Chapter 14 QTC

(14.1) 

I know that informal assessments have to do with more of a performance type of assessment. One informal assessment would be to check if my students have unifix cube trains that are 5 cubes in length. Another informal assessment would be to make sure no trains are matching and another would be to see that they fit the 5+0, 4+1, 3+2 model. A final informal assessment would be to make sure they match the number combinations with the correct number mat. I know that formal assessments are a more standardized type of assessment. I could start my lesson and test my students if they know how many 2 number combinations make the number 5. Another formal assessment would be to count which students succeeded at the task and which students did not. Another formal assessment would to grade the students on a test of 5+0, 4+1, 3+2 number equations. Formal assessments would be much more of a challenge for this type of lesson plan in regards to informal assessments. 

These types of assessments would be very helpful in this lesson plan, but as the teacher, I would lean more to informal assessments. I would use informal assessments more because I would want to see my students performance on the task. Although I know formal assessments are important, and they could be used in the before and after portion of my lesson plan, informal assessments would be more applicable to a task that requires students to create.

(14.2) 

“Norm-referenced tests (or NRTs) compare an examinee’s performance to that of other examinees.”  The advantages of these tests would be tests like the SAT and ACT. These college entrance tests are designed to classify students into what category what they fit in with regards to achievement. The goal of these tests is to rank the test takers and define their success. The disadvantage would be that not all schools can produce “high achievement” scores, because not all schools are the same. I would rather see an increase in achievement, rather than grading everyone equally.

“Criterion-referenced tests (or CRTs) differ in that each examinee’s performance is compared to a pre-defined set of criteria or a standard.” The advantages of these tests would be to determine wether or not the student has demonstrated mastery of a skill or skills. In regard to the NRTs, the CRTs are pass fail, rather than a graded achievement score. The disadvantage would be that the test doesn’t take into work the levels of achievement. A student who excels beyond the requirement to pass is the same as a student who barely passed.