Authentic Assessments
I have had the task of looking through current assessment procedures and requirements lately and I am struck again by the critical need to authentically assess a child. It is so important not to use only one way to evaluate the progress a child is making. The teacher must view progress from every angle of the child's life. That is one thing that standardized tests cannot do. Although formal tests might serve a purpose, they are very inadequate for identifying what a child has learned. It is too bad when officials look at those types of scores to assess learning. They represent only a small piece of the pie.
posted by John Funk @ Permalink10:22 AM
4 Comments:
I am excited about FCS 5170 and having you as an instructor.
Abby Van Sice FCS 5170
I agree. Standardized tests are so short sighted. And anyone who works with children will attest to the fact that there are many factors one must take into account when assessing progress, learning, and growth.
After reading this recent posting and attending your FCS 5170 class I have become much more aware of how misleading standardized testing can be. I have a six year old cousin, who in my eyes seems to be a genius, but his teachers do not see what I and my family see. This is due to the fact that he struggles with months of the year, rhyming, and other things of this sort. These are things that most children in his class seem to be comprehending quite well. The truth is though that his strengths are better demonstrated in artistic ways, which cannot be captured in their ways of determining progress. If you mention January my cousin can relate snow to it, when you mention July he associates fireworks, and November Thanksgiving, etc. The other day we were writing his name and he wrote in a way that if you held it up to a mirror it would read Michael perfectly. It was almost creepy in a sense, but at the same time very surprising. I tried to do the same thing with my name and barely could. Later that same day I had him cut out silly shapes and he cut one out and when I asked what do you think that shape looks like he said, "George Washington." I was shocked he even knew who that was and after he showed me why it did look like him I could actually recognize the protrait displayed on our one dolar bill. I am worried that he is going to struggle in school due to the fact that on paper assignments he does not receive the best grades, which results in him feeling dumb. He is not dumb by any means, he just has a very different way of thinking and I know from experience that elementary, middle and high school assignments do not have room for explanations. Without his explanations teachers are right, he does not make sens, but with his explanations I really believe he could be a genius.!
Where can one find 'authentic assessments' to use at our preschool? Thank you!
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