Students bring a wide variety of experiences, abilities, and interests to any new topic. Assessing and understanding students’ background knowledge helps teachers design instruction to address misconceptions, differentiate, and take advantage of relevant experiences.
One of the goals of education is to produce students who can learn on their own and work well with others. These skills are especially critical in the 21st century, a time of rapid technological change, when skills must be learned and relearned. Assessing self-direction and collaboration skills helps learners become more efficient at planning and following through without prompting. Students must be able to work together and alone to identify and use a wide variety of resources and tools, taking appropriate risks and learning from their mistakes.
When data from monitoring student progress is tied to timely and specific feedback, students can take greater ownership of their learning. Assessment that provides useful feedback guides students to specific areas of weakness and affirms areas of understanding and strength.
Research shows that the value of student metacognition, or thinking about thinking, is one of the most effective strategies for improving student learning. When students think about their thinking, they are better able to retain and generalize new learning to other contexts. Depending on how they are structured, the same assessment strategies that help teachers check for understanding can also help students think about their own thinking.
Summative Assessment
Providing students with opportunities to demonstrate their understanding and skill allows them to showcase their ability to present an idea or culminating project, perform a procedure for others, practice and apply information as they develop skills, and learn from each other. Demonstrating understanding and skill also allows students to provide peer feedback and self-assess their own strengths and areas needing improvement.
Christopher Shively posted this entry on Tuesday, July 10th, 2007 at 7:16 am.
Posted in the category Strategies, assessment
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I am an Educational Computing Strategist (ECS). I figure out ways to IMPROVE education with technology.
I currently work as an Adjunct Professor in the Elementary Education and Reading Department at Buffalo State College and as an ECS for a K- 12 school district near Buffalo, NY.
I am an Educational Computing Strategist (ECS). I figure out ways to IMPROVE education with technology. 
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