Assessment

Assessemnt is an important part of a good education, but getting a really good it is also one of the trickiest things to do. This is because the backgrounds, strengths, weaknesses, personalities, values, disabilities, talents, etc. of our students vary so much. It's almost as if each student should have an assessment designed specifically for them in order to assess them in the best way possible. This is where authentic assessments come into play.

Journaling is one of my favorite forms of authentic assessment. I'd like to have students write what they learned, what it means to them in their own lives, and write any questions or information that they'd like to further learn about the topic.

Discussion is my other favorite way to assess students. You know what though, how about this for an idea: forget about my favorite ways to assess students and let them choose their own from a list or even make their own suggestions.

For example, at the end of a big unit I would tell students that I want to get an assessment of each student regarding the unit we've covered. I'll ask each student to schedule their own assessment in the form that they are most comfortabe with from a list: writing (essay or short answer), discussion with the teacher, making a portfolio of everything they learned and what it means to them. I think this would be the most authentic assessment!