Supporting Self-Assessment of Core Competencies

Sharon Jeroski

February 2017

sjeroski@shaw.ca

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sjeroski@shaw.ca

Creating a whole

• This is about the students – personalization, inclusion, diversity. It’s not about filling in a template or checking off aspects on a rubric – it’s about what students are becoming and how to support them.
• The competencies come from students – what they are doing, able to do, valuing, working on. We don’t start with the competencies and find a student. We HAVE a student who has lots of competence. We talk about a set of competencies, but it is really a whole … 3 or 6 competencies don’t equal a whole person – it’s just a way of working.
• We always reconstruct – put it together—we can’t ever stop in the deconstructed place.

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sjeroski@shaw.ca

Topics

• Creating a Whole (slide 2)
• Self-assessment: Overview (slides 4-6)
• Processes for Self-Assessment of Core Competencies (slide 7)
• Starting with the Student (slide 8)
• A process for getting started (slides 9-10)
• A process for reviewing progress (slides 11-12)
• Starting with one of the Core Competencies
• Self-assessing Personal Awareness & Responsibility (slides 13-19)
• Questioning to prompt self-assessment (slides 20-23)

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sjeroski@shaw.ca

Self-assessment: Overview

• Research suggests that reflection/self-assessment is the most powerful instructional strategy.
• The purpose of self-assessment/reflection is to enable students to understand the processes and products of their learning.
• This understanding is the foundation of new learning.
• The process of self-assessment is what matters; the form/record is less important
• Student self-assessment is not a “substitute” for teacher assessment – it is not about matching the teacher’s thinking unless you are only interested in fixed content.

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Some forms we can use for self-assessment ...

• Photographs (including selfies)
• Lists
• Stories
• Poems and acrostics
• Spoken reflections
• Illustrations
• Graphic stories (e.g., Comic Life)
• Symbols (personal)
• Equations (personal)
• Collages
• Videos (incl selfies)
• Body language
• Collections
• Questions
• “The story behind the ...”

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• Dramatization
• “I can” statements
• Photos (and photo essays)
• Charts made from sorting
• Constructions
• Found poem
• Word cloud
• Advertisement/commercial
• Reference letter or bio
• Interview (written or oral)
• Mind map
• Other graphic organizers (e.g., Frayer Model; Story Map)

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sjeroski@shaw.ca

Notes about self-assessment

• Everyone doesn’t have to provide the same evidence
• Because ”how” doesn’t matter as much as “why”, we don’t have to do the same thing with everyone
• The standardization is in our inquiry and our purpose, not our methods

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• There has to be action on the results!
• We assess because we/students NEED to know
• Something should happen/change (even if it is reducing uncertainty)

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sjeroski@shaw.ca

Processes for Self-Assessment of Core Competencies

You can …

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• Start with the student
• What are you feeling good about? What have you learned to do?
• Start with one or more curriculum areas
• Focus on connections between core competencies and curricular competencies. Start with one or two core competencies that are central to the subject area – or search out one that isn’t!
• Start with one of the competencies – look for it everywhere – curricula, cross-curricular, extra-curricular ..

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sjeroski@shaw.ca

Starting with the student ...

• A student is not a collection of competencies – a student is a person who has competencies that vary from one context to another
• Especially with young children, it often makes more sense to start with their own sense of accomplishment – their view of the strengths
• Teachers then elicit ideas, coach, and help students document or collect evidence of their growing competence

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THE COMPETENCIES ARE ALL ABOUT STRENGTHS.

THEY ARE NOT THE INCOMPETENCIES!

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A process for getting started

Based on ideas developed by Jen Carter, SD 22

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• Review that everyone has strengths that help them with their own learning, relationships, and contributions
• Knowing your own strengths is important – helps you contribute, helps you think about how to keep adding more strengths, helps you help others, helps you make choices
• One way we talk about strengths is by making “I can” statements
• Model simple “I can” statements from your own experience. Invite students to try some – prompt from your own knowledge as needed
• Ask each student to make a list of “I can” statements (suggest a number based on students’ age and development – but at least 5)

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sjeroski@shaw.ca

Options

• Work with the class to sort some of their “I can” statements into groups that “go together” – label them with the competency headings or the aspects, or...

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• Have students keep ongoing “I can” inventories they create themselves. As they learn more about the competencies, have them attach competency labels to various statements. They can also add, delete, revise ...At some point that makes sense, have them review their inventories and create a short summary/synthesis (not necessarily written)

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• They can also use their inventories as cover pages/introductions to collections of work and evidence.

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• (Older students) Have them use their inventories to help them create recommendation letters for themselves.

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A process for reviewing progress

• Getting started. Can be done in group. Let’s talk about some of the work you’ve done (lately, this week, this winter ...). Tell me about something you really liked. What made it special for you?
• Teacher makes list of work/activities
• Records key words about what made it special

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• Gathering evidence of strengths. Individual. Tell me about a piece of work or an activity that you are especially proud of. Can you show me your work? (option: Could you make a picture showing what you did?)
• Prompt for the story ... (Tell me about ....)
• Ask: What makes you proud about this? (What would you like other people to notice?)
• Anything else?

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Conference. Connecting to core competencies

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• I notice you are proud of having a new idea and working on it … that is what creative thinking is all about.  

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• Do you think you are getting to be more of a creative thinker or have you always been able to do this?

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• You also talked about how you worked hard to finish this on your own. That’s one of the things people who have personal responsibility do.

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• What helped you stick to your work and get it done? What advice could you give younger students about sticking to their work until they finish?

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Option: Teacher records Core competencies: Creative Thinking and Personal Responsibility

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��Starting with one of the Core competencies: Self-assessing Personal Awareness & Responsibility��

Based on Critical Thinking activity from SD 67 (Okanagan Skaha.)

