At National Journal: Assessment Lessons from Early Childhood

This week, the National Journal’s expert blog asked writers to respond to a series of questions about assessment. I zoomed in on several lessons from early childhood assessments, PreK-3rd grade, that educators can and should integrate into 3rd – 12th grade standardized assessment practices.  I also described some appropriate types of assessments for the pre-K and the early grades, borrowing in part from a report by Kyle Snow at the National Association for the Education of Young Children. Here are some points I made:

• Direct assessments are administered directly to the child. For example, a teacher listens to each of her students read a passage to determine their reading level, examining the students’ accuracy and the types of errors made.
• Observational measures are conducted during a specific activity. The teacher uses a rubrics or checklist to determine whether a child demonstrates specific skills during an allotted timeframe.
• Authentic assessments are observations that are conducted during the regular flow of the day.