Show Me What You Can Do:
Big Ideas About Authentic
Assessments
Big Idea #6:
Assessment
drives
curriculum
Also called "working
backwards"; teachers decide
tasks students need to be
able to do, then design
curriculum to give info and
skills needed
Example: Students
need to be able to
distinguish between
editorials and news
articles. First lesson
will be about the
characteristics of an
editorial.
Big Idea #1:
Students learn
as they perform
real-world tasks
tasks simulate
challenges faced
by adults & in
professional
settings
teachers act
as facilitators
as students
problem-solve
Big Idea #7:
Students
demonstrate
ability to APPLY
skills and
knowledge
students
complete tasks
to show what
they have
learned
often work well with
TA's as a way to show
that student can apply
knowledge
Example: Students show they
know basic conversation words
by recording a short
conversation with a classmate
Big Idea #5:
Use of rubrics
to evaluate
performance
students see rubrics
ahead of time so
they know what
they are expected to
do and need to learn
rubrics
identify
criteria of good
performance
Big Idea #3:
Student-structured
students have
more choices
in how they
demonstrate
proficiency
Big Idea #2:
Uses direct
evidence
AA's offer direct
evidence of a
student's abilities
to apply and
construct
knowledge
traditional
assessments like
multiple choice gives
us indirect evidence
student knows
about and/or how to
do something
Example: To show that they
understand the complex issues
following the Civil War,
students were tasked with
creating their own
Reconstruction plan.
Big Idea #4:
AA's are
constructive
AA's encourage
students to
construct meaning
as they work on
tasks
Example: With the
Reconstruction Plan
assignment, Instead of
just learning facts about
the negative effects of
Reconstruction, students
are forced to think about
what they have learned
and make a plan for how
things could have been
different