Why assessments created by a team of teachers are superior to the formal assessments developed by a teacher working in isolation?
Share your thoughts on this blog. Do you believe that is best to have team created assessments or should teachers create assessments in isolation?
Your response to the blog must be at least 100 words. Respond to two comments. We want to read your thoughts!
As with most things in life, I think it's best if there is a mix of the two. Team created assessments are great for measuring growth and when identifying shortage areas, but if you need to assess an individual skill or concept or even an individual student, that's where teacher's individually created assessments can be beneficial. There is no one-size-fits-all solution to most problems in education and I think assessment can be included.
ReplyDeleteHi John, great answer! I do believe there is no one size fit all. However, creating an assessment an for an individual student to assess an individual skill or concept can also be collaborative. (E. Hamilton)
DeleteI agree John! I think that both could work, more on the team side, but there are instances where a teachers individual assessment can work.
DeleteWhen reading the article was one sided to team developed common formative assessment but after reading your comment it kind of made sense to me. Just like all parents, they know their children best and in a way it is same for us teachers. We know our students best and sometimes for certain students it's more ideal to have individual assessments.
DeleteHey John! You make an excellent point that there really is no on-size-fits-all solution when it comes to assessment. While I enjoy collaborating on assessments I know that it isn't always reality. I also agree that there should be a good mix of the two in the classroom, especially when it comes to assessing individual or small groups of students.
DeleteHello John Sikorski! I can agree with your view. I do believe that team created assessments can be great for measuring growth of students especially when discussing data about the assessments to your team. But I do also agree with your statement on how their is no one-size-fits-all solution. Not every class or student is the same and not all teachers teach the same way. But I do think that team created assessments will get teachers to start teaching the same thing.
DeleteOne of my favorite quotes is “No one can whistle a symphony. It takes an orchestra to play it.”, By: H. E. Luccock. It is my assertion that no one or thing works well in isolation. It is always dependent upon something or someone else. According to this article, “assessments generated for their isolated classrooms will never provide them with a basis of comparison.” I agree with the writer of this article when he/she says, “The basis of comparison transforms data into information.”
ReplyDeleteFurthermore, I totally agree that accessing your colleagues' ideas can provide clarity and expand your knowledge and thinking. As a Special Education Resource Teacher, I also believe that working together to create interventions for students who struggle with formal assessments is imperative. Together, we could look at the way the test is written and various ways the student could show they have mastered the concept. We could also look at the length of the assessment. We could also discuss what skill we are assessing so there would be no confusion on what we are assessing. I cannot imagine creating an assessment without collaborating with my colleagues. (E. Hamilton)
Good afternoon, I really enjoyed reading your comment regarding the article. As a bilingual teacher, I agree with you when it comes to expanding one's knowledge and thinking. As a first-year teacher, I am very open to learning more about how to not only teach but also teach my students. Being able to create something as a team gives me the opportunity to learn and also perhaps give out some of my own ideas.
DeleteI absolutely love that quote. I totally agree. We are stronger as a team.
DeleteI believe that it is a good thing to have a team of teachers give out the same common formative assessments because you want all the students to get familiarized with formats of assessments and you want the teachers to be testing for the same thing. Having a team of teachers create a common formative assessment together will help the teachers gather data correctly about the weaknesses and growths of their classes when discussing data they have gathered. I also feel like this does not matter too much because teachers are able to give out other assessments they have created themselves as well.
ReplyDeleteJacqueline Mejia
DeleteHello Ms. Mejia! I agree with you when it comes to your comment on the article. I believe that especially as first year teachers, being able to create assessments for the students with our team not only gives us an opportunity to speak over what skills the students must improve and how to incorporate those skills into their work, but also it serves as a learning opportunity for us. With our team we are able to learn other teaching techniques that may help students with their assessments.
Delete(copied and pasted because I forgot to put my name)
DeleteHello Ms. Mejia! I agree with you when it comes to your comment on the article. I believe that especially as first year teachers, being able to create assessments for the students with our team not only gives us an opportunity to speak over what skills the students must improve and how to incorporate those skills into their work, but also it serves as a learning opportunity for us. With our team we are able to learn other teaching techniques that may help students with their assessments
I believe teacher autonomy is important, because we all teach differently (just as children learn differently). And because children learn differently, I agree that common formative assessments developed by a team are more effective. What one teacher may miss, another teacher may catch (as far as formatting and question selection goes).
