Assessment and Evaluation, Part I: What are these, and why do they matter?

1. Assessment and Evaluation, Part I:What are these, and why do they matter? Week 9a

2. First Things First • We have completely shifted gears: from courses to units • Much of your work is now INDIVIDUAL, which means you are just responsible for your work. But that also means that you are now responsible • WARNING! Deadlines are closer than they appear • If you wait until 2 to 1 weeks before the deadline to work on your units, you are approaching a heap of trouble (this project involves much more than you might think it does • How is fieldwork going?

3. Assessment and Evaluation: Terms and definitions

4. So, you think you can teach… OK, so we teach something, or give students a project. There are two important questions to ask: How do we know they have learned anything? How do we know the lesson/unit was the way it should have been (to be effective)?

5. … but did learning take placE? How do we know they have learned anything? • This question is a matter of assessment. • By yourself, open a document, and start typing your answers to the following questions to the best of your ability • Define Assessment • What does assessment look like like (if you had to describe to someone “Hey! That’s an assessment,” how would you do that? • What are ten examples of types of assessments? • What does a teacher (or administrator) learn from an assessment? • Who is the target audience(s) of an assessment (who finds out the results, and why)? • What is the consensus?

6. … So, What do you think? • More questions: • Define Assessment as a process • Define “assessment tools” • What is the pop-culture definition of assessment, and why could a popular definition of assessment affect our jobs as teachers? • Can a student assess herself/himself? Why or why not? • Can students successfully and rigorously assess each other’s knowledge-skills-abilities?

7. What Assessment is • The determination of whether or not a learner has learned a desired concept, skill, or attitude/disposition • An active process – someone intends to assess learning • Teachers: homework, in-class observation, projects, tests, quizzes, oral questions • Students: Peer assessment, group assessment • Self: Reflections, self-assessments • Standardized testing (if used as an assessment: a comparative assessment of student KSA • Only possible if you have clear goals and objectives: If you do not know what the learner is supposed to know or do, how can you check for it? • It is possible to teach through an assessment, and assess through a teaching activity

8. What assessment is not • Assessment ≠ Grading • Grading is a system that is attached to assessment • Assessment can be a thick description, and not just a number • Assessment ≠ Feedback • Assessment is keyed to goals and objectives, and assessment is concerned with determining the degree to which a learner has met those goals and objectives • You can give feedback w/o assessing learning • Assessment ≠ Testing • Assessment should fit what you are measuring • A test is useless if you are checking for a performance (other than test taking!) • A test is meaningless if you want to assess something in its context • Projects, performances, reflections, oral responses, etc

9. What Assessment is NOT • A Hammer • …is useful if you want to hammer a nail • … is not useful to screw in a screw • A Quiz • …is useful if you want to check to see if a student knows or comprehends a concept • … is not useful if you want to see if a CompEd student can create a simple webpage (you can ask questions about how to do it, or concepts behind it

10. Begin with the end in mind • What do you want the student/learner to learn? • How can you know that they know THAT? • What tools can you use to get there? • How do you know that you will “get there” well?

11. Begin with the end in mind… Assessment drives instruction, and vice versa – Assessment is not an afterthought, but an equal half of the teaching process

12. Moving On…Evaluation

13. Remember these questions? How do we know they have learned anything? How do we know the lesson/unit was the way it should have been (to be effective)?

14. Remember, though, that we had another question:

15. …But did it work the way it should have? How do we know the lesson/unit was the way it should have been (to be effective)? • This question is a matter of evaluation • You will self-evaluate as a teacher, and administrators/others will evaluate you? • As a tech coordinator, part of your job will include evaluation, to see how you can best help teachers integrate and use technology in their classrooms – a good evaluation of the status quo is necessary to make recommendations

16. Is there a difference? • Is there a difference between assessment and evaluation? • It depends on who is defining the terms – some make a distinction, some do not. • To some, this is a silly distinction. Regardless, it is a matter of the object (end-goal) of your activity • Much K-12 literature conflates the two, but I am drawing a distinction, because I want you to focus on the object (what is being examined) and its nature • Assessment tends to look at whether or not learning has taken place and to what degree/under what conditions • Evaluation tends to look at the teaching process, how effectively, efficiently, and appropriately teaching and structured learning activities were executed

17. …so, what is evaluation? • Again, type in your own document, and try to answer these questions to the best of your ability: • Define evaluation (of teaching/materials/curriculum) • What does evaluation look like (if you had to describe to someone “Hey! That’s an evaluation,” how would you do that? • How is evaluation different from assessment? • What does a teacher (or administrator) learn from an evaluation of a.) curriculum; b.) teaching? • Who is the target audience(s) of an evaluation (who finds out the results, and why)? • When teachers are evaluated at the K-12 (or even college) level, is this evaluation, a good/bad evaluation, and why or why not? • What is the consensus?

18. Vocabulary • Instruction • Teaching • Evaluation • Assessment • Cycle of continuous improvement • Pre-test • Embedded test • Post-test • Pilot test • Formative evaluation • Summative evaluation • Triangulation • Transfer • Rubric • Observation checklist

19. Class Discussion:ISTEP and similar “things”

20. Types of Assessments

21. Let’s list them! • What are the different types of assessments that a teacher could use in their classroom (any classroom)? • Let’s put these together in a Doc • Of these, what do you think would work best for the types of knowledge-skills-abilities discussed in the CompEd standards which you have been given? • Let’s revise/re-visit the list

22. What do these processes look like?

23. Looking for what is out there • The “10 things” assignment • As a class, we will complete the following: • We are going to compile a list of examples of assessment activities for us to use as a reference from which to pull in this class • Each of you will be responsible for finding TEN (10) real-world examples of a teacher assigning a specific activity that is primarily assessment-oriented (as opposed to instruction-oriented) in nature • You will create a table or spreadsheet with the following info, with a worksheet for each of you (Google Spreadsheet): • Name of activity • Where did you find it? • What is it (brief description) • What tools (if any) were used for this? • [What tech-based tools could be used for this activity – instead] Find THREE • You will put these into the provided Google Doc, and share this with your instructor’s Google Account • Rules for this activity • RULE #1: You need to look for DIFFERENT examples. If someone else has already listed an option, find another one. • RULE #2: There is no RULE #2 • RULE #3: Posting even one bogus/fake resource invalidates your entire list

24. Looking for what is out there • This list can be a resource for you and your class-mates as you will have to include both instructional and assessment aspects in your units, and assessment is sometimes less visible to you as students. • Quality is valued as much as quantity, and the quality of what you find will help or hurt you in the weeks ahead

25. What’s Due, When and Where?

26. What’s Due… • Work on your units! • For next week: Read “Reading #4” on Assessment and Evaluation, and be prepared for an “assessment” in class.  • Discussion 3 starts today: How do CompEd teachers assess learning in their classrooms?“As part of your ongoing team-based web resources, try to find out how at least 2 teachers assess learning in their CompEd classes (and give me any details that you may be able to find. Do they quiz/test? Do they use projects? Observation? Post your research by Thursday at 11:59pm, then converse with your classmates in a meaningful way until Sunday at 11:59pm”