Research Blog Post #1- The Actionable Assessment Cycle

After reading Chapter 1 of "Rigor by Design, Not Chance" by Karin Hess, I wanted to dive deeper into the actionable assessment cycle that was discussed in this chapter. The chapter and article both thoroughly discussed the importance of the assessment cycle and the roles of both teacher and student. Both articles also share the common theme of establishing clear learning goals/targets.

Chapter 1 of "Rigor by Design, Not Chance" by Karin Hess started off by discussing teacher actions. Teachers are to take action steps in order to support student learning:

• Design  assessments that uncover what a student is thinking, not what they remember.

• Interpret assessment results in order to understand where a student is currently in their own learning process.

• Use assessment results to give students feedback so they can develop more self reflection skills.

• (Hess, 2023, p.60)

The steps mentioned above are crucial for the assessment process because it continuously allows teachers to actively use data they receive and it allows students to learn in an environment that is data-based which means that students are receiving instruction based on their needs. Later in the chapter, the assessment process is described and broken down even further:

(Image received from p.62 of “Rigor by Design, Not Chance")

This visual shows each step teachers should take in order to advance student learning during the assessment process. This is a great way to create a classroom environment that is centered around student learning and development, no matter where they are at in the learning process.

The article I discovered called, “The Cycle of Assessment” outlined the assessment process and what happens during each step. The four steps that were discussed and highlighted in this article are shown below:

Similar to Chapter 1 of “Rigor by Design, Not Chance”, each step discussed in this article addressed the importance of the role as a teacher in the assessment process. Students are the ones who are taking the assessments, but as teachers, we are the leaders of the assessment process. The article discussed how it is also our responsibility to develop clear learning goals that are measurable. Highline College (2020) stated, “Outcome statements must also be measurable and must target various skill levels within the cognitive domain”. This is important because students of all levels and abilities should be able to demonstrate their learning in any given assessment. Teachers also have the important role of checking in on students using a variety of assessments, not only summative assessments. Highline College (2020) also stated, “Learning activities must be designed to stimulate learning and to yield assessment data for the evaluation that follows in the Check stage”. This shows how developing multiple appropriate assessments that engage students in their learning is important in the process of assessing students because it gives teachers more information about each student and their learning. It is then up to the teacher to use these assessments in order to understand if the given learning outcomes are being met. Whether the outcomes are being met or not, it is still our job as teachers to use that information and knowledge based on the assessments in order to inform our instruction and planning for the future. 

Both articles provided important and detailed information that can help teachers develop a clear and organized plan for implementing the actionable assessment process into their classrooms on a continuous basis.

References

Hess, K. (2023). Rigor by Design, Not Chance: Deeper Thinking Through Actionable Instruction and Assessment. ASCD.

Highline College. (2020, August 7). The Cycle of Assessment. Assessment Committee. https://assessment.highline.edu/how-to/cycle-assessment/