DeleteI think creating a team common formative assessment and having a teacher make an assessment make an individual assessment. By working with a team teacher are able to collaborate on what skills they want to test students on, what is a common skill that students struggling with? They are able to talk about their ideas and what is working. I also think that sometimes having an individual can work to depending on the circumstance. For example, a teacher may want to test a few students or individual student or they want to test different skill. Overall I think having a common formative assessment is the better option.
ReplyDeleteHey! You make an excellent point about circumstances. Some students need to work on different skills than others, and in that instance it might make more sense to come up with an assessment independently. It might also be a good idea to bring it up to the team - maybe they have noticed similar things that could lead to creating a CFA.
DeleteI agree with you Ms. Goes! Common Assessments are truly valuable and informative when used correctly. They can definitely give teachers insight into what scholars are struggling with and how to improve teaching strategies.
DeleteWhen a team comes together to create an assessment, Students will have access to the same curriculum, will learn the same fundamental information and abilities, will take the same rigorous exams, and will have their work graded using the same standards. Creating an assessment as a team, allows the teachers to bounce ideas of each other, share the areas they are having difficulties with and seeing if it is a norm with other students, and find ways to tackle those difficulties. I am the only second grade ELA dual language teacher (in Spanish) and I find it difficult to be in isolation when it comes to assessments because I cannot bounce ideas or share the areas my students are finding difficult. There are a lot of similar lessons and topics that I teach like my Gen Ed. 2nd grade teachers, and during those times, we are all able to share norms we are see and hear how each of us are doing. Our assessments are similar and we are able to assess our students on the same standards so that it is in uniform all across.
ReplyDeleteI can relate to this statement, it can be difficult when you don't have other bilingual teachers to work with. It's almost like you wish you can relate with someone and share ideas. It's difficult enough with having to think and teach in both languages, I can only imagine your frustration.
DeleteAs a music teacher we have a similar predicament. Fortunately I have another music teacher in my building that I am able to work with, but this is not the case with most schools. Most of the time the music teacher works in isolation. We can meet with the encore team, but we are often assessing different skills. There is some crossover between subjects, but each of us has our own set of state standards and curriculum to teach.
DeleteAs the ESL teacher and Social Studies Co-teacher working together is essential and it's the only way to get my job done. When we come together to discuss, plan and share ideas it gives us the opportunity to expanded our knowledge and ideas. As stated in the article we must work smarter not harder. Dividing responsibilities when creating a unit and developing assessments allows teachers to share ideas and get the job done faster. Teachers who work in isolation makes it difficult to stay on the same page as the rest of the team. As mentioned in the article, "they have to replicate and duplicate effort."
ReplyDeleteIt does make the work much easier by working with other teachers, especially teachers who work with a specific grade level. Those teachers who do stay by themselves can make it a lot harder to being on the same page as the other teachers of that grade.
DeleteHello Garibay, I agree with you. Working together does help a lot of teachers. It helps put everyone's knowledge together can help make the teachers' workload feel less heavy and it can be a great way to have everyone on the same page. This way, they can have good conversations about the same data.
DeleteDr. Vaughn
DeleteI think the Co-teach model is awesome. It allows you and partnering teacher to collaborate and have those great conversations on how students are responding to instruction.
I agree with everything that you said! Dividing responsibilities and the workload helps to make this process much more bearable. I also agree that when teachers work in isolation, it makes it difficult for the team to be on the same page and collaborate.
DeleteWhere would I be without the help of my team? (Or even better - Where would my students be?!) As I stated before, data meetings are always an eye opener for me. When it comes to strategies and best practices, I am always looking for ways to become better and more effective at teaching. I totally agree that working with a team is better than working alone - especially when it comes to the education of our scholars. I can use all the help I can get.
ReplyDeleteI share your sentiments about data meetings! They definitely help give you an idea of how to improve. I'm a strong believer that the collaboration and group-work of PLCs trickles down to the overall improvement of our scholars. Teaching is definitely better when you're working with a team.
