The focus for EDAT 6115 this week was
on formative and summative assessments within the classroom. In Chapter 14 Slavin
guides in how to identify the different types of standardized tests and their uses.
The chapter also addresses issues that are related to standardized testing and
the various in-class testing. Slavin also discusses how teachers can be held
accountable for their students’ achievements on assessments. Lastly, Slavin describes
how knowledge of standardized tests and accountability can inform the
intentional teacher. (Slavin, 2020)
Analysis
Slavin
begins with a teacher conference with parents to discuss standardized
assessment scores and share the student’s portfolio. Slavin (2020) states that “Taken
together, cautiously interpreted standardized tests, grades, portfolios of
work, and other classroom assessments provide a good picture of Anita’s performance”(p.392).
Slavin continues by reminding the reader that each type of assessment has
some value and can assist teachers in evaluating the student and making
decisions for educational purposes. (Slavin, 2020)
A
standardized test is given under conditions that would be the same in each
classroom. Most have a script for the test monitor/teacher to read to ensure
that all students receive the same instruction for the assessment. The students
who take the test would be similar most likely in age or grade level. The test publisher
can establish norms based on scores because the conditions and questions for the
assessment are the same, or standardized. (Slavin, 2020)
Many
standardized tests are used to compare groups of or individual students with each
other. This allows students, parents, teachers, administrators, and other stakeholders to determine if the students are making adequate progress and their
performance levels of the students. (Slavin, 2020)
Slavin
reminds us that there are some important functions surrounding standardized
assessments. Those functions can include “placement, diagnosis, evaluation, and
school improvement” (Slavin, 2020, p. 393). Placement refers to the placement
of students in select programs such as gifted, special education, or college
entrance. Diagnosis is usually about students with learning problems
and determining strengths and weaknesses as well as specific learning disabilities
that may be present. Evaluation can be about student progress,
teacher progress, or school progress. “For individual students, standardized
test scores are meaningful in evaluation only if you use them along with other
information” (Slavin, 2020, p. 394). In other words, the teacher could also
provide portfolio information and classroom grades and test scores, or other
standardized assessments to gain the whole picture of student performance.
School improvement is another area where standardized assessment is used to determine
if a school is performing well, the types of school counseling needed, as well as
creating action plans for the school year. (Slavin, 2020)
There
are a few common types of standardized tests that are given. Aptitude tests,
norm0referenced achievement tests, and criterion-referenced achievement tests
are the most typical types of standardized assessments given. Achievement tests
can be used to make predictions about student performance, diagnose student
difficulties in specific areas, they can serve as a formative assessment for
student progress, and serve as a summative test of student learning. (Slavin,
2020)
A
norm-referenced test is an assessment that tests the students’ knowledge of
specific content areas such as reading or math. These norms are taken from representative
groups of similar ages, grades, and settings, and compared to other students.
These tests are used nationwide to compare groups of students, so the range of
questions is not wide. (Slavin, 2020)
Criterion-referenced will assess students’ knowledge of content areas such as math or
reading. However, these assessments do not compare students against other
students or national norms. Criterion-referenced assessments are measuring how
much a student has mastered specific skills in those content areas. (Slavin,
2020)
A
general-intelligence test is also known as an Intelligent quotient (IQ) test. This measure a wide range of mental characteristics and skills. Some of the areas
measured include memory, knowledge, vocabulary, and problem-solving. Typically,
IQ is measured using the child’s age divided by the mental age and multiplied
by 100. This score has a mean of 100 with a standard deviation of 15. Typically,
IQ for average intelligence will range from 85 to 115. (Slavin, 2020) Above-average would be anywhere above 115 and could indicate possible giftedness.
Below average would be anywhere below 85 and could possibly indicate learning
disabilities and a need for special education.
An
achievement battery is a standardized assessment that is used to measure
individuals or groups in a wide variety of subject areas. The National Assessment
of Educational Progress (NAEP) is one such test used to “measure the growth of all
students in the United States on reading, math, science, and writing” (Slavin,
2020, p. 396). The NAEP is given about every two years for math and reading.
Criterion-referenced assessments can also be in the form of a battery, diagnostic, or
single-subject test. These assessments differ from other achievement assessments
in the way in which they are scored. These assessments would be used to
determine who can do the specific content or skills, not measure the
percentages or percentiles of students. (Slavin, 2020) Georgia used to give a
criterion-referenced assessment for their state testing called the Criterion-Referenced
Competency Tests (CRCT). Georgia now gives the Georgia Milestones assessment which
is actually a comprehensive summative assessment.
