Developing Performance-Based Assessments, Grades K-5

In an era where buzzwords like assessment and accountability are used every day in our school systems, a book like this is long overdue. The author clearly explains important terminology while providing easy-to-understand ways to engage in quality assessment in any elementary classroom.

"This book is very practical and useful to teachers trying to teach to all types of learners.

Nancy P. Gallavan, Ph.D., is Professor of Teacher Education at the University of Central Arkansas where she specializes in classroom assessments and cultural competence in the Department of Teaching and Learning MAT Program, which she helped to start in 2006. The UCA MAT Program was recognized as the Distinguished Program in Teacher Education by the Association of Teacher Educators in 2010. Dr. Gallavan also serves as the UCA Academic Liaison to Institutional Diversity.

Receiving university and college awards for her teaching, scholarship, and service, Dr. Gallavan has expertise in K-12 education, classroom assessments, curriculum development, cultural competence, social studies education, and teacher self-efficacy. With more than 120 peer-reviewed publications in journals, as chapters in books, and as books, Dr. Gallavan authored two versions of Developing Performance-Based Assessments, one for Grades K-5 and one for Grades 6-12 with Corwin Press in 2009. She also authored two versions of Navigating Cultural Competence: A Compass for Teachers, one for Grades K-5 and one for Grades 6-12 with Corwin Press in 2011. With Ellen Kottler, she co-authored Secrets to Success for Beginning Elementary School Teachers with Corwin Press in 2007 and Secrets to Success for Social Studies Teachers with Corwin Press in 2008. Most of these books have been republished in multiple languages.

Her research agenda focuses on classroom assessments and teacher self-efficacy. Her chapter, If you want your students to change, then you need to change: Mediating the sources and benefits of teacher self-efficacy with teacher candidates, will be published in the Handbook of Research on Professional Development for Quality Teaching and Learning in 2016. Dr. Gallavan serves as the editor of the Arkansas Association of Teacher Educators Electronic Journal (ArATE EJ) and co-editor of the Association of Teacher Educators (ATE) Annual Yearbook of Research.

An active member of American Educational Research Association (AERA), Association of Teacher Educators (ATE), Kappa Delta Pi (KDP), National Association for Multicultural Education (NAME), and National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS), she is involved with the AERA Classroom Assessment Special Interest Group and serves as Chair of the ATE Commission of Online Teaching, Learning, and Schooling. Dr. Gallavan is a Past President and a Distinguished Member of the Association of Teacher Educators (ATE), a Kappa Delta Pi (KDP) Eleanor Roosevelt Legacy Chapter inaugural member, and a member of Phi Delta Phi (education honor society).

Prior to joining the University of Central Arkansas, Dr. Gallavan was an Assistant/Associate Professor with the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, specializing in social studies education and cultural competence. She began her career in education as an elementary school and middle level classroom teacher primarily in the ...

Acknowledgments About the Author Introduction 1. Examining the Many Purposes of Assessment Demystify Performance-Based Assessments Understand the Six Components of Assessment Picture the Continuous Flow of Assessment Know the Reasons for Selecting Your Assessments... Extend With Questions and Activities 2. Planning Assessments to Promote Understanding Use Formal and Informal Assessments Become a Data-Driven Teacher Understand Assessment Principles and Practices Watch for Common Errors in Assessing Visualize the Overall Process... Extend With Questions and Activities 3. Collecting Baseline Data for Preassessments Set Three Goals to Guide Your Preassessments Question Each of the Six Components of Assessment Keep Anecdotal Records Follow These Guidelines as You Preassess Realize That Assessment Is a Continuous Process... Extend With Questions and Activities 4. Aligning Appropriate Formative Assessments Consider the Six Components of Assessment Design Your Curriculum Align Assessments With Curriculum and Instruction Explore Cognition Via Patterns of Thought Plan With Competence and Confidence... Extend With Questions and Activities 5. Incorporating Learning, Assigning Instruction Followed by Feedback and Correction Assign Your Instruction and Activities Employ Multiple Instructional Strategies Consider These Assessment Recommendations Include All Kinds of Questions With Your Formative Assessments Optimize the Feedback Involve Your Learners in the Process Have Fun With Formative Assessments... Extend With Questions and Activities 6. Administering Summative Assessments Connect to the Goals and Components of Assessment Create Your Summative Assessments Prepare Learners for Summative Assessments Set Your Sights on the Five As Continue the Assessment Cycle... Extend With Questions and Activities 7. Identifying What to Assess: Inviting the Five Types of Inquiry and Information Introduce the Five Types of Inquiry Balance Three Conditions With Five Types of Inquiry Delve Into Responses Enhance Variety in Your Inquiries Include All Types of Thinking, Acting, and Feeling... Extend With Questions and Activities 8. Analyzing How to Assess: Applying the Five Forms of Appraisal and Authentication Analyze the Five Forms of Appraisal and Authentication Implement Assessments Purposefully Develop Appraisals to Showcase Learning... Extend With Questions and Activities 9. Creating Assessment Templates and Rubrics Construct the Assessment Template Build Rubrics Let Your Templates and Rubrics Do the Work for You... Extend With Questions and Activities 10. Conducting Evaluations and Accountability Evaluate Accomplishments Account for Progress Concentrate on Your Effectiveness Develop a Performance-Based Assessment Mindset... Extend With Questions and Activities References and Readings Index