Assessment 101

Just a quick review. There are three forms of assessment:

1. Diagnostic - entry points. Where are the students starting from?
2. Formative - ongoing assessment in order to inform teaching practices.
3. Summative - evaluative.

We should spend most of our time with formative assessment. I see it as feedback - are the students being successful? If not, how can I adjust my teaching to ensure that they are learning (think about differentiation!).

TDSB's assessment and evaluation practices are outlined in Fresh AER (hopefully you've all seen it as we're in the midst of report card writing - if not, you need to speak to your administrator about getting access to it).

I just want to highlight Appendix 2 which highlights assessment strategies and tasks - SAY, WRITE, and DO. Please remember that not every assessment should be a pencil and paper task. Think about your students who can provide a beautiful oral response, but not necessarily a written one.