Through the many semesters in which I have been observing, I have always been curious to see how teachers share assessments of student work with parents. I have seen teachers hand back the graded assessments and require students to get that work signed and brought back to school. I believe this can be difficult because parents can lose track of the many tests their child has taken throughout the week. This year in my 1st-grade class, I have taken note of the fact that my cooperating teacher keeps all the assessments from the week together and every Monday the students are given their red assessment folders in which the students will find their graded assessments taken the previous week. These assessments consist of: math, comprehension, and spelling tests. The teacher will attach notes for the parents to the folders. These notes let the parent know whether a child struggled more than usual on a test, or how they behaved while the test was being administered. The students are to show the red folder to their parents and get each test signed. This enables the parents to view their child’s performance over the past week and to receive teacher input as well. My cooperating teacher will then take all the tests back and file them in the student’s individual folders in order to see their growth over the school year.
What are the different ways you have seen teachers hand back assessments in order for parents to see their child’s performance? Does the teacher just give the tests back after they are graded? How does your teacher grade the assessments? For example, my cooperating teacher does everything out of 100%?
What types of assessments have you seen so far in your observations this semester? How you do feel about every assessment being shown to the parents? What do you prefer, all tests for the week shown at once or one test at a time?
During my past visits in different schools, I have seen some teachers tell students to place their assessments or tests in their take-home folders for parents to check them over. I have also seen other teachers hold onto the tests for some time as well. My cooperating teacher this semester makes sure to keep track of their academic progress, as she keeps a file of their test scores. She grades her students’ tests by scoring out of 100 for her own grading purposes. For the students to clearly comprehend, she may state how many are incorrect out of a certain number of problems.
ReplyDeleteAt the beginning of the semester, I was able to see the 2nd graders take their first math tests. Other forms of assessments that I have seen include the observing and monitoring of the students' participation on an individual level, within small group discussion, and as a whole group discussion. I was able to see both formative and summative assessments take place within the classroom. I believe there is not currently an issue with assessments being shown to parents because my cooperating teacher has established a positive relationship with them. She makes sure to contact the caregivers of her students through email or phone call whenever necessary. As a teacher, I personally would like the tests to be shown to parents one test at a time so that they are aware of their child's academic progress throughout the year. I find that it is important for the child’s caregiver to see their tests because it encourages support for their academic achievement.
-Maria DiSpigna
While observing in various classrooms, I have mostly seen two different methods of how teachers hand the students back their tests. The first is the teacher just handing the student back their test or graded work and having them bring it home in their take home folder to show their parents. The second is the teacher handing the student an assessment folder in which all of their graded assignments for the week are. The student receives this folder on a Friday and is to return the signed folder on Monday of the following week. I have seen some teachers ask for a signature on every test but have also seen a teaching requesting a signature on a failed test or assignment. I have also had a teacher who would grade the tests and hand them back to the student and did not care much if the student showed their parent but the students had to show their parent a failed assignment and receive a signature from them to show that they did see the paper. My cooperating teacher grades out of 100% but then also gives a letter grade for tests depending on the percentage. For homework, she mostly looks for completion rather than giving a grade for the homework. My cooperating teacher also marks the question wrong if they get it wrong and she expects for her students to look back and see what they got wrong and the reasoning as to why they got the answer wrong. This helps them to improve and understand their own thinking process.
ReplyDeleteI have seen both formative and summative assessments during this semester of observation. The teacher uses observations to assess whether the student is understanding the specific topic and if not then she can explain the information in a way that they will understand. My cooperating teacher uses reviews before tests to see if the students have a grasp of the concept before taking the test for that unit. I think it is important that parents see their child’s assessments and my cooperating teacher agrees. I do not see any issues with assessments taking place within the classroom. I would personally want to have an assessment folder that collects the tests and assignments for that week. I think it makes everything very organized and the parents can easily follow along every week. It also would provide the family enough time to look over the grades and discuss if need be. The student will have ample time to get a signature from their parent when the folders are given out on Friday and are to be brought back the following Monday.
-Erin Flohr
This is the first semester that I have seen one of my cooperating teachers address grades in the classroom. This semester, my teacher gives out weekly reports every Friday. The weekly report consists of different things: how the student was behaving in the classroom, whether they were on task and respectful, whether or not they completed all of their "homework", and on the back is their assessment scores.
ReplyDeleteSince my teacher does this method, any graded assignments or assessments are sent home Friday afternoons, and all the teacher wants back on Monday morning is the weekly report signed by a parent. Students are allowed to keep their graded work at home.
The way my teacher has her assessments set up is unique: their spelling tests are on paper, vocabulary tests are completed on Google classroom, the only reading assessment I have seen is the benchmark reading test, and social studies and science is only based on mini-projects. The majority of assessments conducted are formative, which is collected through homework/classwork assignments, daily vocabulary questions, and her own observations.
I think there is nothing wrong with showing assessments to the parents. In fact, it should be done by all teachers. Assessments are not the only way to indicate student progress, but it is one excellent way to do so. There's so much talk about parents needing to be involved in their child's education and this is one of the many ways that can be achieved.
Last year my cooperating teacher would send students home with a Friday Folder. In that folder, all the students' tests and quizzes from that week were in the folder and parents were expected to sign a log that was attached in the folder, acknowledging that they had seen all the students' tests and reviewed them with their child. This year, on the otherhand, my cooperating teacher grades tests and sends them home that same day, or as soon as she grades them.
