SCHOOL FOR THOUGHT

News Bulletin - Timely Feedback Aids Good Teaching

A new study from the Council of Great City Schools and the American Institutes for Research “suggests that the use of interim assessment data to modify classroom instruction and inform schoolwide policies and practices is positively and significantly related to higher student achievement in some grades and subjects”.

Putting this into words of one syllable, the study found that if kids are tested regularly and their teachers act on the results, the students learn more.

Unfortunately, Ontario’s provincial testing does not fall into the useful category, since it does not provide sufficiently detailed feedback, nor is it reported quickly enough. It’s too bad, because Ontario could instead use off-the-shelf standardized tests that would yield very detailed information, come back very quickly, and cost a fraction of the price of the EQAO tests. H/T DW