As September was turning to October, testing was rampant at CHS. All of our sophomore students took a writing examination modeled on the State Proficiency Exam so that our English teachers could evaluate what areas need the most attention during this year to help them be successful on the test next year. The next week our juniors took the State Proficiency Exam for real, and sophomores took the Terra Nova. (Of course, this last test was administered at many grade levels throughout the state.)
     What the result of most of these tests will be is unclear at this point. I am concerned, however, about the public perception some results may receive. I monitored students taking the Terra Nova, and in spite of my encouragement, I was not happy with the effort put forth by many. Since they saw no personal benefit to performing well (except for pride), many did not take the test as seriously as they might have otherwise. Unfortunately, when the results are published there will be no category analyzing the percent of students putting forth a maximum effort. Neither will the results show how many students scoring below average on the Terra Nova are also failing their classes. Instead it is more likely the community will place the onus entirely upon teachers for not teaching, rather than upon students for not trying or not learning.
     The State Proficiency Exam provides its own unique set of circumstances. Certainly, the students being tested should have plenty of motivation. Since this test is a new, more difficult edition and being administered in the fall, the real question is not one of desire, but ability. Some students may not yet have mastered the necessary concepts by this time in the school year.
     The writing examination taken by sophomores was more purely diagnostic in function, although the results were less than encouraging. Many more sophomores scored below passing or were marginal than we had anticipated. At the end of the year we will retest the entire class, and I am confident they will show a much improved result. (I would like to think that English II is not a completely superfluous activity.) The results, however, have lent a sense of urgency to the school year for some of us.
     All of this ruminating on testing got me thinking about assessment in general: its function and purpose as seen by teachers, students, and parent. Ideally, all three groups should regard assessment from some common perspective; however, the truth is we rarely see the same thing the same way. Teachers use assessment to determine whether specified educational objectives have been met. Students view any evaluation as the bane of their existence. Understandably, their egos become inexorably connected to a grade which they have difficulty seeing past. It is the rare student who sees any type of examination as a learning opportunity. Part of this myopic tendency stems from the desire to please their parents. Parents are interested in results, and results are often difficult to quantify.
     Although each of these perspectives may seem to have much in common, they are fundamentally different. For example, I know what I want a student to know and be able do at the end of a particular unit. I have never had a parent ask me, "So if she had a "B" instead of a "C", what else would she know how to do?" Students frequently ask what they can do to bring their grades up, but not what else they should know. They do not see the two things as the same as teachers do.
     Like most teachers, I use a wide variety of assessment techniques, ranging from verbal to formal writing, to determine whether my students have met my educational goals. As objective as that sounds, what am I really measuring? My highest scoring sophomore who took the writing exam mentioned above is barely passing my class. His ability, independent of the parameters of my class, suggests he should have a better performance in English II. For reasons unknown and perhaps totally unrelated to the class itself, he is not achieving as he should. More problematic is the anecdote shared about me by another teacher. She told me a former student said I was "a tough but fair teacher," and that he had learned more in my English class than any English class he ever had. He failed my class! What had he learned that he found so valuable that I was not assessing?
     Addressing the concerns of all three groups listed above is not a simple task. No single assessment method can hope to appease all three. Grades alone, even those based upon a variety of methods, cannot give a complete enough picture. As we continue to try to improve ourselves as professionals, we also need to expand our concepts of how we assess our effectiveness. Surely, the best way to determine if we have been effective is to ascertain whether students' knowledge is transmutable and translatable into non-academic settings. Unfortunately, such an assessment method should be next to impossible to develop given the diversity of our population. The next best way would be to use a variety of methods and combine the results to get a more accurate all-around picture of the student. One element should be grades, and another a form of standardized testing. The element most often missing, however, is perhaps the most important: taking all this "stuff" and doing something with it. Mary Jean Lang is currently piloting a program in her AP English class requiring seniors to complete a project that demonstrates what they have learned in school, combining a variety of disciplines to produce a product. These products are then presented to and judged by a panel of educators and community members. She would like to see it become a requirement for graduation. Of course, not everyone is thrilled with such a notion, and there are some problems with the implementation. However, which demonstrates irrevocably that the student has learned something: getting an "A", passing a test, or creating something independently? Which are graduates going to have to do when they join the work force?
     Whether this specific method is the best or not, we need to be proactive and take the lead in changing the status quo for assessment. When the general public banters about words like "accountability" whenever the topic of education comes up, assessment is part of the matrix they are referring to. We should not feel defensive about our grading; rather, we need to recognize that grades can only measure some things well, not everything. If we do not enter the discussion, we will be told how we need to change. Which would you prefer?