DeleteCan I say Ditto!
DeleteI always feel a bit overwhelmed when it comes time for assessments and data. I always learn something new when I collaborate with my team, and I appreciate all the feedback and ideas or suggestions they provide.
By working with as a group an educator can team up on what abilities they need to test understudies on, what is a typical expertise that understudies battling with? They can discuss their thoughts and what is working. I additionally believe that occasionally having an individual assessment is beneficial upon the situation. For instance, an instructor might need to test a couple of understudies or individual understudy or they need to test different expertise. In general I think having a typical developmental evaluation is the better choice.
ReplyDeleteI agree with talking to other teachers about their own thoughts. You never know if this is what a teacher is struggling with in a class. It can also be the same as you are struggling with. Individual assessments are a great way to be able to test what a student knows or does not know.
DeleteAssessments created by a team of teachers are superior to those developed in isolation because they are more efficient, equitable, and they provide excellent data. The last point wasn't something I really realized until I began attending PLC's. As team, we all provide different insight and can give strategies or share knowledge. Personally, I do believe that the best assessments are created as a team. It saves time, and you get a multitude of different viewpoints. This is kind of difficult for me because I am the only social teacher in 7th grade, but I have been able to bounce ideas off of my mentor and have been following the curriculum guide which has given me ideas for assessments.
ReplyDeleteMs. Hendricks
DeleteIt's great you have a mentor, I believe the use of other resources where teachers have discussions about school related topics may also be helpful when looking for ways to use data. Often times us teachers have friends at other districts use those resources the only way to miss out on an opportunity to converse with same grade teachers is by not taking the chance to reach out to someone new. Also there are other teachers within the building who have taught your same area content and grade they may also be a great help. Speaking with older grades may also be great for end of the year readiness that way they are able to give you a bit of insight of ways to prepare assessments that will test their readiness for the upcoming year.
There is no doubt that assessments are better when teachers work together to make them. If teachers worked in isolation, then it would be impossible to ensure that students across each classroom share the same knowledge and skills. When working together teachers are able to collaborate on which skills need to be assessed. PLCs allow for teachers to share data and compare methods between classrooms.
ReplyDeleteAs a Special-Education teacher to Pre-K students, I struggled at first when we administered our benchmark exam. When working with non-verbal students, assessments look different. That makes me immensely grateful for my team and PLCs where I was able to present my concerns and ask for help and feedback on modifying the exam.
I appreciate the purpose of PLCs. Working with a team and being able to share across the board the data being collected and having the ability to bounce ideas off others within your grade or content area is great. The best part about having a team who you are comfortable with is that they will give you the sense of freedom to not worry about being judged for asking ("too many") questions or asking about topics others may think are common knowledge. I too have this habit of being comfortable enough with my team, that I ask questions without hesitation and it literally feels like a weight has been lifted after having someone respond with genuine thought behind their response.
DeleteI recognize the utility of PLCs. Having people on your team with whom you feel comfortable is the ideal thing since they will allow you to feel free to ask questions. Collaborating as a team, disseminating the data acquired to all members of the team, and exchanging ideas with peers in your grade or subject matter is fantastic.
DeleteAssessments created by a team of teachers are superior to the formal assessments developed by a teacher working in isolation because it invites various outlook and expertise levels that may fit the different learning styles within the classrooms. I believe having a team to create assessments serves both the teacher and students positively. By working with a team, a teacher is not fully required to work on such a time consuming task alone. Having a team allows for other teachers to combine their prior knowledge, skill, and experience to develop a lesson that may assist with assessing various levels of learning. Working with a team also assists teachers with witnessing their teammates strengths. Having an understanding of your personal limits to assessment making and having the help to pick up your areas needing improvement, ensures students are receiving valid assessment materials.
ReplyDeleteVery true, when multiple heads come together you're also getting a range of experience and expertise. Whereas working alone you're going based on what you know and may not be seeing problems from a different angle to better assist your students because you're stuck in your own way. Hearing someone else share a common problem opens that door to solutions you may not have even considered.
