The end of the school year is like being on a roller coaster of emotions, never-ending tasks, and the struggle to do more! Intermixed with all of that, are the assessments we must do to measure the growth of our students; those assessments that allow us to reflect upon growth of student learning and offer a prescription for independent student learning. For that they are invaluable! But did you know that student assessments are also for you, the teacher? Those assessment help you find patterns of learning, and within those patterns are found patterns of teaching!

After you have thoroughly used student assessments as a way to measure and prescribe individual growth, it is time to reflect upon those assessment in a new way, a way to evaluate your own teaching and plan changes for the next school year.

As you look at the class assessments as a whole ask yourself the following questions…

Do I see any patterns of learning? For example, is there an area that most of my students scored poorly in? (ie. Did most of my students struggle with teen numbers, CVC word writing, etc?) Be sure to note these patterns and plan to incorporate change into your teaching for next year to address each pattern.
What categories did all students thrive in. What did you do in your teaching that really worked? (Be sure to note it so you will do it again).
Look at your struggling students. What interventions did you provide for these students? Did they work? If not, what is a different strategy that you can use next year to provide more support?
Analyze student scores in regard to performance. Did students score as expected? If the answer is yes, what did you do? If the answer is no, what can you do next year to enhance student performance on assessments?

As we review student assessment and find time to gain new insight into our own teaching, we will continue to grow and improve in what we do for our students. Cause that is what we do, right?

End of the Year Assessment Helps