EDUC 602 Session 7

1. How Can Writing Be Assessed Using Portfolios? EDUC 602 Session 7 Unless stated otherwise the content of this section is based on Chapter 5 – Gunning, T.G. (2010) Assessing and correcting reading and writing difficulties. Boston, MA.: Pearson, Education, Inc.

2. Purpose of Portfolios • Portfolios can be used for a variety of purposes • Students learn to be reflective and to discern: • Their own growth over time • Their strengths • Areas on which they need to work • Teachers can assess growth • Parents can learn about the development of their children’s writing abilities Benedictine University

3. Steps to Using Portfolios • Establish Goals • Decide on Indicator Tasks • Establish Standards • Manage Portfolios • Evaluate Portfolios Benedictine University

4. How Can Writing Be Assessed Using Commercial Writing Tests? EDUC 602 Session 7 Unless stated otherwise the content of this section is based on Chapter 5 – Gunning, T.G. (2010) Assessing and correcting reading and writing difficulties. Boston, MA.: Pearson, Education, Inc.

5. Commercial Tests of Writing • Test of Written Language-3 (TOWL-3) • Achievement Tests with Writing Subtests: • Wechsler Individual Achievement Test • The Diagnostic Achievement Battery • Peabody Individual Achievement Test-Revised (PIAT-R) Benedictine University

6. How Can Writing Be Assessed Using Rubrics? EDUC 602 Session 7 Unless stated otherwise the content of this section is based on Chapter 5 – Gunning, T.G. (2010) Assessing and correcting reading and writing difficulties. Boston, MA.: Pearson, Education, Inc.

7. The Role of Rubrics • Goal: Improve instruction • Effective rubrics are: • Concise • Include criteria that encompasses a teachable skill • Clear • Teacher-created and Student-created rubrics Benedictine University

8. Holistic vs. Analytic • Holistic Scoring • Scoring by reacting to the piece of writing as a whole • Compare to three anchor papers (good, fair, poor) and determine which is most similar • Analytic Scoring • Scoring by considering major features of the piece • Important to focus on a few essential elements that have previously been emphasized (e.g., 6+1 Traits) • To obtain the most valid results, multiple samples of a student’s writing should be assessed Benedictine University

9. Guidelines for DescriptiveFeedback • Be specific • Be clear and considerate • Limit your comments • Tie your feedback to previous instruction • Keep the developmental perspective in mind Benedictine University

10. Analyzing Writing Using Rubrics Activity One-to-One Activity: • Use a 6+1 Traits rubric from the link providedto score your case study student’s writing piece http://educationnorthwest.org/resource/464 • Things to think about: • What is the student’s strongest writing trait? • What is the student’s greatest area of need? • What next steps would you recommend for this student? (e.g., additional assessment, instruction in specific areas) Benedictine University

11. How Can Writing Be Assessed Using Journals? EDUC 602 Session 7 Unless stated otherwise the content of this section is based on Chapter 5 – Gunning, T.G. (2010) Assessing and correcting reading and writing difficulties. Boston, MA.: Pearson, Education, Inc.

12. Journals • Provide insight into students’ thinking and writing abilities • Journal topics: the possibilities are endless! • Description of topics they are considering exploring • Explanation of struggles they are having with their writing • Achievements they have made in writing Benedictine University

13. How Can Writing Be Assessed Using Observations and Conferences? EDUC 602 Session 7 Unless stated otherwise the content of this section is based on Chapter 5 – Gunning, T.G. (2010) Assessing and correcting reading and writing difficulties. Boston, MA.: Pearson, Education, Inc.

14. Observations & Conferences • Observations • Observe students during the process of writing • How do they choose a topic? • What kind of prewriting do they do? • What techniques do they use to revise and edit? • Make notes regarding both needs and strengths (recommendations and commendations) • Writing conferences • Stop to discuss the students’ writing while they are engaging in the writing process Benedictine University

15. How Can Spelling Be Analyzed? EDUC 602 Session 7 Unless stated otherwise the content of this section is based on Chapter 5 – Gunning, T.G. (2010) Assessing and correcting reading and writing difficulties. Boston, MA.: Pearson, Education, Inc.

16. Spelling • 3 principles of spelling • Alphabetic – letters represent sounds • Pattern – spelling is determined by a pattern (e.g. ‘e’ at the end of a word indicates a long vowel) • Meaning – words that mean the same often are spelled the same (compete/competition) • For reading to progress, children need to learn to segment words into phonemes (distinct sound units) Benedictine University

17. Stages of Spelling Activity Read Figure 5.7 on page 148 of the Gunning text: • Pre-phonemic • Alphabetic • Word Pattern • Syllabic • Morphemic Spelling Stages Benedictine University

18. Spelling Assessment • The Elementary Spelling Inventory (page 150 - Gunning) • Make sure to analyze misspellings, not just correctly spelled words which can be memorized • The Spelling Placement Assessment (page 152 - Gunning) • Analyze what stage they are in • Also note what kinds of words students struggle with (predictable vs. non-predictable) • Assess student writing • Student Spelling Interview (page 153 - Gunning) • Assess student’s ability to learn new words to spell (study habits) • Commercial Spelling Tests (page 154 - Gunning) • Developmental Spelling Test Items & Illustrative Spelling at Each Stage (page 262 – Barr, et al.) Benedictine University