Assessments. I dread them, and I think we all dread them as educators. The assessment that concerns me the most is the state assessment. It can determine if we do not make AYP that we will fall into the different levels of improvement. It feels as though with the emphasis on passing the state assessment that much of the joy of teaching has slipped away.
It's a shame to think that for me from January until April, I am thinking about preparing my students for the MAP test. We are continually doing practice writing and reading exercises. We are reviewing math skills. I feel as though so much time is actually wasted because I am in a panic to prepare them. I realize now that I may be causing a detriment to my students.
In reading this chapter, it shed some light on how to prepare for assessments. On page 245, it states that "high achievement and high test scores result when what is tested is woven into daily teaching and challenging curriculum in a relevant manner." I think that I need to take a step back and realize that in order to prepare my students for The Test, I need to actually stop preparing them. My students will do fine if we work all year on the skills they need to learn and if they have lots of practice writing.
I do have my students write a lot throughout the year. I make it a point to have them write every single day, but I don't grade their work. Because of the grading system my district uses, it seems pointless to actually grade their work. I realize now that perhaps I do not need to grade it, but I need to assess it. My students and I need to develop criteria for how their work should look when they go through the writing process. I think that the students will be better writers if they think about basic guidelines for their writing. One of my goals in my professional development plan is to improve self-assessment for the students. I think that having the students self-assess their work will also improve their writing.
I think that with these goals, the students will not feel the anxiety of the MAP test, but more importantly, i think that I can relax and focus on preparing my students in a more constructive manner.
Comments by: Jacinda
ReplyDeleteI like how you worded the fact that you should stop preparing your class for tests, they will do fine. I wish I had that much confidence in my class. I know they would do fine, but I would feel horrible if they didn’t. Sometimes I am too hard on myself. I practice and kill for the assessments and once I get the scores, I look and try to figure out what I could do better. I just want my kids to succeed!
In my district we MAP at the beginning of the year (Sept), State test in March/April, then MAP test at the end in April/ May. My whole year is made up of testing. I just need to try and relax and trust in my own teaching ability. After all, I wouldn’t have a license if I couldn’t teach?