Contact Judith King: jking@summer.com

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Prepare materials

• Prepare a page of words and phrases that relate to personal responsibility, spaced out for easy cutting.

Sources:

• BC definitions and profiles
• Looks like/sounds like charts and discussions with students with teacher support
• Classroom/school resources (e.g., Minds Up)
• Include some blank spaces
• Make sure you have descriptions that show a wide range
• Strength-based – all phrased in positive terms

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• Duplicate the page of words and phrases
• Cut them apart and make a set for each student (students can do this.)

Have ongoing large and small group discussions

• Start with exploration and discussion, e.g.: find ...
• A word or phrase that is sometimes hard to understand
• one that your class frequently talks about
• Focus on growth mindset: How does anyone get better at personal responsibility? What does it take to improve? If you were coaching younger students on personal responsibility, what advice would you give them?
• Prompt students to think about all three aspects: well-being; self-determination (standing up for yourself; getting what you need) and self-regulation (setting and working toward goals.)

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Self-assessment options: Getting started

Use the words and phrases for ongoing self-assessment activities and discussions. For example:

• Choose two words and phrases that are a lot like you. Give evidence.
• Choose one word or phrase you would like to understand more about. Get ideas from at least two classmates about what someone might say, do, and think if they were a lot like this word or phrase.
• Give students three cards:

A bit like me Quite Like me Very much like me

Note: these are from IB self-assessment categories

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Have students choose one or two words/phrases that fit each category for themselves and share with a partner or the teacher.

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More Options

• Several times during the year, have students work with the words and phrases. For example:
• Look for opportunities to add new words and phrases as students engage in activities and discussions
• Provide some blank cards so students can add words and phrases of their own that are not on the chart
• Try options: e.g., start with JUST finding words that are “very much like me,” or choosing/creating just 10 word/phrases to work with.
• Take photos of their sorted sets so they can compare from one time to another

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sjeroski@shaw.ca

More Options

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• Focus discussions and planning activities on growth

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• At some point, have students
• make a summary statement or represent their growth in some way (make the form accessible for all – does not have to be a written response)

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• Use the final sort of the words as their self-assessment and give some evidence for a few of the words/phrases

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The process of self-assessment is ALWAYS more important than the record!

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sjeroski@shaw.ca

Examples: “I CAN ...”

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Example of a “sort”

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Questioning to Prompt Reflection

Generally, questions most effectively stimulate thinking (including reflective thinking) when they are:

• Engaging – interesting to think about answer
• Authentic – reflecting genuine curiosity about the student’s thinking and ideas
• Open-ended – no predetermined or limiting answer
• Accessible to students with a range of experiences and abilities
• Strength-based – focused on what the student is able to do
• Flexible in form of response - open to responses in a variety of forms
• Used frequently, and integrated into a variety of activities

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sjeroski@shaw.ca

Sources of Reflective Questions

• Tried and true conference and self-assessment questions that work from your files
• Student illustrations on Core Competency website
• CAN (Curriculum and Assessment Network) charts (posted on VSB site)
• Samples of student work on curriculum website
• Teacher professional resources; curriculum resources
• Colleagues (e.g., twitter; conferences; professional exchanges)
• Students (ask them for questions they would like to answer)
• Working together as a department, staff, or group

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sjeroski@shaw.ca

Sample Questions for Reflecting on Core Competencies

Based on Work from the Curriculum and Assessment Network (CAN) . Note: Many questions touch on more than one competency.

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Communication

How did you show you were listening thoughtfully? In what ways did your listening contribute to the group’s understanding?

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What are some ways you like to show your learning? What makes [name a form they identified] work for you?

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What do you do when you disagree with someone in your group or discussion? How did you learn/develop that strategy?

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sjeroski@shaw.ca

Sample Questions for Reflecting on Core Competencies

Based on Work from the Curriculum and Assessment Network (CAN) . Note: Many questions touch on more than one competency.

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Critical Thinking

[After some experiences with a topic or question] How has your thinking about .... changed? What made it change?

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What strategies do you use to decide whether to believe something you read/on a social media site? How did you develop those strategies? What advice would you give a younger student about figuring out what is true?

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[In response to reading/hearing/offering an opinion] Who might have the same opinion about [this issue]? Who can you think of that might disagree? What reasons might they have for seeing things differently?

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Creative thinking

How do you come with ideas when you want to make something new – at school or at home? Tell me about a time when you felt really good about a new idea you had?

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What helps you get new ideas?

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What makes you want to think of new ideas or try something new?

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sjeroski@shaw.ca

Sample questions (continued)

Social Responsibility

How do you use words and actions to encourage other students who might be feeling a bit sad or discouraged? (What are some words and phrases you use?)

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What contribution to our school do you feel good about? How did you get started doing that?

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What are some ways you are a good friend? What strategies are you good at for making and keeping friends?

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sjeroski@shaw.ca

Sample questions (continued)

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PPC Identity

What are your strengths as a learner?

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How do your learn best?

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What's most important to you? (Can be anything at school, home, community ...)

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Tell me about one or two people or groups that influence your thinking and your actions. Why are they important to you? How do they influence you? How do you influence them?

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Sample questions (continued)

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Personal Awareness and Responsibility

Tell me about one your learning goals. [prompt: Something you want to get better at or learn how to do.] How did you come to choose that goal? Tell me about something you are doing to help you work on that goal.

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What do you do to help yourself when you are feeling a bit discouraged about your work?

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Think of times when you have to wait. What strategies do you use when you are feeling impatient? How did you develop that strategy? (Prompt: When did you start? How does it work?)

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sjeroski@shaw.ca