There are way too many campus-based educators who hate and openly fight the short-cycle common assessment process.  A primary motivation for this behavior is that these educators value good grades over good information.

If you want grades, common assessments are not the way to go. Instead you should go with the traditional test comprised of low rigor questions over material that the teacher has taught, re-taught and then taught again. Your grades we’ll be good, but what will you actually know? Close to nothing. 

If you want real-time instructional information, use short-cycle common assessments.  Assessments that are aligned to both the pace and rigor of the curriculum. With these you will have information on both pacing of the delivered material and the effectiveness of instructional practices.  This information is useful to the teacher and critical to the PLC.  

Given the choice, I’ll take good instructional information over good grades every single time. 

Think. Work. Achieve. Your turn…

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