Assessments shouldn’t be “an event”

As our State assessments come to a close I have had some time to reflect on all of the controversy surrounding this year’s exams. I think it really comes down to the fact that we all are guilty of placing too much emphasis on one single exam. More importantly, the State exam will never measure the Common Core as accurately as a teacher can. Therein lies the most important work we have as a school district; how do we measure student work on Common Core standards that accurately aligns with the State exam. If we do this work correctly there should be a strong correlation between report card grades and the grade a child receives on the State exam. The conversations among teachers, students and parents would be very different. Everyday assignments and homework need to focus on specific standards. Rubric need to become more commonplace and students need to be perfectly clear about the skills and competencies they need to master to move from one level to the next. Consider this 4th grade rubric for Reading for Literacy.

Standard	Description	Level 4	Level 3	Level 2	Level 1
RL.4.3	Describe in depth a character, setting or event in a story or drama, drawing on specific details in the text (e.g., a character’s thoughts, words, or actions).	Provides an elaborate description of the setting using many specific details and descriptive language from the text.	Provides an adequate description of the setting using details from the text.	Provides a basic description of the setting using a few details from the text.	Uses little or no details to describe the setting of the story.

Teachers need multiple “data points” of student work to demonstrate what level a child is performing. “Data points” are achieved by teachers assessing students. Not once or twice but consistently and objectively. The rubrics create the basis for the conversation. Discussion and samples of ‘elaborate vs. adequate’ will allow students to see the specific areas needed to move between levels. Assessments aren’t events; they are common occurrences that provide meaningful information to improve student achievement. Next year we will begin this monumental shift. Our elementary report cards will reflect grades in standards. This will not be easy, but through a collaborative effort I am confident we will create an exceptional system hat accurately depicts student work.