Among many priorities for high-quality classroom assessment, ALIGNMENT is the first non-negotiable.
I recall visiting a school whose new principal was distraught that students did poorly on their first interim; once she looked deeply at the skills that were measured on this commercial test, she saw they lined up with the curriculum that would be taught during the next quarter. This was reassuring to some extent but she wondered aloud why the district required her school to assess in a one size fits all approach, rather than assessing what students were familiar with.
Fair point! As a matter of fairness, assessments should measure what has been taught so there aren’t any surprises for students. Tests that cover content that students haven’t encountered are frustrating for kids and may turn them off. Alignment also matters for teachers. If they are going to spend classroom time administering interims, those tests should measure what’s been taught so the resulting data is immediately actionable. If the data must be cross walked to the curriculum or pacing guide, it makes teachers’ lives harder rather than easier. Purpose also matters. Is an assessment being used for diagnostic purposes? For student grades? As a final exam? The tool you select should match. A violin might be perfect for a concerto but not for a drum solo.
Alignment also matters at a systems level.
It’s important that all the major elements of a school’s academic system – in this case, curriculum, assessment, professional learning – line up well. This is what we call coherence.
Coherence is the degree to which all the elements of an organization are aligned to the same principles and purpose. When there is misalignment, there is friction (wasted energy) and a school (or any organization) is less effective. When there is coherence, teacher time is spent where it has the greatest impact- focused on creating instructional shifts to address the identified needs of students. . You know that feeling when you are driving to an appointment, and all the traffic lights are synchronized, and you sail through? You may keep your side eyes on the the cars around you to make sure no one is careening into you – but you keep your main focus ahead and your foot on the pedal. It’s when the lights are mistimed that things start to go awry. You must make multiple stops as traffic backs up, or (if you are like me) you try to find short cuts . It takes you longer to get to your appointment and it creates frustration. So too in classrooms, schools and education systems writ large.
Where there is misalignment – there is friction that slows down learning. When assessments aren’t aligned to curriculum, the results require interpretation, teachers require additional training or support, and results may not point in the right direction. When there is coherence, you can maximize time with the students in front of you – and not the “noise” of misalignment or rework that might be involved Coherence advances learning by removing the friction that can otherwise slow things down. And alignment allows interim assessments to be used as an effective and actionable tool for learning and planning in the classroom.
Success. Every student. Every teacher.
By Laura Slover
Laura Slover is CEO of CenterPoint Education Solutions, and was CEO of the Partnership for Assessment of College and Careers (PARCC) from 2010 to 2017. Prior to that she spent fifteen years at Achieve -most recently as Senior Vice President- working with state education leaders to build aligned systems of standards, assessments and accountability that prepare students for success in college and careers. From 2009-10, Laura led Achieve’s efforts to support the development of the Common Core State Standards. Laura began her career in education as an English teacher and basketball coach at Battle Mountain High School in Vail, Colorado, and an English instructor at Colorado Mountain College.
This is Part 1 of the CenterPoint series on Interim Assessment Best Practices.