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PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT: A TEACHER’S WAY OF KNOWING With Samuel J. Meisels
(1993) 21 minutes $250.
ISBN: 1-891340-61-1 Visit our Support Materials section to view or download the Learning Guide and Discussion Topics for this film.
How to assess the learning of children (achievement assessments) is a highly
debated topic for educators and people interested in pubic policy. Most
public schools are now using standardized tests done on a yearly basis to
meet the requirements of “No Child Left Behind” national legislation. This
film makes the case for performance assessments, which
Film content: Guidelines to be considered for all assessments: Fairness Multiple sources of information Contex Setting Continuity Types of assessments Developmental screening Diagnostic Achievement Performance assessment Checklists against a standard Reliability Portfolios Validity Summary reports on a quarterly basis Shared with families, the student and administrators
Visuals: The film was mostly shot in a Head Start serving Hispanic children in California and in a kindergarten and a third grade classroom in a small New England city Examples of classroom activities in all three classrooms A scene of first graders in a standardized testing situation. Examples of developmental and diagnostic assessments A kindergarten teacher observing with the use of a checklist Teacher-student conference Teacher-parent conferences A Head Start child A third grader Portfolio collection and assessment A Head Start child’s A third grader’s A faculty meeting of primary teachers and their principal discussing assessments
Consultant: Samuel Meisels, Ed.D. : Now president of the Erikson Institute in Chicago, a graduate school for child development, Dr. Meisels taught at the University of Michigan for twenty-one years. He received his doctorate from Harvard University. He has written and lectured widely on assessment issues for young children.
Related film: Part of the EARLY CHILDHOOD SERIES
Read a Published Review of this Film: Reviewed by Belinda L. Robinson - Jones, Coordinator, Educational Media Center/AV, Ohio University - MATC - Zanesville Campus Library, Zanesville, OH 43701 How do teachers know when students have grasped certain concepts? How is this information transferred from teachers to parents and students? In most primary and secondary educational institutions in the United States, this information is illustrated via standardized, group administered, norm - referenced achievement tests, letter grades and percentile rankings, which advocate comparing and contrasting one student with another. This film offers educators an alternative. Performance Assessment: A Teachers Way of Knowing analyzes and describes the concepts of Performance Assessment and Achievement Assessment, using illustrations from three classrooms: a public school kindergarten in a follow through program in New England, a third grade classroom in the same school, and a head start classroom with four year olds in Los Angeles. Based on his ground-breaking books in Early Childhood Education, including, Developmental Screening in Early Childhood : A Guide (NAEYC, 1994) and Performance Assessment in Early Childhood Education: the Work Sampling System (ERIC Clearinghouse, 1995), Samuel J. Meisels, Professor of Education, University of Michigan discusses the common use of diagnostic assessment and developmental screening in American education. Diagnostic assessment confirms the presence or extent of a disability in children, and developmental screening identifies children that are at a high risk for failure. Yet, Meisels advocates an aspect of Performance Assessment called Achievement Assessment, which are demonstrations of a child's educational and academic accomplishments. It follows the belief that systematically observing and documenting what children are actually doing is the best way to assess their development. Through Performance Assessment and Achievement Assessment, Meisels provides examples of how teachers can enable students to demonstrate their knowledge and skills through problem solving, using Mathematics, writing, researching, discussing and systematically collecting their work. Some of the topics covered in this film include a general definition of assessment; a detailed explanation of the components of assessment; guidelines for all assessment; assessment of achievement; and the components of performance assessment, which include systematic observation, documentation and evaluation. In addition to clearly illustrated examples of the terms described by Meisels, this film is complete with professional video shots, clear and articulate narration, and enhanced by a balance of scholarly commentary, teacher testimonies, teacher - student interactions, as well as examples of parent and student feedback. A landmark film which provides educators with new methods of evaluating the progress of their students, Performance Assessment: a Teacher's Way of Knowing is a must-have for video collections in Education. Recommended.
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instead of once a year testing, is an on-going systematic collection of data
from the students’ work. The film illustrates the special vocabulary of
assessment (“standard” “reliability”, etc.) and shows how teachers
incorporate performance assessment in early childhood and primary
classrooms, using the information to adjust their instruction.
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