standard 3: observing, documenting, and assessing to support young children and families
Standard 3 is a huge standard that has a focus on observing, documenting, and assessing to support young children and families. This standard is all about understanding the goals, benefits, and uses of assessment. It calls for knowing and using observation, documentation, and other forms of assessment including technology in documentation, assessment and data collection. As teachers we need to understand and practice responsible assessment to promote positive outcomes for each child, and using assistive technology for children with disabilities when needed. The standard also calls for knowing about assessment partnerships with families and with professional colleagues to build an effective learning environment.
This is one of the most important standards in my opinion. The artifacts I have chosen to represent my understanding of this standard include the progressive lesson I taught, a print out from when I was using Educational Software for Guiding Instruction (ESGI), a final assessment note to the parents from our most recent math unit, a Read Well magazine/Read Well assessment, and a video reflection of my own teaching. These artifacts show a wide range of assessment that I have done within my classroom.
I discussed my progressive lesson for standard 1 as well, but it is an artifact that I believe demonstrates both standards, but in different ways. When I taught the lesson I was focusing on their developmental needs, but I was also focusing on the assessment portion. I reflected after each day, and decided what direction to take the lessons in after the day was done. Some students were able to skip ahead because they were racing through it, and at other times the students were so frustrated that I could not justify moving them on until they had more support and practice at an earlier level. This amount of assessment actually allowed me to move two of my students out of the group. They were able to prove to me over the course of four days that they were capable of doing more than we were focusing on in our small group. We still make sure to double check their work to make sure we made the correct choice, and so far it seems to be working. My assessment was based off of observing, and I documented it at the end of the day. At the end of each lesson plan I reflected on their level of understanding (independent, instructional, frustration level), and reflected on what more I could do to improve the learning for my students.
Educational Software for Guiding Instruction is one of the most beneficial assessment tools I have learned to use in the classroom. It is a technology based form of assessment. We use it along with our portfolio, but it is very easy to use and the way it prints out results is easy to undestand. It has changed the way conferences work entirely. We have used the results from ESGI to assist us in figuring out what we need to do for instruction. If we missed a concept completely we will be able to see it by pulling up a whole class analysis of our assessments. Missing a concept usually pops right out, and shows us how many of our students really did not understand what we were working on. It has been very helpful when planning out some of our grouping, and planning future lessons.
When we are doing assessment we try to keep the family involved as much as possible. We want them to know where their student are as soon as we know. Every time we finish a math unit we take a “unit test”. It is two pages long and most of the students do not even realize it is a test. They just know that they cannot chat during it, and we cannot help them other than by reading the directions. After the test is over we go through and highlight or circle the incorrect answers of every student. We then write down who was struggling with what concept so that we can make sure our centers are covering that concept more directly. Then when we are done figuring out what to do in the classroom to help our students learning, we send home a note and the assessment with the parents. This note shows what concepts their student did not understand, or if their student mastered all of the concepts in this unit. Not only does the note say what the student needs help with, but it gives the parent easy ideas of what they can do at home to help their student understand the concept.
The next form of assessment I work with is Read Well. I am not trained in Read Well, but I have been taught by our paraprofessional and have been given a small group of students to do Read Well with (one of the groups was so large that they needed someone to take half a group). I work with these students on Read Well 2-3 times a week depending on our reading rotation. This reading program focuses a lot on its assessment, and the assessment is a huge base for what happens to the student in terms of grouping. How they are doing in Read Well can alter what group they are in for reading groups (our groupings are very flexible).
The final form of assessment I included as an artifact, is actually an assessment I did on myself. My supervisor took a video of me, and I reflected on it and looked at where I can improve. I feel that reflection is one of the keys to being a teacher. We need to be able to take a step back and reflect on what we have been doing. This is an important life skill that keeps us constantly growing and changing into something better. I think it is a skill we should try to teach our students. The assessment of my video was a collaboration between me and my supervisor. I could also take the video and show it to more people, which I think would be a good idea. I only caught so many aspects of the lesson I could change, I am sure someone else would notice some different ones.
