Assessment in Multigrade Classroom PDF

Assessing Learning and Teaching Performance in Multigrade Classes © UNESCO 2015  Assessing Learning and Teaching Performance in Multigrade Classes As you know, the evaluation of the learning outcomes of the diverse students found in your multigrade classroom is not always easy. But ass...

Assessing Learning and Teaching Performance in Multigrade Classes © UNESCO 2015  Assessing Learning and Teaching Performance in Multigrade Classes As you know, the evaluation of the learning outcomes of the diverse students found in your multigrade classroom is not always easy. But assessment is essential to find out how well your students are performing and whether your teaching is going in the right direction. There are two important uses of assessment: (1) learner assessment, and (2) assessment of your own teaching.  Focusing more on Learner Assessment than on Evaluation Focusing More on Learner Assessment Than on Evaluation As a multigrade teacher with students of many different ability levels, you must decide what information to collect on each learner’s progress and how to collect it. Individual learner assessment is just as important as comparative evaluation across students. The latter is useful to evaluate one student’s progress against his/her peers, but too much and too public evaluation around performance can lead to negative labelling of some students as “clever” and others as “slow”. Focusing More on Learner Assessment Than on Evaluation Like all children, students in a multigrade classroom learn in a continuum, moving from easier to more difficult material and from simple to more complex learning steps. They follow a path of progress at their own pace. Since such self-paced learning, as an integral part of multigrade teaching, promotes social, emotional, physical, aesthetic, and cognitive development, one goal for you is to focus not only on cognitive/academic achievement (e.g. reading and writing skills) but also to consider psychomotor skills and the psychological and emotional development of your students. Focusing More on Learner Assessment Than on Evaluation Another goal you should have is to develop a positive attitude among students about teachers and about learning. You can do this by assessing and rewarding other aspects of your students’ development such as their willingness to assist in doing classroom tasks, share resources with friends, and organize their own work. These outcomes deal with attitudes, values and behaviors, but they are not easy to measure despite their importance. Focusing More on Learner Assessment Than on Evaluation The assessment of students may be done daily or on a periodic basis depending on the size of the class and your capacity as a teacher to work with each student in the classroom individually. What is important is that assessment is not a one- time event but is cyclic and continuous. It must also be adapted to the type of activity on which your students are being assessed – group or paired work, individual work, etc.  Focusing More on Learner Assessment Than on Evaluation It is always helpful to reflect on the purpose of assessment and to plan for it at four different times during the teaching and learning process: before a new topic is introduced, to determine what experiences or understanding students already have about that topic; this information will help you decide what new information they need to be taught during a lesson, to find out if your students are learning the concepts being taught; if you note problems for the class as a whole or for individual students you may be able to solve them during the lesson at the end of a topic, to assess mastery prior to progression to the next topic, decide if further remediation is required for some students, and provide feedback to you about your own teaching methods at the end of a term or the school year, to assess if students have retained their understanding of the lessons delivered  Focusing More on Learner Assessment Than on Evaluation It is therefore important for you to adopt a Cyclic Process of Assessment. The process may begin Cyclic Process of with the identification Assessment of grade- and age- specific competencies expected to be mastered by your students.  Methods of Assessment in Multigrade Classroom In a multigrade teaching situation, you will have to use several methods for assessing learner performance and learning outcomes: Individual assessment – select activities that help measure the learning of each student. This may include collecting basic information through administering a test, checking individual assignments and projects, using checklists, observing each student’s activities and reading his/her written work, and keeping anecdotal records of each student’s development. Keeping a portfolio for each student is an especially rich resource thatwill help you assess the progress of your students over time and maintain a more permanent record of their work  Methods of Assessment in Multigrade Classroom In addition to measuring specific learning outcomes such as reading and arithmetic knowledge, you may wish to observe and assess the following skills and attitudes: Reporting, narrating, drawing pictures, picture reading, filling in maps, etc. Listening, talking, expressing opinions Expressing oneself through body movements, creative writing, etc. Reasoning, making logical connections Questioning by expressing curiosity, asking questions Analyzing and drawing inferences Learning by doing Expressing concern and sensitivity towards students who are disadvantaged or have various kinds of disabilities Showing cooperation by taking responsibilities seriously and sharing and working together  Methods of Assessment in Multigrade Classroom Group assessment – observe how well each group works as a team – who are the leaders, who needs encouragement to participate, who prevents others from taking part – and the quality of the group’s results. What did each individual student contribute to the results and how? Self-assessment – ask your students about their favorite and most difficult subjects. What additional help do they think they need to do better? Peer assessment – ask the peer tutors you have selected about the progress each of the students they are working with is making. Should different peers be assigned to work with students who are having problems? Practicing Self- Reflection on Your Teaching and Your Students’ Learning  Practicing Self-Reflection on Your Teaching and Your Students’ Learning Equally important to student assessment as a means to improve your teaching and develop new and better practices is your continuous and routine reflection on your own teaching skills, strategies, and methods – and on any other school responsibilities you may have. One way to do this is to keep a record of your teaching activities such as how you plan lessons, manage the classroom, schedule subjects, develop instructional resources, assign appropriate tasks to students, guide and counsel students with particular learning problems, and assist parents in monitoring the progress of their children.  Practicing Self-Reflection on Your Teaching and Your Students’ Learning Periodically reflecting on how you carried out these activities and what kinds of results were achieved, especially as you go through another cycle of teaching, can be very useful. Other sources of feedback on your teaching are also important. This may include assessment from your head-teacher/principal, your fellow teachers, and even informal feedback from your students – why not ask them what they like and do not like about the classroom environment and individual lessons?  REFERENCE “Practical Tips for Teaching Multigrade Classes” Embracing Diversity: Toolkit for Creating Inclusive, Learning-Friendly Environments Specialized Booklet 4 Published in 2015 by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization 7, place de Fontenoy, 75352 Paris 07 SP, France and UNESCO Bangkok Office © UNESCO 2015