Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Allie Yowell
Regent University
Introduction
A teacher can only be as successful and effective as their ability to collect, interpret and
implement data. If a teacher utilizes a variety of instructional strategies but does not guide those
strategies by student data, they could be completely ineffective. An effective teacher understands
how important using data is to guide their instruction. As small group teaching has become more
popular, teachers are able to form groups and create lessons that meet the needs of each child.
This is best done by pre-assessing each standard and determining the students readiness and skill
level (Bongiorno, 2011). Groups can then be formed by level relating to specific content and
standards, rather than just general grouping based on intelligence. Not only does using data
improve the quality of instructions, it makes planning more precise and meaningful.
Rationale
Pre-assessments are a great way to determine how much background knowledge your
students have and what skills they already know. In my placement, I administered a pre-
assessment for an ecosystem unit in science. This pre-assessment determined the readiness of
students for the Virginia Beach science standards 4.4.1 and 4.4.6. It contained material that
would be covered in the unit and content that they should have learned in third grade. Once I
graded the pre-assessments, I sorted them into groups by grades N (novice), DP (developing
proficient), and P (proficient) for each class. As the three groups were not necessarily equivalent,
I collaborated with my cooperating teacher to determine who would most likely be able to move
up a group or who may need to be moved down. Then, I formed three groups according to the
data collected. I determined that the highest group in one class only needed to be taught the new
content and could be given material for enrichment. However, in the second class, the highest
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group had shown less understanding and would still need some review. Almost every lesson in
science was taught in small group settings where I was able to differentiate according to need.
Throughout the unit, I created lessons that aligned with each groups skill level and
knowledge. The pre-assessment enabled me to prepare for different needs and levels. I provided
differing levels of instruction and enrichment depending on how well they were showing
understanding. For example, for a few of the lower groups, I noticed that many were not
understanding the difference between ecosystems and habitats. For these groups, I found a sort
that they could complete to help them grasp the difference. One example of enrichment for the
advanced group was in a lesson on decomposers, producers, and consumers. Instead of teaching
it to them, I provided them with a higher level text detailing the three types of organisms. I had
them complete a jigsaw lesson where they separated in pairs and read about one type; then, they
were able to teach the others about what they learned. I knew that this activity would allow them
to go deeper into the content and decide what they thought was important to learn and teach.
Additionally, I knew that many of the students in the lower groups did not have the skills to do
The second artifacts I have chosen are the assessment tools I gave for the ecosystem unit.
One was a written exam that assessed the 4.4.1 standard, and the other was an informal
assessment for the 4.4.6 standard. The former was from the unit and was given to demonstrate
how well students understood the importance of adaptations in an animals habitat and
community. They had to identify specific adaptations, name the type, and explain how it enabled
the organism to survive in its habitat. The latter was a project that students did in their groups.
This project required them to develop food webs for a given biome. They had to present their
food webs and explain the relationships between organisms and the role of producers,
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consumers, and decomposers. Furthermore, they had to show the transfer of energy throughout
the food web and explain what would happen if any part of the food web was eliminated. Both of
these forms of assessment accurately aligned with the two standards given in this unit. They
allowed me to see how well the students understood the content. After the post-assessments, I
was able to determine a few students who would need further remediation before the upcoming
science quarterly.
Reflection
Learning how to effectively use assessment tools in the classroom to guide instruction is
a big task. It is a process that requires a lot of thought, planning, and tweaking. Even veteran
teachers can always improve their instruction by enhancing their planning with data. Planning
lessons by using data and pre-assessment tools is something that should be practice frequently
(Bongiorno, 2011). I believe that when done correctly, using data from assessments should cause
the classroom to change often. This would reflect that the teacher is making accommodations for
all students whether that means differing groups, changing how content is delivered, or
redesigning a classroom to meet learners needs. Regardless, analyzing data requires teachers to
take action and implement practices based off of what they have learned (Guskey, 2003).
The process of pre-assessing and collecting data to guide instruction is an ongoing cycle
(Bongiorno, 2011). It should be done throughout the year to begin each unit. In my placement, I
had the opportunity to see and take part in this process from beginning to end for a single unit.
After using a pre-assessment tool and forming groups, it is important to continue in making
adjustments. This is best done with formative assessments that mark the growth of students
throughout the unit. Cathy Fleischer, from the National Council of Teachers of English, stated
that, Formative assessment is the lived, daily embodiment of a teachers desire to refine practice
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should utilize their knowledge of data collected from pre-assessments as well as formative
assessments to guide instruction. This ensures that students are on track to master the content,
and are taking part in their own learning (Fleischer, 2013). By the end of the unit, a post
assessment can be confidently given, knowing that students have a solid understanding of what
they have learned in the unit. However, it should not stop here; effective teachers know the
importance of providing further instruction or remediation where needed after analyzing post-
assessments. If necessary, teachers can give alternative instruction or practice to ensure every
student has a proficient understanding of the content (Guskey, 2003). Without using pre-
teachers would be merely guessing what student know and need. It is much more effective and
meaningful to provide each student with exactly what they need. Furthermore, it gives more
room for teachers to challenge students who have already shown mastery in a subject. This
process essentially paves the way for teachers to differentiate efficiently for students.
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References
http://www.naesp.org/sites/default/files/Student%20Achievement_blue.pdf
Fleischer, C. (2013). Formative Assessment That Truly Informs Instruction. National Council of
/Positions/formative-assessment_single.pdf
leadership/feb03/vol60/num05/How-Classroom-Assessments-Improve-Learning.aspx