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How Can Urban Early Childhood Educators Advocate For Accountability In Alternative Assessment Methods, Stephanie Scierka

Graduate Teacher Education

Abstract

The introduction of district and educator accountability measures based on student assessment scores has created a move away from developmentally, culturally, and linguistically appropriate practice (Bauml, 2016; Cramer et al., 2018; Frede &Ackerman, 2007; Gullo & Hughes, 2011; Miller & Almon, 2009; NAEYC, 2020; Rushton & Juola-Rushton, 2008). A combination of qualitative, quantitative, mixed-method studies and guidelines from the National Association for the Education of Young Children [NAEYC] (2020) demonstrated a need for developmentally appropriate practices when assessing students. The guiding question focused on how urban early childhood educators could advocate for accountability in alternative assessment methods. The research …

How Can Play-Based Learning With Authentic Assessment Practices Support Healthy Development In Preschool Classrooms?, Megan Nelson

Graduate Teacher Education

Early childhood educators need to recognize the importance of implementing play-based learning as a developmentally appropriate practice to support young children’s development. Play provides children opportunities to demonstrate knowledge and understandings through materials in the environment, expand on prior experiences and learn alongside peers. Teachers can authentically gain valuable information from children’s play to plan appropriate lessons to foster development (NAEYC, 2009). Instead of using natural routines to assess and gather information about a child’s knowledge and behavior, educators use standardized methods to determine a child’s capabilities. This paper synthesized available research on qualitative and quantitative studies that analyzed the …

Middle School Teachers’ Perceptions Of Goal Orientations, Teacher Self-Efficacy, And Authentic Outcomes-Based Assessments, Tamela W. Hoak

CUP Ed.D. Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine middle school teachers’ attitudes towards authentic outcomes-based assessments and to relate teachers’ perceptions of patterns of adaptive learning to authentic assessment scores of middle school students. Multiple learning theories were used to shape the conceptual framework. The correlational portion of this study was designed to seek relationships between the participants’ perceptions of patterns of adaptive learning and their students’ mean authentic assessment scores. The descriptive survey portion of this study was designed to gather middle school social studies teachers’ opinions of authentic outcomes-based assessments used to evidence mastery of intended learning outcomes. …

Business School Educators And Authentic Assessment: A Phenomenological Case Study, Tina Callaway

CUP Ed.D. Dissertations

Newly hired college graduates who have earned their degree in business are underprepared in demonstrable foundational and functional professional competencies required for success in the workplace. The basic business skills necessary to be learned through studies at institutions of higher education are forcing schools to consider if changing the way learning is assessed would create a more valuable post-graduation employee. This phenomenological case study was designed to discover if business school educators at institutions of higher learning recognize the value of using authentic assessment practices as preparation for graduates seeking future employment in a business setting. The study was conducted …