Assessment
Assessment covers how evidence of learning is gathered, interpreted, and used. Distinguish formative assessment, which informs teaching during learning, from summative assessment, which summarizes achievement at a point in time. Know validity (the inferences and uses are appropriate), reliability (results are consistent), and freedom from bias. A measure can be reliable but not valid for a particular purpose, such as a consistent scale that is two pounds off. Compare norm-referenced and criterion-referenced interpretations, selected-response and constructed-response items, rubrics, portfolios, and progress monitoring. Understand accommodations, which change access without changing the construct, and modifications, which change what is measured. Use data carefully: a single score is a snapshot, not a diagnosis. Avoid grading formative practice so heavily that students hide uncertainty.
Traps include treating reliability and validity as synonyms, assuming a high score proves mastery of every objective, using a rubric with vague levels, and calling any change an accommodation. Another trap is planning a summative test before defining the learning target.
Worked rule of thumb: before choosing an item type, name the intended learning and the decision the result will support. If the goal is to revise tomorrow's lesson, use a quick formative check with clear success criteria. If the goal is to certify end-of-unit achievement, use a summative measure aligned to the same criteria and document accommodations.