Megan Tunon

Assessments Review
I have learned a substantial amount about using both formative and summative assessments to track to
English language proficiency of ELLs beginning with the WIDA ACCESS Test (Assessing Comprehension
and Communication in English State-to-State for English Language Learners) which WIDA defines as a
secure large-scale English language proficiency assessment given to Kindergarten through 12th graders
who have been identified as English language learners (ELLs). It is given annually in WIDA Consortium
member states to monitor students' progress in acquiring academic English, and the W-APT Test. WIDA
states that the W-APT stands for the WIDA-ACCESS Placement Test. It is an English language proficiency
"screener" test given to incoming students who may be designated as English language learners. It
assists educators with programmatic placement decisions such as identification and placement of ELLs.
The W-APT is one component of WIDA's comprehensive assessment system. To assess ELLs who have
IEPs, there is also the Alternate ACCESS for ELLs which WIDA describes as an assessment of English
language proficiency (ELP) for students in grades 1 -12 who are classified as English language learners
(ELLs) and have significant cognitive disabilities that prevent their meaningful participation in the
ACCESS for ELLs assessment (www.WIDA.us/assessment).

Beyond standardized testing, I have learned the importance of assessment through observation and the
need to provide constant feedback and review for ELLs. In the classrooms where I observed, a wide
variety of assessments were used. These ranged from simple oral review, to quizzes and tests, to
projects and presentations. Dr. Pierce at Franklin Regional especially used a lot of presentation and
performance based assessments. These assessments appeared to be the most valuable to me because
they used authentic tasks to measure progress and proficiency. For example, students learned about
the first Thanksgiving in social studies class and created a dramatization based on the historical texts.
Then, students worked together to create a script, costumes and props to retell the story of the first
Thanksgiving in dramatic fashion. Not only were they assessed on their interpretation of the reading,
but on their fluency in writing and speaking, and their ability to speak to each other and work together.

I also found it very impressive that Dr. Pierce conduced her lessons thematically, giving a common
thread to all of the lessons. This seemed to make the new vocabulary and language skills more relevant
because of the interconnectivity to the content. It also allows students to draw on their prior learning to
engage in discussions with more confidence. Though often simple quizzes were conducted for review,
the majority of assessments in this class were project and performance based, by incorporating a
common theme throughout each of the content areas, students had a wide range of knowledge to pull
from when completing the assessment. Dr. Pierce also used well thought out and detailed rubrics to
give total transparency to how the students would be assessed.