Online Reflection #7: Alternative Assessments

You teach a unit. The students seem to know the material you expect them to have learned. They can even apply their knowledge to you orally, and you just know they are ready for the test. But come grading time, the scores are horrible: what happened?

This is what I often experience within my classroom. Thankfully, my CT has given me a lot of support by letting me know that this is quite a common occurrence within the interrelated classroom. But just because I know to expect it, it doesn’t make it any less frustrating. I’m not frustrated at my students: they’ve done nothing wrong, and are often times just as frustrated if not more at themselves. So what can we do to change and adapt?

Alternative assessments have been my best friend this semester: almost too good of a friend. I’ve found that I do almost anything I can to avoid giving typical pen and pencil tests. I don’t want to upset students over poor grades, but at the same time, assessments are needed to ensure students are learning. So what do I do? I often go to more hands on and oral activities. Writing process assignments, such as an eleven sentence paragraph with a graphic organizer, rough draft, editing, and final copy usually gives me enough time to get around to each student to find out just what they are trying to say. As they tell me their thoughts and ideas I can see the gears clicking: all the information that gets lost in translation on a standard test pours out. Even if all those ideas don’t make it down to the paper, I’ve been able to tap into the true understanding and learning the students have made within the unit. These alternative forms of assessment seem almost necessary to just progress through the classroom; but is this for good or bad?

Of course students need practice with the typical test because that is what they will see on standardized tests in the middle high school years. Testing strategies can even be used for job applications and questionnaire forms. But beyond this, are such tests really the make or break? At least within my classroom, even with going over testing strategies (such as crossing out obvious answers that are wrong, etc.), there is something with the look of and title of a “test” that seems to shut the students down. I would much rather students create a one pager or a story that uses their knowledge rather than have them sit down and take a test that increases stress and anxiety within the classroom- and throughout the majority of students. Is this a wrong method to approach, or are other teachers finding the same results within their classrooms too?

I’ve asked around for suggestions, but after some long and brain bending conversations with some fellow special educators that have the same students, alternative forms of assessment seem to be the best route for the students. While trying to gleam some ideas and figure out new ways to continuously check and assess, I found a great website that gives 40alternative assessments for learning. I hope to utilize some of the new ideas listed soon!