12. Collaboration Through Technology for Assessment Information Andymangold http://www.flickr.com/photos/andymangold/4455910733/sizes/m/in/photostream/
13. Collaboration Through Technology for Assessment Information Mykl Roventine http://www.flickr.com/photos/myklroventine/3458294214/
Here’s the agenda as I see it right now. That may change, but my plan is to look briefly at the history of collaboration and assessment in education, discuss what I mean when I say assessment, explore the power of these two ideas together, and then look at the ways technology can help with this.
This issue of Educational Leadership came out in February of 1986 (I was 12). That’s the last time collaboration (or any form of that word) showed up in the title of an Educational Leadership issue. I have been debating internally and still haven’t decided if collaboration is being discussed less frequently now because it is so widely accepted or because it is less valued than it was in the past.
This issue addressed collaboration between schools and colleges, schools and day cares, and businesses and schools. Lots of potential there.
This is the note from the editor of that issue. It addresses the idea that collaboration is not easy – an idea with which I completely agree. The final sentence really struck me, “When collaboration works, the results are worth the investment.”
In the past few years we’ve seen several Educational Leadership issues focused on assessment in some way – Assessment to Promote Learning, Data Now What? and Informative Assessment.
Some of the current big books also address assessment to some degree. (Focus and Teach Like a Champion) However, they don’t spend much time, if any, on collaboration.
The work of the DuFours, on the other hand, clearly addressed both collaboration and assessment. Their promotion of common assessments requires both of these ideas. Teams must work together to create the assessment and then again to analyze their results.
Another recent book, written by many leaders in education is Ahead of the Curve: The Power of Assessment to Transform Teaching and Learning. Of the many articles or essays in this book a couple do address collaboration between teachers and with students.
Assessment is a fairly loaded word. It immediately conjures up images for everyone. When I say assessment, I know where many folks’ minds immediately jump. I don’t want to talk about that today. I’m not addressing standardized tests or even end of unit tests. I’m focused on ongoing assessment, assessment that will drive instruction in a classroom.
It’s worth noting, right now before we go any further, that this will not significantly impact test scores. (Cite Transformative Assessment)
Talk about types of formative assessment
As collaboration and assessment are two of the big buzz words in education it is not surprising that together they would be extra powerful. Sort of like mixing chocolate and peanut butter – even better together than they are individually. Assessments give teachers a clearer, deeper pictures of their students understanding of concepts or ability with certain skills. Without that it is difficult to plan effective instruction. If people are collaborating about that assessment, a teacher can get a broader picture by the opportunity to see through other’s eyes.
Discuss who might be involved in collaboration of this sort
![Collaboration Through Technology for Assessment Information Jennifer Orr 1 st Grade Teacher Annandale Terrace Elementary [email_address]](https://image.slidesharecdn.com/ascd-110326014425-phpapp02/85/Collaborative-Assessment-1-320.jpg)
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