Chapter 10

How I wish that every administrator and public official that sees assessments as these wonderful things that benefit the student would read this chapter. It says exactly what most of us already know. You can't spend your entire day teaching to the test or drilling students on standards that they will be tested on. Students learn best when these essential skills are woven into daily lessons and activities. Projects and assignments must have meaning for the students or they will become just another chore. Assessments do have there place in the classrooms, but should be used as a monitoring tool to see which areas students still need practice and help with. Students also need to be responsible for self-evaluation. It is not necessary for the teacher to check and recheck each piece of work until it meets her satisfaction. The student should be responsible for editing their own work until it meets their satisfaction. Finally, we should remember that writing should be fun and enjoyable. Students should be given many opportunities to free write and to share their writings with others.

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