The Framework for Teaching Evaluation Instrument

The Framework for Teaching

Evaluation Instrument

DOMAIN 3

Instruction

3d USING ASSESSMENT IN INSTRUCTION

3d Using Assessment in Instruction

Assessment of student learning plays an important role in instruction; no longer does it sig-

nal the end of instruction; it is now recognized to be an integral part of instruction. While

assessment of learning has always been and will continue to be an important aspect of teach-

ing (it’s important for teachers to know whether students have learned what was intended),

assessment for learning has increasingly come to play an important role in classroom practice.

And in order to assess student learning for the purposes of instruction, teachers must have a

“finger on the pulse” of a lesson, monitoring student understanding and, where appropriate,

offering feedback to students.

Of course, a teacher’s monitoring of student learning, though the action may superficially

appear to be the same as that of monitoring student behavior, has a fundamentally different

purpose in each case. When teachers are monitoring behavior, they are alert to students who

may be passing notes, or bothering their neighbors; when teachers are monitoring student

learning, they look carefully at what students are writing, or listen carefully to the questions stu-

dents ask, in order to gauge whether they require additional activity or explanation in order to

grasp the content. In each case, the teacher may be circulating in the room, but his/her

purpose in doing so is quite different in the two situations.

Similarly, on the surface, questions asked of students for the purpose of monitoring learning

are fundamentally different from those used to build understanding; in the former, teachers are

alert to students’ revealed misconceptions, whereas in the latter the questions are designed to

explore relationships or deepen understanding. For the purpose of monitoring, many teachers

create questions specifically to determine the extent of student understanding and use

techniques (such as exit tickets) to ascertain the degree of understanding of every student in

the class. Indeed, encouraging students (and actually teaching them the necessary skills) of

monitoring their own learning against clear standards is demonstrated by teachers at high lev-

els of performance. In this component. Elements of component 3d:

Assessment criteria

It is essential that students know the criteria for assessment. At its highest level, students them-

selves have had a hand in articulating the criteria for, for example, a clear oral presentation.

Monitoring of student learning

A teacher’s skill in eliciting evidence of student understanding is one of the true marks of

expertise. This is not a hit-or-miss effort but one planned carefully in advance. Even after care-

ful planning, however, the teacher must weave monitoring of student learning seamlessly into

the lesson, using a variety of techniques.

Feedback to students

Feedback on learning is an essential element of a rich instructional environment; without it,

students are constantly guessing about how they are doing, and how their work can be

improved. Valuable feedback must be timely, constructive, and substantive and provide

students the guidance they need to improve their performance.

Student self-assessment and monitoring of progress

The culmination of students’ assuming responsibility for their learning is when they monitor

their own learning and take appropriate action. Of course, they can do these things only if the

criteria for learning are clear and they have been taught the skills of checking their work

against clear criteria.

Indicators:

• Teacher paying close attention to evidence of student understanding

• Teacher posing specifically created questions to elicit evidence of student understanding

• Teacher circulating to monitor student learning and to offer feedback

• Students assessing their own work against established criteria

3d Using Assessment in Instruction—Possible Examples

Unsatisfactory Basic Proficient Distinguished

A student asks, “How

is this assignment go-

ing to be graded?”

A student asks, “Does

this quiz count to-

wards my grade?”

The teacher forges

ahead with a presen-

tation without check-

ing for understanding.

The teacher says:

“Good job, everyone.”

Teacher asks: “Does

anyone have a ques-

tion?”

When a student com-

pletes a problem on

the board, the teacher

corrects the student’s

work without explain-

ing why.

The teacher, after re-

ceiving a correct re-

sponse from one stu-

dent, continues without

ascertaining whether

all students under-

stand the concept.

The teacher circulates

during small group or

independent work, of-

fering suggestions to

groups of students.

The teacher uses a

specifically formulated

question to elicit evi-

dence of student un-

derstanding.

The teacher asks stu-

dents to look over

their papers to correct

their errors.

The teacher reminds

students of the char-

acteristics of high-

quality work (the as-

sessment criteria),

suggesting that the

students themselves

helped develop them.

While students are

working, the teacher

circulates, providing

substantive feedback

to individual students.

The teacher uses exit

tickets to elicit evi-

dence of individual stu-

dent understanding.

Students offer feed-

back to their class-

mates on their work.

Students evaluate a

piece of their writing

against the writing

rubric and confer with

the teacher about how

it could be improved.

3d USING ASSESSMENT IN INSTRUCTION

The teacher gives no indication of what

high-quality work looks like.

The teacher makes no effort to determine

whether students understand the lesson.

Feedback is only global.

The teacher does not ask students to eval-

uate their own or classmates’ work.

There is little evidence that the students

understand how their work will be

evaluated.

Teacher monitors understanding through a

single method, or without eliciting evidence

of understanding from all students.

Teacher requests global indications of stu-

dent understanding.

Feedback to students is not uniformly spe-

cific and not oriented towards future

improvement of work.

The teacher makes only minor attempts to

engage students in self-assessment or

peer assessment.

There is little or no assessment or monitor-

ing of student learning; feedback is absent

or of poor quality.

Students do not appear to be aware of the

assessment criteria and do not engage in

self-assessment.

Assessment is used sporadically by

teacher and/or students to support instruc-

tion through some monitoring of progress in

learning.

Feedback to students is general, students

appear to be only partially aware of the

assessment criteria used to evaluate their

work, and few assess their own work.

Questions, prompts, and assessments are

rarely used to diagnose evidence of learning.

Critical Attributes

UNSATISFACTORY BASIC

Students indicate that they clearly understand

the characteristics of high-quality work.

The teacher elicits evidence of student under-

standing during the lesson. Students are

invited to assess their own work and make

improvements.

Feedback includes specific and timely

guidance, at least for groups of students.

The teacher attempts to engage students in

self-assessment or peer assessment.

In addition to the characteristics of “proficient”:

There is evidence that students have helped

establish the evaluation criteria.

Teacher monitoring of student understanding is

sophisticated and continuous: the teacher is

constantly “taking the pulse” of the class.

Teacher makes frequent use of strategies to

elicit information about individual student

understanding.

Feedback to students is specific and timely,

and is provided from many sources including

other students.

Students monitor their own understanding,

either on their own initiative or as a result of

tasks set by the teacher.

Assessment is used regularly by teacher

and/or students during the lesson through

monitoring of learning progress and results in

accurate, specific feedback that advances

learning.

Students appear to be aware of the

assessment criteria; some of them engage in

self-assessment.

Questions, prompts, assessments are used to

diagnose evidence of learning.

Assessment is fully integrated into instruction

through extensive use of formative

assessment.

Students appear to be aware of, and there is

some evidence that they have contributed to,

the assessment criteria.

Students self-assess and monitor their

progress.

A variety of feedback, from both their teacher

and their peers, is accurate, specific, and

advances learning.

Questions, prompts, assessments are used

regularly to diagnose evidence of learning by

individual students.

PROFICIENT DISTINGUISHED

Charlotte Danielson

The Framework for Teaching Evaluation Instrument