Assessing With the End in Mind

Outcome-Based Assessment Made Easy for the Elementary Band Class

Kristen Myers, Prairie Valley School Division

IntroductionWhy am I interested in this topic?

Inquiry Questions:

o How can we use the curriculum outcomes and indicators in planning for instruction and assessment?

o What can we do to better align our assessment and grading practices with the curriculum outcomes?

What is it that we are talking about?

Assessment

• For/as/of learning

• Formative, summative

Assessment: Appraising, evaluating, providing feedback

“Grading”: Converting assessments into marks

Reporting: Communicating to students and parents

From Damian Cooper, “Talk About Assessment”, pg. 8

Good news!

Band teachers are GREAT at assessment!

We already…

Constantly listen, assess, and provide feedback

Have students assess own and others’ work

Use a variety of performance assessments

Inquiry Questions:

o How can we use the curriculum outcomes and indicators in planning for instruction and assessment?

o What can we do to better align our assessment and grading practices with the curriculum outcomes?

.

From “Grading for Musical Excellence: Making Music an Essential Part of Your Grades”, Paul Kimpton and Ann Kimpton, pg. 25.

Marks and grades must reflect actual student performance based on publicly-available criterion-referenced standards, not artificially determined distributions.

Ken O’Connor, “How to Grade for Learning”, pg. 70

Performance standards are an essential component of effective assessment. In a standards-based system they must be criterion-referenced (absolute), not norm-referenced (relative).

Damian Cooper, “Talk About Assessment”, pg. 7

From “Understanding by Design”, Grant Wiggins & Jay McTighe, pg.151

Why is this important in band?

Teaching “the piece” (Activity Designer)

vs.

Teaching musical skills and concepts

through the piece (Assessor) Transfer

.

From “Assessing For Learning”, Violet H. Harada and Joan M. Yoshina, pg.148

How to reframe what we are already good at?

It’s critical to note that [band] specialists can start with assessment tools they are already using (e.g. rubrics, checklists, rating scales) and, with minimal effort, refocus them…

“Assessing for Learning”, Harada & Yoshina, pg.150

Inquiry Questions:

o How can we use the curriculum outcomes and indicators in planning for instruction and assessment?

o What can we do to better align our assessment and grading practices with the curriculum outcomes?

Reorganizing Grade Books

Creating a Budget:

Organize by method of payment?

Or by category?

Grades:

By method of assessment?

Or by category?

From Ken O’Connor, “How to Grade for Learning”, pg. 187

Inquiry Questions:

o How can we use the curriculum outcomes and indicators in planning for instruction and assessment?

(Backwards design)

o What can we do to better align our assessment and grading practices with the curriculum outcomes?

(Reorganize grade book)

Okay, but how do we do this in our classes and with our Saskatchewan curriculum?

Saskatchewan Curriculum

Arts Education, Grades 5 – 9

Four strands (Music, Drama, Dance, Visual Art)

Three essential learning areas (Creative/Productive, Cultural/Historical, Critical/Responsive)

Music Strand:

- CP outcomes

- CH and CR shared with other strands

Grade 6 Music CP6.7 Demonstrate increased skills and abilities in the use of voice and

instruments.

CP6.8 Investigate and manipulate elements of music and principles of composition including repetition and variety.

CP6.9 Create sound compositions that explore relationships between music and identity (e.g., influencing factors such as pop culture, cultural heritage, peer groups, personal and family interests, gender).

CR6.1 Create personal responses to a variety of arts expressions (e.g., respond to music using poetry, or respond to visual art using music).

CR6.2 Investigate and identify ways that the arts can express ideas about identity.

CR6.3 Examine arts expressions and artists of various times and places.

CH6.1 Investigate how personal, cultural, or regional identity may be reflected in arts expressions.

CH6.2 Identify ways that First Nations, Métis, and Inuit artists express cultural identity in contemporary work.

CH6.3 Investigate arts expressions from a range of cultures and countries, and analyze how cultural identity is reflected in the work.

