2.7 Assessment
Candidates model and facilitate the effective use of diagnostic, formative, and summative assessments to measure student learning and technology literacy, including the use of digital assessment tools and resources. (PSC 2.7/ISTE 2g)
Artifact: Data Inventory
Reflection:
In this field experience, I worked with our school’s Curriculum Support Teacher (CST) and principal to identify and take inventory of the various student data sources available to our school, including digital and online assessments, as well as a “wish list” of data. In taking this inventory, I realized that we have several sources of data, yet we as a school tend to prioritize the district- and state-level sources of data. This was very enlightening, because as a music teacher I am not involved with a majority of these data sources. I then reflected on each data source and examined ways we can use them more effectively to improve student achievement. In creating the data wish list, we thought of ways to collect data that might highlight otherwise unknown divisions among students in order to then identify potential achievement gaps within those groups and start working towards closing those achievement gaps.
This artifact demonstrates my ability to effectively use diagnostic, formative, and summative assessments because one of the major objectives and outcomes of creating the data inventory was to reflect on methods for using exiting data sources even more effectively to improve student achievement. For example, the Progress Skills Checklists (PSCLs) discussed in the data inventory is both a diagnostic and formative assessment that is currently being used at our school simply to identify skill level based on specific standards. However, in the data inventory I suggested that a more effective use of this assessment would be to use the data to monitor success of various instructional solutions for particular students. Additionally, my reflection of the Criterion-Referenced Competency Test (CRCT) as a summative assessment in the data inventory showed that we as a school were only using broad scores to identify broad subject areas in need of improvement and to compare school’s achievement with others in the district/state. However, I suggested in the data inventory that we could use CRCT data more effectively if we examined disaggregated scores by various student groups to identify achievement gaps to then develop strategies to close achievement gaps. This artifact demonstrates my ability to use these assessments to measure student learning as I carefully reflected not only on how these many assessments are being used to measure student learning now, but also how they could be used even more effectively to measure student learning in the future by systematically analyzing that data, interpreting results, communicating findings, and implementing appropriate interventions to improve instructional practice and maximize student learning from these various instructional initiatives. This artifact demonstrates how I would measure technology literacy because I included student technology literacy and teacher technology literacy in the “data wish list” area of the data inventory. For example, I would use and/or create measures such as an original Google Form or an existing online assessment to measure students’ and teachers’ technology literacy and proficiency as they relate to the specific skills and knowledge required for each grade level and to satisfy the NETS-S and NETS-T. This artifact also demonstrates my ability to both model and facilitate the effective use of these various types of assessments, as I have gone through and modeled the most effective uses for these assessments. This data inventory, then, can be used to help facilitate this effective use with other teachers.
From completing the data inventory, I learned about many different assessment measures taking place at our school that I did not previously know existed. For example, I had never heard of the Georgia Kindergarten Inventory of Developing Skills (GKIDS) assessment prior to working with other school personnel to complete this inventory. Learning about all these different assessments also made me realize more than ever that our school heavily relies on the summative state evaluations to inform overall instruction, even though there are several more data sources that we could and should be using to corroborate this data. Additionally, the work that went into developing the data inventory, specifically the “More Effective Use” section, was certainly a thought exercise that can be applied to any future assessments to assure that they, too, are being used as effectively as possible. If I were to complete the data inventory again, I would probably want to talk to at least one representative from each grade level to make sure there were not any additional data sources missing from the inventory. I would also want to include specific assessments we could use, or ways we can use existing assessments, to measure student and teacher technology literacy.
The purpose of this data inventory was to list all data sources available to our school, reflect on how those data are being used, and create suggestions for more effective ways to systematically analyze that data, interpret results, communicate findings, and implement appropriate interventions to improve instructional practice and maximize student learning from these various instructional initiatives. This data inventory, then, could have an impact both on student learning as well as overall school improvement for using data sources. The student learning improvement can be assessed by the very data sources already being used. The overall school improvement can be measured by anecdotal data such as conversations with teachers and data teams to see if the data is in fact being used more effectively.
