Middle School Student Assessments

1. Assessment is the systematic gathering of information pertaining to student knowledge. It includes the knowledge of what students know, are able to do, and what they may be able to do in the future. It typically refers to the traditional form of written assessment, although it can sometimes encompass other forms.

2. An alternative assessment is a form of assessment that deviates from the traditional written assessment. It may not be criterion based, and may include open ended questions, problem solving, skill demonstration, portfolios, or other forms of illustrating student knowledge, other than a written standardized test.

3. Authentic assessment is the process of judging student knowledge based on several different sources. It may encompass portfolios, observations, and alternative assessments in conjunction with traditional assessment measures, such as standard written tests and assignments. Authentic assessment allows students to be evaluated using life skills and real-world tasks, to gain a complete picture of student knowledge.

4. Performance assessment is a form of assessment that requires students to illustrate complex and significant tasks, utilizing prior knowledge and relevant skills to resolve authentic, real life problems. It focuses on observable results, as implemented via standards, criterion, and rubrics.

5. A rubric is a scoring tool for assessment. It allows for standardized evaluation in accordance with specific criteria, and provides the student with clear, concrete guidelines from which they will be assessed.

6. A portfolio assessment of a portfolio, which is a representative collection of student work that is meant to illustrate student knowledge, achievements, progress, and efforts over a period of time. It may be scored individually, as a whole (scored for having all of the required documents), or holistically (assessment based on the general impression of the student’s collection of work). A portfolio assessment often utilizes pre-established criterion to ensure the achievement of the portfolio objective, and focuses on student growth over a period of time.

7. The above are all important factors in middle school education to insure that the students are progressing satisfactorily. Traditional, standardized testing and assessment is important to evaluate progress of a cohort of students. Because students are diverse culturally, mentally, emotionally, and educationally, alternative assessments are important, because examine student progress in ways that may not be assessable traditionally. Authentic assessments are important because they determine student progress from a variety of different sources, which can help to gain a complete picture of the students’ learning overall. Performance assessments allow the student to show that they are capable of relevant, real world life skills and problems, which combine their education in school with practical real world application. Rubrics are extremely important, because they provide the students with grading expectations, and allow them to be assessed in a standardized manner, so they know what to expect concerning the outcome of their assignments. Overall, various assessments are important in middle school to determine the appropriate course of action for teachers, parents, and administrators. Assessment is crucial because it determines whether or not something is working, and provides the assessor with a tool to help determine what works and what does not. All students are expected to create end of grade portfolios of their best work for every class, which will be assessed as part of their final grades. Yearly, teachers will evaluate their teaching strategies on the basis of the above assessment types, to determine whether changes need to be made to their instructional strategies.