Assessment
Our Assessment Practices
Assessment is a tool for teachers and parents to understand a child’s overall progress and more specifically a child’s strengths and developmental needs. Observation, documentation, and reflection on children’s learning is done year-long and this forms the cornerstone of our teaching and learning methodology. Our Seesaw platform allows us to share the progress of your child’s learning. All learning is carefully planned by teachers and tied to standards. Teachers use a number of assessment methods to collect evidence of these.
Ongoing assessment
When learning is recorded in your child’s Seesaw journal, teachers are collecting evidence of learning. This is called ongoing or formative assessment and can be used by teachers to improve their teaching and by students to improve their learning. It is used to inform the next steps of learning.
Evaluations, success criteria, rubrics and checklists
At times your child’s work will also be assessed using a rubric or a checklist. These are called evaluations. Evaluations show the success criteria of a task and give information about your child’s progress. We do not award grades but levels of achievement.
Standardized Assessment:
When teachers collect evidence of learning, it is important to look at standardized examples to see whether students are reaching the target. The ACARA curriculum provides teachers with examples to assist teachers to make on-balance judgments about the quality of their students’ achievement.
MAP Growth
External Assessments
What is MAP?
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It is one point of data and assessment tool amongst many other assessments we use internally as a school
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We use the MAP Growth tests to gather external data to support teaching and learning
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We do testing under these subject domains: Mathematics, Reading, and Language Usage.
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Is given twice periodically during the year
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It’s an online adaptive test
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Shows what students know and what they’re ready to learn.
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Growth over time
Your child will take a MAP® Growth™ test from NWEA on a Chromebook or tablet. MAP Growth data help teachers check student performance by measuring achievement and growth. Teachers use results to tailor classroom lessons and set goals for students.
MAP Growth tests are unique, and it adapts to your child’s responses to measure your child’s skill level. If your child answers a question correctly, the next question is more challenging. If they answer incorrectly, the next one is easier. These results will provide a more complete picture of what your child knows and is ready to learn—whether it is on, above, or below their grade level.
Since MAP Growth tests provide immediate and accurate information about your child’s learning, it is one tool teachers can use to identify students with similar scores that are generally ready for instruction in similar skills and topics (to then identify groupings for differentiation), and then plan instruction accordingly.
MAP Growth student summaries, also provide typical growth data for students who are in the same grade, and subject and have the same starting performance level. Each school year, students in grades 1 to grade 8 take the tests in Fall. Following the Fall testing period, you will receive a Student profile showing a summary of how your child is performing and for the Spring testing period, you will receive a student progress report.
Reflections
In Primary school students will also regularly reflect on their own learning. These reflections can be written or spoken and are an important part of the assessment. Reflection is integral to PYP methodology. As the American educational philosopher and reformer John Dewey said: “We do not learn from experience, we learn from reflecting on experience.”
Progress Reports
Twice a year, in December and June, a full report will go out which gives an overview of achievement in all subjects. The levels of achievement are reflected in.
Parent Teacher Conferences
Parent-teacher conferences are an opportunity for you to meet with your child’s teacher and talk about your child’s progress. We have three conferences throughout the year:
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Learner Profile of My Child Conferences in August. These are an opportunity to share information about your child with the teacher.
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Two Three-Way conferences in December and May. These are an opportunity
Learning Celebrations
After term 1, at the end of each unit of inquiry, you will be invited to an afternoon during which your child will share their learning with you. These are called Learning Celebrations. These are student-led and children will talk about their progress as well as share action they took on their learning. You will be invited to these by your child’s teacher and asked to give feedback on your child’s learning when you come and visit.
Assessment approaches at WIS
More about:
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A form of assessment in which students are asked to perform real-world tasks that demonstrate meaningful application of essential knowledge and skills
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Co-constructing meaning
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Transferring and applying understanding
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Critical thinking
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Speaking, annotating and recording their understanding
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Process orientated
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Making Connections
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Deeper conceptual understanding
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Learning for understanding
Less about:
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Worksheets
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Teaching for the test
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Right/wrong answer
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Drilling
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Rote learning and memorisation
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Spelling/math quizzes