Assessment

=Assessment, Evaluation, and Reporting on LwICT=


 * **Overview of the Continuum for Literacy with ICT**
 * **The Continuum Posters**
 * **Gradual Release of Responsibility**
 * **Focused Observation of Learning of LwICT**
 * **Assessment - Considering the Snapshots**
 * **Reporting on the 3 Competencies of LwICT**

**Overview of the Continuum for Literacy with ICT**
The continuum for LwICT is developed in two domains: Cognitive which describes thinking behaviour and Affective which describes behaviour related to ethics and responsibility.

The Cognitive Domain is composed of a developmental sequence of three stages of thinking that follow Bloom’s taxonomy and Pearson and Gallagher’s “Gradual Release of Responsibility” Model of Explicit Instruction. The five Big Ideas in the Cognitive Domain follow the Inquiry Model common to all subject areas: ELA calls it “Inquiry”, science calls it “Scientific Inquiry” or “Scientific “Design”, math calls it “Problem-Solving” and social studies calls it “Social Studies Skills”. The Inquiry Model was purposely chosen to outline the learning within the Continuum because it is a common model in Manitoba curricula and teachers are familiar with. Since it is already use in the classrooms, it does not constitute yet an extra topic they must teach. Rather, it can be seen as representing best teaching practices **across the curriculum.** The chart on p.12 of the //LwICT Handbook// shows how each of the big ideas is congruent with the steps of Inquiry in each of the subject areas.

The Affective Domain is composed of a developmental sequence of three stages of thinking that follow Krathwohl’s adaptation of Bloom’s taxonomy, and expand upon the concept of digital citizenship. The four Big Ideas of the Affective Domain are not listed in order of precedence. The descriptors refer to feelings and attitudes of students toward their personal use of ICT, while they are engaged in inquiry-based learning (as described in the Cognitive Domain of the Continuum), or in any learning situation. Teachers can observe the Affective behaviour of students in everyday circumstances that may be related to direct use of ICT or may be incidental to it.

**The Continuum Posters**
What is the difference between the big orange poster and the black and white poster of the LwICT continuum? [] []

Aside from colour and size there is NO difference. The big poster is a wall-sized version of the Continuum. The Black and White poster is a desk size poster, easier to handle for the teacher.

The four Snapshots represent the Emerging Learner (pink), the Developing Learner (green), the Transitioning Learner (blue) and the Expanding Learner (purple). The wording of each snapshot is identical to the orange poster and the black and white poster. In LwICT, each snapshot is an approximate portrait of a student for the range of grades listed at the bottom left of the snapshot poster. There is an overlap of grades from one snapshot to the next, to take into consideration the range of behaviours and abilities presented by students.
 * The Four Snapshots**

While student behaviour can be observed across the Continuum, classroom teachers tell us that the “average” student at a certain level will likely be behaving in a manner outlined in the coloured areas of the snapshot appropriate for his/her level. When the LwICT team outlined the Continuum with the developing team of teachers, observation of student behaviour was undertaken in several classrooms in Manitoba to determine what might be expected at each level. The snapshots were updated many times over a period of several months based on feedback received by the teachers.

Most descriptors list exemplars. They were collected by teachers in their classrooms and are based on the observations of the behaviour of their students. They were worded to be representative of the range of technologies available in schools. They are congruent with expectations from Manitoba curricula..
 * Exemplars**

While descriptors may be shaded in a snapshot, some exemplars are not. For example, in G1.4, expectations of “using electronic devices to collect primary data” extend only to digital cameras in the Emerging Learner snapshot.

The student-friendly version of the Continuum was developed for student use, as a tool for assessment AS learning. The language is simplified and exemplars are not included. The purpose is to have a tool designed specifically with students in mind, to make it easier and less daunting for them to read and reflect on their own behaviours and learning.
 * Student-Friendly**

Teachers who use the student-friendly version with their students will typically select sections they want their students to reflect on rather than hand them the whole continuum; for example, they might give students an opportunity to journal in a descriptive manner on a handful of descriptors, for a particular task or activity. This reflection is best done “just in time”, close to the time when the task occurred so as to be fresh in the mind of students and make it easier for them to remember more accurately.

The current version of the student-friendly continuum is used mainly with students in grades 3 and above. Teachers will take the time to explain each descriptor they want their students to reflect on to make it easier for the students. These reflections also facilitate conversations, between teacher and students as well as peer to peer. An early years friendly version is being developed for students in K-2.

