Informal Assessments : Observation Of Everyday Performance

This has deepened my understanding of the big 5 concepts of literacy (phonemic awareness, phonics, vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension) through understanding what criteria can be used to determinate what is effective developmental for a reader and what needs improvement. The Informal Reading Inventory is one example of this because it allows me to assess word recognition, oral and silent reading, comprehension, and literacy capacity. All of which is valuable information which I can then use as a reading teacher to determine further instructional moves. While I have yet to have a place to fully put these assessment techniques into my full practice as a first year teacher. Learning about how to properly assess these components has better equipped me to think about my students' literacy abilities and further strategize my instructional planning to meet the diversity of their literacy

An appraisal is one of the most commonly used methods of formal assessment and is used to evaluate and assess the performance of an employee against agreed targets and objectives, with the aim of improving employee performance. Where an employee has been able to achieve their targets, the appraisal can be used to recognise successes. This often helps to increase an employee’s confidence and motivation and can lead to better organisational performance. Many organisations will use the outcomes of an appraisal to identify potential candidates for promotions or even an increase in pay. At the same time, an appraisal meeting may include discussions on underperformance, identifying why this has occurred and how this can be avoided in the future.

According to Meikamp and Suppa (2007,) “Although the IRI may be regarded as a harmless tool because it is not a standardized test, any instrument has the potential for harm if its results are misleading or utilized inappropriately. Recently, developers of some IRIs have begun addressing the technical adequacy of their instruments,” (Meikamp & Suppa, 2007). Even though this test has areas that are questionable, it definitely provides a structure that some teachers could benefit from using in their classrooms. It is important that prior to using this assessment, that a teacher does in depth research on the assessment to gauge whether or not the assessment would work well for their students. It is important that when a teacher decides to use an assessment such as the Informal Reading Inventory, that they use this research to ensure that it is going to measure the skills of each student, so that they can effectively plan academic interventions for their students.

Assessment is a valuable tool to measure students learning and achievement. It is an essential element for teacher to reflect on what and how they teach. To assess students is to collect evidence of their learning. Teachers use the information to modify their lesson plans and adjust their instructional methods; students need feedback on their performance to concentrate on their vulnerable areas. Assessment is necessary for parents to reinforce their children strength and assist them where extra attention is required. The data collected will inform school

“Assessments should be a regular process; it might not always be formalised, but you should be observing what your learners are doing, asking questions and reviewing their progress throughout their time with you”.

Assessments are the process of evaluating an individual’s learning. They involve generating and collecting evidence of a learner’s attainment of knowledge and skills and judging that evidence against defined standards. Formative Assessments (quizzes and practical tests) are used to

However, these comments are something which can only become reality if practitioners are enquiring into their practice. On reflection, it is my opinion that as assessment is such a widely-debated idea that it should be enquired in a teacher practice on a regular basis. I feel that by just concentrating on effective questioning it has implicated my practice and made me feel more confident and knowledgeable. However, there are many other factors a teacher uses daily which can change the form of a child’s learning. Therefore, I feel another important next step in my practice would be to follow other formative assessment tools as a line of enquiry. Specifically, into LI and SC and understanding the most effective way to use this in the classroom, such as discussion or visibility. I feel that this next step would be a natural movement in the action research cycle (see Appendix 9).

Back to school reading in the primary grades usually begins in the classroom assessment, and part of a formal reading assessment includes reading fluency. Teachers strive for students to read grade-level texts throughout the year with purpose and understanding. Testing students in reading by using a variety of formal assessments, such as DRA (Developmental Reading Assessment) or PALS (Phonological Awareness Literacy Screening) provides a little insight into how well students read, but there is usually only one or two reading passages used. Fluency is one area that is extremely important, but seldom practiced because most students read independently to themselves. Together with phrasing, expression and punctuation, pace is can be evaluated by teachers in small group guided reading lessons. Students are given an opportunity to read out-loud in front of their teacher and their peers, but often will not receive daily practice with fluency everyday.

