Developing Parent & Community Understanding of Performance-Based Assessment

by Alvestad, Kathryn Anderson

• ISBN13: 9781930556027
• ISBN10: 1930556020
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2000-09-01
• Publisher: Eye on Education

Summary

This book takes the reader step-by-step through the process of helping parents understand the role of performance-based assessment in student learning. Included are: - suggestions about what to emphasize during one-to-one meetings with parents. - speeches and presentations you can deliver at PTSA meetings and school board sessions. - transparency masters and handouts to enhance your presentations.

Table of Contents

Meet the Author	v
Foreword	vi
Preface	xi
Introducing Performance-Based Assessment: Changing Times Require Changes in Practice	1	(6)
Why is Parent Involvement Important?	2	(1)
What Happens When Major Shifts in Practice Occur?	2	(1)
How Can We Avoid Problems?	3	(1)
What Are the Keys to Effective Parent Involvement?	3	(2)
The Challenge Ahead	5	(2)
Some Basic Principles	7	(24)
The Importance of Leadership	7	(4)
Knowledge	7	(2)
Enthusiasm	9	(1)
Persistence	9	(1)
Back-up Leadership	10	(1)
The Importance of Consistency	11	(1)
Where to Begin	11	(6)
Getting Started	11	(3)
Setting the Stage for Understanding	14	(1)
Parent Roles as Instructors	15	(1)
Experts	15	(1)
Competent Instructors	16	(1)
Skilled if Trained	16	(1)
What Parents and the Community Need to Know	17	(7)
Selected-Response Assessment Is not Bad in and of Itself; It Is Just not Appropriate for Every Learning Target or for Every Learning Style	17	(2)
Good Assessment Begins with Good Planning	19	(1)
Performance-Based Assessment Requires Students to Demonstrate What They Know and Can Do, Rather Than to Select an Answer from a Given Set of Possibilities	20	(1)
Teaching to the Test has Taken on a New Meaning	21	(1)
Studying for Performance-Based Assessments Is Different than Studying for Selected-Response Tests	22	(1)
Parent and Community Involvement Helps	23	(1)
Getting Your Message Across	24	(1)
Roadblocks to Success	24	(1)
Parting Words on Staff Involvement	25	(6)
Step One: Introducing Performance-Based Assessment	31	(16)
What to Do	31	(4)
Parent Roles as Instructors	31	(1)
Introduce the Idea to as Many People as Possible	32	(1)
Provide Take-Home Information	33	(1)
Correct, Calm, and Diffuse	33	(2)
How to Do It	35	(3)
Make Information Available	36	(1)
Provide a Knowledgeable Individual	36	(1)
Provide Additional Information	37	(1)
When to Do It	38	(9)
Step Two: Sharing Knowledge about Performance-Based Assessment	47	(20)
What to Do	47	(4)
Parent Roles as Instructors	47	(1)
Provide More Detailed Information	48	(1)
Establish a Background for the Change	49	(2)
Introduce Skills for Helping at Home	51	(1)
How to Do It	51	(10)
Parent Handbook	51	(4)
Group Activity	55	(6)
When to Do It	61	(6)
Step Three: Teaching Performance-Based Skills to Parents	67	(20)
What to Do	67	(1)
Parent Roles as Instructors	68	(1)
Provide Guided Instruction	68	(1)
How to Do It	68	(4)
Workshops	69	(3)
When to Do It	72	(15)
Step Four: Helping Parents Practice Performance-Based Skills	87	(8)
What to Do	87	(3)
Parent Roles as Instructors	88	(1)
Provide Frequent, Relevant Opportunities to Practice	89	(1)
How to Do It	90	(1)
Teacher-Developed Activities	90	(1)
When to Do It	91	(4)
Maintaining Communication	95	(16)
Newsletters	95	(2)
Newspaper Articles	97	(6)
Other Sources of Widespread Audiences	103	(1)
Parent Volunteer Programs	103	(1)
Covering All the Bases	103	(8)
Parents Who Are Younger than Average	104	(1)
Parents Who Are Older than Average	105	(1)
Families of Students in Upper Grades	105	(1)
Families with Limited English Proficiency	105	(1)
Parents Who Work Outside the Home	105	(1)
New Families	106	(5)
References	111	(2)
Bibliography	113