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How to Review and Assess Student Learning
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This blog post is part of a series unpacking The SIOP Model. Transform your teaching experience with this guide to review and assess student learning.
Background
Assessment is an important part of learning, especially for English Language Learners.
The SIOP Model is a frequently used tool that promotes effective teaching and learning for language learners.
With my deep educational background and extensive experience as an educator, I am committed to creating and utilizing assessments based on the SIOP Model to ensure successful language acquisition for ELLs.
The SIOP Model
The SIOP (Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol) Model (CREDE, 1996) is an instructional framework validated as highly effective in improving the achievement of students.
Student learning and success are enhanced by using instructional strategies and practices to engage mother-tongue language and the target language used in each lesson.
It is also used as a best practice with students who need to improve areas of their language development, like grammar and literacy skills.
The SIOP Model includes eight components:
- Lesson Preparation
- Building Background
- Comprehensible Input
- Strategies
- Interaction
- Practice & Application
- Lesson Delivery
- Review & Assessment
SIOP Review and Assessment
Lesson review and assessment are essential to measuring the student’s learning experience and learning outcomes throughout each lesson and the learning process.
- Educators revisit the lesson outcomes in this stage of the SIOP Model and assess their students’ progress.
- A lesson may begin with reviewing previous learning or checking students’ knowledge of a topic or relevant vocabulary.
- Throughout the task, the teacher frequently checks student comprehension to determine whether additional explanations or re-teaching are needed.
Review and Assessment with Language Lessons
Language and vocabulary are just as important as the content. Therefore, students comprehensively review the target language content throughout each lesson.
During or at the end of each lesson, formative assessments measure student achievement with target vocabulary and concepts discussed in the lessons.
Some examples of formative assessment for vocabulary development are:
- Spelling Tests
- Word Search Puzzles
- Crossword Puzzles
- Sentence Development
- Word and Definition Matching
- Creating Video Clips
- Using a Graphic Organizer
Reviewing and Assessing Student Progress
Educators must review and assess their student’s progress periodically.
There are various ways to do this, but standard methods include looking at assignments, conducting classroom observations, and giving tests or quizzes.
The assessment process allows teachers to see what areas their students are struggling in and adjust their instruction accordingly.
It also helps them determine which students might need additional support outside the classroom.
Assessment for Improvement
Assessment is vital because it helps students see what they’ve learned and where they need more work.
If students see their weaknesses, they start working on them. In addition, engaging students in the assessment process helps them improve their understanding of the concepts they’re learning.
- Consider using various assessment strategies to learn more about your students’ learning and where to focus your efforts.
- Using available digital tools and resources helps students improve their skills and encourages them to stay on top of their progress.
Types of Assessments
Each assessment method has its strengths and weaknesses. Therefore, choosing a suitable assessment method for each lesson or activity is important.
For example, if you want to know how well students have learned the material in a course, giving a test or quiz may be your best option. In contrast, if you want to know how well a student performs in remembering vocabulary, a short quiz in Quizlet is suitable.
These are some common categories for student assessment:
- State-assessed standards-based assessments (most states have state standards assessment systems in place that can provide information about what students know)
- Classroom-based assessments (such as classroom quizzes, exit tickets, and daily homework to assess what students know)
- Performance-based assessments (such as projects, posters, videos, debates, interviews, and presentations to assess what students know)
Here’s an example of a language assessment:
Assessment and Instructional Practices
Instructional practices vary among teachers, but one common goal is ensuring students learn the material.
To do this, many teachers engage in formative assessment by gathering information about student understanding during instruction.
This allows them to see what areas their students struggle in and adjust their teaching accordingly.
There are a variety of ways to collect data for formative assessment.
One popular method is called think-pair-share.
To do this, the teacher poses a question or problem to the class and gives them time to think about it individually, pair up in small groups, and share their ideas about the question or problem.
Another way is using exit tickets at the end of each lesson. Exit tickets are designed as a formative assessment to measure students’ learning at the end of a lesson compared to the learning outcomes.
Identifying Students’ Needs
Ongoing assessment evaluates students’ learning in each lesson and identifies which students might need additional support outside the classroom.
Student assessment is essential to help progress, comprehension, and proficiency.
One of the most critical parts of assessment is data collection. Data collection involves looking at everything from quiz scores to essay grades and measuring each student’s progress over time.
If students see where they’re already strong, they will learn to build on that to further their knowledge and understanding of the subject.
On the other hand, if a student has been falling behind in school, strategies to help them catch up are crucial.
After all, if students don’t make up the missing material, they’ll fall further behind.
When students fall behind, it is also an excellent time to share a list of helpful study strategies with students to keep them on track.
For example, a student who needs more help in a particular subject area could be placed into a smaller group or provided with a tutor.
Another example is for a student who may need differentiation of instruction for concepts within a lesson.
Summary
Assessment allows students to assess how far they’ve come and how close they’ve come to their goals.
In addition, it enables them to determine how much they’ve learned and still need to learn.
The right type of assessment lets them see what they’ve accomplished, as well as where they need to focus their attention.
Thanks for stopping by!
Until next time,
Suzanne
