Classroom Assessment

This is one of the ten books that is part of the Assessment Kit. The purpose of this book is to talk to teachers about classroom assessment from a natural perspective-that of instruction and children. Classroom teachers are often somewhat anxious and fearful about assessment, especially testing, but they are comfortable with the ideas of their own instruction and their students. If a book on classroom assessment starts from their areas of strength and shows how assessment is a natural extension of those strengths, then the message of how to improve classroom assessment and make it work for instruction and children can be better received.

DVD includes "video segments illustrating ideas and practices presented in the book, and a CD-ROM containing activities that facilitate individual or group learning" - back cover.

Discusses the components of an effective, standards-based assessment program that can be used to enhance student achievement.

This book is based on the belief that decision making is perhaps the most critical of all teaching skills and that good assessments lie at the core of good decision making. To become better teachers then, teachers must learn to make informed decisions about both individual students (learning decisions) and about groups of students (teaching decisions). This book gives equal status to both types of decisions and shows how assessment is integral to both. The organization of the book is sequential, mirroring the way in which information should be used to make decisions. It begins with a conceptual framework linking information to decision making, then moves to the design of assessment instruments and the collection of assessment information, then to the interpretation of assessment information and, finally, to reporting the results of both the assessment and the decision-making process. There is an emphasis throughout on linking why teachers assess with what and how they assess. Other key features include: * Practical Framework -- The book's framework corresponds to the framework that teachers use to grade their students: conduct (classroom behavior), effort (student motivation), and achievement (student learning). * Unique Chapters -- There are separate chapters on interpreting assessment information prior to decision making and on reporting assessment information to parents, teachers, and administrators. * Flexibility -- Because of its modest length and price, and its practical focus on the links between assessment and everyday teacher decision making, this text can be used either in full-length assessment courses for teachers or to teach the assessment units in educational psychology or integrated methods courses.

This book discusses the interwoven themes of teacher learning and classroom assessment, highlighting the complexity and intricacy of these processes in a range of very different classroom contexts. The case studies demonstrate how classroom assessment is needed for teachers to learn about teaching and for them to be able to grow professionally and improve student learning. Although this volume is mainly situated in the unique and varied contexts of the Asia-Pacific region, it addresses the key issues of quality teaching, assessment, and accountability in a global context.

Systematic Classroom Assessment promotes a fresh vision of assessment for student learning and achievement. Using a framework that positions assessment as both an iterative, purposeful cycle of inquiry for teachers as well as a coherent system of activities through which students engage in their own learning, this framework for classroom assessment is unique in incorporating self-regulated learning, motivation, and non-cognitive processes. Key components such as assessment for learning, feedback, emerging technologies, and specific content areas are treated in depth, and fundamental principles like reliability, validity, and fairness are approached from the classroom perspective.

• Provides detailed information on · the functions of assessment; · how to construct, administer, and interpret the results of teacher-developed assessment techniques; and · how to interpret the results of externally developed instruments such as standardized tests. • Both traditional and newer, alternative assessment techniques are covered. • Advantages and disadvantages of each assessment technique are discussed. • A companion website helps both instructors and students obtain additional information on topics of special interest to them. • Numerous examples of the principles and procedures make it easy for students to understand the material. • The highly practical nature of this book stems from the focus on how assessment intertwines with other everyday activities in classrooms. • Measurement theory and computational procedures that are unlikely to be used by classroom teachers are de-emphasized, producing a textbook that provides comprehensive coverage without being unnecessarily technical.

Classroom Assessment and Educational Measurement explores the ways in which the theory and practice of both educational measurement and the assessment of student learning in classroom settings mutually inform one another. Chapters by assessment and measurement experts consider the nature of classroom assessment information, from student achievement to affective and socio-emotional attributes; how teachers interpret and work with assessment results; and emerging issues in assessment such as digital technologies and diversity/inclusion. This book uniquely considers the limitations of applying large-scale educational measurement theory to classroom assessment and the adaptations necessary to make this transfer useful. Researchers, graduate students, industry professionals, and policymakers will come away with an essential understanding of how the classroom assessment context is essential to broadening contemporary educational measurement perspectives.

The Sage Handbook of Research on Classroom Assessment provides scholars, professors, graduate students, and other researchers and policy makers in the organizations, agencies, testing companies, and school districts with a comprehensive source of research on all aspects of K-12 classroom assessment. The handbook emphasizes theory, conceptual frameworks, and all varieties of research (quantitative, qualitative, mixed methods) to provide an in-depth understanding of the knowledge base in each area of classroom assessment and how to conduct inquiry in the area. It presents classroom assessment research to convey, in depth, the state of knowledge and understanding that is represented by the research, with particular emphasis on how classroom assessment practices affect student achieventment and teacher behavior. Editor James H. McMillan and five Associate Editors bring the best thinking and analysis from leading classroom assessment researchers on the nature of the research, making significant contributions to this prominent and hotly debated topic in education.

