Assessment Policy

Assessment enhances a teacher’s ability to ensure specific and focused instruction for all students.

Teachers gain: 

• An understanding of students’ comprehension of concepts, knowledge, and abilities
• Direction for instruction based upon students’ prior knowledge
• Knowledge around students’ strengths and areas for improvement
• An ability to uncover misconceptions
• Information to better differentiate for their students
• Feedback on the effectiveness of their lessons
• An ability to be reflective on units of instruction
• An understanding of student progress in relation to set goals
• Information around unintended learning outcomes
• Information and data to flexibly group students based on need
• An ability to inform students and parents of progress
• An understanding of the effectiveness of programming and curriculum
• An ability to communicate with stakeholders about the effectiveness of programming and curriculum

Students gain:

• An understanding of their progress and abilities
• An awareness of the relationship between effort and outcome
• An understanding of their personal growth over time
• An ability to prepare for further inquiry
• Data from which they can reflect
• Ongoing feedback from themselves, peers, and teachers 

Culture 5: The school implements, communicates and regularly reviews an assessment policy or policies to help create a culture of continuous learning and growth. (0301-05) 

Culture 5.1: The school implements and reviews an assessment policy that makes the school’s philosophy clear and is aligned with the IB philosophy concerning learning and assessment. (0301-05-0100)

Culture 5.2: The school identifies in its assessment policy all necessary local and IB requirements, and outlines how the school is adhering to these requirements. (0301-05-0200)

Culture 5.3: The school describes in its assessment policy the rights and responsibilities of all members of the school community and clearly states what constitutes good assessment practice. (0301-05-0300)

Culture 5.4: The school ensures relevant support materials, resources and processes are implemented for fair and valid assessment. (0301-05-0400)

Culture 5.5: The school describes in its assessment policy the value of assessment for continuous learning and growth. (0301-05-0500)

Teachers at Sand Creek International provide a variety of opportunities for students to demonstrate their knowledge, conceptual understandings, and skills. This is done through a variety of assessment methods that are ongoing and authentic. In addition to universal, diagnostic, and formative assessments, transdisciplinary assessments are administered and relate to the central idea and lines of inquiry associated with each planner. Students will be provided with opportunities to reflect upon their learning and the learner profile attributes that are demonstrated throughout the school. Teachers will disseminate assessment information to parents four times each year with report cards and during parent teacher conferences.

Universal Assessments: Acadience; ACCESS (for ELL students); CMAS (3rd-5th); iReady Math and iReady Reading, Aimsweb, Writing Prose Constructed Responses (K-5), Math Constructed Responses (K-5)

Summative Assessments: Teacher-created assessment in all content areas, end of unit or course performance assessments, rubric scored projects & assessments

Diagnostic Assessments: Acadience (DIBELS) Deep, Core Phonics, teacher-created probes, iReady Math and iReady Reading

Formative Assessments: Daily demonstrations of learning, monthly common writing prompts, pre and post assessments associated with each planner, observations, analysis of student questioning, anecdotal records, running records

Portfolios: Portfolios will:

• Be utilized in kindergarten through 5th grade
• Follow students as they progress through their years at Sand Creek
• Include artifacts from each of the planners/units every year
• Allow students to demonstrate their personal learning and growth
• Allow students to reflect upon their learning over time
• Provide an opportunity to share their learning and understanding with others

All of these assessment practices will provide us a well-rounded picture of each individual student and their strengths and areas for growth. The standardized school, district and state assessments will provide us information regarding student mastery of the Colorado Academic Standards. Our assessments will provide us information about students’ ability to apply their knowledge, reflect on their own learning, and make connections in order to transfer understanding to different situations. All of these assessment practices will work together to guide teaching and learning.

During the 5th grade year, students participate in the exhibition which allows them to showcase the synthesis of their learning. Students demonstrate independence and responsibility as they initiate this project that leads to action based upon a real-life problem or situation. The exhibition is a culmination of students learning of the Learner Profile, Key Concepts, Approaches to Learning, Action, and is shared with the entire school community.