REIMAGINE ASSESSMENT SO EVERYBODY WINS
Assessment data must be generated for a specific purpose and, once collected, acted on.
— Priya Kannan, Research Scientist, ETS
Online assessment is developing at a rapid rate, reflecting wider technological advances.
— Vince Dean, Executive Director of K12 Assessments, ETS
Assessment is one mechanism that can contribute to supporting educational equity goals.
— Caroline Wylie, Research Director of Student and Teacher Research Group, ETS
WHY REIMAGINE ASSESSMENT?
Assessment is an established part of the educational landscape. It has a critical role to play in improving educational outcomes by measuring student learning. But this landscape is evolving as legislative frameworks such as the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), state-specific accountability requirements, and developments in educational technologies emerge. These changes in turn have an impact on assessment systems.
We decided to take a close look at the issues facing K-12 education and research how we could use assessment to help everybody win. Discover our journey so far.
THOSE IN EDUCATION ARE FACING:
- Evolving state policies and standards
- Need for actionable performance insights
- Lack of training on effective data use in the classroom
- Less time for teachers to spend teaching
- Insufficient resources for teachers, students, and parents
- Disconnection between assessments and effective instruction
ISSUES IN K-12 ASSESSMENT TODAY
When it comes to educating students, we all have the same goal: to ensure every student succeeds. However, administrators, teachers, students and parents each have their own needs to support learning.
We started by looking at the challenges facing each of these different stakeholders and examining how we could address them.
FURTHER LEARNING ABOUT K-12 ASSESSMENT ISSUES
List
5 Changes That Need To Be Made In K-12 Assessment
Discover the top current issues with K-12 assessment and what needs to change to address them.
White Paper
Understanding Balanced Assessment Systems
Learn about the different forms of assessment and how each could be used to benefit stakeholders.
BALANCED AND INTEGRATED ASSESSMENT CAN HELP ADDRESS THESE ISSUES
There are generally three kinds of assessment in K-12 education: summative, interim and formative. Each is essential and provides specific benefits. Currently, too much emphasis is placed on the summative assessment and each component is applied in isolation without a clear picture of how the outcomes connect to each other or the curriculum.
As an organization, we’re committed to the development and support of using the different types of assessment in a balanced and integrated way. In our research and decades of experience collaborating with educators, we’ve seen how balanced assessment can positively impact learning and instruction.
BALANCED AND INTEGRATED ASSESSMENT CAN:
- Provide insights to assist resource allocation
- Create a unified assessment language
- Measure progress throughout the year
- Give teachers actionable feedback on students’ progress
- Empower students and parents
- Improve professional development
- Create a more holistic view of learning in the classroom
- Be predictive of state accountability goals
INTEGRATED ASSESSMENT IS THE FUTURE
Introducing the Winsight® program.
Our vision is that the Winsight® program will soon integrate summative, interim and formative components to form an integrated K-12 assessment system that empowers teachers, students and parents. The summative and interim benchmark components are already here and the classroom tools will be developed in partnership with states and their educators. Discover more about the program.
LEARNING PROGRESSIONS AND KEY PRACTICES
ETS Learning Progressions and Key Practices form the foundation of the Winsight program. These are research-based models that help illustrate how learning develops from a basic level to a more in-depth and involved understanding. They will also aim to guide the design and reporting infrastructure that allows for all the assessment components to work together in an integrated manner.
THE ORGANIZATIONS BEHIND THE WINSIGHT PROGRAM
The Winsight program is being created by ETS and delivered by Questar. Each brings a unique legacy and set of skills.
