Blog Post on Informal Assessment Activities

Looking through my blog posts from 16 weeks worth of classes I really see my values as an educator solidify. I enjoyed the activity of viewing student writing and commenting what I value about it. None of what was shown was perfect, each was a work in progress at different stages of completion and could each be improved upon. But we were not asked what needs to change to be better. Just what we value about the draft in front of us. So many educators view assessment and student feedback as only what needs to be improved and only give postive feedback to that work if it truly is exceptional. These activities made me realize that no, every student writing brings something to the table. Every piece helps develop that writer and if we only identify what we value about exceptional writing as a whole, that student who does need to be lifted up will not be and could never see their potential. I always say "there is no such thing as a bad writer, only a writer who hasn't learned the ways to showcase their voice yet;" but this then means that every work I see I need to find value and state what I value about it so the student gains confidence and learns about their voice even more. My goal in each class I teach is to have students stop saying and thinking that they are bad writers. If you can communicate you can write, just takes practice. 

My favorite of the informal assessments was of the multi-draft eportfolio. I love how you, and most likely the student, saw their improvement in front of their face and learned that writing is indeed a process. The more students can see this and learn this the more confident they become and more open to going to the writing center, participating in peer critiques or workshops they will be, and the less anxious they will be thinking they always need to deliver a 100% perfect product. I believe I will implement the multi-draft portfolio some time in my career, especially when eventually teaching graduate level courses on writing for publication. I want them to show themselves not only can they do it, but it is a long process that needs lots of revisions and other eyes upon it. This method would also be great for creative writing classes as they see their work is a work in progress and be not afraid to "murder their darlings" because they aren't gone completely, but seeing the comparison will make them see that their darlings weren't a good match for this piece and prevented it from being stronger. I want to be the teacher I would have wanted in college, therefore I want to be a teacher who values something in every piece of writing I see and I want to champion writing as a process. I want students to learn writing is a complex yet rewarding process that only grows stronger over drafts and over time. I want them to believe in themselves and not let their negative thoughts get to them. These activities really helped give me ideas on how to do just that.