|
| The
recommended steps to
standards-based |
| assessment
planning are identified below. |
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|
Click
each number to identify the steps. |
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| At the completion of a
unit of instruction, how
many |
| times have educators faced the common dilemma, |
| "Is
it time
for a test?" The steps to
standards-based |
| assessment
go beyond the scope of
just administering |
| tests, using
answer keys, and
assigning scores. |
|
| Focusing
on what students should know
|
|
and be
able to do is crucial when planning |
| standards-based
assessment.
Often
educators |
| embed curriculum with situations
set in
real-world |
| context.
This
extends the understanding of |
| information beyond
just content knowledge by |
| making application to
real-world experiences. |
| |
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|
| Assessment
is an essential part of
curriculum |
| and
instruction. Educators are constantly |
| faced
with critical decisions about assessment. |
| Questions
such as the following inevitably
arise |
| throughout
the learning process: |
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|
How
do I know what and when to assess? |
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What
do I expect the students to do in
the |
|
|
assessment? |
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How
will I evaluate the assessment? |
|
 |
The
answers to these questions and |
| many more
lie within understanding
the |
| steps to
standards-based assessment |
| planning.
Entrenched throughout the |
| planning
process is the task of
maintaining |
| alignment.
Often this is misclassified as
an |
| additional
step. However, alignment
should be |
| considered
an ongoing application
interwoven |
| throughout
curriculum, assessment,
and |
| instruction.
Examining each step of
this |
| process reinforces the primary purpose |
| of
standards-based
assessment: Focus on |
| standards, improve
student achievement, and |
|
enhance instruction. |
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| Step
1: Select a Standard |
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|
| What
should students know and
be able |
| to
do?
In standards-based assessment |
|
planning, the
standard remains the focal
point. |
| This is
identified
prior to developing assessment |
| or
beginning instruction. So,
deciding what |
| students
should know and be able
to do
is |
| essential
at the beginning of the planning
process. |
|
|
| But,
what exactly are standards? |
|
|
|
|
Click
the
Key to Understanding |
|
| It is important to note that
everyone works through |
| the
benchmark level. Grades
K - 8 work with |
| all 7 parts of the code whereas grades 9 - 12
work |
| with 5
parts of the code stopping at the benchmark level. |
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|
| A key
alignment issue when planning
standards-based |
| assessment
is the question, "Is an entire benchmark |
| being
assessed, or just a part of
it?" Some |
| benchmarks
contain so much information it would
be |
| impossible
to address the content in a single
lesson. |
| Keyword
identification helps to maintain focus by |
| identifying what the student should
know
and |
| be able to
do. It needs to
be clearly stated from the |
| beginning in
the assessment
criteria what keywords |
| of the
benchmark are to be
addressed. |
|
|
|
|
Click
the Key to Understanding |
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|