ReplyDeleteMy cooperating teacher grades her assessments based on the number of questions. For example, the students take a spelling test every week, and their spelling lists consist of 10 words. Students must correctly spell all 10 words on their spelling tests. If the student mispells one word, their grade would appear as 9/10 on their paper and then she converts it to a percentage as well, so it would also say 90%. She also puts stickers onstudents' assessments if they receive an A.
So far, the only formal assessments I have are spelling tests. Because the children each create their own spelling lists, their spelling tests are done a bit differently. The students will give one another spelling test. Students will pair up, share their spelling list for that week, and one partner will read each word on the list and test their partner, while the other partner will be taking the test by writing the words on a separate sheet of paper. For writing and language arts, the students work off of checklists that are part of a unit so their assessments in these areas consist of large, end-of-unit projects. The students do take formal tests in math though.
I feel that showing every assignment to parents and requiring them to sign it keeps parents involved with their children's schoolwork. This gives parents the opportunity to actually see where their child is struggling and with what. Parents can view their child's mistakes and even review it with them. By sharing graded assessments with paeents, we are creating ways for parents to be directly involved with their child's education.
I feel that sending tests home once a week in a folder is the better option for parents. Sending every assignment home at different times could result in the assessment being forgotten at home or a child's parent(s) forgetting to sign it. By consistently sending home a folder with children's tests/quizzes in it every Friday, parents can look it all over at once and will be less likely to forget if it is a weekly thing.
Aimee's post from Dr. Ries
ReplyDeleteWhile going to different schools in different towns, I have seen the majority of my cooperating teachers use the many different methods when handing back their tests. Some teachers that I have observed hand out the assessments/tests back to the students so they can see how well they did. The students were allowed to take the tests home. But there would be certain tests that the teacher would collect back because they would be used to show parents during parent-teacher conferences. But I have also seen teachers keep the tests and not really show the students at all, the teacher would keep all their things in a folder for their students and pull them out during parent-teacher conferences. The teacher would also hand the students the folders filled with all their work at the end of each marking period.
This semester I am observing a second grade class, I have been given multiple opportunities to see how my cooperating teacher administers tests. Seeing that there are different leveled readers my cooperating teacher displays the tests on the smart board and reads each question but she always waits for them to answer it before reading the next question. Some of the tests that she would give out would be open-notebook tests. Another form of assessment that she would give are “fun” worksheets that she’d give out and grade. My cooperating teacher grades all her assessments differently depending on the subject and type of assessment but the majority of her grading done out of 6. She has an assessment folder with graphs and rubrics for every student in the class, the students are given that folder along with the tests in order for them to fill out their charts and graphs. She revises the folders to make sure it was done right but she mainly does this to give the students a responsibility and to “own their actions and choices” when it comes to being prepared for a test. The assessment folder is sent home at the middle of the marking period and at the end of the marking period so parents can look at the progress their child has made and parents are also required to sign the folder. As for the physical tests. After students record it in their charts they can take the tests home except for the major test which the teacher keeps for parent-teacher conference. But those major tests are sent home at the end of the marking period along with the assessment folder.
In regards to how the assessments are being shown to parents I feel like this is effective because parents would not have to wait for the next parent-teacher conference to see the progress of their child. I do believe that sending tests in one by one may not be effective but when the teacher sends an assessment folder with a chart and rubrics home it is different. I prefer the method that my cooperating teacher is doing because I understand that parents get antsy on knowing how well their child is doing. Sending the tests home one by one helps the parents work with their child at home and therefore improving their test results. Then by the middle and end of the marking period parents see the huge difference their child made.
-Aimee
This is a great question because it is important to keep the parents 'in the know' of what is going on in the classroom. My cooperating teacher's method is very similar to your cooperating teachers method! The tests of the week go into a separate folder that has a paper stapled to the inside of the folder. The students take home their tests on the left side of the folder, and when they return the folder back to school the tests should be on the right side. This way, the teacher will know the parents saw it. Another way she ensures the parents saw the tests and reviewed with their child, she has the parents sign and date the paper that is stapled to the inside of the folder.
ReplyDeleteOnce the students return the folder, they take out the tests and put them in their data folder. Their data folder consists of all the tests they have taken throughout the school year. Before putting the folders away, they graph their results. That way, at the end of the year, the goal is to see steady improvements within the graphs. The students graph the number of correct answers.
This all sounds like a lot of steps and seems as though it could get confusing quickly. It did get confusing for the students at first, but by October they knew exactly what to do and how to do it. It just took practice. I think this method although, extensive, does give the students a sense of responsibility and accountability, even in second grade!
This is a great topic to discuss to see the different ways in which teachers hand back assignments for parents to see. I have seen different strategies throughout the many different observations.
ReplyDeleteThis semester in my class, the students have a folder that is given by the school. One side of the folder is labeled “bring back to school” the other side is labeled “keep home.” The teacher sends things home through this folder. If it needs a parents signature, she will state it and put it on the “bring back to school” side, if not it will go on the “keep home” side. She can tell if the folder is empty the parent has looked through it. For the students that are struggling, she keeps a copy of the assessment in a folder for her own data. She presents this folder in a meeting with the parents if it is a real concern.
A strategy I have seen my cooperating teacher do in terms of assessments is to send some home to be completed at home. For example, in math, an addition timed sheet is sent home with students on a day and must be returned to school with parents initials. This ensures that the parents sat with the student and watched/timed them as they completed. For language arts, a short story and questions are sent home with the students on a certain day and must be returned to school with parents initials. This also ensures that the student has completed the assignment at home in front of their parents.
This strategy has worked for my cooperating teacher for many years and has received positive feedback from parents. It is something that I will bring with me into my future classroom.