Informal Assessment
Week 4
Wrapping It Up
Putting It All Together
Informal Assessment
Other forms of Informal Assessment:
Running records (typically done in reading)
Observations
Anecdotal notes
Learning log
Conference notes
As you review these things you will evaluate the
student’s performance and their progress and
level of achievement will surface.
Informal Assessment
If you desire to ascertain :
a students level of
preparedness
Understand which children
may require additional
help or individualized
learning plans.
Determine the effectiveness
of teaching and teaching
strategies.
Progress of students
Type of informal assessment to
use:
Observation
Anecdotal notes,
observation
Student portfolios, teacher
journal, analysis of
student’s work.
Review student’s class work
and homework
Informal Assessment
Informal assessment is beneficial to
educators because it allows the students
to perform naturally and be in the least
restrictive environment. This allows the
students to perform at their highest level
and can be done when the students are
most comfortable.
Informal assessment educators may also
want to use rubrics to make it clear what
they are looking for a gauge how they
want to assess each area.
Informal Assessment
Rubrics
While rubrics essentially will produce a
score, this score can be used to grade the
students work or simply to show progress.
Before creating a rubric first consider what
the students goals were or will be in the
activity, that way when assessing their
skills the assessment will give a true
picture of their skills and knowledge.
Informal Assessment
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Developing A Rubric
First decide what you want to assess and how you want to assess
that.
Determine what dimensions and areas you need to use the rubric
to assess
Put the dimensions in different areas and determine what needs
to exist in each dimension.
Make it clear skills (or lack therein) receive which score. This will
help you determine when a student should receive a certain
score.
Once you have developed this much of the rubric test it out on
students or yourself prior to officially using it for assessment.
Make sure it assesses only what you want it to.
Revise the rubric if needed in order to make it more clear, concise
or easier to use. This is also a good time to determine if you are
assessing too many dimensions at once.
Informal Assessment
Sample Rubric
Creating a rubric for reading
1. I want to assess how well the students are
developing in the reading process.
2. I want to assess the basic phonemic skills,
comprehension, and fluency.
3. I want to specifically assess how they read
vowels and consonants, if the make errors, if
they understand what they are reading
(comprehension), and how they are reading
(fluency).
Informal Assessment
Sample Rubric
Reading Skill
1
2
3
4
Vowels
Does not
know
sounds
knows 2 of 5
vowel sounds
knows at least
three vowel
sounds
knows all
vowels sounds
Consonants
Does not
know
sounds
knows at up to
50% of sounds
knows 51-75%
of sounds
knows all
consonant
sounds
Does not
understand
Comprehension
is minimal
Comprehends
the majority of
material
Comprehends
completely
Five or
more
miscues*
3-4 miscues
1-2 miscues
No miscues
Comprehension
Fluency
Quick Quiz
1.
2.
3.
Name two other types of
informal assessment
mentioned in this lesson.
If you wanted to determine if
your students learned the
story of Nehemiah how
would you assess that
informally?
If you wanted to assess how
students apply biblical
concepts, what form of
informal assessment would
you use to view this? Would
you also be able to use this
to assess your teaching?
4. What a type of assessment
used assess informal inquiries?
5. Why do you think a rubric is a
great way to assess? Why is it
unbeneficial?
6. Practice creating rubrics to
assess students or yourself
depending on your ministry
desires.
Assignments for Week 4
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Read PowerPoint notes
Read Ch. 13.
Master’s students: Read 30-40 additional
pages and use Reading Report Form.
Take Week 4 Quiz
Write up: Do you believe that creating a rubric
is beneficial in assessment? Why or why not?
(This is also Journal 4 for online students.)
Continue working on writing assignment (see
Week 9).
Informal Assessment Strategies
Resources
This website is an excellent resource for information on informal
assessment strategies.
http://www.stenhouse.com/pdfs/8181fm.pdf
This is a great book that would be very helpful in developing a stronger
sense of informal assessment in a classroom. This would also be a
great resource for a Sunday School teacher.
Charlton, Beth Critchley. Informal Assessment Strategies: Asking
Questions, Observing Students, Planning Lessons that Promote
Successful Interaction with the Text. A Pembroke Title. 2005.
ISBN: 978-155138-181-7