1. Running Head: ASSESSMENT FOR INSTRUCTION 1
Assessment Used to Drive Instruction
Danielle Kawcak
Walden University
Assessment for Student Learning
Dr. Paul Trautman
May 18, 2013

2. ASSESSMENT FOR INSTRUCTION 4
Assessment Used to Drive Instruction
The consideration of developed background knowledge and understanding is highly essential
when teaching for understanding. If we do not have a clear view of what students know regarding a
concept prior to diving into a unit, we may lose valuable opportunity to build upon their previous
knowledge while we are doing what we think to be building that initial basis. Another alternative
downfall may be that teachers assume students have background knowledge to build upon that they do
not actually have. These scenarios both prove to valid and essential reasonings for the necessity of pre-
assessments throughout education. Furthermore, the ability for students to become self-directed
learners based on their understandings is more importantly an essential life skill. The authors of Why
we need self-directed learners highlight the importance of self-directed learning by stating, “Both
teachers and students must become continual and internally driven learners” (Costa, A.L., & Kallick, B.,
2004). This ensures the need for purposeful assessment to be used as an avenue for learning for
teachers and students.
Based on my experiences with young students, I make it a point to value the background
knowledge of each student. Students have various experiences and familiarities that affect many
aspects of their learning. Determining student strengths and needs related to a concept before will
benefit student learning through focused direction and thorough connection processes. As I reflected
upon the assessments/methods for assessment I have created to implement during my unit, I found
there was no option for direct parent involvement throughout the course of the unit. I will further
develop the unit with an additional parent/family extension for students with that support to connect
their learning to learning that may be fostered at home as well. As a beginning step in this process, not
only to assess student knowledge, experience and engagement, but also to determine parent
engagement, I have created a learning exercise that we will use as a piece of initial assessment for
students to engage in at home. Additionally, parents/families are asked to complete a questionnaire

3. ASSESSMENT FOR INSTRUCTION 3
relating to their child's experience with force and motion. If I found it to be appropriate based on
student families' abilities to do so, I would ask that parents take their student to each local park to
determine, discuss and record differences in slides throughout the town parks and how these
differences altered the child's experience of sliding down each. Unfortunately, due to lack of
transportation and many high-need based families within the district I am currently in, this will not be
an assessment opportunity that I will implement at this time. However, this could also be a field trip
based learning experience for all students in the beginning of the unit. Please find attached these
documents of assessment for learning. From the completed responses, I am able to determine the
complexity of experiences a child has had with various aspects of force and motion, the use of student
vocabulary outside of school as well as willingness of parent involvement throughout this unit of
learning. These will all be factors that heavily direct instruction, learning opportunities and further
assessment options throughout the implementation of the unit.
Additionally, students will begin the process of completing a KWHL chart as a basis to
determine what their group learning goals will be and to assess their current understanding of force and
motion as related to slide structure and develop a sense of the needs that they will need to address
throughout their learning experiences. These KWHL charts will be formulated through deep discussion
and questioning with peers and myself. From this assessment, students will be driving their own
learning as they will understand their needs, determine how they might meet those needs and thus learn
from the experiences. I will use these assessments in great part as a means of providing and facilitating
learning opportunities to students based on their area of need. Additionally, students will be
continually collaborating to address further areas of student need. Thus, the questioning of
understanding from peers and myself will provide necessary feedback for students to reflect upon their
learning and articulate what they have learned ().
A highly valuable and effective form of assessment in any classroom is deep questioning.

4. ASSESSMENT FOR INSTRUCTION 4
Encouraging students to ask critical questions of themselves during learning as well as be able to
critically formulate relevant and thorough responses to questions asked of them. As a main means of
formative assessment in my classroom, students develop a dependence on thorough questioning to
guide their learning. The value of this questioning is not just beneficial to the educator but most
essentially to the student. Asking critical questions of one's peers promotes critical thinking by all who
are involved. This critical thinking may then be connected to other learning experiences and thus
develop a community of learning based on student, teacher, family and community collaboration. Oral
questioning is highly evident in my every day classroom practices but thoroughly used as a means of
assessment within this Force and Motion unit. Students will not only ask questions of each other but
they will also be asked questions by their investor to further drive their learning. Of this formative
assessment, students will be able to reflect deeply upon their learning and experiences to further
develop understanding of the concept.
In addition to thorough, developed questioning practices, students will be consistently assessed
based on observations of student interaction during play with materials, peers and situations. Student
play at the kindergarten level is essential for developmental growth and certainly a critical component
for learning cause and effect through trial and error relationships ASCD article. This observation
during play will guide my instruction as I will be able to develop an understanding of the depth of
understanding individual students have pertaining to cause and effect relationships with an emphasis on
force and motion.
The importance of purposeful assessment that is used to drive instruction is ever more evident
to me now as I see the vital role it plays in unit implementation. Just as we are to use initial
assessments as an initial indicator of knowledge and understanding that students are beginning the unit
with, formative assessment throughout continues to drive that instruction down the individualized
avenues it must follow to reach specific student needs. The implementation of these assessments has

5. ASSESSMENT FOR INSTRUCTION 3
given me an idea of student engagement, student knowledge and understanding as well as an insight to
student experiences beyond their time in school. With this information, I have the capability to provide
learning experiences that will capitalize of individual student strengths as well as meet student needs.

6. ASSESSMENT FOR INSTRUCTION 4
References
Costa, A.L., & Kallick, B. (2004). Assessment Strategies for Self-Directed Learning. Thousand Oaks,
CA: Corwin.
Student At-Home Learning Opportunity
Please do these activities with your child at home and then record their response to each
question and have your child illustrate their response in the given box.
1. Jump as high as you can. What happens after you jump into the air?

7. ASSESSMENT FOR INSTRUCTION 3
2. Throw an object up towards the sky. What happens after you throw it up?
3. Try to slide something heavy on the ground. How did you try to move it? What worked well? What
did not? Why?
Student/Family Learning Opportunity
Please go with your child to each of the listed parks. While you are at the park, please have your child
explore any slides that are there. Have them slide down it then come explain their experience while
you write it in the given area. Also, have the child do a quick but neat illustration of each slide
structure in the given box.
North Park-
Explanation of experience:
Why?

8. ASSESSMENT FOR INSTRUCTION 4
City Park-
Explanation of experience:
Why?
Loudy Simpson Park-
Explanation of experience:
Why?
Parent Questionnaire of child's experience with force and motion
Parents, please fill out this questionnaire with most possible accuracy. This will help me to
determine experiences children will be taking on as we learn about force and motion.
Thank you!
How often does your child play on playground equipment outside of school hours?
Has your child ever been sledding? If so, how often?

9. ASSESSMENT FOR INSTRUCTION 3
-Have different sleds been explored during this experience?
Has your child ever been to a water park that they were able to experience water rides?
Has your child ever been to an amusement park and experienced such rides as a roller coaster, etc.?
How does your child deal with trial and error relationships at home? (If something does not work,
what do they do?)