Congratulations, Discovery Education Assessment, on being selected as one of the top software products of the year. These choices were made by actual users of the products, by people who have discovered what we are living every day: the more we know about how are students are learning, the better our instruction be tailored to [...]
Schools in Florida are currently busy selecting the Core Curriculum Reading Program that will help us teach reading to a diverse population for the next 6 years. Most of the programs on the state’s approved program list offer benchmark assessments 3 or 4 times per year. If you have had experience with benchmark assessments from [...]
A recently published U.S. News and World report article entitled “Schools Cut Other Subjects to Teach Reading and Math” addresses the issue of schools focusing more on Reading and Math at the expense of other subjects in an effort to meet the demands of NCLB and high-stakes testing. In speaking with various colleagues across my [...]
Hello everyone; Our first ThinkLink results are in! The teachers at our school have been excitedly analyzing their students’ scores and comparing notes with previous teachers about individual student concerns and successes. For the most part, the ThinkLink reports were more positive for the majority of my second graders than some other assessments in Language [...]
Our first ThinkLink assessment of the 0708 school year is well under way. This is our second year with ThinkLink Lanugage Arts and Math, and we look forward to giving our first Science assessment in the near future. Our teachers use data notebooks as a way to keep all assessment information in one place. This [...]
The teachers in my school, as well as, teachers across the local school system, have been using Think Link Learning for several years. Many teachers agree that the assessments provide reliable and specific data that improve classroom instruction and student learning. Recently, our system has developed monthly curriculum pacing guides and corresponding assessments. Needless to [...]
We’re back in full swing at Paint Lick Elementary! The first ThinkLink tests have been given. My new second graders did a great job bubbling in their answers on the answer sheet for the first time. Only six out of the twenty-four chose to circle in the booklet first. I noticed, too, that the choice [...]
Hello! My name is Paula, and I am very excited to serve as a guest author on this site! I am entering my thirteenth year in elementary education. Prior to becoming a curriculum coordinator for an elementary school, I was a Third Grade teacher. As a classroom teacher, I administered the Think Link Learning assessments [...]
I have enjoyed reading the thought provoking postings over the past few weeks. As we plan for the start of a new school year, I am working on ways to help teachers see data analysis as part of their everyday instructional planning and not just something that we do in team meetings. We use data [...]
Hello everyone! I’ve had a great time this summer reading up on authentic assessment tools used in today’s classrooms: observation, discussion, portfolios, checklists, interviews, learning logs, rubrics, and self-assessments. Although I often find it difficult to carve out the time for interviews or conferencing with individual students, it seems these special times provide rich rewards [...]
I am teaching at a teacher institute in two weeks and I was putting together my presentations. My first title was “Using Technology for Authentic Assessment”. Then I looked at some definitions of authentic assessment. One of the ones I found was “Assessment that fits meaningful, real- life learning experiences”. Another definition said, “Sometimes called [...]
Hello again, I’ve been reflecting on some of the posts I’ve read since I first began participating with you here. It seems we’re all in agreement that technology has really changed the face of teaching and how we assess our students’ progress. There’s one glitch, however; where do we find the time to use our [...]
Has anyone in Illinois used the ThinkLink test for 11th graders yet? If so, are you using it for ONLY 11th graders, or are you letting 10th graders take it as well?
Calling all Illinois Educators!!! Rumor has it the ISAT scores are out. Have any of you seen your results? Do you have individual student scores, or just AYP status? I’m just wondering how much impact ThinkLink had. I have contacted all my schools looking for feedback, so I’ll keep you posted on our little corner [...]
Hello everyone; As my thoughts begin to turn to the new school year, I’d like to know if any of you have had experience using the ThinkLink probes with your students on an ongoing basis? Are you planning time for this daily? Weekly? Have you tried using the ThinkLink probes during your computer lab time? [...]
Hello Assessment fans, my name is Laurie and I have been invited to be a guest author on this assessment blog. I just finished my 11th year in education, all of it in the elementary realm. I have taught first grade, elementary gifted K-5, and I am currently an elementary reading coach and part-time data [...]
Greetings Assessment Bloggers: Yesterday I met with a school new to ThinkLink this fall. We were talking about the power of the program, and then the discussion turned to teacher buy-in. They have several teachers who are, quite frankly, tired of having another new thing added that they have to learn and implement. Other than [...]
Hello everyone! My name is Marshia and I’m pleased to be joining you! I have worked for over twenty years in the arts and education in California before rejoining my Kentucky family two years ago. During this time, I began learning about student assessment tools and worked with other educators in a variety of school [...]
Hello again! It’s Lynn from Illinois. I haven’t been on in a while; May always seems to be gone as quickly as it comes! I’m looking for some help from people who have used ThinkLink for a couple of years. I am working with my schools to establish our timeline for fall. So, all you [...]
Now that the testing season is over and many are out of school, what are your plans for the summer? Any one attending the Summer Institutes for DEN? I will be in Silver Springs on June 17.
When I went through school subjected mainly to summative tests, as an educator now, I see the value of knowing where the students are academically compared to where they should be by the end of the year. Have you noticed changes in student assessment now versus when you were in elementary or high school?
The response has been great from DEN members wanting to try our new assessment tool, DETA. Therefore……………..we have decided to extend our invitation until April 13 for those who would like to try it free for the remaining school year! I recently had a discussion about formative versus summative assessment and would like to hear [...]
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