STANDARD 5: ASSESS, PROVIDE FEEDBACK AND REPORT ON STUDENT LEARNING
5.4 Interpret student data
5.4 Interpret student data
Demonstrate the capacity to interpret student assessment data to evaluate student learning and modify teaching practice
Evidence
“Tara’s third maths lesson in a sequence of lessons on multiplication showed that Tara was able to adjust her lessons and revisit topics to ensure student understanding. Tara was available to her students and answered their questions in a timely manner. She created an online environment where students felt supported to ask questions and to answer questions without fear of being wrong. Tara also showed improvement in time management and the pace of her lesson flowed really well within the 45 minute timeframe. Well done, Tara!”
- Leah Gibson, mentor teacher
Annotation
This evidence is my mentor teacher’s feedback on the third math’s lesson I planned and delivered. Informal assessment of participation and submitted work from the previous lesson was used to guide the direction of future learning.
Reflective statement
Assessment not only provides insight into students' learning and development, but also enables teachers to professionally reflect upon and evaluate the success of their teaching (Lancaster and Burton, 2018). As such, student assessment data can be used to modify teaching approaches in order to effectively plan for future learning.
Informal assessment of student participation and submitted work during my second maths lesson suggested that some students found the independent task a bit difficult due to the number of steps involved. Based on these findings, the third lesson was spent recapping and consolidating what students had learnt in the previous lesson. The expected outcome was also simplified so that students were only required to write the multiplication equation represented by an array, without the intermediate step of repeated addition. I also spent less time in the modelling and guided instruction stages of the lesson (see Focus Area 3.3 for an explanation of the Gradual Release of Responsibility Model) so that students had more time to work on their task and get targeted support when needed. This made the learning more attainable for students who were having difficulty, and gave more competent students the opportunity to revisit and consolidate what they had learnt.
References
Lancaster, S., & Burton, F. (2018). Assessment and Evaluation. In E. Irving., & C. Carter. (Eds.), The child in focus : Learning and teaching in early childhood education (pp. 355-387). Oxford University Press.
