Assess to Impress: An Inquiry

into the use of Assessments to

Better Meet the Needs of Students
By: Kristen Houlihan
 This inquiry was completed in a second-grade classroom in a Title 1 school in
Hillsborough County. This classroom consisted of 18 students: 8 girls and 10 boys.
This inquiry also speaks about an RTI intervention group that I taught during my
time as a final intern. This group consists of about 20 students that all needed to
receive enrichment; these students all had extremely high reading scores and
needed to be challenged during this intervention time three times a week.

I had the opportunity to try and implement a couple of formative assessments

throughout my internship experiences, but I found it difficult to remember to do
while a lesson was happening. I would take notes in my head, and then forget to
write them down. This came to be a problem because throughout the day I
wouldnt remember which students were struggling with the concepts and I was
unable to help them to the best of my ability.

In terms of summative assessments, throughout my internships I always saw

students struggling when it came time to take a test. Students would seem to
understand the content throughout the week that I taught it, but would not
perform at the end of the unit.

Background
 My forgetfulness when it came to formative assessments was the
main reason for my interest in this topic. I wanted to find
assessments that were quick and easy to do, and that I would be able
to remember to implement throughout my lessons. In completing my
connected lesson during my Level III internship, I used the
assessments of my choosing to drive the instruction of two back-to-
back lessons. After doing this, I saw the improvement in my
students performances after implementing different types of
assessments. Therefore, the purpose of my inquiry was to learn
about different assessments that I could administer throughout the
duration of a lesson or unit.

Purpose
 How can I use assessments to better meet the needs of my
students?

Wondering
 First Weeks of Internship:
During the first weeks of internship, I administered a couple of different
surveys to learn more about my students.
Surveys Results

Methods
 Weeks 3-4:
During the next weeks, I conducted research in the form of literature. Through
my research, I found five articles that spoke of assessment.

Most, if not all, of the articles mentioned the need to constantly assess students. All the
authors agreed that using one high stakes test to determine student ability was not enough.
Many of the authors suggested formatively assessing students in the middle of a lesson, and
constantly monitoring student progress. A few of the articles spoke of having students self-
assess themselves. A couple of the articles talked about setting goals, both for yourself as the
teacher and for your students. In my research process, I saw that formative assessments were
spoken about in all subject areas. Prompt, specific, and constructive feedback was suggested
in a few of the articles as well. In reading these articles, I learned about different strategies to
implement into my internship classroom.

Methods
 CHAMPS Rubric

Methods
Here is an example of the rubric system that
was introduced and used in the classroom.
 Weeks 4-10: Introducing and Implementing the CHAMPS Rubric

Students received rubric

after they submitted
assignments.

This was the process in which the

CHAMPS rubric was implemented into
Rubric was dispersed Students were given the my internship classroom. When starting
across another subject rubric before an
area. assignment began. off with only using the rubric during the
Writing block, this cycle took about four
weeks. Once the students became used to
using this system during Writing, the
cycle took a much shorter time to
complete.
Working with the
Students self-assessed
students to come up with
using the rubric.
criteria for the rubric.

Methods
 Weeks 4-5: PRIDE Time
During the first weeks of teaching this RTI group, my partner
teacher and I worked on getting to know our students. We did
this by administering Student Interest Surveys.

Methods
 Weeks 4-10: PRIDE Time
During the next weeks of teaching this RTI group, we worked with providing students with
choice on what they decided to research and how they decided to present their information.
With the start of the PRIDE group, it was very structured, and towards the end it was very
student-centered. When assessing these students, all groups were given the same rubric to both
self-assess with and also receive a score from the teacher.
Student
Rubric s had no
control
over
what
they
research
ed and
how
they
presente
Students had some control over
d their and how
what they researched
informa
they presented their information
tion.

Students had complete control over what they researched and

how they presented the information that they learned.

Methods
 Learning Statement 1:
Students benefit from a familiarized rubric system that they help
to create the criteria for.
In scaffolding the process in which the CHAMPS rubric was implemented in the classroom, I saw a growth in
student performance over all subject areas. This system allowed for my students to hold themselves accountable,
and also showed them why they received the scores that they did. Students became familiarized with the rubric
over the course of my time in the classroom, and once the students started creating the criteria for the rubric, they
became even more comfortable with it.

