Multiple Methods of Assessment - Volante

It is one thing to give a test to measure the learning that has occurred, but if the test is not representative of what and how the student is learning, it is inefficient and invalid. Traditionally, we have used what we were exposed to as students, but if we continue to rely on what we know without upgrading our methods with our research, then our research is pointless. Why do research if not to improve our results by applying it?

I believe rummaging through the curriculum guides would be a worthwhile experience for most teachers regardless of years of experience. It is easy to get into a routine by repeating the sheets and tests of yesteryear. The challenge is to continually search for other ways of reaching our students. We need to know them. What works for one group, may be ineffective with another. During my student teaching experience, I was a bit shocked that my cooperating teacher was using a very old program with her students. I thought surely there was something more modern she could be using. She explained to me that she had all the modern stuff and that this program was the one her students best responded to. Lesson learned. I have always remembered that the method I use is based as much on who my students are and what they need as it is on what my style and knowledge tell me to use.

The curriculum guides provide a multitude of assessment tools to be selected by the classroom teacher. If we go back from time to time and become familiar with them, we are expanding our own repertoire as well as providing more opportunity for students to demonstrate their learning.

When designing an assessment tool, we need to be aware of the skills we are measuring - not only the content. As a new teacher, a colleague once told me, "Remember, you are teaching the child - not the curriculum." It has always stuck with me and the content becomes secondary to the person when you realize that it doesn"t really matter what year a historical event occurred, but it does matter that a student has the necessary skills to find the year.

In summary, we need to be sure that what and how we are assessing reflects what the student needs to grow.

Student-Centered Assessment - Volante

The first of the seven principles suggested by Volante is that assessment be student-centered. The ultimate goal is that we make students responsible for their learning and having them take ownership in the assessment process is the first step in seeing this through. According to his research, this approach will positively influence motivation and learning.

In order to enhance this motivation for learning, teachers should rely more heavily on formative assessment. We need to be continually engaged in dialogue with our students about what they do well and what they are lacking in order to be proficient in their work. Ken O'Connor stated that when we give a grade to students, nothing improves,  but when we give feedback, we can expect an average of 30% improvement from students. Volante included a list of things we can do in our formative assessment to encourage student engagement.

• Give a pretest before a unit of study: This allows us to make necessary adjustments to the personal learning goals for each student.
• Be aware of students who are in need of more assistance or practice. They will more likely need to be monitored more closely.
• Continually revise instruction based on assessment results. If some students are not getting it, what do they need to learn in order to get it?
• Convey strengths and weaknesses to students. Effective feedback will allow them to grow from where they are.
• Match students in groups that will encourage growth. These groupings can become a ressource for students to use independently once they learn how to work together.
• Allow opportunity for self-assessment. This is key in order for students to take ownership of their work. They are able to direct their own learning this way and they become responsible for what they have done and how they plan to grow with each susequent assignment.

Encouraging students to self-assess smooths the transition from the teacher being the director to the teacher simply guiding an independent worker.

All of these conditions make sense. Most would not argue that when a student becomes responsible for his or her own learning, he or she becomes a lifelong learner, capable of assuring continuous growth in life. I can picture it in my head, running smoothly, a motivation-filled classroom guiding the students to a state of independence they want to reach.

Conversely, I also have questions about how this motivation occurs when the inclusion of a student is not enough. How do we cope when a student dares you to make them care and then sets up camp behind a granite wall of resistance? And what of class sizes? When teachers are facing groups beyond 30 students, they are overwhelmed with duties leading to learning and other academic and behavioural issues. Teachers slip into survival mode and find it difficult to make the time to consult with each student in the goal of guiding their next steps.