Chapter 4: Three Important Types of Assessment

In Chapter 4 of Fair Isn’t Always Equal author Rick Wormeli breaks the task of assessment up into three vital processes: portfolios, rubrics, and self-assessment. Portfolios, Wormeli argues, allow for a broad scale reflection of a student’s accomplishments, detailing the full experience of learning that took place. The flexibility in which a portfolio can be created is vast, each facet carrying its own set of variables: medium (paper vs. electronic), time (multi-year vs. unit), size (a full collection of works vs. representative samples), and purpose (graded vs. reflection). The use of any of these variables is at the teacher’s discretion, allowing for one to easily mold portfolios into their curriculum and have it fit their needs. Second, rubrics, allow for task specific assessment. Rubrics can be constructed to meet two needs: holistic, to view as a whole, or analytic, to view for skills and content. The benefits of analytic rubrics is that they allow students to see what elements of an assignment carry the most worth and can therefore better understand what the purpose of the task is. Holistic rubrics are beneficial in that they are far less time consuming while offering similar levels of feed back verses analytic. It should be noted, rubric making is an art, it takes time and skill and end results will always allow room for improvement.

Lastly, self-reflection, as a student I have felt the process of self-reflection on my own work was an arduous task that carried an outcome of little worth. The practicum experience has changed my views on how I think as a student tremendously, this topic included. As I regard grades with less worth I have been forced to find value in some other element of the learning process, the ability to self reflect and grow from experience has been that outlet. I was inspired by this chapter to create my own process for self-reflection that I would like to someday implement in my classroom. The idea steams around a student driven portfolio project that runs the entire length of a school year, the aforementioned variables at full discretion of the students. The exhibits of these works will take place at parent teacher conferences, creating a great opportunity for student, parent, and teacher to assess learning and establish goals.