ASSESSMENT FRAMING STATEMENT 1

Assessment Framing Statement

By Kathy Smith
Master’s Portfolio ED 698
Dr. Elizabeth Hartley, Ph.D.
Oct. 2nd, 2022
ASSESSMENT FRAMING STATEMENT 2

Assessment: Evidence-Based Instruction (Standard #6)

The teacher understands and uses multiple assessment methods to engage learners in their own

growth, monitor learner progress, and guide the teacher’s and learner’s decision making.

Assessment Framing Statement

I am a teacher that assesses my students continuously. Formal assessment is a critical part

of my teaching. “To help students reach the highest possible level of achievement, the effective

teacher is constantly assessing for student learning. This helps students go where they need to go,

and it helps them determine how best to get there” (Wong & Wong, 2009, location 3507).

Assessments given within my classroom enable me to know where the students are in their

understanding and help me to make the best plan and approach for teaching that I can in order to

help my students with their learning. “Good things happen when teachers are involved in the

assessment development process and when they are engaged in using assessments to make

decisions about students” (Taylor & Nolen, 2008).

I assess my students from the moment they walk into the classroom. “How are you

feeling today? Are you doing, ok? I love your outfit, you look a little sleepy, wow, you look

happy today,” and the list goes on. Assessing them emotionally helps me to give my teaching the

approach and direction needed to differentiate for each student throughout the day. Although this

type of assessment is informal, it is essential. Robert Marzano (2011) states, “Positive

relationships between teachers and students are among the most commonly cited variables

associated with effective instruction. If the relationship is strong, instructional strategies seem

more effective.”
ASSESSMENT FRAMING STATEMENT 3

This teacher work sample, TWS (Appendix A), is an example of a unit that uses formal

and informal assessments. I presented this unit on simple machines to my class of twenty 2nd

graders during my student teaching experience. The unit utilizes pre-assessments and post-

assessments, which help to guide my instruction. I begin by assessing student knowledge of

simple machines with a pre-test, then add a variety of visuals and activities for students to

engage in, and then conclude the unit with a post-assessment activity. By using the pretest, I can

gauge the student’s current level of knowledge on the subject, which helps to guide my teaching.

The post-assessment provides the information needed to make decisions about the effectiveness

of the teaching that I have done related to the student understanding. Additionally, I assess the

students informally throughout this unit by listening to their conversations and asking questions

along the way to determine their level of understanding from the answers they give and

observing their reactions during the activities. For example, I might ask them what specific

machine would be helpful to move something heavy; based on their answer, I can determine if

they understand. Assessment is a way to help students not only to see what it is they have

learned but also to give them the encouragement and confidence to want to learn more.

As a teacher, I am teaching students the required standards. I must know how to teach

each student within their learning ability and use assessments to track our progress. At the

beginning of every year, for instance, I have each student read all of their letter names and

sounds to me, which gives me a good guide for grouping them and a baseline. Throughout the

year, I track their progress with this by revisiting the same assessment. Formative and summative

assessments should be used to assess students’ understanding. Using formal assessments helps

me gather information about the student’s abilities and current levels of learning. This unit
ASSESSMENT FRAMING STATEMENT 4

incorporates two main assessment types: formative, which measures how a student is learning,

and summative, which measures how much they have learned.

“The real goal of classroom assessment is to improve student performance, not merely to

audit it” (Sousa & Tomlinson, 2011). Every student in one class is on a different level. Our

district utilizes IXL, a computer-based program we use for math and language arts, that ties in

with our standardized MAP test. MAP testing is the state test given to our students for reading

and math and is a test that adapts to your student’s responses in real-time to measure their skill

level. With information from the standardized test, I can provide students with individualized

instruction based on their specific needs identified by the MAP test using IXL.

Every student in my room can work on their math and reading throughout the week that

is tailored to their needs based on the MAP scores. They are focused, engaged, and make

progress in their individualized way, and I can track everyone’s progress as they work. For

example, I have students that are working on letter names and sounds as well as students who are

reading chapter books at a 4th-grade level. The use of these tools gives these students lessons

based on their abilities. One student is working on letter sounds while using IXL, and the other is

reading passages and answering questions. If a student or group of students are having difficulty

in a particular area, I can pull those students and work on mini-lessons with them to help them

succeed and move forward. As Earl (2014) stated, assessment practices “means making connections,

referring to progressions of learning and to learning goals, and planning relationships and linkages

between instruction and assessment”(p78).

The purpose of assessment is to assess whether the students have begun to think more deeply

about what they are learning. Assessment is a way to determine if they understand the concepts that have

been covered and encourage them to continue not only to dig deeper and to want to learn more but also to

make them aware that questioning what they are learning about is a good thing. Assessment is a way to
ASSESSMENT FRAMING STATEMENT 5

help students not only to see what it is they have learned but also to give them the encouragement and

confidence to want to learn more.

ASSESSMENT FRAMING STATEMENT 6

References

Earl, L. M. (2014). Assessment as learning: Using classroom assessment to maximize student

learning (2nd Ed.). Hawker Brownlow Education.

Marzano, R.J. (2011). Art and science of teaching/relating to students: It is what you do that

counts. Educational Leadership. 68(6). Retrieved from

https://www.ascd.org/el/articles/relating-to-students-its-what-you-do-that-counts

Sousa, D.A., & Tomlinson, C.A. (2011). Differentiation and the brain: How neuroscience

support the learner-friendly classroom. Solution Tree Press.

Taylor & Nolen (2008). Classroom assessment: Supporting teaching and learning in real

classrooms, 2nd Ed. Pearson Education Inc.

Wong, H. K. & Wong, Rosemary T. (2009). The first days of school. Harry K Wong. Kindle

Edition.
ASSESSMENT FRAMING STATEMENT 7

Appendix A

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1F8u07U7tT1oyFYftD0uKBJiAZXBN8h7K/edit?
usp=sharing&ouid=111028359848791010163&rtpof=true&sd=true