Standardized
tests are interpreted based on the raw scores or the derived scores such as
percentile or grade equivalent scores. A percentile score will compare a group of
students in rank order with the rank of 50 being the mean. Grade equivalent (GE)
scores compare students using scores such as 4.3 to state 4th-grade 3rd month. This does not mean that a student in 3rd grade
could skip a grade level based on the GE score. Another type of score is a
standard score. This would measure according to positions on a normal curve.
(Slavin, 2020)
Some
issues that arise with standardized testing come from the No Child Left Behind
(NCLB) and the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) education laws. This causes
issues with accountability in the areas of abuse to the testing set,
standards, and other testing-related areas. (Slavin, 2020) To ensure
standardized tests are used for their purposes validity and reliability are
important. Validity refers to the relevance of the test for the intended purpose.
Reliability refers to the accuracy of how knowledge and skills are measured. A
test can be reliable even if it isn’t valid. If a test is not valid, it can’t
be reliable. (Slavin, 2020)
Other
issues include test bias where some students of low-income or diverse
backgrounds may not test well. Students of the middle class or white backgrounds
may tend to test better on some specific skills or have better schools to
promote instruction geared toward understanding. Sensitivity is related to bias
where some test questions could be considered stereotyping, and these types of
questions should not be used. (Slavin, 2020)
Computerized
testing is now more common in schools. A computer-adaptive assessment depends
on students' answers to questions to determine if the next question will be
harder or easier. These tests can give an accurate picture of skills that
students understand and don’t understand. Some studies have compared test scores
of papers and computer tests and shown that after the first year, computer test
scores are comparable to those on paper. (Slavin, 2020)
Testing
accommodations can be given for students with disabilities and students who are
English Learners. Some controversy is there about accommodations, however, if given
close guidelines by policymakers these accommodations do not give an added
boost to students who need them. They make the playing field more even.
(Slavin, 20200
With
ESSA, accountability, accountability goals, low-performing schools, and Title 1
funding come into play. Since the federal government provides about 7% of the
funding for public education, these policies and laws can influence states to
follow the guidelines set forth such as adopting the Common Core standards.
(Slavin, 2020)
Evidence-based
reform is where the stakeholders would use evidence-based research to make
improvements within the school or district. The school may see that students
are performing low in reading comprehension and seek evidence-based practices
or programs that can be implemented by using a clearinghouse to search for
these programs. (Slavin, 2020) Slavin (2020) states that “ESSA is encouraging
the use of programs with “strong,” “moderate,” or “promising” evidence of
effectiveness” (p. 412).
Teachers
can use data to inform their teaching. Some schools use benchmark assessments throughout the year as few as three and up to eight times to determine student progress
and what areas or skills need to be addressed. The data-driven teaching is
where the teacher uses the data from these benchmark assessments to determine
such things as small groups, and individual student conferences if a student needs
a recommendation for more assistance. The teacher can determine what skills to
work on based on the data from those assessments. (Slavin, 2020)
One
area that is key in assessments that are used for accountability is not all
schools are equal in the student input. A value-added assessment can determine
how much learning any school has added to its students. This can help them compared
to other schools using whatever baseline they need such as specific types of
students who may have more risk factors. (Slavin, 2020)
The
intentional teacher can use standardized testing to understand students'
progress in specific contents or skills. The intentional teacher will learn and
know about the intended uses of those standardized tests, and the types of tests,
and can interpret the scores. The intentional teacher can understand the
reliability and validity of a test and compare national norms. Most importantly,
the intentional teacher will “know how to use benchmark data to inform their
teaching and school planning” (Slavin, 2020, p. 418)
Reflection
I feel that it is important for me to
understand the intended use of a specific assessment. I also do feel that it is
important for me to understand if a test is reliable and valid. I also feel that
some assessments have high stakes that can veer from their intended use, and this
causes problems for students, parents, and educators.
In my classroom, I will use the county-wide benchmark assessments to let me know where my students stand compared to
other students in the school and district. However, I feel that better use of
these assessments is to let me know where I need to reteach skills and who may
need extra assistance or intervention.
I can be a better teacher by helping my students learn the skills that are in the standards. I can also use my knowledge of assessments, accountability, reliability, and validity to help me decide on the types of information that are useful in conferencing with parents and teaching my students. I will also keep a portfolio to share with parents in conjunction with standardized test scores so that the parent can be more informed about their child’s progress.
Reference
Slavin, R. E. (2020). Educational psychology: Theory and
practice (13th ed.). Pearson Education. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B088HBVY4X/ref=kinw_myk_ro_title
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