What I Know

What I Want to Learn

What I Learned

 Assessment and measurement offer a more objective and consistent support for instructional decisions.

Statistical data gathered from item analyses can be used to improve teaching and do away with knowledge gaps.

 

How do I determine if the assessment is appropriate for identification of knowledge gaps?

Should I alter the assessments provided by the textbook publisher, because of past common mistakes in student responses?

Item analysis offers a good support identification of knowledge gaps.

All given assessments should be checked by the teacher prior to administration, because often textbook questions may prove to be confusing for students. Instructions may not be clear, and teachers can clarify these issues before students begin the exam.

I should never assume that the book’s assessments and answers are always right. I discovered that through checking the assessment problems in advance, so I could correct the mistakes and retain the validity of the test.

Increasing the feedback helps students mostly if they use it after feedback was given, and not by just letting them know what was wrong in their work.

A post-test can integrate the feedback very well.

Assessing student prior math knowledge at the beginning of each chapter helps teachers streamline what subject matter needs to be taught and emphasized.

Student performance increases if they have the necessary basic knowledge and terminology for new topics.

How can I integrate the pre-assessment results into my lesson plans efficiently?

Have the students acquired the necessary math knowledge and skills needed to learn each new topic?

 

I should never assume that students have the necessary knowledge for new topics.
 
A short open-ended assessment, prior to a new topic, reveals whether I need to spend more time on reviewing the skills needed for new topics. Open-ended pre-assessment is preferable to a multiple-choice one, because guessing can be an influential factor. In this way, students become familiar with the required terminology and procedures, and this helps remove the effects of their previous knowledge gaps.

Students become more involved in the learning process and are less likely to become passive and eventually give-up, when the basics are known.

A complex-performance assessment requires students to use higher order thinking skills and improves long term retention, as it eliminates the possibility of guessing offered by a multiple choice test.

Students perform better when they know what their specific expectations are, and the manner in which they are evaluated.

 

Am I clear enough for students concerning my class expectations?

How can I do a complex-performance assessment very objectively and fairly?

By developing a scoring rubric, students can see what is expected from them in order to earn a high or low grade.

I should not assume that students can determine on the manner in which to perform the assessment.

Ample and sequential directions must be given to students, especially when the assessment is of a new kind.

The time bestowed for the completion of assessments should be taken into consideration, because the intent is to measure their math knowledge; not how fast they solve the problems.

Time pressures lower the assessment’s validity.

Other teachers will be able to make suggestions for rubric improvement.

Students need to take responsibility for their own academic performance

How can I increase student responsibility for learning to the greatest extent?

The student reflection could bring viable suggestions for needed assessment changes for its betterment. Once these suggestions are implemented, students feel that they have a say in their assessment process and take more responsibility over their learning.

Responsibility increases with the use of rubrics, because students improve their own self-assessment methods.