Professional Documents
Culture Documents
OVERVIEW
Chapter 4 addresses the components of preliminary assessment, the data to be collected to help provide the
foundation of the assessment process and insights into the whole child. Sections 1 introduces the chapter by
describing the differences between formal and informal testing and Section 2 provides an description of authentic
assessment measure and how to construct and implement these assessments. Section 3 is a discussion of the
importance of and methods to use when interviewing the teachers and parents of students who are being evaluated as
well as focuses on important considerations regarding the student interview process.. Section 4 addresses the need to
review student records, explains what and how to access critical information about the child and discusses the
importance of analyzing work samples. Section 5 focuses on student observations, including group and one-to-one
testing situations, and the characteristics to focus on when observing students with visual and auditory acuity and
perceptual processing problems. Section 6 includes a description of the variety of authentic assessment procedures.
Section 7 provides a detailed explanation of the types of scoring methods used to rate, graph and chart the informal
procedures described in the previous section. Included in this section is a detailed description of the types of rubrics
and scoring systems and how to adapt them to meet specific needs. Section 8 discusses how, why and when to use
rubrics and rating scales. Also included are clear descriptions of how to construct a rubric followed by instructions
on how to monitor, graph and report assessment results. The chapter concludes with Section 9 which explains the
latest IDEA-2004 regulations on progress reporting to parents with detailed descriptions and examples of effective
and easy to use progress reporting systems.
OBJECTIVES
• Identify ways teachers can obtain and maintain baseline information regarding student progress.
• Identify the critical information obtained during the interview process, student observations, and
work-sample analysis.
• Describe the data obtained from the record review.
• Identify task analysis and dynamic assessment.
• Define a curriculum-based probe and describe its usefulness.
• Describe why and how graphs are used for charting progress.
• Explain the difference between holistic and analytic rubrics.
CHAPTER 4 OUTLINE
SAMPLE ACTIVITIES
1. Have class members develop a list of questions to use when interviewing parents about their child’s life at
home and in the community. As a group, have class members discuss the importance of developing questions that
are open-ended and can provide more detailed responses.
2. Ask class members to interview a teacher of an inclusion class as well as a general education teacher and
special education teacher who co-teaches in a class about how they prepares for report cards and parent conferences.
They should also ask these teachers how they correlate curricular plans, IEP development and the monitoring of
goals and objectives with assessment planning.
3. Have class members interview a teacher about a student who is experiencing learning and/or behavior
problems in the classroom. The teacher should be asked how he/she gathers baseline information about their
students and what information would need to be gathered. A checklist should be constructed that covers all areas.
4. Assign class members to visit a preschool program where there are children both with disabilities and
without disabilities. Have class members observe the children and list the ways that they communicate their wants
and needs both verbally and nonverbally. Take note of the teacher’s communication and reinforcement style.
5. Assign class members to work with a partner to observe a child during the same forty-minute period. Prior
to initiating the observation, they should decide on the type of recording system they will use. Following the
observation, each partner will individually summarize their observations, identify critical factors, make inferences
and recommendations for future instructional planning or modifications. Observations should be shared and
carefully compared. Consider: what points were observed by both partners, what points were missed by one partner,
what points were noticed but not recorded and why were these particular incidents not recorded? Were the
inferences objective? How similar were the recommendations of each set of partners?
6. Group class members and have each group discuss the effects of having an outside evaluator (i.e., someone
not familiar to the children) enter the classroom to observe the behavior of the referred student. What effect would
this observer have on the interactions of the other students and the typical operation of the class. What are the
advantages and disadvantages of relying on the student’s regular teacher to conduct and report on the observation
portion of the preliminary assessment.
7. Have class members write a scenario about a child or adolescent with an auditory acuity problem,
specifying the difficulties that would likely be experienced both in the home and in the school setting (e.g., difficulty
hearing conversations accurately, missing auditory cues). Identify the steps that should be taken to deal with this
problem in the classroom, specifically for assessment and instructional planning.
8. Assign class members to a small group to perform a task analysis for use in constructing criterion-
referenced tests. Class member will be assigned a specific task, such as to solve a mathematical equation involving
two digit multiplication requiring regrouping (e.g., 37 x 48). The students will be asked to write down each
sequential step in the task and then each group will share their analysis with the other groups. The focus of the
concluding discussion will be on whether all groups reported the same sequence, whether the steps described were
the same, what and why there were any differences and whether there is actually more than one way to successfully
complete the task.
9. Divide class members into two groups. One group will be the game developers who will be devising
jeopardy-like questions and answers about the various types of tests described in Chapter 4. The other group will be
the game players who will be reviewing for the challenge. Each group will be subdivided into pairs of two (one from
the game developer group and the other from the game players group). Play, keep score, compare results, and
congratulate the winners.
10. Collect sample report cards from several school districts in the area. After assigning class members to
small groups, have them identify the criteria that teachers must address in grading each subject area. Each group
will be assigned a specific subject area to review and then, for each subject area, they should develop an assessment
plan that correlates with the criteria on which report card grades are based.
RESOURCES
Websites
Videos
Reporting Results
Films for the Humanities and Sciences
PO Box 2053, Princeton, NJ 08543-2053
(800) 257-5126 http://ffh.films.com/
Hosp, M.K., Hosp, J.L., & Howell, K.W. (2007). The ABCs of CBMs: A Practical Guide to Curriculum-Based
Measurement. The Guilford Press, New York, NY.
National Information Center for Children and Youth with Disabilities (NICHY)
P.O. Box 1492, Washington, DC 20013-1492
(800) 695-0285 http://www.nichcy.org/