A2 Outline Answer on "Testing There Are Two Major Strategies"

A2 Outline Answer 6 pages (1857 words) Sources: 6

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Testing

There are two major strategies in linking assessment and instruction: 1) making instructional decisions in light of assessment results or 2) planning instruction to achieve the objectives represented by an assessment.

Which strategy is most applicable to your work or educational setting?

While both strategies are applicable to my teaching setting, I find that using assessment results to make instructional decision provides the most benefit for my students. This includes the use of all types of assessments, summative assessments such as high-stakes state assessments, formative assessments the students complete in class and pre-assessments prior to each writing assignment.

According to Belfiore et al. (2005) the mindset of using assessment for accountability must be changed to a mindset of dynamic accountability which includes: "(a) analysis of assessment data as disaggregate, (b) analysis of assessment data as improvement (i.e., pre- and posttest analysis within 1 academic year, and/or running records of academic-year performance), and more importantly, (c) using assessment data to differentiate instruction" (p. 856).

As a result of No Child Left Behind legislation students in every state are required to be assessed with state assessments. Rather than dreading these assessments and trying to plan instruction around what is tested, I use the data these assessments provide to plan my instruction. Much information is provided not only about how individual students perform on the test, but also on how the class and grade level performed on test objectives and on tested student expectations. However, this still provides an incomplete picture. Not all of the student expectations that are required to be taught in a particular grade and subject can possibly be assessed on a high-stakes test. It is impossible, for example, to test student expectations related to listening and speaking. Additionally, writing tests normally only assesses one type of writing.

Explain how you implement the process to insure student success.

On the first day of school each year, I ask my students to complete an information card. On the front of the card they write basic information such as their name and birthday; on the back of the card I ask them to write one sentence about their favorite memory. This information card serves multiple purposes. First of all, it provides basic information about the student and gives me a little information about their interests. However, the main purpose for this activity is to provide me with a quick assessment of the students' writing abilities. This activity is indicative of how I use assessment results to make instructional decisions.

In planning my classroom writing instruction I use the principles suggested by Wilhelm (2003):

Use pre-assessment.

Set goals depending on students' current achievement.

Use results of pre-assessment to pitch instruction, in various groups or individually, to students' current point of need.

Teach students to use rubrics and scales.

Peer edit and revise using the articulated criteria (p. 46).

The information card activity described earlier is an example of how I use pre-assessment. I work in a school with a high percentage of English language learners, so my students' abilities vary from completely unable to write in English to students who write prolifically. This simple activity answers a number of questions for me related to the students' writing ability. I know right away if a student is unable to write a complete sentence in English, if a student writes primarily in simple sentences, or if the student is versed in descriptive writing. I can then begin to plan instruction based on the needs of the individual students. As we progress through the school year, I continually use this type of assessment to determine the instructional needs of my students. I learn very quickly if students are having difficulty with grammatical issues such as pronoun case or subject / verb agreement, or if they need assistance with organizing their ideas or adding more voice to their writing.

What challenges have you found in using this strategy?

This method presents several challenges though. First of all, it requires continuous planning and adjusting of the plan. I grew up in a small town, so when I was in middle and high school, I had many of the same teachers as my older cousins. My experience in those classes was exactly the same as their experience. This is no longer the case in education. While I may cover the same material, my classes look completely different every year. In fact, the experience a student has in my first period class is probably very different from the experience a student has in my fifth period class. In order to differentiate the instruction to meet the needs of diverse learner, I am constantly monitoring and adjusting that instruction based on both formative and summative assessments.

Secondly, using assessment to drive instruction assumes that the student did his or her best on the assessment. This is not always the case with middle school students. However, they quickly learn that the instruction they receive is based on how well they perform on pre-assessments.

The final challenge is to determine a fair grading policy. At the beginning of each year, I tell my students that it is very hard to fail my class, but it is also very hard to get an a. This is where the use of rubrics comes into play. Teaching students how to use rubrics teaches them not only how to assess their own writing, but it also helps them become better writers.

Do you think his discussion about the expression, "teaching to the test" is justified in your school? Why or why not?

I do believe Popham's discussion is justified. According to Popham (2001) teaching to the test or "item-teaching" occurs when "teachers organize their instruction either around actual test items found on a test or around a set of look-alike items" (p. 16). Unfortunately as state assessment passing standards increase due to No Child Left Behind legislation, this practice is becoming more common. Most states periodically release versions of their high-stakes tests to the public. These released tests and items become part of the curriculum for many schools. A Google search of the terms "test prep" yielded over 40,000 results. Included is everything from test preparation manuals to online sources for test practice. In addition, textbook publishers provide ancillary materials that focus on test preparation. Volante (2004) argues that "focusing excessive classroom time on the teaching of released and cloned items can be construed as teaching to the test" and cautions that even one day of this type of activity is too much. I know of teachers who spend entire grading periods preparing their students for the state assessment by "teaching to the test." In fact, I know of one school that did not teach science until fifth grade or social studies until eighth because that was when the subjects were assessed on a state assessment.

According to Volante (2004), there are several problems with teaching to the test. First of all teaching to the test often involves lower level thinking skills and activities such as drills and worksheets. Secondly, test preparation time takes time away from other non-tested subjects such as art and music. Sometimes, as with the school I described above, core subjects will be ignored if they are not tested in that particular year. Unfortunately, these activities are more likely to occur at schools serving at-risk or disadvantaged students. These schools rely on Title I funds, and are pressured to increase test scores so as not to lose these funds. One of the most detrimental problems as described by Volante (2004) is that "test wise students who lack the basic skills needed to be successful in higher education settings" are often produced. I know of one student who was unable to speak or write in English. If he read something in English, he had no idea what it was about, yet he always passed the state reading test. He learned the test taking strategies described by Volante and was able to answer enough questions correctly to pass the test. Finally, teaching according to this strategy is cheating because it cheats the students of the education we are supposed to provide. If I only taught my students to write what it tested, they would only know how to write personal narratives. They would not be able to write a research paper, or persuasive paper, or even a poem.

How should one separate test preparation vs. cheating?

While it might be tempting to argue the politics of these assessments and whether or not they accurately reflect student achievement, at least for the foreseeable future, they are our reality in education. Therefore, teachers have to learn to adequately prepare their students without "teaching to the test." Volante (2004) suggests several alternatives to teaching to the test. First of all, teachers need to teach test-represented content rather than specific test items. For example if fourth graders are tested on two digit division, they should have authentic opportunities to demonstrate their skills rather than on worksheets with test… READ MORE

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