At the back of each of the orange and black&white posters, there is a list of skills. That list was put at the back as a reference because the skills are NOT the focus of observation of learning in LwICT. That list informs the teacher about the skills that the students will require in order to demonstrate success with the descriptors found in the Continuum. Under most descriptors is a list of “codes” such as “sa1.1, sb1.2, etc.” Those codes are cross-referenced to and explained in the list of skills. Those skills also inform the teacher on what ICT skills he/she will need to support the students in their learning across the curriculum with LwICT.
 * Supporting Skills**

The Continuum is congruent with Manitoba Curricula. Each of the ELA, Math, Science and Social Studies curriculum was used as a lens when developing the Continuum for LwICT.

**Gradual Release of Responsibility**
Gradual release of responsibility is one of the seven principles of LwICT. The model of Explicit Instruction developed by Pearson and Gallagher, as explained in the ELA curriculum and the //Independent Together// document informs on the learning of students across the Continuum and the snapshots.
 * [[image:lwict2009:GradualR.png width="387" height="218" align="center"]] ||
 * GradualR.png ||

Students profiled in the Emerging Snapshot are beginning learners who need teacher guidance. Descriptors in this area typically state and underline this; for example, “P-1.2: Follows __given__ plan”, “G-1.1: Finds… from __given__ media sources”. There is an expectation that teachers will guide students, that there will be much group work as students learn from one another, that teachers will model and students will follow directions.

In the Developing and Transitioning snapshots, students learn to take their learning into their own hands, with the guidance of the teacher. While there is still modeling happening, students are expected to draw upon their own experiences and to extend their learning into new areas. There is a constant exchange of responsibility between teacher and student. Under this gentle release, students are still nurtured yet learn to learn independently.

In the Expanding snapshot, the student should be taking charge of his/her learning. The teacher takes a “guide on the side” role as students strive to become independent learners. This does not mean that students are expected to work on their own, but rather that they have a measure of control over their learning, be it on their own or within a group.
 * [[image:lwict2009:Gr+Snapshots.png width="520" height="320" align="center"]] ||
 * Gr+Snapshots.png ||

Focused Observation of Learning in LwICT
We use //focused observation// of learning in LwICT to explain how to observe students in a manageable way as they learn. Focused observation is not new; it is used in other areas. Teachers of ELA for example know that when they observe student learning, they will select no more than a handful of outcomes. They will work with students to set criteria for evaluation for those few outcomes. Teachers do this because they know that they cannot observe student learning in all 56 ELA outcomes all the time.

For a teacher to say that a student has achieved an outcome, that outcome must be observed often and over a given time period. This is important in order to see the growth in student learning and to see that a student’s learning is constant or improving over time. The teacher should take descriptive notes on the student’s achievement of an outcome in order to have specific examples in context of a learning situation. Checkmarks next to a list of outcomes are not descriptive. Checkmarks could state that a student has achieved an outcome, but they cannot describe how that has been accomplished.

Observation of student learning in LwICT can be achieved in a similar manner as in subject areas. Observations need to be anecdotal, be done often and over time. It is not sufficient to put a checkmark next to a descriptor, the teacher needs to record the context of each learning situation and be specific about the achievement of the students, the challenges encountered, or the behaviours observed during the learning situation. The same descriptors need to be observed often and over time to determine if the behaviour observed is consistent and if there is progress. Student achievement cannot be observed and recorded efficiently if too many outcomes are being observed at the same time.

To facilitate observation and get a picture of student learning for the whole continuum, let’s look at the school year based on a timeline of three reporting periods, since most school divisions report with that frequency. Since the Cognitive Domain follows the Inquiry process, there is a sequence to follow. In practice, this sequence is more circular than sequential, as engaging in a step often requires that the previous one be revisited, although the paper representation of the Continuum only allows a 2-D representation in order to portray the complexity of its many layers.

For the first reporting period, which would end around the end of November, consider observing student learning for descriptors in the first two Big Ideas: //Plan and Question//, and //Gather and Make Sense//. These two Big Ideas are the scaffold of an Inquiry; this is when students learn to formulate essential higher-level questions, when they learn to follow a plan or to adapt a plan, to take notes, to categorize notes, to make a bibliography. Those are essential skills needed to conduct an Inquiry and it makes sense to establish those skills at the beginning of the school year, to help students acquire or hone the skills if they seem challenged in effectively applying them, and to observe how students can demonstrate those skills.

By considering those two Big Ideas for an amount of time similar to the first reporting period, the number of descriptors to observe has been considerably narrowed. It is narrowed further by considering the snapshot appropriate for the grade level you teach. Imagine that you teach grade 1, that would be the Emerging Learner snapshot. The only descriptors highlighted (in pink) for that grade level are found in the left column of the continuum. There are only 7 of them for the first two Big Ideas. Still, keep in mind that many of the exemplars for those 7 descriptors are greyed out; for example, G-1.4 lists several exemplars, but only “digital camera” is active for grade 1 since the other exemplars are not suitable for the curriculum at that level.

