Supportive Practices in Teacher Education: Finding out What Pre-Service Teachers Know about Teaching, Learning, and Community, through Purposeful and Creative Assessment

Tepper, Nadine C., Education

In my teaching I speak about and model for pre-service teachers how to utilize authentic assessment as a tool for holistic teaching and learning. A holistic perspective, according to Hill and Ruptic, (1994) is based on current research that highlights the interactive nature of speaking, listening, reading, and writing. This practice focuses on the individual needs of the child/student, and includes the physical, social and emotion, as well as the intellectual growth. In class students are given the time and opportunity to read, discuss, and practice various assessment strategies. They know assessment is more than developing a test for students so that a teacher can grant them a grade. They do not however, have a good grasp of the concept that pedagogy and assessment are linked. Or even more that self-efficacy is a driving force behind good teaching and learning. In the philosophy of assessment, evaluation, and reporting, Hill and Ruptic, (1994) say that to believe in authentic assessment is to realize that assessment and evaluation must centered, and tied directly to current curriculum. Therefore, I believed that I could best find out what the students knew about classrooms and communities through an authentic assessment practice for their final project. I wanted them to see how teaching and authentic assessment allow for a more thorough understanding of pedagogy and creativity. I was contemplating a final test in the class, and thought it would be both interesting and supportive, if I were to create an authentic assessment tool that called for them to think, write, create, and learn. I realized that this authentic assessment could really do a number of other things.

First, students would see authentic assessment in the making, therefore would witness me, their teacher, modeling this worthwhile and valuable tool. Second, they would see for themselves the benefits of what they had learned and then apply this to their developing repertoire of teaching and managing classrooms. Third, they would have fun. This last idea came to fruition later when I examined their work and it became evident they enjoyed this type of …

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Publication information: Article title: Supportive Practices in Teacher Education: Finding out What Pre-Service Teachers Know about Teaching, Learning, and Community, through Purposeful and Creative Assessment. Contributors: Tepper, Nadine C. - Author. Journal title: Education. Volume: 125. Issue: 2 Publication date: Winter 2004. Page number: 236+. © 1999 Project Innovation. COPYRIGHT 2004 Gale Group.

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