CEC Standard 4
Beginning special education professionals use multiple methods of assessment and data-sources on making educational decisions.
Reflection of my knowledge related to the standard:
When assessing students a variety of assessments should be used. This allows student to express their understanding in different forms and gives the instructor a true perception of their knowledge. In addition to using a variety of assessments, students should be assessed often. It is important to use curriculum based measurements to monitor progress that will show students growth over time and help guide instruction. It is also important to reference the students’ IEP goals to ensure that they are making progress toward their annual goals.
Before creating assessment goals, lesson and unit objectives should be determined and students should only be assessed on these lesson objectives. While teaching, students should be assessed before, during and after instruction. Before beginning instruction a pre-assessment should be completed to see what concepts the students have prior knowledge of and what concepts will need the most instruction. During instruction formative assessments should be used to determine if the students understand the skills and concepts being taught or if re-teaching is necessary. Summative assessments should also be administered to document student growth.
Just as important is to remember to individualize assessment, instruction, and even the way we kept data for each student. For example, what works with one student with Autism may not work with all the rest. A single standardized test will not tell us everything we need to know about a student. Multiple assessments and measures must be taken across various areas.
Through course work and my intense field experience, I have learned that assessments reflect what our students have learned, what they still need to learn, and how fast they are learning. Assessment data will also show when a particular method may not be working for a student and the teacher needs to make a change. Data collection isn't always the easiest thing to do when you get busy, but it is one of the most important things to do. Without it we have nothing concrete to base our decisions off of.
There are various types of data teachers can use depending on what they are trying to measure. For example, if I want to see how often a student exhibits a particular behavior I would use frequency data. However, if I wanted to see how long the behavior occurred I would use duration data.
Through my practical experience, I now understand that using a variety of assessments before, during, and after, instruction will help me gain knowledge about the student’s performance as well as provide information about the quality of my own instruction. I have found that it is essential to gather student background information in order to effectively teach and accommodate to any need. I’ve also realize that it is important to use non-bias assessments when formally or informally assessing students.
Artifact(s) that Demonstrates my Knowledge Related to the Standard:
P-2
The following is the personal care section of the I-STAR assessment. This assessment is intended to be used to assess preschool students at entrance to preschool, exit from preschool, and every birthday in between. It can also be used for students with disabilities as an alternative testing instrument as well as a progress monitoring tool, and rated more than once per year. Students do not actually “take” I-STAR. The assessment utilizes ratings of student evidence by professionals and family members who know the child best.
The following is the personal care section of the I-STAR assessment. This assessment is intended to be used to assess preschool students at entrance to preschool, exit from preschool, and every birthday in between. It can also be used for students with disabilities as an alternative testing instrument as well as a progress monitoring tool, and rated more than once per year. Students do not actually “take” I-STAR. The assessment utilizes ratings of student evidence by professionals and family members who know the child best.
personal_care_-_istar-kr_with_months.docx | |
File Size: | 36 kb |
File Type: | docx |
3-6
This paper outlines the initial assessments that I administered with the student I tutored in reading for 8 weeks. The paper explains the type of assessments I used to collect data about the student’s level of performance at the start of the targeted instruction. I was able to use the information from these assessments to establish a baseline of where the students started. Then I used the same assessments to measure the student change as a result of the tutoring sessions.
This paper outlines the initial assessments that I administered with the student I tutored in reading for 8 weeks. The paper explains the type of assessments I used to collect data about the student’s level of performance at the start of the targeted instruction. I was able to use the information from these assessments to establish a baseline of where the students started. Then I used the same assessments to measure the student change as a result of the tutoring sessions.
initial_assessment.docx | |
File Size: | 22 kb |
File Type: | docx |
7-12
This infographic depicts the opinions of students, parents and teachers that I talked to about their feelings on high stake assessment such as I-Step. I learned that most students felt that these test were stupid and parents found them to be stressful for their children. On the other hand, Principals and teacher didn’t feel as if the information was useful in guiding instruction. All agreed that assessments can be a useful tool to help guide instruction and help understand what the student knows and what the student still needs to learn. I concluded that as a future teacher it is best to use multiple means of assessments that are relevant to what the student is learning, that provide immediate feedback and help guide instruction.-
This infographic depicts the opinions of students, parents and teachers that I talked to about their feelings on high stake assessment such as I-Step. I learned that most students felt that these test were stupid and parents found them to be stressful for their children. On the other hand, Principals and teacher didn’t feel as if the information was useful in guiding instruction. All agreed that assessments can be a useful tool to help guide instruction and help understand what the student knows and what the student still needs to learn. I concluded that as a future teacher it is best to use multiple means of assessments that are relevant to what the student is learning, that provide immediate feedback and help guide instruction.-