Differentiated Assessment

Every teacher and school leader has had the frustrating experience of knowing that a student had high intellect although his or her test data indicated otherwise. Tests tell one story-but looking at students' work and observing them in the daily act of learning tells another. From veteran educator and leader in assessment Evangeline Harris Stefanakis, Differentiated Assessment provides a comprehensive system to assess students' individual talents, regardless of language or learning differences. The book helps educators understand how each student learns and how instruction should be tailored to serve individual needs. Throughout, Stefanakis places special emphasis on two assessment approaches: Student Portfolio Assessments, where selected student work is collected periodically and commented on by teacher, student, and parents; and Personalized Learning Profiles, which provide vital details about each student's cultural background, interests, and strengths, as well as their learning and language needs. Filled with helpful examples from model assessment programs at real-world schools, the book provides useful guidance and practical tools for implementing an effective, comprehensive assessment program at the classroom or school-wide level. It also explains how to integrate assessment into the instructional process and how to use portfolios for transfer, graduation, and college application purposes. The bonus DVD provides sample assessments, rubrics, forms, and video. Praise for Differentiated Assessment There is a real need for the kind of differentiation that Evangeline Stefanakis writes about. Her extraordinary work in the use of 'portfolios' of real student work as an approach to assessment and accountability is critical in order to achieve an authentic approach to the simple fact that (1) we are all unique and (2) the world needs our uniqueness. -from the foreword by Deborah Meier, educational reform advocate and author of Many Children Left Behind and The Power of Their Ideas Stefanakis understands something that many policy makers don't seem to get: assessment is only a tool and students don't get any smarter or skillful through assessment. However, when assessment is used in the ways described here, it can become a powerful tool to facilitate learning, guide instruction, and make it possible for the needs of individual learners to be met. -Pedro A. Noguera, Ph.D., executive director,Metropolitan Center for Urban Education, New York University