Association of Teachers of Mathematics in Maine
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Prompt 5: Option B

31 Jan 2015 3:49 PM | Anonymous member (Administrator)

Read the "Obstacles" section (pp 89-92) for the Assessment Principle. Underline or highlight three ideas that resonated with you, and write down one question that you have about obstacles to effective assessment. Share your ideas and question with four different people. With a partner, make a detailed list of actions that you or others could take to overcome some of the obstacles shared wit you.

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  • 08 Feb 2015 7:20 PM | Anonymous member (Administrator)
    Three ideas:
    1.) "...assessment traditionally tends to emphasize the evaluation of students and more recently, the rating of schools and the performance of teachers." pg. 89
    2.) "In the name of accountability, the rich potential for using assessment processes to strengthen student learning and improve instruction has been diminished." pg. 90
    3.)"Finally, some teachers view assessment as analogous to grading and may not recognize the value of collecting data about students' thinking and understanding" pg. 91

    Obstacle - How do I help students understand that assessments are opportunities to learn what they know and what they still need to learn? By middle school students are focusing on grades and how bad they might think they are in math. I know that this answer can be answered in part by how I establish the learning environment in my class and that part of learning is making mistakes and learning from them.

    Actions:
    1. Discussions among teachers about assessment and what we learn about our students' math understanding. Do more than just "grade" their work.
    2. Bring several pieces of student work to math content meetings and discuss the work. Look at what the students know and plan how to address the mistakes that students made. Implement the plan and then discuss again at content meeting.
    3. Develop ways for students to reflect on their learning. Perhaps a reflection form that students use to organize their assessment results. i.e. what I know and what I need to work on and next steps.
    4. Brainstorm with students - ask them what they think they should do with their mistakes - help them understand that the assessment results are to be used - not just looked at and either shoved in a notebook or thrown away.
    5. Learn more about Feedback - I've been reading Susan Brookhart's book: "How to Give Effective Feedback to Your Students." Challenge each other to be aware of the type of feedback we provide students.
    6. Establish a routine for students to use when looking at their assessment results - one that includes learning from their mistakes.
    7. Spend time discussing the Productive Beliefs chart on pg. 91 with colleagues.
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