Making Assessment Elementary » (1st Edition)

After years as a classroom teacher and reading specialist, Kathleen Strickland now teaches undergraduate and graduate students at Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania. She has written numerous books for Heinemann with her husband James, including Engaged in Learning (2002), Making Assessment Elementary (2000), and Reflections on Assessment (1998). Her book Literacy Not Labels (1995) tells the story of her two-year study of a literature-rich special education classroom. She has given keynote addresses and conducted workshops for professional development for teachers from the Big Island in Hawaii to Atlantic City, New Jersey.

James Strickland author of Engaging in Learning (2002) and numerous articles on computers and writing teaches English at Slippery Rock University. In addition to teaching first-year college composition courses and graduate courses focusing on the teaching of writing and literature, Jim has offered a popular summer workshop to pre-service and in-service teachers examining the use of computers and the teaching of writing. His many Heinemann books have been valuable resources for elementary, secondary and college teachers interested in assessment and student centered transactional classrooms. From 1988 to 1994 Jim was the editor of English Leadership Quarterly, a publication of the NCTE Conference on English Leadership.

Is it possible to keep assessments authentic and meaningful, and still satisfy district mandates to focus on tests? In Making Assessment Elementary, Kathleen and James Strickland prove that it is and provide lots of ideas for making assessment an enriching, informative process for teachers and students alike.

Filled with classroom suggestions, Making Assessment Elementary reflects what the Stricklands have learned working with countless educators and students. In addition to the eight chapters outlining the "hows" and the "whys" of assessment, their book contains almost fifty reproducible forms that can be put to immediate use. An accompanying CD-ROM features all of these classroom assessment forms as well as numerous variations for different grade levels.

In writing Making Assessment Elementary, the Stricklands kept returning to elementary classrooms to collaborate with talented teachers and students. Above all, their book is a collection of stories gathered from conferences, inservices, classroom visits, and even Internet discussion forums - stories told by teachers from Oak Park, California, to Greenville, Pennsylvania, from Nevada to Missouri and Georgia. What the Stricklands have learned about assessment and evaluation invites teachers to move forward and change the way they teach - so that through assessment the children in our classrooms inform our instruction and reflect on their own learning. According to the Stricklands, "Such changes can't help but breathe life into our teaching, making our own learning exciting and challenging."

Readers will find Making Assessment Elementary more than a reference book; it is a point from which to proceed, grounded in the belief that good teachers use such resources to enhance their expertise and reflection.

Booknews

A book/CD-ROM package providing ideas for making assessment an enriching, informative process for teachers and students. Chapters outline "hows" and "whys" of assessment, drawing on stories gathered from classrooms, inservices, conferences, and Internet discussion forums. Features some 50 reproducible forms. The CD-ROM contains the same forms, plus variations for different grade levels. The authors teach undergraduate and graduate students at Slippery Rock University. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)