In all of my education classes, especially my TESOL ones, we talk about alternative assessment and how beneficial it is. Personally, I feel that if every educator was more informed with different types of alternative assessment, then they would be more open to using them. I think that not only is alternatice assessment a more personal, engaging, accurate way to assess your students, but it also helps them expand their creativity and is fun. I feel that traditional assessment forces not only the students, but the teachers as well, into a box and limits them. As stated on page 339, "alternative assessment actually asks students to show what they can do." You can't expect one traditional assessment to accurately portray all the abilities of 30-some students that learn and express their knowledge in different formats. These types of assessment can reveal the true capabilities of students and include daily classroom activities and real life situations. It goes along the lines of "learning and not knowing that you are learning", which is most authentic.
There are so many different types of assessments. One of my personal favorites is the student portfolio. I like this because it is an suthentic representation of students' achievements. It shows how a student progresses through the year by showing their pieces at the beginning and at the end. It is an amazing way for the student to actually see how their writing has improved. On page 348 it states that "this is a real step toward learner autonomy." And isn;t that what we want as educators? To guide our students along using methods and techniques that suit them and bring out their best qualities until they get to the point where they can shine on their own.
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