Page 78 - Special Education in Ontario, Kindergarten to Grade 12: Policy and Resource Guide

Special Education in Ontario, Kindergarten to Grade 12 Draft Assessment for Learning: Examples of Diagnostic and
Formative Assessment Tools and Measures
Diagnostic Assessment
Occurs before instruction begins,
to set learning goals and plan instruction and assessment that are differentiated and personalized
Formative Assessment
Occurs frequently and in an ongoing manner during the course of instruction,
to monitor progress, provide feedback, and differentiate instruction and assessment
• Review of recent report cards
• Consultation with previous
teachers, parents, special
education teacher
• Classroom observation
(e.g., anecdotal notes)
• Classroom assessments
(e.g., pre-tests, assessment of
student’s prior knowledge)
• Interest inventory
• Commonly used school
board assessments (e.g., oral language screening and reading comprehension tools), as well as assessments of achievement of alternative learning expectations (e.g., those relating to daily living, social skills)
• Professional assessments, if needed
• Review of any existing transition plans
• Moderated marking
• Classroom assessments of various types, using various modes and media that best suit students’ strengths and needs, learning styles and preferences, interests, readiness to learn
• Provision of timely descriptive feedback to students
• Use of assessment results to guide further instruction
• Use of the moderated marking process to support ongoing assessment and monitoring of student learning
C12
Accurate and reliable assessment for learning provides the foundation for personalization and precision in instruction.
While assessment for learning is designed to give teachers information to differentiate and personalize teaching and learning activities, assessment as learning enables students themselves to develop the skills to assess and monitor their progress towards achieving learning goals based on the curriculum expectations and/or the learning expectations in their