Assessments

When it comes to assessing a student's special needs and learning disabilities the question of how resonates with unclear ripples.  Although exhausting to complete, a carefully assembled combination of assessments including qualitative, quantitative, formal and informal provides the most holistic and genuine picture of a student's abilities and challenges.

MAP TESTING - FORMAL/QUANTITATIVE 

Created by the Northwest Evaluation Association, MAP testing uses a computer-based (approx 1 hour) approach that changes in real time to suit the level of the student.  If the student answers a question correctly they are presented with a more challenging one.  If they cannot answer correctly they are given an easier question.  This testing is not specific to special needs, but rather can be used and applied to various situations to aid the teacher in presenting the student with the learning experiences he or she is ready for. ¹

Some educators and parents question the use of MAP testing.  For many school districts, it is a costly endeavor. This is not only monetarily, but also via staffing to administer the test, the time it takes for students to take the test and for teachers to be trained in interpreting the results and then to do so.  The test requires the use of a computer, so this ties up classroom computers and often converts library time from a focus on books to test taking.  Sometimes the test results are being used to evaluate teachers, which it is not designed to do, and thus teachers begin to teach to the test.  English Language Learners are unable to benefit from the test.  Questions have been raised as to the fluctuation of results and children have been known to "game" the test.  Once they realize that by not answering a question correctly they get an easier question some will play to get easier questions and thus producing inaccurate results as to their true abilities²  

Woodcock-Johnson Tests of Cognitive Abilities (WJ III) FORMAL/QUALITATIVE

These tests (35-45 minutes for the standard 7) gauge verbal ability, thinking ability and cognitive efficiency.  Cognitive efficiency relates to the mental action or process of acquiring knowledge and understanding through thought, experience, and the senses.  The WJ III is not the standard fill-in-the-bubble test, but is administered one-on-one where the tester's observations are often also included in a narrative.  Because of this, it is more expensive than the IOWA, CAT/5, or Stanford tests.  According to the publishers, the test is useful for determining learning disabilities, planning both individual and institutional programs, and research among other benefits³.  


CLASSROOM WORK SAMPLES - INFORMAL
Evaluating some of the student's classroom work offers a less pressured glimpse at the student's performance.  These can range from a writing sample to a test.


OBSERVATIONS - FORMAL & INFORMAL / QUALITATIVE
Observations are extremely useful if gathered from various sources.  These sources can include, but are not limited to various teachers, counselors and social workers.  A teacher's day-to-day observations offer an informal assessment, where a counselor or social worker who is asked to specifically observe a student can provide a formal assessment. 



STUDENT & FAMILY INPUT - FORMAL & INFORMAL / QUALITATIVE
An interview with the student and family members is vital for gathering information about the student's needs.  Although including family members can sometimes be stressful for educational professionals, since they often spend the most time with the student and have done so over the longest period of time they are valuable advocates for the student's needs.


Although they can still be useful, choosing to only view some of these assessment options will not offer the greatest picture illustrating the student's gifts and challenges. 


1 NWEA. (2012). MAP. Retrieved May, 2012, from http://www.nwea.org/products-services/computer-based-adaptive-assessments/map^↩  

2 Seattleeducation2011. (2011). 15 reasons why the seattle school district should shelve the MAP® Test—ASAP. Retrieved May, 2012, from http://seattleducation2010.wordpress.com/2011/03/15/15-reasons-why-the-seattle-school-district-should-shelve-the-map%C2%AE-test%E2%80%94asap/^↩  

3 Woodcock-Johnson® III normative update (NU) tests of cognitive abilities. (2009). Retrieved May, 2012, from http://www.riverpub.com/products/wjIIICognitive/details.html ^↩