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Student Assessment/QPA

Student learning is the ultimate goal of quality public schools.  Knowing what students know and how well they know it is essential information for teachers, as well as for students and their families.

To obtain that information,teachers use various assessment strategies.  These include formative assessments, so that teachers know what students already know before instruction begins, and summative assessments, which occur at the conclusion of an instructional sequence to tell teachers and students and families what has been learned and how well.

Some particularly helpful resources include:

• The Assessment Training Institute, founded by Rick Stiggins, helps K-12 educators improve student achievement by integrating student-involved classroom assessment with day-to-day instruction.
• Many resources on student assessment are available to KNEA members through the KNEA Resource Library, searchable online.
• The Northwest Evaluation Association (NWEA), a non-profit organization, works with partnering school districts and educational agencies throughout the United States and is dedicated to improving teaching and learning.  Many Kansas USDs use NWEA's MAP, Measures of Academic Progress, as a formative assessment tool.
• NEA also has a collection of resources and links regarding student assessment.

And, in this high-stakes world of ESEA/NCLB, state assessments are important. At the KSDE website, you can find up-to-date information about

• State assessement calendars
• Examiner's manuals,   including Appendix A: Appropriate testing practices
• Information about alternate assessments, modified assessments and accommodations
• Kansas curriculum standards
• Tools you can use to analyze state assessment results
• Assessment fact sheets