This standard calls for assessment and I believe my artifacts have shown that I can use a variety of assessments to help build a better learning community for my students. I bring in the family as much as possible with assessment, and I feel that I need to be ready to assess myself as well. I have used paper based assessments, and technology based assessments. The use of a variety of assessments has helped my students because different people perform differently on different types of assessment. I believe the amount of different assessments we have gives a full bodied understanding of where our students are.
This is one of the most important standards in my opinion. The artifacts I have chosen to represent my understanding of this standard include the progressive lesson I taught, a print out from when I was using Educational Software for Guiding Instruction (ESGI), a final assessment note to the parents from our most recent math unit, a Read Well magazine/Read Well assessment, and a video reflection of my own teaching. These artifacts show a wide range of assessment that I have done within my classroom.
I discussed my progressive lesson for standard 1 as well, but it is an artifact that I believe demonstrates both standards, but in different ways. When I taught the lesson I was focusing on their developmental needs, but I was also focusing on the assessment portion. I reflected after each day, and decided what direction to take the lessons in after the day was done. Some students were able to skip ahead because they were racing through it, and at other times the students were so frustrated that I could not justify moving them on until they had more support and practice at an earlier level. This amount of assessment actually allowed me to move two of my students out of the group. They were able to prove to me over the course of four days that they were capable of doing more than we were focusing on in our small group. We still make sure to double check their work to make sure we made the correct choice, and so far it seems to be working. My assessment was based off of observing, and I documented it at the end of the day. At the end of each lesson plan I reflected on their level of understanding (independent, instructional, frustration level), and reflected on what more I could do to improve the learning for my students.
Educational Software for Guiding Instruction is one of the most beneficial assessment tools I have learned to use in the classroom. It is a technology based form of assessment. We use it along with our portfolio, but it is very easy to use and the way it prints out results is easy to undestand. It has changed the way conferences work entirely. We have used the results from ESGI to assist us in figuring out what we need to do for instruction. If we missed a concept completely we will be able to see it by pulling up a whole class analysis of our assessments. Missing a concept usually pops right out, and shows us how many of our students really did not understand what we were working on. It has been very helpful when planning out some of our grouping, and planning future lessons.
When we are doing assessment we try to keep the family involved as much as possible. We want them to know where their student are as soon as we know. Every time we finish a math unit we take a “unit test”. It is two pages long and most of the students do not even realize it is a test. They just know that they cannot chat during it, and we cannot help them other than by reading the directions. After the test is over we go through and highlight or circle the incorrect answers of every student. We then write down who was struggling with what concept so that we can make sure our centers are covering that concept more directly. Then when we are done figuring out what to do in the classroom to help our students learning, we send home a note and the assessment with the parents. This note shows what concepts their student did not understand, or if their student mastered all of the concepts in this unit. Not only does the note say what the student needs help with, but it gives the parent easy ideas of what they can do at home to help their student understand the concept.
The next form of assessment I work with is Read Well. I am not trained in Read Well, but I have been taught by our paraprofessional and have been given a small group of students to do Read Well with (one of the groups was so large that they needed someone to take half a group). I work with these students on Read Well 2-3 times a week depending on our reading rotation. This reading program focuses a lot on its assessment, and the assessment is a huge base for what happens to the student in terms of grouping. How they are doing in Read Well can alter what group they are in for reading groups (our groupings are very flexible).
The final form of assessment I included as an artifact, is actually an assessment I did on myself. My supervisor took a video of me, and I reflected on it and looked at where I can improve. I feel that reflection is one of the keys to being a teacher. We need to be able to take a step back and reflect on what we have been doing. This is an important life skill that keeps us constantly growing and changing into something better. I think it is a skill we should try to teach our students. The assessment of my video was a collaboration between me and my supervisor. I could also take the video and show it to more people, which I think would be a good idea. I only caught so many aspects of the lesson I could change, I am sure someone else would notice some different ones.
This standard calls for assessment and I believe my artifacts have shown that I can use a variety of assessments to help build a better learning community for my students. I bring in the family as much as possible with assessment, and I feel that I need to be ready to assess myself as well. I have used paper based assessments, and technology based assessments. The use of a variety of assessments has helped my students because different people perform differently on different types of assessment. I believe the amount of different assessments we have gives a full bodied understanding of where our students are.
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