Defining Achievement Targets

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Unit 2

• Chapter 3
• Defining Achievement Targets

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• Remember the goals for this course
• By the end of the term you will
• Understand the meaning of excellence in
  classroom assessment.
• MMake a personal professional commitment to
  meeting standards of assessment excellence.

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In unit 1 the focus was on the purpose of
assessment. The focus of this unit is
achievement targets. See how it fits into the
overall assessment picture in the following slide.
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Standards of Sound Assessment
Clear Appropriate Targets
Clear Purposes
Proper Methods
Appropriate Sample
Bias Distortion Eliminated
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A target defines academic success the highest
level of performance students can achieve. Our
goal is to get the largest possible percentage of
our students to that level. In Oregon
benchmarks are used as one type of target.
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• What if your students dont reach the target?
• Stiggins offers 5 possible reasons
• They lacked the prerequisites needed to achieve
  the target.
• You didnt have a clear target.
• Your instructional methods, strategies, and
  materials were inappropriate.
• Your students lacked the confidence to risk
  trying the motivation to strive for success.
• Some outside forces beyond your control
  interfered with learning (i.e., home environment).

p. 62
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You must get to the bottom of each students
failure. You need to find out why each student
failed so that you can attempt to find a solution
to the problem.
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Achievement targets
You need to develop clearly defined achievement
targets. How can you do this? First, you need
to understand the types of targets.
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Types of achievement targets
Dispositions
Products
Performance Skills
Reasoning
Knowledge and Understanding
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In my nutrition classes I emphasize that
knowledge alone is not an important outcome. For
example, I want students to know that they each
need 1200mg of calcium each day. But theres more
to it I also want them to use their reasoning
skills to identify barriers and benefits of
obtaining 1200mg of calcium in their own
diet. Then I expect them to develop a daily
routine of getting four good sources of calcium
into their diet. This is a performance
skill. Fourth, the students are required to
complete a two day food log. They enter the data
into a software program which analyzes their
nutrient intake including calcium. This is a
product. Finally, I encourage them to take
responsibility for their own diet. This is a
disposition. No one else can drink that milk for
them
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Theres a difference between knowledge and
understanding. For example, its easy for my
students to remember that the minimum daily
requirement for calcium is 1200mg, but that
knowledge wont really help them make meaningful
changes in their dietary practices unless they
also understand that they need at least four good
sources of calcium each day. That is, they need
to recognize calcium when they see it on their
dinner plate and know approximately how much
calcium is in milk, yogurt, and cheese.
Heres your nutrition tip for the week you, too,
need 1200mg of calcium each day. An 8 ounce glass
of milk provides 300mg, 8 ounces of yogurt has
400mg, an ounce of cheese has 250mg. How many mg
of calcium did you have yesterday? If you came up
short, how can you improve?!
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• Sources of information about achievement targets
• Professional preparation
• Lifelong learning
• Teacher training
• State and local standards
• Professional networks and literature
• Thoughtful planning

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State and local achievement standards As a
classroom teacher it is your responsibility to
transform Oregon benchmarks in your content area
into achievement targets that your students must
hit to become proficient. (If Oregon doesnt have
benchmarks in your content area, use national
objectives.) What do students need to know to
meet this benchmark? What patterns of reasoning
must they be able to apply? What performance
skills, if any, are called for? What products
must they be prepared to create?
Stiggins, p. 80
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Final Thoughts When it comes to being clear
about what it means to be successful in your
classroom, the responsibility stops with you,
regardless of what else is going on around you!
Embrace that responsibility.
Stiggings, p. 82