Grade 6 Music

CP6.7 Demonstrate increased skills and

abilities in the use of voice and instruments. CP6.8 Investigate and manipulate elements of music and principles of

composition including repetition and variety. CP6.9 Create sound compositions that explore relationships between music and identity (e.g., influencing factors

such as pop culture, cultural heritage, peer groups, personal and family interests, gender).

CR6.1 Create personal responses to a variety of arts expressions (e.g., respond to music using poetry, or respond to visual art using music).

CR6.2 Investigate and identify ways that the arts can express ideas about identity.

CR6.3 Examine arts expressions and artists of various times and places. CH6.1 Investigate how personal, cultural, or regional identity may be reflected in arts expressions.

CH6.2 Identify ways that First Nations, Métis, and Inuit artists express cultural identity in contemporary work.

CH6.3 Investigate arts expressions from a range of cultures and countries, and analyze how cultural identity is reflected in the work.

Are all strands and outcomes “equal”? Fluid

Changes over time, each semester, each grade level

Some things are done a little bit every day (dishes), other things are done more in-depth but less frequently (wash floors).

Do we have to teach the whole curriculum? (Yes)

Are the outcomes and strands intended to be given equal time and weight, at any given point in time? (No)

Ministry 5-9 Band Support Document (forthcoming)

Ties what we do in band class to music outcomes Provides suggestions for teaching the more

“challenging” outcomes through band Outlines a progression of indicators, Level I to IV

PVSD Grade 6 Rubric

AAL Student-Developed Rubric (or, Show me where that is in the curriculum?)

Rubrics

Developed collaboratively

Can be used as a tool in many scenarios:

• Formative

• Summative

• Interview discussion guide

• Progress report

• Playing test

• Self evaluation

• Pre and post assessment to inform instruction – show progress

Practice Records… one idea

• Students are assessing

own playing and practice

techniques

• Curriculum indicator

• Metacognitive

• Should be worded in more

student-friendly language

• What outcomes are

students achieving

through practicing?

Other Ideas

Composition: Play it twice the same way

Checklists – one or two students per day

Self evaluation

Exit slips

Written reflection

Learning goals on board

“What made sense today?”

If you can have input into a progress report or report card…

“Chunk” outcomes together Student and parent friendly language (curriculum is

for professionals) “I” statements All outcomes need to be taught and assessed; not

all outcomes need to be reported. Outcome-based achievement: grades. Habits and

attitudes: anecdotal. Make your own version/progress reports to attach if

needed.

Inquiry Questions:

How can we use the curriculum outcomes and indicators in planning for instruction and assessment?

Backward design Think like assessors instead of activity designers What musical skills and concepts are we teaching through the piece? Band-specific indicators: support document, and/or make up your

own! (With colleagues and/or students) Communicate with students about learning goals Find ways to teach the “challenging” outcomes (perhaps less

frequently, but still in-depth) All outcomes are not created equal

Inquiry Questions:

What can we do to better align our assessment and grading practices with the curriculum outcomes?

Reorganize our grade books by learning outcome (like a budget)

Grades are achievement and outcome-based (habits and attitudes in comments)

What skill or concept are we actually assessing?

Converting assessments to grades: weighting is an exercise in professional judgment, and changes over time

Questions? / Discussion

SourcesCooper, Damian. 2010. Talk About Assessment: High School Strategies and Tools.

Toronto: Nelson Education.

Harada, Violet H. & Joan M. Yoshina. 2010. Assessing For Learning: Librarians and Teachers as Partners. Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO.

Kimpton, Paul & Ann Kimpton. 2013. Grading for Musical Excellence: Making Music as Essential Part of Your Grades. Chicago: GIA Publications.

O’Connor, Ken. 2002. How To Grade For Learning: Linking Grades to Standards. Thousand Oaks: Corwin Press.

Wiggins, Grant & Jay McTigue. 2005. Understanding by Design. Alexandria: ASCD.