Differentiating Assessment

                                                                         lmet.csus.edu

In a differentiated classroom, assessment is a primary source of information for guiding teaching and learning. While standardized tests are given to all students at the same time on the same day, it is in the classroom, minute by minute, and student by student, that teachers recognize and respond to individual strengths and variations. It is in the classroom that assessment can be differentiated and personalized to meet the unique needs of each learner.

Multiple assessment strategies provide a balance between standardized, classroom, and formative. Pre-assessments such as a proficiency inventory, posting incoming knowledge on Padlet, or signaling a position can offer insights into student’s starting points. This in turn informs teaching and supports learning.

During learning students can document progress as well as lingering points of confusion with a windshield wiper indicator or a graphic organizer. For example, using the image of a slide, the rungs become the main ideas and the slide is the summarizing conclusion. Metryx  and similar learning tracking programs can be accessed ubiquitously to support continuous monitoring. This also informs instruction which in turn guides assessment.

After instruction, students can create ABC summaries or explain their learning to a Martian. Exit slips using Google Docs can guide individual coaching. Engaging students in writing test questions and quizzing each other using Millionaire helplines and phoning a friend engages students in the review and makes success possible. Quizlet can help students create their own personalized study sets.

Quizzes can be differentiated by sequencing the questions from easiest to hardest (similar to a low tech adaptive test). Tests can be simplified so that multiple choice questions have fewer choices. An assessment matrix that combines levels of the taxonomy with multiple types of assessment provides choice and allows students opportunities to work on foundational knowledge while giving others time to analyze or create. For verbal/auditory learners, a Socratic Seminar can be just as effective in making thinking visible as a written essay. 

Differentiating to support growth, rather than simply focusing on final scores, makes success possible for all learners.