Twitter Book Club: @alfiekohn (2004) What Does It Mean To Be Well Educated? - Two:5

Two: Standards and Testing
5. Beware of the Standards, Not Just the Tests

"the standards are said to be neutral with respect to pedagogy. But this is nonsense." Kohnless than a minute ago via Twittelator Favorite Retweet Replyanderscj
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"As Linda McNeil of Rice University has observed, 'Measurable outcomes may be the least significant results of lear... http://tl.gd/9oa11iless than a minute ago via Twittelator Favorite Retweet Replyanderscj
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"As Linda McNeil of Rice University has observed, 'Measurable outcomes may be the least significant results of learning.' (That sentence ought to be printed out in 36-point Helvetica, framed, and hung on the wall of every school administrator's office in the country.)"

Measurable outcomes may be the least significant results of learning.

I'll post a picture here of the framed quote once I can convince a school administrator to hang it in their office.

@anderscj check out Deming's 14 principles and 7 deadly diseases of management " Running a company on visibl… (cont) http://deck.ly/~IEO4nless than a minute ago via TweetDeck Favorite Retweet Replypammoran
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"Clearly, it is much easier to quantify the number of times a semicolon has been used correctly in an essay than it... http://tl.gd/9oa2rmless than a minute ago via Twittelator Favorite Retweet Replyanderscj
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"'Alignment' isn't about improvement; it's about conformity." Kohnless than a minute ago via Twittelator Favorite Retweet Replyanderscj
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"Not only politicians but also some assessment experts sometimes forget that doing something well is not the same a... http://tl.gd/9oa75qless than a minute ago via Twittelator Favorite Retweet Replyanderscj
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Who will be held accountable?

I have fallen far far behind in keeping up with my RSS reader. My goal for the day is to catch up. In this attempt I came across this post Will Richardson published a week ago titled The Assessment Problem. Well worth a read if you missed it. What follows is my response to this post which echoes a theme that I will be dealing with for the next few weeks on this and other blogs:

How does one define “higher-order thinking?” If you define it too narrowly you may be able to assess it but then anyone engaged in critical thinking on the matter may produce responses that indeed are beyond the scope of the assessment’s definition and thus be considered wrong. Additionally, where in the traditional scope of the curriculum spectrum is the capacity for critical thinking nourished? In as far as I can tell it is in the areas of learning that are not well assessed through objective means, in subjects that are only truly measured via subjective assessments. Sure you can measure a painting, a song, a poem, or dance strictly by the objective elements used to produce it but to do so kills the essence of it. Typically students engaged in the fine arts, so long as they are engaged at a level that includes analysis, interpretation, and judgment, are developing this capacity for critical thought. However, since reducing these sorts of activities to their elements to measure them objectively kills what it is we value in them they are more and more being undervalued in this environment of “accountability.” Every year I see more and more of these programs cut, so much so that I was forced to make a career change three years ago to become a technology integration specialist instead of clamor after what remains of mostly part-time art teacher positions along with all the others displaced by this system of “accountability.” Who will be held accountable when our subjective values are lost, when what is valued in our schools is reduced to what can be objectified?

Is Assessment Necessary for Learning?

There is a fantastic discussion on the nature of assessment and learning happening on Will Richardson's blog right now. You should go there and read through the comments. I am re-posting mine here:

To build on Gary’s earlier suggestion that we think about the role of assessment in terms of learning that occurs outside school settings I think it might help even to think about it in the context of other species. Take my dogs for example. Aside from formal training experiences I have observed two distinctly different types of learning experiences they engage in on their own. One involves learning by cause and effect and the other involves discovery.

An example of cause and effect learning is problem solving. This type of learning is fueled heavily by a motivation to attain a result. For example, for most of the day my dogs have free reign of the back yard but at night I lock them in the garage. My shepard-husky mix, who is our most hyper dog and arguably the best problem solver, doesn’t like this kind of confinement and constantly works to find ways to get out. The results of both her failed and successful attempts to open the dog door (or break it open) are forms of feedback and through this trial and error she engages in self-assessment until she has learned what she needs to satisfy the desire that motivates her.

The other type, discovery learning, has no motivational force and also lacks assessment. An example of my dogs learning through discovery is one day my newfoundland discovered, while digging a hole in my yard, that the soil below was cool. When he was a pup, and even a young adult dog, he rarely engaged in digging behaviors but through discovery he learned this was an effective way to keep cool outside on hot days. No one taught him to do this, it was not motivation that led him to dig (if I remember right he was digging because I forgot to trim his nails), and there was no assessment in the form of trail and error. I suppose you could argue that his discovery that the ground was cool was a form of feedback but it certainly was not assessment. And, how do I know he learned that the ground under the top layer of soil was cool? He only digs on hot days and he always sits in his holes. He has one this for ten years (he is 15 years old).

I also engaged in an interesting discussion tonight on Twitter. Here are a few bits an pieces of what I added to that conversation:

How do you self-assess the learning you do on Twitter?less than a minute ago via Twitterrificanderscj
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@jerridkruse what about learning that results from events of discovery? Learning occurs w/o goals. Does assessment need 2b in this equation?less than a minute ago via Twitterrificanderscj
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@shareski can you give an example of when it is not an instrument of control?less than a minute ago via Twitterrificanderscj
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@jonbecker to self assess one has to have an external model (curriculum), or perceived model, to use as a rubric.less than a minute ago via Twitterrificanderscj
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@bengrey @jonbecker @shareski isn't assessment just a byproduct of curriculum and a subtle imposition of ones control over another?less than a minute ago via Twitterrificanderscj
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I am still waiting for an example from Dean. I am curious what your thoughts are on this. Is assessment necessary?