DeleteI agree! I know my limitations to assessments (as in not greatest) and having a team to help pick up where I need improvement, makes work so much easier and less stressful. First and second year teachers need so much guidance and support from those veteran and experienced teachers.
ReplyDeleteI agree! Many first year teachers struggle when it comes to assessing students and gathering data that is important. When you have a team to help explain the bits and pieces that you may not understand, it makes your first year less stressful. Another important side of this is that first and second years can also bring in new ideas and perspectives when it comes to teaching these concepts that are being assessed. Both experienced teachers and new teachers play such a vital role.
DeleteDr. Vaughn
ReplyDeleteIt is so important to collaborate with your grade level team members in creating common assessments. This is helpful because others maybe able to assist and help with those students who may not understand the concept. For example, if there is a teacher who instructs well regarding one standard and another teacher has a higher level of understanding for another standard, students can be placed with those teachers based on the results of the common assessment to get the best results out of reteaching.
Dr. Vaughn
ReplyDeleteThat is awesome! Are you the only ELA grade level teacher at Keller? I remember when I taught 8th grade math, I was the only teacher. It was still helpful to collaborate with the other grade level math teachers. However, I wish I had another 8th grade teacher to collaborate with to create common assessments. I believed this would have been extremely beneficial.
As someone who has experienced both scenarios, I can say that working as a team on assessments has been the most helpful part of this year. My very first year, I felt like I was on an island alone, and I struggled 90% of the time. This year, the entire team works together to put assessments together and it has been working great. One of the major advantages is that we have a standard list of material that needs to be taught since we are all teaching with the same end goal in mind. This also makes it easier to get assistance when you are struggling to teach a certain concept because you have several peers who are all teaching similar things that you can lean on. This also ensures that all responsibility is shared as a grade level team.
ReplyDeleteHarrison
DeleteLilllard, I completely agree with you; collaborating with our coaches and teachers (fourth grade) this year is really helpful. We all have noticed that working together has been very rewarding and beneficial for our students.
I agree as well. Working with a team when we all have the same end goal in mind is very helpful and beneficial. As a team, we could also discuss our strong suits and see how we can better suit all our student's needs so they can truly grow and understand.
DeleteHarrison
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, A teacher-made assessment plus a team-created formative assessment, in my opinion, constitute an individual assessment. Teachers can work together as a team to identify common skills that students struggle with and decide which abilities to test them on. They are able to discuss their concepts and what is effective. Additionally, I believe that depending on the situation, having an individual can occasionally work. As an example, a teacher might wish to assess a particular student, a small group of students, or a specific skill. In all, I believe that using a common formative evaluation is preferable.
Harrison- TYPO- reposted:)
DeleteIn my opinion, A teacher-made assessment plus a team-created formative assessment, constitute an individual assessment. Teachers can work together as a team to identify common skills that students struggle with and decide which abilities to test them on. They are able to discuss their concepts and what is effective. Additionally, I believe that depending on the situation, having an individual can occasionally work. As an example, a teacher might wish to assess a particular student, a small group of students, or a specific skill. In all, I believe that using a common formative evaluation is preferable.
I completely believe teachers should collaborate to create assessments. By doing this teachers are able to split responsibilities and roles. This in hand decreases an extra workload on each individual teacher having to worry about each and every assessment all alone.
ReplyDeleteIf working collaboratively is important for our students then it's just as equally important to collaborate with other teachers. If teachers didn't collaborate and every single teacher did their own thing we wouldn't be able to monitor and improve student learning as much. Not only does working together on CFAs create more consistency with our tests but we get the chance to discuss where students are hitting roadblocks based on those assessments and how we can target those weak points as we move forward. Working collaboratively also allows for an opportunity to share resources. Although you are able to look online for resources if a common practice sheet or exit ticket is used, it can be brought up and discussed to be more accurate with students' current understanding since we're all teaching the same material at that time.
I think that teachers should collaborate together to create assessment. The 7th grade ELA team and I just created our first assessment together for our story "Two Kinds". I was so happy we did it together because we all split the responsible between each other. Once we give each of our students the assessment, we are going to look over the data together. Its always wonderful to collaborate with your team.
ReplyDelete