Many people assume that the aim of assessments is one-sided. This could not be further from the truth. It is essential to recognize that each stakeholder, be it parents, principals, or others, has different assessment needs. In this short piece, we will discuss the assessment requirements of each of these education stakeholders.

Parents

Parents typically want to know how their children are developing and learning. They additionally seek out informed opinions shared by caregivers and teachers through formal and informal conversations, conferences, and reports. Educators should be mindful of this and take proactive measures to keep parents informed. If this is occurring optimally, parental inquiries into their child’s academic performance will be sporadic occurrences.

Make sure you send student progress reports out at least every 4 ½ weeks. Also, allow parents access to their child’s grades 24/7. That way, they can log in and view their child’s progress at any time. Not only do parents appreciate the VIP treatment, but you also lessen the time that you have to spend fielding and responding to grade inquiries. Also, it allows parents to be engaged in the teaching and learning process at all times, which will enable them to feel like true educational partners.

Teachers

Teachers want to make sure students have mastered or are on their way to mastering the material taught. Teachers can use information from informal and formative assessments to determine what instructional adjustments need to be made to help each student learn at an optimal level. In the field of education, we call this differentiating instruction. Also, teachers can use formal and summative assessments to find out if students have mastered a unit of study.

Administrators

Administrators, policy boards, and legislators are accountable for the progress of groups of children and need to know how these students are progressing. With this information, they can make needed adjustments in the curriculum, funding, staffing, etc. At the end of the day, they are charged with ensuring that all children learn at an optimal level.

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