Performance Assessments or Performance Tasks or Practice Tasks?

Our standardized test scores pointed to a need to work with students more on meaningful, multi-step math problems. I determined this need when I noticed students doing quite well on multiple choice tests, but not so well on tests that required deeper thinking. To counter that, time was spent this summer crafting what I named performance assessments with the goal in mind that these assessments would tell us more about students' deeper mathematical thinking and application. As we started the tasks, tasks that used a process approach of partner work, peer/teacher edits, revision, and self-assessment, a colleague noted that they really were not assessments in the sense that students weren't completing the work on their own and turning it in for a grade. That's when I changed the name to performance tasks, with the idea in mind that we were asking students to perform a math task that required deeper thinking. Then, today, David Wees published a very short post about practice which left me wondering if we should call these tasks, practice tasks. We'll likely stick with performance tasks.

As I assessed students' initial work on these tasks, I found that they were engaged and applying the learning we had done related to the concept focus of the task. Tomorrow they will embark on part two of the task, and I'll be interested if their engagement continues and their performance rises--I'm looking forward to watching them engage with the task, work with partners, talk about their work with me, and make any needed revisions. These performance task records will be kept in students' portfolios so they can refer back to the tasks and also talk about the tasks as they review their learning with family members and teachers at the upcoming conferences.

In a couple of weeks, students will have a traditional assessment on the same concepts, skills, and knowledge. I will be interested to see if I see a positive effect of the performance tasks on students' ability to take a traditional test.

In the meantime, I'll continue down this road to deepen math instruction in ways that build a greater love, interest, understanding, skill and meaning when it comes to math learning. Onward.

Challenging days lead to a refined focus

The last few school days were a bit challenging due to a large number of reasons. Our school year began without the typical administrative supports since an administrator was ill. Illness happens and it is often disruptive. Now that we have a new administrator, we are making up for lost time, and that make-up process has been somewhat challenging since it is an add-on to the typical full schedule and demands of the job.

I'm sure I've not been alone with regard to sleepless nights and worries related to the workload, but now with an administrator in place, and schedules mostly set, it's time to better set the agenda and work towards the important goals I've set:

Advocacy for teacher autonomy, leadership, and support
There are structures in place that I believe can be improved with regard to elevating teacher autonomy, leadership, and support. Some old-time demeaning and unsupportive structures still exist, and these structures serve to deflate rather than inspire. I'm advocating for revision with regard to structures that burden educators rather than support them.

Math education
I'm committed to improving math education for all students. This requires lots of collaboration, study, and trial-and-error. I will work with my colleagues and administrators to better build our math education program with the following efforts:

• advocacy for changing the coaching model at my grade-level
• advocacy for revising and updating Response-to-Intervention at my grade-level
• offering a homework club beginning in November for fifth graders
• weekly attention to student performance
• a well planned and orchestrated math teaching/learning program that embeds activities that reflect new research related to cognition, social-emotional learning, cultural relevancy, and math.
• potential collaboration with a related state initiative

When I meet with a curriculum leader this week, I will ask the following questions:

• Where do you see room for growth in the math program?
• How does the system plan to forward that growth?
• Could the state initiative be a positive stepping stone to improving our math program?
• What system supports could be better used to uplift students' math education?
• How can the systemwide efforts with regard to math and other curriculum areas be better communicated? 

Science education

We have wonderful resources for this work and study. The challenge is the time for prep, continued learning, implementation, and assessment. I have to make time to organize the learning in this area--that's work I'll do with my colleagues in the days ahead.

Social-Emotional Learning

This collection of social-emotional learning resources has been very helpful. The key is to match these resources with specific teaching/learning units so the impact is deeper. Students truly enjoy this area of study--they are very concerned with their social-emotional sides of life. Embedding this learning regularly throughout the school days is a positive way to teach this information. 

Class community

A positive routine, class meetings, time for play and fun, and read aloud all work to foster a positive class community. This focus is taking shape in positive ways. 

Balance, focus, health, and energy

I write about the challenge to foster a good routine so that energy is strong for both personal and professional pursuits. Limitless jobs like teaching challenge healthy schedules, but I know this is a good goal. 

