Philosophy of Assessment
in Teaching
All educators are working toward a common objective: to enhance the knowledge of their students. Prior to actually teaching the students, the educator must plan his or her course of action. One should begin by determining the content that he or she wishes to share with the students, making sure that this content aligns with specific state standards and local benchmarks.
Once the content is selected, the teacher must begin to plan for the lessons. It is helpful to plan with the end in mind. Many times, it will be beneficial to work backwards while planning. A teacher could begin with the outcome that he or she wishes to attain; then, an end-of-unit assessment tool could be created. During that process, the teacher should determine the appropriate lessons that would allow the class to discuss the material. Upon successful completion of the assessment measure, the teacher would probably begin to plan individual lessons. After successfully completing the lesson plans, the instruction can begin.
While teaching, the educator should try to keep the goal in mind. During each instructional lesson, the teacher should be continually assessing the students, checking for understanding. This assessment phase could be as simple as informal question-and-answer sessions, mini exit quizzes, or a variety of other quick assessments. The assessment would allow the teacher to reflect upon the lesson and re-examine areas that might need further clarification and explanation.
While teaching the lessons, the teacher may implement a variety of evaluative techniques. Homework might be used to evaluate the student’s comprehension upon the completion of an instructional lesson. The instructor may also employ a type of pretest and posttest method to indicate student gains of information. The pretest shouldn’t be used as a grading tool, but the two tests together suggest growth. The posttest could be used to obtain a grade with any other evaluative criteria that the teacher employs. Testing could take the form of a multiple-choice test, true-false, matching, short-answer, fill-in-the-blank, essay, or an alternative type of performance task.
Teachers should use daily assessment techniques and routine evaluative criteria to reflect upon their teaching. This kind of information could help to indicate how well the material is being taught. The results might cause a teacher to completely change how he or she is teaching, or to continue on exactly as planned.
Throughout this period of time, the teacher acts as a guide, sharing information at a gradual pace. However, the teacher should also act as a facilitator, giving the students the opportunity to work with the information that they are learning. This could be done using class work, homework, or a variety of other activities.
Each teacher will have a different set of materials and technology available to him or her. Most teachers will probably have some sort of textbook and an overhead projector, white board, or chalkboard. Some districts will have other types of technology as well, such as computers, LCD projectors, PDAs, document cameras, and so on. Each teacher must assess his or her individual situation and use the available materials accordingly.
No matter what kinds of technology and materials are accessible, a classroom should be arranged so that it is student-friendly and encourages learning. Each teacher has his or her own style of teaching, and every room should be arranged to accommodate the teacher’s style and the learning styles of the students. Classroom setup is very important for the flow of activities and information. It is important to remember that each “class” of students will learn differently, so an arrangement that works this year may have to be adjusted to fit the students next year.
Students should be actively engaged in each learning experience. This isn’t to say that the lessons aren’t often teacher-led, but at some point, the students should be able to use and apply the new information that they are learning. As students apply the information, the teacher could assess what the students will need next.
An exemplary teacher will take all of these ideas into account as he or she prepares. Planning, classroom arrangement, interaction, and flexibility all influence the amount of learning that takes place within the classroom. Thus the instructor would use his or her planning as a “map” to direct classroom activities. Room arrangement can benefit student interactions. Student involvement would influence assessment; that, in turn, would influence future teaching and would allow the teacher to monitor student growth and assign grades.
As teachers strive to achieve their goal of enhancing student knowledge, rather than simply covering content, they will use this philosophy of assessment to guide all learning experiences. With the students in mind, the teacher will construct his or her lessons and assessments so that the students’ best interest is maintained.