Grounded in the constructivist inquiry approach to science teaching and learning, Essentials of Science Classroom Assessment bridges science assessment research and practice, and connects science assessment and learning. This book will help students in science methods courses to develop essential skills in conducting science assessment to support student learning. The chapters parallel a typical structure of a science methods course, making the integration of this text into a science methods course seamless. Due to its practical and concise nature, this book is also ideal for practicing science teachers to use as a professional development resource.

This book focuses where assessment has greatest relevance—the classroom. A great deal of research related to assessment is focused on ‘the testing industry’, high-stakes language proficiency testing, and related analytical and statistical reports that are far removed from teachers’ and students’ experiences in the classroom. Recently, more attention has been paid to assessment in language classrooms and the many challenges that teachers face in both measuring and promoting student learning. This book contributes to the body of knowledge related to teacher assessment competence, and how it is manifested in the decisions they make about assessment procedures and instruments in their classes. Focused on specific challenges related to classroom assessment, each chapter reports on particular assessment issues faced by teachers, their choices regarding such issues, and the consequences (actual or anticipated) of their decision-making. This book will interest the thousands of teachers globally dealing with the numerous challenges associated with effective classroom assessment in language learning. This collection of teacher voices, stories, and investigations provides possible solutions to such challenges, and will serve to promote assessment literacy in the language teaching profession.

The College Classroom Assessment Compendium provides new and seasoned instructors with comprehensive strategies, perspectives, and solutions for the daily challenges and issues involved in student assessment. Composed of cross-referenced, research-based entries organized for effective and immediate access, this book provides systematic explanations of assessment policies and practices, including guidelines for classroom implementation. Situated beyond the techniques covered in most instructor training and preparation, these practical entries draw from a variety of disciplines and offer an invaluable reference for college instructors interested in developing coherent, reliable classroom assessment climates.

Using Differentiated Classroom Assessment to Enhance Student Learning introduces pre- and in-service teachers to the foundations, data use, and best practices of the DCA framework. As differentiated instruction practices increasingly enable K-12 educators to individualize learning in their classrooms, it is important that this framework be extended to assessment as well. This concise yet comprehensive book explains the science and rationale behind DCA as well as principles and strategies for both formative and summative assessments. Replete with vignettes, sample outputs, and recommendations, this is a lively and much-needed guide to understanding, enacting, and analyzing grouped and individualized assessments.

Classroom Assessment in Action clarifies the multi-faceted roles of measurement and assessment and their applications in a classroom setting. Comprehensive in scope, Shermis and Di Vesta explain basic measurement concepts and show students how to interpret the results of standardized tests. From these basic concepts, the authors then provide clear and ordered discussions of how assessment and instruction is integrated into a functional process to enhance student learning. Guidelines are set forth for constructing various common assessments. Procedures are laid out to evaluate and improve assessments once they are constructed. Ultimately, the authors shed light on the myriad of factors that impact test score interpretation. In today's classroom, technology has become a constant companion, and Classroom Assessment in Action exposes teacher candidates to emerging technologies they might encounter in building their repertoire of assessments, whether it be automated essay scoring or electronic portfolios. Classroom Assessment in Action guides its readers to a complete and thorough understanding of assessment and measurement so that they can confidently work with students and parents in explaining results, whether they are from a high-stakes statewide assessment or the grading philosophy to which they ascribe.

In analyses of the role of national educational assessment, insufficient attention has been paid to the central place of the classroom. Rather than encouraging a two-way flow of information, today's "standards-based" frameworks tend to direct the flow of accountability from the outside into the classroom. The authors of this volume emphasize that assessment, as it exists in schools today, consists mainly of the measurements that teachers themselves design, evaluate, and act upon every day. Improving the usefulness of assessment in schools primarily requires assisting and harnessing this flood of assessment information, both as a means of learning within the classroom and as the source of crucial information flowing out of classrooms. This volume aims to encourage debate and reflection among educational researchers, professionals, and policymakers. Five source chapters describe successful classroom assessment models developed in partnership with teachers, while additional commentaries give a range of perspectives on the issues of classroom assessment, standardized testing, and accountability.

"Helps administrators gain a clear vision of what excellence in assessment looks like and what it takes to achieve that vision. The specific competencies leaders need to support assessment FOR learning are identified, with activities and resources to help them learn and apply the skills. Written for use by individuals or group study."--Publisher's website.

Showcasing assessment practices that can help teachers plan effective instruction, this book addresses the real-world complexities of teaching literacy in grades K-8. Leading contributors present trustworthy approaches that examine learning processes as well as learning products, that yield information on how the learning environment can be improved, and that are conducted in the context of authentic reading and writing activities. The volume provides workable, nuts-and-bolts ideas for incorporating assessment into instruction in all major literacy domains and with diverse learners, including students in high-poverty schools and those with special learning needs. It is illustrated throughout with helpful concrete examples.

Use teacher-made tests, appropriate testing accommodations, technology-based testing, and classroom-based assessments to give students with diverse needs the opportunity to achieve!

A dynamic look at assessment and grading through the lens of differentiated instruction.

This book examines not only the assessment of student learning but the assessment of institutions, the programmes they offer, and the teaching they provide. It describes in detail the significant developments that have taken place over the last decade in the field, and clarifies the different meanings of the term assessment that are now in use.