Collaboration around student services

In schools today students work with multiple teachers. Students have all kinds of specialist teachers and classroom teachers too. As I consider this, I am thinking about the collaboration needed to serve students well. For some students, this collaboration is simple. These children typically go along with the program, do what's expected, and manage their days well, and for other students, for all kinds of reasons, this is not a simple matter--these kinds of students have less ability to manage their day and meet expectations. These are the students who challenge good collegial collaboration as these students don't fit well into typical school programs.

What do we do about students who need different or more, students who typically work with lots of teachers?

A good schedule
These students typically require a good schedule, the kind of schedule that meets their needs. It's important that these children understand their schedule well and have some control over their time too. As I think about this, I am thinking that it's important to to sit down with these children and review the schedule with time, reasonable choice, and specificity. These children typically want to understand well what's expected, what's on the agenda, and how they can be successful and well cared for.

Strategies for success
For students who find school challenging, it's important to provide them with strategies for success. That takes lots of time as teacher and student discuss problematic issues and seek ways to remedy the problems to gain success. These students need more time for pointed discussion, problem solving, and strategy use and practice.

Goals and priorities
These students need to create good goals, move toward those goals, and assess their success regularly. Making and seeing progress builds confidence and greater success. The number of goals needs to be just-right, and that just-right number will be different for every child. What's important is that those goals are reasonable and achievable. It's important to work with the child to create learning paths to achieve these goals and make those learning paths explicit.

When programs are overwhelming, goals unclear, and expectations confusing, students have less chance for success. I will be thinking about these criteria as I work on my own and with colleagues to meet the needs of students who face greater challenge at school.

There are limitations

I noticed a potential not met recently, but I simply don't have the time or support to advocate for change in that area. It's an area I've spoken up about many times so it is discouraging to see little change, but right now, I can't take on that challenge. Others are working on it, and I hope their work proves to be impactful.

I write often about the fact that we can't do all or be all. In a limitless job like teaching, the limitations may be more visible.

As I think of these limitation, I am also thinking of the potential within my grasp--the things I can do at school to support optimal learning and teaching. The list remains the same: math education, science education, and positive community building efforts including efforts related to safety, growth mindset, social-emotional learning, and leadership opportunities. As for other areas, there is little time or support right now. The plate is full, and now it's time to do the best I can with the agenda set. Onward.

A day of highs and lows

There were some great highs today in the classroom including positive time to work with a few individual students, a good read aloud, an engaging and helpful computer program, great games at recess, a good lunch, and great prep time at the end of the day. There were a few challenges too including challenges that are not easily resolved, challenges that demand more help than advice. What seemed like an avalanche of good advice over the past few days finally met a breaking point--I just couldn't take in one more well-meaning idea about how to do my job. Throughout my career the imbalance of advisers vs. people working with children has been a struggle--I'd like to see most people who work in schools ,work with children rather than advise though I know that some need to be in a purely advisory role.

What created the avalanche of advice? It began last Friday at a meeting that imposed a number of suggestions and advice by someone distanced from the classroom reality. I left the meeting troubled by the comments and wishing for more help than advice. Then throughout the week others offered both general and specific advice. I listened, but the more advice I got, the more I began to bristle since almost all of the advice was based on inference rather than experience and little came with extra support, but instead added to my job list--a list that is already filled.

Teachers are used to getting advice and suggestions since most people are familiar with schools, and most people have opinions about what we do. Yet, a teacher can only take so much advice--too much simply creates a weight with regard to what we can do. Rather than advice, I like when educators work together on common goals. For example, last week we had a good meeting about the schedule and how those I met with can collaborate with me to provide the best possible supports. That was a good meeting because everyone was invested in making things better and everyone was willing and ready to help out.

It's important to be open minded to advice, however, it's also important to curate that advice with the following considerations:

• Ask the advisor how he or she can help out.
• Decide if the advice is rooted in good research, experience, and understanding of the situation.
• Be realistic about the advice--is it possible--what will it take to make the advice a reality, and who is willing to help out and do the work.
• Avoid advice that is not well grounded or helpful.

There are many ways to teach well. There are also many opinions when it comes to what it means to teach well. It's important to be open minded to advice, but it's also important to curate advice in ways that empower rather than deflate. Onward.