The Intersection of Standards and their Assessments: From an AZ Teacher
In January, I wrote a post about “An AZ Teacher’s Perspective on Her “Value-Added.” Valerie Strauss covered the same story in her The Answer Sheet blog for The Washington Post, validating for me that readers appreciate stories from the field that explain in better terms than I can what is actually happening as these VAM-based teacher accountability and evaluation systems are being “lived out” in practice.
Well, the same AZ teacher wrote to me another story that I encourage you all to read, about the intersection and alignment of standards and their assessments, or more specifically the lack thereof.
She writes:
A fundamental principal in education is the precise alignment of the teaching of learning objectives (standards) with the assessment of learning objectives (tests). Research has demonstrated that when an educator plans lessons that begin with an analysis of what students need to learn, coupled with how a student will demonstrate the learning, achievement tends to happen. This is a “best practice” in education.
Enter: standards’ reform. My school district saw the writing on the wall: Common Core implementation was going to be massive. Beyond a shift in the philosophical underpinnings of standards (college and career readiness vs. every state for themselves), Common Core implementation meant, in some cases, a shift in instructional approaches (inquiry vs. modeling). And frequently, Common Core implementation meant changes inwhat got taught and in which grade levels.
Like any well-meaning, responsible school district, my district realized these changes were going to take time. And so they began Common Core implementation earlier than others in the 2012-2013 school year. And based on what we know about best practices, The Intersection of Standards and their Assessments: From an AZ Teacher |:
