Purpose of Assessments

Assessments come in many forms, partly because they serve many purposes, and those purposes often vary by the stakeholders they support. Students, parents, teachers, and school, district, and state leaders may all be end users of the information provided by various assessments. For example, assessments can support the needs of:

Students and Parents:

• By informing students and parents about the student’s progress in learning content based on the state academic standards.
• By informing students and parents — as well as teachers and schools — about the student’s readiness: for grade advancement, graduation, college, and careers.

Teachers and School Leaders:

• By allowing teachers to better plan and tailor instruction to student and classroom needs.
• By supporting teachers and school leaders in identifying where students need intervention, remediation, or acceleration.
• By holding teachers and schools accountable and identifying opportunities for their growth through teacher evaluations and school report cards.

Districts and States:

• By informing districts and the state about school performance, allowing them to determine the appropriate interventions and support for low-performing schools, and recognizing high-performing schools.
• By allowing for comparisons of student subgroups, schools, districts, and, when possible, states.
• By informing district leaders and state policymakers of education policy decisions.

Understanding the different types of available assessments and how these can be connected to enable best assessment practice is a key step to assuring fit for purpose. The USD 497 Assessment Framework supports student academic and social-emotional growth through formative, interim and summative assessments. Each has a critical role to play in delivering the right data to the right people to meet their particular needs, from students, parents, educators, and principals to the district- and state-level stakeholders. Together, these assessments combine to create a balanced system that provides insights to accelerate educational progress.

Please explore the links on this page to learn more about Assessments in USD 497.