Understanding How to Use Real Time Assessment as a Tool in Curriculum Design

Cathy Grace, Ed. D.

March 13, 2014

UNDERSTANDING HOW TO USE REAL TIME ASSESSMENT AS A TOOL IN CURRICULUM DESIGN

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Cathy Grace, Ed.D. Director of Early Childhood Programs

Gilmore Early Learning Initiative

Data Driven Decisions Makes for High Quality Early Childhood

Classrooms Cathy Grace, Ed.D.

Early Childhood Coordinator Gilmore Early Learning Ini@a@ve

Collabora@ve

Ques@ons to be Explored •  Why is developmentally appropriate assessment of children important in developing high quality, child-‐focused classrooms and programs?

•  What are some of the reasons teachers are resistant to using technology as an instruc@onal tool in the classroom and how can they be addressed?

•  How can the use of technology as an instruc@onal and assessment tool be beIer integrated into the overall program design of high quality early childhood programs?

Purpose of the Promise School Program The purpose of the Promise School Program is to provide four-‐year old children the opportunity to develop skills needed for them to be successful in kindergarten and throughout school. Appropriate learning experiences are provided to enhance and encourage growth in all domains of development.

Program Structure: Large and Small Group Sessions…

Learning Centers: Math and Computer

Learning Centers: Art and Drama@c Play

Learning Centers: Library and Manipula@ves

Learning Centers: Blocks and Science

Individual Instruc@on

Outside is Learning Time

Why is Developmentally Appropriate Assessment Important? Why is developmentally appropriate assessment of children important in developing high quality, child-‐focused classrooms and programs?

Begin with the End in Mind •  Successful high quality,

child focused programs: -‐  Regularly communicate with

teachers to ensure they know the end-‐of-‐year learning standards set by the program or school children are expected to master;

-‐  U@lize student data through out the weeks and months to make curricular and instruc@onal revisions based on individual or groups of children; and

-‐  Provide teachers with needed resources to appropriately teach students .

Defining Assessments and Their Use

•  The defini@on and use of assessments is cri@cal in developing a high quality early childhood program:

-‐ screening for health purposes, obtaining baseline data on child’s knowledge of skills and concepts in different learning domains; -‐ con@nuous for the purpose of informing instruc@on and determining child progress in “real” @me and for informa@on used in conferences with parents; and -‐ quarterly for the purpose of program evalua@on and “tweaking “ curriculum if needed based on numbers of children who are not making progress in a certain curriculum or domain area.

Taking a Posi@on on Assessment •  The Na@onal Associa@on for the Educa@on of Young Children

has clearly defined appropriate purposes of using assessment instruments.

•  Use of assessment instruments: -‐for their intended purpose -‐for the age and development of the children assessed -‐ in compliance with the professional defini@on of quality -‐ for the purpose of collec@ng educa@onal and developmentally relevant informa@on that is used for follow-‐ up -‐ for the gathering of informa@on to be used in ways to improve the child’s learning and in as many authen@c ways as possible

hIps://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/posi@ons/StandCurrAss.pdf

Assessments Must be Used in Conjunc@on with Curriculum Units and Learning Themes

High quality programs operate through an interconnec@on of: •  child development principles

reflected in environmental se`ngs and program design;

•  research-‐ based prac@ces on how children best learn and are assessed which influences instruc@onal prac@ces; and

•  curriculum reflec@ve of a scope and sequence that is comprehensive and relevant to the targeted audience.

Poll Ques@ons •  Do you consider children’s progress monitoring results in developing the content of your

lesson plans? Most of the @me Some of the @me Rarely Never-‐I use district pacing guides

•  Do you consider data collected through progress monitoring in how you construct instruc@onal @me?

Most of the @me Some of the @me Rarely Never-‐I follow the lesson plan and/or curriculum guide

•  How much @me to you average in collec@ng student data? 50-‐75% of the day 25-‐49% of the day Less than 25% per day Only assess on certain days of the week

Is technology a tool for assessing pre-‐kindergarten children that teachers should use? What are come of the reasons teachers are resistant to using technology as an instruc@onal tool in the classroom and how can they be addressed?

