A Parent's Guide
to Assessment in Special Education
Welcome!
The Ontario Ministry of Education has made some significant improvements to how we assess student learning, but it can sometimes be confusing and overwhelming. The information presented below is designed to simplify things for you.
Let's get started!
Primary Purpose: to improve student learning
Student learning can take place in a number of meaningful ways, and thanks to Growing Success, student learning is assessed through not only products (which is typically how most of us were assessed in the past), but also through our observations in the classroom and conversations we have with our students. We do this because we know student learning looks different for everyone!
7 Guiding Principles of Assessing Student Learning in Ontario:
- They must be fair, equitable, and transparent.
- They support ALL STUDENTS! This of course includes students with Special Education needs.
- They are carefully planned to connect to curriculum, learning goals, and as much as possible, student interests.
- They are communicated clearly to students. They should know what to expect, why it's important, and how to prepare for it.
- They will be varied and ongoing. There will be several opportunities throughout the term to demonstrate learning.
- The students will be given ongoing descriptive feedback to help them improve.
- They will be better able to self assess and improve their learning accordingly.
As you can see, at the core of Growing Success is the focus of teaching students how to improve and to see their learning as something that evolves over time. For that reason, Growing Success also asks that educators look at student work that is most recent and most consistent to provide an accurate snapshot of their true capabilities.
* adapted from Growing Success, 2010.
"But what about my child's special education needs?"
Students with an Individual Education Plan (IEP) can gain additional supports to help them be successful learners!
These include assessment accommodations, environmental accommodations, and instructional accommodations.
For more information on how the referral and evaluation process works, look here.
And for more information on how the IEP is developed, look here.
ASSESSMENT ACCOMMODATIONS
Here is a sample of what assessment accommodations you might see on an IEP:
• Additional time;
• Use of a scribe for verbatim recording of responses;
• Use of computer and/or assistive technology;
• Use of a calculator;
• Prompts to return attention to task;
• Choice of assessment tasks.
But please keep in mind that there might be SPECIFIC accommodations suited to your child's specific needs.
Assessment VS Evaluation
Evaluation is the measurement or judgement of all the learning that has happened.
I often think of them both through a sports analogy: assessment is the numerous practices and evaluation is the big game!
How will I know how my child is doing?
- Early Progress Report (within approx the first 6 weeks of the semester). This reports Learning Skills and Work Habits and may have comments for students demonstrating some concerns.
- Mid term reports (half way through the semester). These will include percentage grades as well as Learning Skills, Work Habits, and teacher comments.
- Final reports (end of semester). These will include overall (final) percentage grades as well as Learning Skills, Work Habits, and teacher comments.