Document Library
Professional Considerations
Assessment
Taking Center Stage, California Department of Education, 2001, p. 66.
- California has made a major commitment to student assessment. There are also multiple elements of this structure that are a part of legislation. Ask your principal to devote a faculty meeting to the subject of standards-based assessment. Especially review the degree to which aspects of student assessment you and your colleagues understand. Are there areas that should be strengthened? How aware are parents about these issues? What things might your school do to ensure that students, parents, and the professional staff fully benefit from the provisions of California’s assessment system?
- Organizations that represent the academic disciplines generally agree that nearly all students are capable of achieving a high standard of performance in a rigorous curriculum. As your school uses standards-based assessments, are you finding increased numbers of students rising to the academic challenge? In what way are you seeing this occur? If this is not occurring, do you have ideas about probable causes? Is there a deliberate school wide effort to focus on this challenge? What is your personal role? How are your assessments modified for EL and special education students?
- Implementation of an assessment system includes assignments that allow students to demonstrate what they know relative to the content standards. It also includes regular student and teacher use of scoring criteria or generic rubrics, applying those criteria to student work, and ultimately determining individual student performance. Consider each of these variables and assess how well you and your colleagues who teach the same grade and subject are doing in your efforts to develop and implement these components. Are there ways to improve your consensus-building process? At staff meetings, do you individually score sample student work and then compare scores to see if you are consistent in grading? Could teachers of other subjects and grades benefit by these efforts? How might you develop a cross-discipline assessment with teachers from another subject area? Invite them to participate with you.
- If you are a principal, how would you evaluate your professional ability to provide direct assistance to teachers who need help in developing performance assessments? Do you regularly provide such assistance? If not, do you broker assistance by others? What kind of professional assistance would benefit you as you seek to support your staff? With whom will you share your need? Have you taken advantage of the professional development available for principals through AB 75, CLMS (California League of Middle Schools) or, ACSA (Association of School Administrators)?