Thinking Smart About Assessment
Ben Clarke, Ph.D.
Rachell Katz, Ph.D.
August 25, 2004
Oregon Reading First
Mentor Coach Training© 2004 by the Oregon Reading First
CenterCenter on Teaching and Learning
Reading Assessment for Different Purposes An effective, comprehensive reading program
includes reading assessments for four purposes:
Outcome - Provides a bottom-line evaluation of the
effectiveness of the reading program in relation to
established performance levels.
Screening - Designed as a first step in identifying children
who may be at high risk for delayed development or
academic failure and in need of further diagnosis of their
need for special services or additional reading instruction.
Reading Assessment for Different Purposes An effective, comprehensive reading program
includes reading assessments for four purposes:
Diagnosis - Helps teachers plan instruction by providing in-
depth information about students’ skills and instructional
needs.
Progress Monitoring - Determines through frequent
measurement if students are making adequate progress or
need more intervention to achieve grade-level reading
outcomes.
Outcome Assessment Purpose: To determine level of proficiency in relation
to norm or criterion.
When: Typically administered at end of year. Can be
administered pre/post to assess overall growth.
Who: All students
Relation to instruction: Provides index of overall
efficacy but limited timely instructional information.
Screening Assessment Purpose: To determine children who are likely to require
additional instructional support (predictive validity).
When: Early in the academic year or when new students enter
school.
Who: All students
Relation to instruction: Most valuable when used to identify
children who may need further assessment or additional
instructional support.
Diagnostic Assessment Purpose: To provide specific information on skills and
strategy needs of individual students. When: Following screening or at points during the
year when students are not making adequate progress.
Who: Selected students as indicated by screening or progress monitoring measures or teacher judgment.
Relation to Instruction: Provided specific information on target skills; highly relevant.
Progress Monitoring Assessment
Purpose: Frequent, timely measures to determine
whether students are learning enough of critical skills.
When: At minimum 3 times per year at critical
decision making points.
Who: All students
Relation to Instruction: Indicates students who
require additional assessment and intervention.
Progress Monitoring - The Teacher’s Map
Whoops! Time to make a change!
10
20
30
40
Dec.Scores
Feb.Scores
Jan.Scores
MarchScores
AprilScores
MayScores
JuneScores
60
50
Ph
on
eme
Seg
men
tati
on
Flu
ency
Aimline
Progress Monitoring: The Teacher’s Map
10
20
30
40
Dec.Scores
Feb.Scores
Jan.Scores
MarchScores
AprilScores
MayScores
JuneScores
60
50
Aimline
A change in intervention
Activity 1: What do you do? Chart your school’s assessment system
Outcome Screening Progress Monitoring Diagnostic
Do each of your assessments fit that category?
What is Assessment?
Def: Assessment is the collection of data to make decisions.
(Salvia & Ysseldyke, 1997)
Assessment is useless if we don’t use it to guide our actions.
Does your school collect data to make decisions or to collect data?
Common pitfalls Focus is on procedure
Data collected don’t match purpose for collecting data (e.g. collecting diagnostic data on all students)
Layering of data sources
Different data for different programs (e.g. Title 1)
4 types of Assessment: One assessment system Each type of assessment has a purpose.
Think purpose not tool. Our purpose is to progress monitor. Our tool is
DIBELS. Not, we use DIBELS.
How do each of these purposes fit together?
Activity 2: Four assessments One system Diagram how the four types of
assessments work in one system at your school.
Does each assessment tool match the purpose it is used for?
Does the system link together in a logical manner?
One Assessment System
Screening
Intervention for at-risk
Progress Monitoring
Diagnostic
No response
Screening: Medicine Who is healthy? Who is not?
Doctors screen newborns based on Height and Weight.
In the healthy range, check at next appointment
In the unhealthy range, take action (intervention) and check on a more frequent basis
Screening: Reading Who is healthy? Who is not?
We screen beginning readers on critical reading outcomes.
In the healthy(on-track) range, check at next benchmark
In the unhealthy (at-risk) range, take action (intervention) and monitor progress.
Progress Monitoring: Medicine Who responds? Who does not?
If newborn responds to intervention (gains weight) towards goal, maintain intervention until goal reached.
If newborn does not respond to intervention, further information may be collected
Progress Monitoring: Reading Who responds? Who does not?
If beginning reader responds to intervention towards goal, maintain intervention until goal reached.
If beginning reader does not respond to intervention, further information may be collected.
Diagnostic: Medicine What information is needed to design a
better intervention? Food intake Cat Scan Heart monitor (examples that make sense
here)
Diagnostic: Reading What information is needed to design a
better intervention? Segmenting middle sounds Letter sound correspondence for vowels
and constant blends Decoding regular word types cvc, ccvc,
cvce
One Assessment System
Screening
Intervention for at-risk
Progress Monitoring
Diagnostic
No response
Summary The degree or intensity of assessment should
match the severity of the problem.
The purposes of assessment should be logically linked together.
One assessment system increases clarity of data collection and use of data to make instructional decisions.