengths of our children academically and then gave an overall score, I think we might be breaking through an old barrier that gets in the way of us truly seeing their full potential and development as a whole.
- Jantina Maria Rice