ANALYSIS AND ATTRIBUTES OF APPROPRIATE ASSESSMENTS Coastal Carolina University

Assessments  They must be valid: Does the assessment measure the appropriate content?  Reliable: Does the assessment produce a consistent results for similar students and across similar conditions?  Rigorous: Does the assessment require students to demonstrate the appropriate level of knowledge, skill, or understanding?

Assessments Continued  Comparable  The level of comparability between teachers’ SLOs will depend on the district process for choosing assessments.  The pre-and post-assessments should be comparable for each teacher’s SLO.  Are the pre-and post-assessments the same or same type of assessment? If they are different, are the pre-and post-assessments clearly aligned in terms of their content, form complexity, and scoring?

Timeliness  Are the data available in time to be used at all relevant points in the SLO cycle?  Example: teacher made test data vs. state mandated tests.  Does the district have an assessment that is valid, reliable, rigorous, comparable, and timely?  Does the district have assessments that are only used for formative purposes at this time?

Considerations: New Assessments  Teacher created tests need to ensure validity, reliability, rigor, and comparability.  Commercial: Need to ensure alignment with the scope and sequence of the SLO content standards  Problem: District resources

Assessments to Consider  Early Education: DIBELS, Fountas and Pinnell, running records, RTI assessments  Middle and High School Content Courses: Course final exams, unit exams, End of Course Tests  Arts and Performance Courses: final projects, performances, portfolios  Career and Technical Courses: final projects, performances, commercial industry-based assessments

Data Analysis Process  Identify and Gather Baseline Data:  Is there a pre-assessment that is aligned to the post-assessment?  Are there clear groups (tiers) of students? If so what are they?  Where is this kind of data accessible in the district?  Discuss or reflect on the “snapshot” the baseline data provides for a student. Is the data sufficient enough to set growth targets?

Identify and Gather Trend Data  Test scores from prior years  Current and past grades  Formative assessment data from this year and previous years, including running records  Reading and math conferences  Data to inform the student population section, such as attendance records or 504 plans  Results from diagnostic assessments  Districts can give guidance on what kind of data teachers should include in their SLO

Process Continued  Meaningful Baseline and Trend Data Should:  Describe students in terms of groups or tiers  Describe student performance over time  Inform growth targets  Inform instructional strategies

Data Analysis Process  Analyze the data and look for trends:  Are there clear groups of students? If so, are they the same groups represented in the baseline data? Are there some students whose performance has changed or been inconsistent in the last year or two?  How are students performing overall? Are most students consistently demonstrating proficiency?  What kind of growth have students been making? Have students been consistently meeting or missing expectations?

Resources for Assessment Literacy    inform-teaching-rebecca-alber  ment.html   Baseline-Data-and-Information_ pdf