Prompt 3, Kliewer

The culturally competent teacher should be able to use a variety of assessment techniques appropriate to diverse learners and accommodate sociocultural differences that affect learning.

I think the best way to accurately gauge a student’s learning is to assess their progress in several different ways. Not all students display their best work in the same way. Tests, homework, and class participation are all good indicators of how a student is doing in a class. However, basing a student’s grades off of one of these areas is not a complete view of their abilities. Many of the students in the classroom have part time jobs to help support their families. For these students, homework may not be their top priority after school. A culturally competent teacher would understand that each student is different. Each student learns differently, tests differently, and has different circumstances outside of school. Kliewer’s article “Reconceptualizing Down Syndrome” discusses the ways these differences have been handled in regards to students with disabilities. He also brings up the concept of human reciprocity which he defines as a form of associated living, “community establishes and is derived from each individual’s recognition of the value of every other individual”. The culturally competent teacher would recognize the value in each of their students and not only try to expand their knowledge base but also to make their progress clear in assessments.

In class I have not seen many assessment techniques implemented. Ms. H will hand out homework and occasionally I will see a student turning in work but this does not happen often. There have been a few tests since I have been tutoring there but I have never been present for one. On one Monday a student was shocked to find that they had missed a test that happened on Friday. I had been there the Monday prior to the exam and heard no mention of it. This leads me to think that the exam dates are not planned very far in advance, leaving students without much time to study. In regards to that same test there had been a take home portion, worth 20% of the final grade. The take home was due on Monday. I saw one student had in work that day. Another assessment that I observed was handled as sort of a pop-quiz. Ms. H had assigned work for the students to do alone but after ten minutes with very little productivity she declared that it was now worth a quiz grade. While the students were at lunch I helped to grade the quizzes. I was surprised to find that she handed out points arbitrarily. One student had the correct problem solving process but had made a computational mistake, they received a 4/5. Another student had completed a diagram of the problem and only finished a very small portion of the actual work, they also received a four. Some students handed in pages that were almost blank and received threes. I personally feel that a student’s grade is not a real representation of their abilities if it is arbitrarily assigned.