9) Ongoing formative assessment of students, which is informal, often daily assessment of how students are progressing under current instructional practices
Ongoing assessment should be happening all during the school day, perhaps even before and after. Formative means that it should inform the instruction that takes place in the classroom. I believe that Conley is saying we should use informal assessment to determine if our instructional practices are effective. If not, we must remember the $6,000 words, adjust and adapt. As teachers, we should constantly reflect on our practice and if instruction is not working, adjust lesson strategies and adapt them to the current lesson content. This may include reteaching to the entire classroom, or giving additional instruction to a small group or individual.
Assessment does not have to include a test. Informative instruction can include conversations with students, observations, or review of classroom work. Reflecting on these informal assessments gives the teacher an opportunity to individualize and differentiate instruction. Just plain ol' good teaching.
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Amanda, I really agree with you here. Assessment is so much more than testing. I like the idea of using assessment to guide what we are doing, because isn't that the whole purpose of teaching? It's not just teaching a lesson, giving an assignment, and then giving a grade. When we do this, it puts the focus of education on the teacher: it's all about whether the student understood the teacher's lesson.
ReplyDeleteWhen we use assessment correctly, we can insure that our students learn what they need to learn and meet objectives.
Great post.