In this field experience, I worked with our school’s Curriculum Support Teacher (CST) and principal to identify and take inventory of the various student data sources available to our school, including digital and online assessments, as well as a “wish list” of data. In taking this inventory, I realized that we have several sources of data, yet we as a school tend to prioritize the district- and state-level sources of data. This was very enlightening, because as a music teacher I am not involved with a majority of these data sources. I then reflected on each data source and examined ways we can use them more effectively to improve student achievement. In creating the data wish list, we thought of ways to collect data that might highlight otherwise unknown divisions among students in order to then identify potential achievement gaps within those groups and start working towards closing those achievement gaps.
This artifact demonstrates my ability to effectively use diagnostic, formative, and summative assessments because one of the major objectives and outcomes of creating the data inventory was to reflect on methods for using exiting data sources even more effectively to improve student achievement. For example, the Progress Skills Checklists (PSCLs) discussed in the data inventory is both a diagnostic and formative assessment that is currently being used at our school simply to identify skill level based on specific standards. However, in the data inventory I suggested that a more effective use of this assessment would be to use the data to monitor success of various instructional solutions for particular students. Additionally, my reflection of the Criterion-Referenced Competency Test (CRCT) as a summative assessment in the data inventory showed that we as a school were only using broad scores to identify broad subject areas in need of improvement and to compare school’s achievement with others in the district/state. However, I suggested in the data inventory that we could use CRCT data more effectively if we examined disaggregated scores by various student groups to identify achievement gaps to then develop strategies to close achievement gaps. This artifact demonstrates my ability to use these assessments to measure student learning as I carefully reflected not only on how these many assessments are being used to measure student learning now, but also how they could be used even more effectively to measure student learning in the future by systematically analyzing that data, interpreting results, communicating findings, and implementing appropriate interventions to improve instructional practice and maximize student learning from these various instructional initiatives. This artifact demonstrates how I would measure technology literacy because I included student technology literacy and teacher technology literacy in the “data wish list” area of the data inventory. For example, I would use and/or create measures such as an original Google Form or an existing online assessment to measure students’ and teachers’ technology literacy and proficiency as they relate to the specific skills and knowledge required for each grade level and to satisfy the NETS-S and NETS-T. This artifact also demonstrates my ability to both model and facilitate the effective use of these various types of assessments, as I have gone through and modeled the most effective uses for these assessments. This data inventory, then, can be used to help facilitate this effective use with other teachers.
From completing the data inventory, I learned about many different assessment measures taking place at our school that I did not previously know existed. For example, I had never heard of the Georgia Kindergarten Inventory of Developing Skills (GKIDS) assessment prior to working with other school personnel to complete this inventory. Learning about all these different assessments also made me realize more than ever that our school heavily relies on the summative state evaluations to inform overall instruction, even though there are several more data sources that we could and should be using to corroborate this data. Additionally, the work that went into developing the data inventory, specifically the “More Effective Use” section, was certainly a thought exercise that can be applied to any future assessments to assure that they, too, are being used as effectively as possible. If I were to complete the data inventory again, I would probably want to talk to at least one representative from each grade level to make sure there were not any additional data sources missing from the inventory. I would also want to include specific assessments we could use, or ways we can use existing assessments, to measure student and teacher technology literacy.
The purpose of this data inventory was to list all data sources available to our school, reflect on how those data are being used, and create suggestions for more effective ways to systematically analyze that data, interpret results, communicate findings, and implement appropriate interventions to improve instructional practice and maximize student learning from these various instructional initiatives. This data inventory, then, could have an impact both on student learning as well as overall school improvement for using data sources. The student learning improvement can be assessed by the very data sources already being used. The overall school improvement can be measured by anecdotal data such as conversations with teachers and data teams to see if the data is in fact being used more effectively.