Assessment Design Toolkit

The Toolkit features v​ideos and supplemental materials to help teachers write and select well-designed assessments.

 

Author(s)
Center on Standards and Assessment Implementation
Author(s) Organizational Affiliation
WestEd and CREST (National Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing)
Publication Year
2015
Resource Type
Informational Material
Abstract

The Toolkit includes 13 modules divided into four parts:

  1. Key concepts;
  2. Five elements of assessment;
  3. Writing and selecting assessments; and
  4. Reflecting on assessment design.

The modules address how to plan, write, and select well-designed assessments. The modules do not cover how to use assessments to measure student growth. 

The Assessment Design Toolkit is intended to respond to State requests for help to improve assessment literacy among the teacher corps. Assessment literacy is important for all teachers, especially for those teachers of non-tested grades and subjects who do not have State assessments to help them measure student growth.

The modules are designed to empower educators, pre-kindergarten through grade 12, to become master assessment designers so they can do an even better job of helping their students learn the course content throughout the school year. Each module includes a summary, a video, and supplemental materials. Videos can be viewed alone, in teams or with entire faculties.

Users may repurpose the Toolkit as needed.  

What the experts say

This very comprehensive resource covers the topic of assessment very well. Portions of it could be delivered as a webinar. Sections could be used as part of continuous improvement, possibly as a required component of teacher orientation. The toolkit includes videos and supplemental materials to help teachers write and select well-designed assessments. The modules address how to plan, write, and select well-designed assessments. The modules do not cover how to use assessments to measure student growth. Each module includes a summary, a video, and supplemental materials such as worksheets, PowerPoint slides. The Toolkit is easy to use and well-organized.

The Assessment Design Toolkit addresses a K-12 audience to provide a basic overview of how to assess the College and Career Readiness Standards. Since the College and Career Readiness Standards are guiding instruction in adult literacy education, understanding how to assess learner progress on the standards is relevant to adult education. The Toolkit is especially useful for those who are not familiar with the basics of assessing standards. The sections of Writing and Selecting Assessments as well as Aligning to Standards and the focus on Rigor may be most relevant. 

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