Education Assessment

Masters of Science in Education

EDU 590

Breyer State University
Instructor: Jeanne M. Herbert, MEd

SYLLABUS

COURSE OVERVIEW: Welcome to Education Assessment, a Master Level course in the curriculum for the Degree, Master of Educational Administration. I am pleased to instruct you in this course, which will be a foundational course for the remainder of your studies in the Master program.

While Educational Assessment may first appear to be a complex issue, it behooves any administrator to truly understand the basics of student assessment, both in standardized tests and teacher made tests. To be able to make a valid determination of whether or not an individual child requires additional instruction, an administrator needs to have a basic understanding of assessment. This course can seem quite daunting; especially to those never exposed to assessment before, but you will be afforded an opportunity to review the basics.

Having a first hand knowledge of student assessment affords an administrator the opportunity to build firm foundations in learning in his/her building and/or school district. Combining an understanding in learning theories and styles with student achievement and abilities enables any administrator to set the ground for true learning to occur. Being an administrator in today's world means not only being able to keep pace with innovative and progressive initiatives, it can also mean the difference of whether or not a school continues to grow and improve (and receive financial backing.) Today's administrator needs a working knowledge of standardized assessment as well as individual student assessment for determination in classification in Special Education. Basically, the course concentrates on: the bases for assessment in the classroom, crafting and using classroom assessments, and interpreting and using standardized tests.

I hope you will enjoy this course, and that you will gain valuable information and insight. Please learn as much as you can as you progress through it, as it does lay down a solid foundation for the rest of the curriculum. It is my pleasure to have you in the course.

TIME FRAME: This is a five-semester hour course. This course is allotted 10 weeks of time. You must complete all of the requirements for the course successfully by the end of the 10-week period. The first day of week one will begin the day that you register for the course, or the day which you notify me that your textbooks have arrived and you are ready to begin your studies. Please be cognizant of the time frame. It is rare that extensions of time are permitted, unless you have good justification. Upon successful completion of this course, you will be awarded five semester hours of credit.

TEXTBOOKS: There are two required textbooks for this course.

Book 1: Measurement and Assessment in Teaching, (Miller, Linn, Gronlund) tenth edition, ISBN 978-0-13-240893-6

Book 2: Assessing Student Learning, Linda Suskie, Anker Publishing, ISBN# 0470289643

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» Additional Student Resources at StudyTactics

There is also an additional book you may need to use, and you can either purchase this book from the sites mentioned above, or go to your local library to check it out. The book will be used as part of your mid-term project.

The title of this book is: Please Understand Me, by Kirsey.

There is a web site that accompanies these resources, that you may choose to explore- www.prenhall.com/nitko

EXAMINATIONS: There is one examination for this course, and a mid-term project. The mid-term project consists of a written assignment in the form of a report based upon personal assessment, of which you have the option to choose from either the above referenced book- Please Understand Me, the Myer Briggs assessment, or you may choose to sit for the WAIS-R. Only one written assignment is required. The length of the assignment must be at least 2 pages long, but no more than 5 pages long.

The final exam covers the material in the book, Educational Assessment of Students, by Anthony Nitko.

The mid-term project must be turned in by the end of the 6th week in the course.

The final examination must be taken by the end of the 10th week in the course.

The exam is programmed and is located in the classroom for this course. The examination is an "open book" objective type. You will have one (1) day to complete your exam, once you access it from the classroom. To access the exams, you must send me an email and request to have access to the exam. I will then program your access in. You will receive an email back from me telling you that you are now authorized to go ahead and to access your exam. To access, you will come into the classroom, click on testing, and click on the exam you are taking. You will need your User ID and PASS WORD to access the exam. The exam will appear on your screen. Once you access the exam, you have 24 hours to submit your answers. The program provides me the exact date and time that you accessed the exam. The program also notifies me of the exact date and time that you submitted your answers. Thus, the program is timing you. When you are ready, go back into the classroom and click in your responses and then click submit. Shortly, you will receive the exam in your email box with your computed score. You will also know what questions, if any, that you missed, and what the correct answer is. I also receive a copy of your exam and your score.

GRADING: The grading scale for this course is as follows:

90-100%    = A
80-89%      = B
70-79%      = C
Below 70% = Fail

COMMUNICATION: You are encouraged to communicate with me. I am available as a teacher, coach, and mentor to assist you in meeting your goals for this course. Primarily, communication is through email. However, I am also available for conversation by telephone if you would like. Our classroom for this course has a "chat" room. I am also very willing to meet with you one-on-one in the chat room at your request. From time to time, depending on how many students are enrolled in this course at a particular time, we will have some scheduled group chats. You will receive more detailed information at the time such chat sessions are scheduled. Please keep my email address handy so that you can contact me. If at any time during this course you change your email address, please be sure to notify me right away.

WRITTEN ASSIGNMENTS: There is one written assignment for this course, in the form of the mid-term project. If you are not clear as to what is expected of you, it is your responsibility to contact the instructor in plenty of time to assure the best possible grade. Late assignments will drop one letter grade for every week late.

ABOUT YOUR INSTRUCTOR: I, Jeanne M. Herbert, M.Ed., BS, currently teach graduate courses at Breyer State University. I hold a Masters in Educational Administration/Leadership. Currently I work for the State Educational System of New York state as a professional development specialist. I provide technical assistance and training to over 35 school districts. I am a certified Educational Mediator and have provided Advocate assistance to parents. I am a former public school teacher, Department Chairperson, CSE/CPSE Chairperson, Director of Special Education and Director of Special Programs. I write poetry and am currently working on a historical fiction novel on a non-fiction person.

COURSE OBJECTIVES: Upon completion of this course, you will be able to:

1). Understand assessment terminology.
2). Understand the importance of validity and reliability in assessing students.
3). Know what your professional responsibility is as an educator.
4). Know Your role as an educator concerning assessments.
5). Become familiar with standardized tests and norm referenced tests.
6). Understand the three basic frameworks for grading.
7). Understand the advantages and disadvantages of non-standardized (teacher made) tests.
8). Understand various taxonomies of educational objectives.
9). Understand what criteria to use to evaluate published assessments.
10). Become familiar with diagnostic tools used to assess students for classification purposes.

ASSIGNMENTS: For specific assignments, please click on the link "Assignments"

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