Assessment

=Using Readiness Assessment for Differentiation: = = = =As teachers, our goal is to make the curriculum accessible to all students. Differentiation makes this possible but before we can begin to differentiate, we must come to know our students. Discovering what your students already know before beginning a unit of study can be accomplished through the use of preassessments. =

__**Formal Assessment Techniques:**__
• Checklists of Skills (e.g. operations with decimals, using parts of speech) • Curriculum Quarterly Assessments • Curriculum Performance Tasks • Instructional Pre-tests (text-based or teacher made) • Portfolios • Running Records • Standardized Tests (e.g. MSA, SAT 10)

__Informal Assessment Techniques__

 *  **KWL -** K-what do the students already know? W-what do the students need and want to know? L-what did the students learn? An effective pre-assessment tool and summative evaluation tool to measure the level of understanding at the end of unit. Many teachers use the L part as an open-ended question on an exam allowing the students to share the depth of knowledge that was gained in the unit of study.

 **Yes/No Cards –** Students make a card with Yes (or Got It) on one side, No (No clue) on the opposite side. Teachers ask an introductory or review question. Students who know the answer hold up the Yes card, if they don’t know the answer they hold the No card. This is very effective to use when introducing vocabulary words that students need as a knowledge base for a specific unit of study.

** SA/A/D/SD ** – Students are given to opportunity to formulate their own views and opinions along a continuum rather than dialectically. Given an issue (similar to those outlined above) students are asked to consider the topic and determine whether they strongly agree (SA), agree (A), disagree (d), or strongly disagree (SD) with the statement. They are then asked to move to the appropriate station in the classroom identified with one of the options. A class discussion follows as students are given the opportunity to outline and defend their positions, refute the arguments of others as well as re-evaluate their own ideas.

**Squaring Off –** Place a card in each corner of the room with the following phrases: Dirt Road, Paved Road, Highway and Yellow Brick Road. Instruct the students to go to the corner of the room that matches where they are in the new unit of study. Students go to the corner of the room and as a group, discuss what they know about the topic.

**Turn & Talk-** During a lesson, there may be opportunities to have the students do a turn & talk activity for a few minutes. This allows students to talk about the information presented or shared and to clarify thoughts or questions. This is an effective alternate strategy to asking questions to the whole group and having the same students responding. All students have a chance to talk in a non-threatening situation for a short period of time. ||

[|Pre-Assessment Options: Every Pupil Response Chart]