Authentic assessment has been something we have heard about since the beginning of our program here at MSMC, so its not anything new to us. Becoming teachers in the 21st century means making lots of changes, one of them being how we assess our students. Not all students are the same, or even similiar to each other. We as teachers need to know that first and foremost before designing our assessments.
From watching the videos posted on moodle it is no secret that we need to move away from the traditional pen and paper, bubble sheets, desks all lined up in the gym in a row type of assessments. We now have more knowledge about the importance of differentiating, and why its essential to do so in the classroom. As I stated before students are all different, so we need to come up with different ways to assess them to benefit them and their individual needs.
The toolkit link was terrific because it gave 4 easy steps on questions to ask yourself when planning your lessons and assessments. (a perfect planning tool) It talked about rubrics, standards, portfolios etc which are all related to creating your own authentic assessment for your students.
Portfolios are something we hear a great deal about these days. Portfolios are wonderful for students to create because it allows them to become part of their own learning and assessment process. They will become responsible and active in their own learning. What more could we ask for? It also allows students to collaborate and prepare themselves for the real world. Its not just about taking a test, handing in to the teacher, and being done. Portfolios allow their own destiny to be in their own hands. This can be started at a young age and elaborated more as they grow into the higher grades.
The video on electronic portfolios was very interesting. I had not seen portfolios done that way before. To me it seems like it takes things one step further. Not only are students creating their own best work, but now they are using technology to showcase it. I think that this would be really helpful for older students.
My name is Pam and I am a grad student at MSMC. I am passionate about teaching young children and I am so thankful for everything I have learned thus far at MSMC. My blog is titled Teaching to Learn and Learning to Teach because I believe that we are all lifelong learners. As we move into our careers as teachers we will be continuously learning from our peers and students. Happy blogging!
The Way of the Future
We are the 21st Century Teachers
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