Alternative Assessment

In addition to traditional forms of testing, students at North Star Academy are assessed through a variety of alternative assessments.

What is alternative assessment?

"Alternative assessment consists of any method of determining what a student knows or can do that shows growth and informs instruction., It is an alternative to traditional forms of testing." (O'Malley & Valdez Pierce, 1996, p. 1)

What are some examples of alternative assessment?

Interviews
Story or Text Retelling
Writing Samples
Projects/Exhibitions
Experiments/Demonstrations
Constructed-Response Items
Teacher Observations
Portfolios

Why use alternative assessment with students?

Goes beyond pen-and-paper assessment and is descriptive
Includes observational and performance based assessment
Uses multiple assessments to elicit comprehensive information
Helps determine strengths and needs
Helps determine developmental patterns
Helps define long-term instructional goals

Assessing Language

People use language both to communicate and as a framework for academic thinking. Communicative and academic language functions apply to both ASL and English.

Communicative Language Functions include:

Greetings/Leave-takings
Requesting Information/Assistance
Giving Information/Assistance
Describing
Expressing Feelings

Academic Language Functions include:

Seeking Information/Informing
Comparing
Ordering
Classifying
Analyzing
Inferring
Justifying and Persuading
Solving Problems
Synthesizing
Evaluating

When assessing students' languages, communicative and academic language functions are documented at North Star. Not only will alternative assessments be used for coursework, they will also be used for Graduation Standards results and IEP Goals.