Self-assessment using this rubric helped students become accountable for their work. Students were also made
aware of their own strengths and weaknesses. Many individual conferences needed to be held in order for
students to get to the point where they were accurately and critically looking at their own work. Working one-on-
one with the students let me know not only where they were struggling with a concept, but also where their
thinking was at when they were self-assessing. Working one-on-one with the students allowed for individual goal
setting to take place. The students were able to identify the areas in which they were struggling and set goals
based on what they felt they needed to work on.

Findings
CHAMPS Rubric Results

4 (students
self-assessed
3 (students
themselves
1 (No Rubric 2 (Rubric worked with
Week based on
As can be seen from Given Prior) Given Prior) me to come up
rubric and
this chart, students with rubric)
then turned it
scores in Writing
in for grading)
increased over the
course of using and Number of
2 4 7 8
self-assessing with the Purple
CHAMPS Rubric. Number of
6 9 8 8
Green
Number of
6 3 2 1

Findings
Yellow
Number of
3 1 0 0
Red
 Learning Statement 2:
Students succeed from having multiple ways and opportunities to
show what they know.

Formative assessments provided the opportunities for students to show what they knew about a particular
concept. Formative assessments were administered throughout every lesson, which let me know which students
were struggling with the concept, what needed to be re-taught, and the next steps for a lesson. Students mostly
did not know that the work that they were doing was an assessment. Classroom conversations, worksheets,
informal observations, and checklists were all used to understand where students were at during a lesson. In
using these different formative assessments, I was able to then pull small groups if needed to work with kids on
where they needed help. I was also able to partner students up with different understanding levels. Students that
understood the content could then work with those who were struggling. These groupings would not have been
made without the various formative assessments that I administered to my students. Being able to adjust my
instruction as needed was key to meeting the needs of all of the students in my internship classroom.

Findings
Formative Assessments
 Learning Statement 3:
Differentiated assessments lead to an increase in student
motivation and achievement.
Every student should have the opportunity to show that they mastered a concept in a way that works the best for them. Some
students do not perform well when it comes to tests, which is why they should be provided with other opportunities to
demonstrate knowledge of a concept.

One case that sticks out in my mind when it comes to differentiated assessments is of one of my students Clyde (pseudonym).
He was struggling when it came to writing his thought on a piece of paper. After seeing this, my CT and I decided to try to have
him complete assignments on the computer. He excelled once he was behind the computer. Work was actually getting completed
and he was turning in work that was above and beyond according to the rubric.

Students in my internship classroom were also allowed to choose the conditions in which they completed assessments. Students
were allowed to work around the room and in flexible seating when they were completing their assignments.

With the students in my PRIDE group, they were continuously having choice in how they demonstrated how they understood a
concept. In giving students this choice and providing a set rubric with their expectations on it,. Students were excited about
being able to research a topic that they wanted to learn about, and the work that they were putting forward showed that they
were absorbing the material that they were researching.

Findings
 Differentiated Assessments

Findings
 In completing this inquiry I learned many things about my students and of myself
as a teacher. I learned that my students benefitted from having and utilizing a
rubric system that spanned across all subject areas and assignments. I also found
that my students self-assessing with this rubric with the tools and strategies
provided during individual conferences lead to students understanding of
strengths and weaknesses. Formative assessments were vital in driving present
and future instruction in my classroom. I also learned that my students benefitted
from differentiated assessments in terms of the process that they demonstrated
their knowledge with, and the product in which they presented their
understanding with.

This inquiry answered many questions that I had about assessments, but it also
brought about even more questions and wonderings. These wonderings include
What types of formative assessments yield the best results for both teacher and
student?, What tools and strategies help students to have the most critical and
accurate self-assessments?, and What tools and strategies help to provide
students with the most room to succeed on tests and standardized assessments?.
The continued study and research of this topic will help to answer some of these
additional wonderings and questions.
Conclusion