Cassie Mayer

RICA Reflection
Competency: 2 Reading Assessment
TPE Connection: TPE 3: interpretation and Use of Assessments

Definition

Personal
Connection/
Evidence
(Discuss assessment
and differentiation)

Teachers need to understand and know their students. One of the best
ways for teachers to do this is through assessment. Assessment is
gathering, interpreting, and using data. By collecting assessment
teachers will know what to teach and how to teach the content.
Describe ways that you have engaged with this competency
which illustrate you know how to implement it.
o During my tutoring sessions on Monday nights as well
as working with four boys during the weekend I have
implemented entry level assessments, formative and
summative assessments. The entry level assessments
helped me understand what my students have already
mastered and showed me where I need to scaffold their
learning and accommodate any needs they may have.
The theorist Vygotsky says that what a child can do on
their own is what they have mastered and what they can
do with aid from a teacher or peer is their zone of
proximal development (Vytgotsky, 1978). Using the San
Diego I was able to assess my students reading levels of
independence, frustrations, and instruction. Using this
information has helped me scaffold their lessons
building off previous knowledge and continues to guide
me in lesson development. Through the Phonics and
Decoding Assessment I discovered that my Monday
night tutees both struggle with short vowel sounds as
well as consonant digraphs. In this weeks lesson we are
using manipulative letters to create words with short
vowels. Through formative assessment I am able to
monitor students progress. I do this by asking questions,
reviewing my tutees writing, and by watching their
interactions with others. With Common Core State
Standards formal assessment is moving away from
traditional assessment and is now growing in short
answer/response questions. Multiple choice tests are
okay, but they do not often reveal that students
understand why they are doing what they have learned.
TPE 3 states, Candidates understand the purposes and

uses of different types of diagnostic instruments,

including entry level, progress-monitoring and
summative assessments. I have reflected this TPA in
my tutoring lessons and have observed it in my Master
Classroom as well.
o Differentiationo If a student has ADHD then teachers should take the student to a
separate room free of distractions to assess the student.

o If the Student is an English Language Learner then teachers

should assess the student in their first language or with a translator
to better understand what the student has mastered.
o If the student is hard of seeing than the teacher should enlarge
print, or give the student a verbal assessment so that assessment
results are more accurate.

References
Text-to-Text

Vytgotsky, L. (1978). Mind in Society. Interaction Between Learning

and Development, 79-91.