Assessing the Whole Child

I feel that a child’s growth over time should be measured rather than a snapshot assessment completed in one day to show what they have learned in that year.  Not only should we be concerned with academic growth, we also need to be aware of a child’s social and emotional growth.  When they become adults and enter the work force their social skills and how they regulate their emotions will be just as important as their knowledge base.  We need to ensure all students leave us with ALL of the skills necessary to become a successful adult.

I found a wonderful website about education in New Zealand below is how they describe assessment and its purpose: 

Assessment for learning should use a range of approaches. These may include:

• day-to-day activities (such as learning conversations)
• a simple mental note taken by the teacher during observation
• student self and peer assessments
• a detailed analysis of a student’s work
• assessment tools (which may be written items, structured interview questions or items teachers make up themselves).

What matters most is not so much the form of the assessment, but how the information gathered is used to improve teaching and learning.

Assessment should be valid, fair and suited to the purpose. It should measure progress, not just achievement.

Any assessment can only provide a snapshot of achievement on a particular day. Performance will vary from day to day depending on:

• the nature of the assessment task
• the conditions in which the assessment is undertaken
• the purpose of the assessment
• the student’s preparation
• the student’s engagement and motivation.

To make a valid and fair measure of progress over time, teachers need to analyse information from a range of sources. It’s important that teachers gather information both formally and informally, using a range of approaches to add to or modify their picture of each student’s learning over time.

http://assessment.tki.org.nz/Assessment-in-the-classroom/Assessment-for-learning