Yes I can! recognizes the achievements of children and youth with disabilities. To help out, all you need to do is contribute the time to nominate a courageous child or youth for this program.
     The goal of Yes I Can! is to encourage the growth and development of children and youths with disabilities by recognizing their achievements and identifying role models of achievers with disabilities whose accomplishments can also inspire others. The concepts of challenge, positive self image, team building, civic responsibility and services are developed through the program.
     All youth participants receive a handsome certificate of achievement, and 35 youths are selected as top award winners and presented with a bronze statue entitled "Youth Victorious." The presentation will be part of the Council for Exceptional Children's Annual Convention in the Spring of 1999 in Charlotte, North Carolina.
     Guidelines and a nomination form can be obtained from Jeanne Quinn at Carson High School. Nomination forms must be postmarked no later than January 4, 1999.

The ERIC/OSEP Special Project at CEC is publishing a mini-library that provides practical guidance in adapting materials for students with different needs. The focus is on students with mild disabilities, and the information is directed to both general and special education teachers.
     The library provides practical guidance for adapting materials and describes the kinds of adaptations that have proven successful for teachers. It identifies the characteristics of materials that will be easy to adapt, and shows how to make the adaptations. The mini-library is based on research and consists of three books:

An Overview of Curricular Adaptations by Deborah Simmons and Edward J. Kameenui, Adapting Reading and Math Materials for Kindergarten Through Fifth Grade by Jeanne Shay Schumm, and Adapting Language Arts, Social Studies and Science Materials for Grades Six Through Eight by Jean Schumaker and Keith Lenz.

     Three kinds of adaptations are looked at: altering existing materials, mediating existing materials and selecting alternate materials. With each description of the adaption, there is a discussion of the problem to be addressed by the adaptation, a synopsis of the research that backs it up, and the example of what it looks like in practice. Reference information is provided, along with a contact person for additional information about the adaption.

For additional information concerning the mini-library:

E-mail ray-mondo@cec.sped.org, or send your name, address and e- mail address to Raymond Orkwis, ERIC/OSEP Special Project, the Council for Exceptional Children, 1920 Association Drive, Reston, VA 20191-1589.

     I think the biggest mistake we made in education is allowing students to come to schools with names. There is no single activity that takes up valuable teacher time than memorizing names, taking roll by names, entering grades by name, and attaching the right name to the right students when you have duplicates or closely related names.

The name game - Bobby Bobby bomp Bobby banana pana pomp - Bobby

     It isn't just the names themselves as if that wasn't enough when you can have 150 kids, but it is the nicknames and variations of spelling and pronunciation that often has a teacher pulling hair out. For example in one class I had a James, a Jim, and a Jimmy and that is exactly how they wanted to be called. I had three Andrews spelled the same but each pronounced differently.

The name game - Shirley Shirley bomp birley banana pana pomp pirely - Shirley

     After all the hassle of getting down the names and nicknames, then we have to deal with the changed names. You know. Those students who don't like their real name so they make up one like Budda, Seymour, Tank, and Carol Ann. I draw the line at Stud and Love Muffin.

The name game - Marsha Marsha bomp barsha fee fi fo Marsha - Marsha

     Even parents get into the name game. I had a father who wrote me a letter and told me the the reason his son had failed my English class for two years (one of which he had elected to take) was because I called him Jim instead of James. He was so traumatized that he couldn't do his work. Hello out there.

The name game - Nick Nick bomp bick banana pana pana pomp pick - Nick

     Okay we all realize we have a serious problem especially when we have 6 Jasons, 12 Brians, 8 Jennifers, and 22 Chrises (some male and some female). Now how can we solve this problem and win the name game.
     One solution would be numbers, for example student numbers since no two are alike. But a lot of us have middle age math dyslexia so numbers would be even harder. Another solution would be for a teacher to name a student after a car. That would be easy to remember and students would have to go with their assigned name with no changes - the luck of the draw. Or how about ice cream flavors? There are at least 32 which is more than enough for a class. There are names of trees, flowers, vegetables, fruits and nuts. OOPS wait a minute we had better leave fruits and nuts out of high school. We may get too personal.
     Let's make this a challenge for the year 2000 to come up with a solution for the name game or worse nightmares may come true. We'll walk into a classroom with 32 Chris Smiths and they all have shaved heads.

     All teachers should be sure and checkout the OCEA home page that Steve Fargan has developed.
http://home.pyramid.net/ocea/index.html
     He has some great educational links and in updating the web site has added a great new reading links page. If your browser supports 3D VRML with a plug-in, try out the new experimental virtual reality blocks page (just click on the new link of the home page or right here).