Maybe that's why teachers always save everything...What's important to assess?

     Throughout the course of the day, I feel that I am constantly assessing my students. I am always observing and listening in to what my students have to say to each other or to another teacher/myself. It's like an overload of information. To me, I become overwhelmed at what to assess and how to go about getting information explained/shown. Often times, I feel like I need to have students show their learning in a way that I can then show someone else, such as my mentor teacher, coordinator, liaison, or small group coordinator.

     Because of the position I'm in within the program, I feel that I must document everything and therefore I try to keep a paper record of all students learning. However, once I stop and think about how I assess my students, it becomes clear that I don't need to have them write everything down. Sometimes, a very useful and appropriate form of assessment cause be verbal through informal discussion or in groups. The biggest thing for me to realize is that "IT'S OKAY to show learning that way!"

     While teaching science and social studies for the last five weeks, I've had students complete journal activities, creative projects, presentations, and teacher made tests. I feel that it is important to see how each student best demonstrates their knowledge and then play upon those strengths to then build their knowledge in other areas. For example, I know that some of my students are very creative, so I let them demonstrate their learning in creative ways, such as drawing or artistic expressions. There are also students who love writing, so I have incorporated speeches, brochures, poems, and letters.

     I think it's best to work with the students, and not all forms of assessments have to be used. There is a time and place for different types of assessment. It really depends on what you are trying to assess and the learning goals that you have set for your students. The biggest thing that I've noticed so far is that assessment of my students shows me that they have accomplished the learning goals that I have set for them, and it doesn't always mean that those moments have to be captured and stored to share. Maybe that's why teachers always save everything...