Over the weekend, I watched the Annenberg workshop video on assessing student inquiry. To me, this video hit the nail on the head when it comes to strategically testing students. I am whole-heartedly against the standard memorize definitions and take a multiple choice test. Why? Because it shows you absolutely nothing about what the child truly knows.
Anyone can memorize a few words for a test, but what happens is the child forgets what they memorized a week after the test. Our job as teachers is to fully teach our children so that they actually learn the material.
The video touches on many different ways to improve testing in the classroom. My personal favorite was the teacher who allowed his students to be involved in what should be included on the tests. The students were able to take ownership of their learning and decide as a team how their efforts should be measured.
I think it is also important to play to every child's strengths. A child who is good at drawing a picture may be terrible at expressing himself through short answer. Or, a kid who is good at multiple choice may have trouble expressing their opinion verbally. By using a wide array of testing strategies, you will be able to help each child express their opinions so that you can fully assess if they have learned the material or not.
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