For the second reporting period, which usually ends by spring break, consider observing student learning for descriptors in the next two Big Ideas: //Produce to Show Understanding// and //Communicate//. By then, students should be established in the critical thinking area of the Continuum and you will have had several opportunities to observe their learning. You can focus your observations using a new set of descriptors and proceed in the same manner as in the first reporting period.

The last reporting period of the year you can observe students’ ability to //Reflect//; it also gives you an opportunity to return to descriptors that have been previously observed. If your division reports to parents on LwICT at the winter reporting period, the observations gathered from then until June can still be inserted in the students’ cumulative files that will be transferred to the next teacher, for his/her information.

The four Big Ideas in the Affective Domain are listed in no particular order. Observing student behaviour in this domain should be done as the need arises, or as the learning situation best lends itself to it; for example, engaging in email exchanges with another class may be an opportunity to discuss online behaviour and observe students as they proceed with the learning situation. For more information about this, see [|Suggestions for Observing Behaviour Described in the Affective Domain – Early Years] [|Suggestions for Observing Behaviour Described in the Affective Domain – Middle Years]

**Assessment - Considering the Snapshots**
When we observe student behaviour for purposes of evaluation and reporting, we may sometimes say of a student that he/she is "in the Developing snapshot" or "in the Transitioning snapshot" because that is language familiar to teachers. (However we must remember that students do not 'achieve' continuum descriptors in the same way that they achieve end-of-year curricular outcomes, and that rather they demonstrate behaviours described in the continuum.) Even, at the best of times students who seem to display behaviour that "fits" the snapshot appropriate for his/her level may actually demonstrate a few behaviours that belong in another snapshot, either lower or higher.

In other words, while snapshots tend to outline a "typical" student, individual profiles of students (made over time through class/self observation, conversation and portfolio) may show a student "all over the place". For example, that student can work independently at //Produce to Show Understanding// or //Communicate//, but still needs teacher-guidance and mediation in the //Plan and Question// or //Gather and Make Sense// big ideas; a student may work fairly independently in the Cognitive domain, but not in the Affective domain. Some reasons for this can be that the student has not yet reached a certain developmental level, or that data relative to the student has not been collected for long enough or consistently enough to see an accurate portrait of the student.

And yet, this is the beauty of a continuum: all students can be observed "doing something", which is different from a curriculum where a student may just not achieve particular curricular outcomes. A continuum can help teachers to differentiate instruction by constructing a picture of each student's behaviour in order to better address the needs of that student.

In LwICT, each snapshot is an approximate portrait of a student for the range of grades listed at the bottom left of the snapshot poster. There is an overlap of grades from one snapshot to the next, to take into consideration the range of behaviours and abilities presented by students. It is possible that the range may be greater in earlier years, as some students "bloom" later than others.

If teachers observe that their class in general does not "behave" as expected from the snapshot for their level, it may inform them that their students have not been challenged to their potential or that they have not had enough opportunities to reach towards independence (i.e., the teacher gives too much "guidance", the teacher needs to turn students "loose"; this could be especially true for middle years students)


 * Assessment and Reporting Resources are listed on the LwICT Resources page**

**Reporting on the 3 Competencies of LwICT**
The following visual representation connects what you already know about critical thinking, creative thinking, and ethical thinking with the 3 competencies of LwICT and the Big Ideas of the LwICT Continuum.

The minimum required frequency for reporting on LwICT for divisions is once a year at a time of their choice. (Policy: []) However many divisions have chosen to report more often, sometimes electing to do so at all reporting periods.
 * When to report on student learning?**

When reporting on student learning, one needs both sufficient time to observe the learning often and to be able to show evidence of learning, that is, to show products created by students that support the assessment they were given on a report card.

Whatever frequency or time divisions establish, MECY suggests the following for divisions who report once. We feel that the first reporting period of the year does not sufficiently meet the first requirement in terms of fair assessment as teachers are still just getting to know students. In early years, this is even more of an issue. While the last reporting period (June) would seem best in terms of allowing the most time for observing student learning, this period does not meet the second requirement in terms of fair assessment as report cards are sent home and parents do not have an opportunity to come to school and view evidence of learning. This can easily be addressed, as some schools have done, by holding a special portfolio night.

The mid-reporting period of late winter seems best suited to both have allowed the collection of significant observations over time and to be able to show evidence of learning.


 * The Assessment/Communication Cycle**