Performance Activity 47: Giving an informal reading assessment, BRI, impacts student learning by how I will evaluate results to determine how to plan effective instructional plans, if I were a teacher. As part of my BRI project, I have to administer all four sections of the BRI, evaluate the student’s results, and write up activities and instructional plans I would enforce to help the student enhance areas of improvements. For example, I have noticed when the student orally reads, she tends to repeat words while reading; while this does not significantly impact the flow of her reading, it can affect how she comprehensions the text and how many words per minute she can read. When answering comprehension questions the types of questions she misses, the most often, are

Students are often told that the path to success tends to be a lonely one because only they can get themselves there. For the most part that is true, they must be self-motivated and passionate about their future, but along the way they get to meet special people that want to see them to accomplish their goals. From an early age the relationship built between students and teachers has molded and impacted the student’s life. The relationship they have with a teacher can define the attitude that student has with the subject being taught. A lot of emphasis is put on students when they fail a course and they question their effort. Although, the root of the problem is not always the student, but the method the instructor is using to teach the student.

The use of formal and informal reading assessments provide important data that allow educators to identify at risk students (Tompkins, 2010). The data collected from the assessments address any factors that may prohibit the development of students’ reading and writing skills. In addition to the assessments, the more an educator can learn about students’ backgrounds and their past reading, language development, and writing experiences the more instructional strategies can be designed to specifically meet the needs of diverse learners in the classroom.

Informal assessments are usually conducted when time is critical. For instance a school counselor may conduct an informal assessment by interviewing a student and asking questions. According to Hackney, “School counselors should ask open-ended questions that require a response, instead of yes and no answers. In order to obtain more information or to get a better understanding of student response, one will have to rephrase or paraphrase questions. When conducting interviews one needs to be mindful of students cognitive develop. Students will be more willing to share information with others if they feel safe, before students disclose any information, the school counselor should review student rights to privacy and confidentiality in language they can understand.” It is important for school counselors

Knowledgable teachers can understand why students are making mistakes, and can explain the concepts in a way that the students can better understand. Anthony Biondo notes: “It’s extremely helpful when the teachers know the content completely (so that) they can explain the lesson in a way the textbook can’t.” Also, many students learn to solve problems in different ways than the one presented in class. A teacher with mastery in a subject can evaluate for the student whether his method is valid which enables students who learn in unorthodox ways to thrive in the

Assessments are a critical tool in monitoring the progress of English language learners at all grade levels. The main purpose of assessments is to ensure students are receiving quality teaching instruction in accordance to academic and content standards. Even though these tests are not the only resource used for testing students, they provide teachers with invaluable data to determine if the student is growing in certain academic areas. There are several types of assessment that can be used to measure a student’s progress. In this paper, various alternatives to

Informal assessment allows students to demonstrate their learning in a variety of ways which can benefit all students. It can include group or individual projects, presentations, essays, experiments, or demonstrations. Each of these can allow for “knowledge that transfers from one situation to another [which] is based on students’ abilities to understand central principles, see connections and make distinctions, and be strategic in attacking problems and analyzing information” (Darling-Hammond, p. 285). A variety of assessment methods allow for this to happen and for students to use their personal strengths to demonstrate understanding of the information. “Research into students’ preferences for alternative assessments shows that the assessments that have been positively evaluated by students were more authentic and thus made learning more realistic and powerful” (as cited in Brown, Irving, Peterson, and Hirschfeld, 2009, p. 99). Students should be able to think creatively and take hold of their own education and learning because they must ideally be prepared for a rapidly changing society where they must be able to adapt and formulate their own solutions. Teachers are able to provide feedback to the children so they know what was done effectively and what needs to be modified. Rather than teachers pressuring students to show understanding through a single examination, they will have opportunities to confidently demonstrate knowledge with less