Assessment... Is learning taking place?

There are a number of puzzle pieces to learning, which isn’t solely the assessment instrument, but also academic standards, specific state standards, Common Core ideas, essential questions, and instructional strategies. The common problem in K-12 is that the curriculum does not align with the Standards of Learning (SOLs). Different types of assessment instruments provide information for various decisions, but not every assessment procedure is applicable or serve some types of decisions effectively. Preparation for learning begins with lucid learning objectives, learning goals, and expectations in which is the foundation to assessment and instruction. Assessment and instruction are synchronized with three key concepts, behavior (classroom demeanor), motivation (student effort in application), and learning (student achievement/understanding/performance).

The question posed, is how do we engage on each key concept, while aligning with the SOLs without impeding on creativity, critical thinking, and problem solving? After viewing the Dan Pink video, I realized that engagement begins with self-direction, exploration, reasoning, questioning, and discovery. As Dan Pink shared a narrow focus restricts possibilities, but possibly increasing rigor on assessments will permit teachers the pathway to provide students with different possibilities as well as allowing students to construct their meaning and interpretations in the specific subject area to demonstrate their mastery and autonomy. Currently in some subjects, assessments are narrow to some extent, and mostly offer students multiple choice options, instead of options for students to demonstrate their mastery in the subject area. 

Classroom climate, instruction, coordination, and collaboration alignment provides a basis for valid assessment in understanding the relationship with learner and content. Its a system that works holistically relevant to both individual students (learning decisions) and about groups of students (teaching/instructional decisions). The cliche is "Assessment should not be for the sake of assessing", but to add to the heavily used cliche, looking at the results/reporting to improve upon as well as a reinforcement tool for measuring students understanding. Students’ benefit as well from assessment in making informed decision(s) about their learning in which is contingent upon the teacher integrating feedback into the instructional process that provides students with stages of progress as well as providing students with the skill set in self-assessing their learning. 

Ultimately, being aware of various assessments and how it relates or align with learner performance on those particular assessments is vital as well as taking in consideration state standards and ensuring that learning objectives and student assessments align with selected standards. My personal opinion is that go assessments benefits the learner and the assessor in various ways.