This course, Evaluation & Assessment Policy & Practices, was designed with four major goals. Below, is my self-analysis on reaching each of those four goals.
1. Demonstrate a knowledge of assessment policy at the national, state, and local levels.
In reading Diane Ravitch's The Death and Life of the Great American School System: How Testing and Choice are Undermining Education, I gained an in-depth historical analysis of reforms in the United States educational system. Ravitch led me through the different movements and dilemmas in the United States ranging from the A Nation at Risk, to the history standards controversy, to San Diego and New York business model reforms to charter schools and vouchers. I feel knowledgable and well versed in the history of assessment and reform in the United States.
The course encouraged me to take an interest in current educational hot topics such as Common Core Standards and the NAEP tests. I had the opportunity to review NAEP scores and reflect on them. I also have a greater understanding of who makes educational decisions in the United States. By following Diane Ravitch on twitter and blogging, I have also been exposed to a plethora of hot topics that I was unaware of prior to this course. I have read extensively about common core lessons and assignments that are controversial, uproar in New York about tests with increased difficulty, and parents demanding their child's exemption from assessments.
Overall, the course has deepened my interest in current educational topics that I once thought were not applicable to me as a private school educator. I frequently used my private employer as an excuse for not being "up to date" with the latest educational issues. I now understand their importance and impact on my students and myself, and our nation as a whole. As an educator, regardless of the school in which I work, it is crucial that I understand the history of education in our country and the current topics that affect our education system.
One area that I hope to I hope to expand on is to read a little further into assessments in Baltimore City.
2. Critically analyze various assessment instruments and their varied implementation.
3. Identify different models of curriculum and instructional evaluation and identify their underlying philosophical rationale.
Throughout the course I was able to learn about and analyze various standardized tests such as the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), Program of International Student Assessment (PISA), Maryland School Assessment (MSA), Delaware Comprehensive Assessment System (DCAS), Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for COllege and Careers (PARCC). I analyzed the most recent NAEP and PISA scores and investigated other professionals' opinions on the assessments. Regarding the MSA, DCAS and PARCC, I was able to learn more about the administering and purpose of the test.
A large portion of the course was focused on performance tasks. Through the works of Linda Darling-Hammond and Edutopia, I have gained a deeper understanding of what a performance task is and why they are so valuable. These assessments are catered to the ever-changing skills that are needed to succeed in the 21st century. Other nations are flooding their curriculum with these realistic assessments and their students are excelling.
I also have a deeper understanding for many reforms that once hoped to improve our education system. The ideas of dividing up large schools as "schools within a school", charters and vouchers, No Child Left Behind, and Balanced Literacy were all well-intended when they were created but poorly implemented resulting in little to no long-term success.
4. Take and defend a position about a current assessment policy issue.
Although I did not formally take a stand on a current assessment policy issue, I feel confident that I could take a stand and debate many of the issues that plague our education system today. I can defend my opposition to charter schools, the lack of validity of state-created standardized tests, the United States' weak performance on the PISA, and corruption that business models bring to the education system.
As previously mentioned, my overall understanding of the American Education System has grown tremendously throughout this course and I now feel that I can engage in more meaningful conversations and debates about our system and policies as a knowledgeable educator.
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