Measurement and Assesment

For my Student Achievement project I will be collecting data to observe the effectiveness of the interventions recommended by the intervention team. Video #II by Leblanc helped me understand how not to depend on the term “Grade Equivalence”, as I monitor the progress of the students. It is a term based on the predictive models and is easily misunderstood. The recommendation was to use percentiles as they were a more accurate measure. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C3Zc8g9BwKg&feature=related part two

 It was also interesting to learn that it is recommended that for an assessment to be reliable it should be offered to at least 30 students and further at least 30 items should be on the test for it to have higher reliability versus one essay question. I will share this information with my peers as they form assessments in the classes where I will be observing some student growth. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C3Zc8g9BwKg&feature=related part two http://wiki.answers.com/Q/

Through Video # 3 I have a better understanding of Content Validity. As I observe my students for this project I will have an awareness to assess them for what they have been taught. I would use of a table of specifications to assess the validity of the assessments used in their class http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NFD6_XZqfso&feature=related part 3 validity

As an administrator it would be vital that Video 3.2 by Leblanc be shared with the staff to fully understand how easily the validity of a classroom test can be improved. The teachers would be encouraged to follow the steps for before, during and after the test to promote student achievement. A follow up to be assured if this is being practiced is imperative too. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qwxUFX3Pb_o&feature=related part 4 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VXCE3BnMTsc&feature=related –

The ADPRIMA article explained how even though the terms measurement, assessment and evaluation are connected, it is useful to think of them as separate but connected ideas and processes. Assessment is collection of data, Measurement is the process of qualifying assessment data and Evaluation is the comparison of the data for the purpose of judging its worth. Also that inherent in the idea of evaluation is Value. The understanding of these terms is valuable for an administrator to achieve student growth by using the appropriate tools. http://www.adprima.com/measurement.htm

The ten fundamental assessment principles discussed in the Pare online article would assist an administrator to give guidelines to the staff as they formulate assessments for the students. A consciousness needs to be created that a good assessment is one that is valid, fair, ethical, efficient, and feasible, uses multiple methods and incorporates technology. It will also be helpful for the staff to keep in mind the eight tensions that influence assessment decision making. http://pareonline.net/getvn.asp?v=7&n=8  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UoTNRvEEyUE&feature=related- 

Literature Review videos

The NCSU video was informative and had an element of reality that helped me understand how to execute a literature review. Listening to Dr Classen compare it to telling a chain story, made it real and attainable. The video was inspiring because the steps were explained in a very simple manner and the connections could be made instantly. After watching both the videos I have a clearer picture of how to research effectively and the importance of presenting the information in a organized sequential manner. The phrase that impacted me the most was that it was imperative that my voice guide the discussion and that I include how my research relates to all the other researches. As I researched my topic ‘The EC child in a Montessori classroom’, I found articles that share insight into how Montessori and multi sensory education is synonymous. These videos have given me a graspable image and a direction on how to accomplish this successfully.

Research Methods in Education

The four videos that I found informative were:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmulkCjHqqw-  The Comic strip which in an unusual way clearly explained the strengths and weaknesses of Quantitative and Qualitative research.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxN6Ps1VNGo- The Horowitz interview, reminded us that we don’t have to reinvent the wheel, there is a lot of data available that has already been collected and we need to analyze and use it to answer the right questions

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=638W_s5tRq8 – The 60 second marketer u tube, as it gave a better insight into when to use Quantitative vs. Qualitative research.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WPZJVE43Ju0- The Andrew Barras classroom pulse action project was an incredible as it made us realize how easily we can involve our students into helping them get the most from our instruction.

Our school system has collected enough data over the years from the schools that are consistently low performing or high performing. Using the Quantitative research method they can identify the cause and effect factors that are present in each school and use the statistical validation to share with the schools to help them change course. Using the Qualitative research method our school can benefit from identifying the needs of the EC staff and relate them to the faculty so as to encourage cooperation from them in assisting the special needs children consistently. Our school would benefit tremendously by using the Action Research method to promote the use of

technology and get ready for the 21^st century.