Na@onal Posi@on on Technology as an Assessment Tool

•  The Na@onal Associa@on for the Educa@on of Young Children has issued a posi@on statement on the use of technology as a tool for assessing young children. The statement highlights the following:

-‐  allows for children to freely explore touch screens in an interac@ve manner with an abundance of well designed games and ways for the child to feel successful;

-‐  provides children with opportuni@es to explore using the tradi@onal “mouse” and keyboards to research and answer ques@ons;

-‐  records stories a part of a video and/or audio file on each child; and

-‐  provides adap@ve tools and accommoda@ons for children with special needs.

hIps://www.naeyc.org/content/technology-‐and-‐young-‐children/preschoolers-‐and-‐kindergartners

Challenges for Teachers •  What is the teacher’s personal belief

and value system around: -‐ data collec@on and use as part of a high quality instruc@onal program? -‐ the use of technology as a method of data collec@on? •  Are teachers comfortable with change? •  Are teachers technologically challenged ? •  Do teachers have the right tools,

infrastructure and knowledge on how to effec@vely and efficiently use technology ?

•  Do teachers have mentors or instruc@onal leaders to help them make the transi@on from non-‐technology to using technology?

•  Do class schedules and the @me management skills of teachers compliment the use of technology?

•  Is there a school wide plan for the use of technology in instruc@on and assessment of students?

Searching for Solu@ons •  When making a decision to

invest in technology as an instruc@onal as well as an assessment tool it is wise to:

-‐get teacher buy-‐in as much as possible in advance of transi@on; -‐ invest in ongoing staff development in the system for teachers; -‐u@lize on-‐site technical assistance from peers in near-‐by loca@ons; and -‐start small by pilo@ng the programs/system which includes professional development.

Poll Ques@ons •  What percentage of teachers that currently have technology available in

the classroom consistently u@lize it? -‐75-‐100 % -‐74-‐50 % -‐49-‐25% -‐less than 25% •  What percentage of professional development is spent on suppor@ng

teachers in the u@lizing of technology as a tool for data collec@on and instruc@on related to the data gathered?

-‐75-‐100 % -‐74-‐50 % -‐49-‐25% -‐less than 25%

How should curriculum construc@on be more inclusive How do we “retro fit” curriculum to include more coordina@on with technology based content? How can the use of technology as an instruc@onal and assessment tool be beIer integrated into the overall program design of high quality early childhood programs?

Pu`ng the Pieces Together •  Assess current tradi@onal

curriculum and determine if any content is accessible on the internet or provided through downloading.

•  Develop and use planning and assessing protocols that accommodate all required learning standards and instruc@onal strategies by using technology based systems as well as tradi@onal curriculum scope and sequence lay-‐outs.

•  Create a learning environment where the use of technology is authen@c and integrated into the daily rou@ne on a consistent basis.

Lessons Learned •  Full appropriate u@liza@on of technology by teachers in the

classroom is an ongoing process. •  Having an on-‐site trouble shooter is cri@cal in reducing teacher

anxiety regarding the use of the different elements of the system •  Developing a “cheat” sheet for teacher use when planning helps to

iden@fy the specific Smart Board ac@vi@es that correspond to the skills and concepts highlighted per unit topic from the comprehensive curriculum used as well as Shell Squad Games. This helps @e program elements together.

•  In parent conferences we reference informa@on from both the H@tch repor@ng system as well as the informa@on collected through teacher observa@on and the comprehensive curriculum based assessment.

•  A strong infrastructure is cri@cal if the system as designed is fully integrated into the daily rou@ne.

Polling Ques@ons •  How much @me is spent on using cross walks between curriculum and state and local

learning standards in the curriculum unit/theme construc@on? -‐Very liIle (less than one hour per curriculum unit) -‐  1-‐3 hours per unit -‐  3-‐5 hours per unit -‐  5-‐10 hours per unit •  Is there a repor@ng system to parents that is consistent across the pre-‐kindergarten

and kindergarten in the school or program ? -‐yes -‐no •  In discussions around alignment of programs serving pre-‐kindergarten students what is

the most discussed curriculum element: -‐  Curriculum -‐  Teaching strategies -‐  Assessment of students -‐  Classroom environment-‐daily schedule, resources

Contact Informa@on

•  For more informa@on contact Dr. Cathy Grace at

Cathy@[email protected] or 662.312.1395

Understanding How to Use Real Time Assessment as a Tool in Curr iculum Design

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Understanding How to Use Real Time Assessment as a Tool in Curriculum Design

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