The debate over standardized vs. informal assessments went really well. The points people were making were valid. From doing this debate, you could really see the controversy over this issue. I realized after thinking about which assessment I would prefer, that I don’t know many types of authentic assessments besides language sampling and observation. I am curious as to what authentic assessments clinicians can perform or use, other than observation in a school setting. I believe both forms of assessment are necessary. Standardized assessments are needed for insurance companies, and authentic assessments allow the clients to demonstrate skills that are realistic and meaningful. They also contribute more to carryover. It was interesting to see my colleagues, first argue for only either standardized or authentic assessment, and then towards the end, some people were drifting to the opposite side. This shows how controversial this issue is, and how difficult it would be to rely on one measure. The video clips were humorous although they did not directly relate to speech. Overall, I thought it was a good turnout.
My article that I shared with a few students in class was about the effects of a tutoring package (that consists of modeling and prompting), on the pronunciation of Mandarin Chinese. I always knew that Chinese was one of the hardest languages to learn because sounds represent characters and not all sounds have different meanings. That sounds confusing. This case study was performed on a college student who was enrolled in a first year Chinese class. In the class, he had mastered the writing of Chinese characters. The package included pre-tutoring, tutoring and post-tutoring. Results indicated that adding tutoring caused progress in pronunciation of Chinese characters. The results make sense, as getting additional help in any area would be beneficial. Chinese was not offered in my high school until last year. I believe the reason for this was people were not interested in taking Chinese, as Spanish was considered one of the most popular languages to learn. I think the difficulty was also a factor. This article was a good way to learn about single subject design, and the terms that go along with it, such as method of data analysis. I hope to read other similar articles.
I wanted to comment on the first part of your blog (standardized assessment vs authentic assessment). I agree you guys did a great job of getting the whole class involved and talking. I just wanted to say that I do not think either method of assessment surpasses the other. I think both a equally vital and which one you choose to use should depend on your client (age, disorder, and etc.). I also think that in some cases both forms of assessment are needed not just one of the two.
ReplyDeleteI just had to read your post because your title made me laugh. But now on a serious note, I thought your presentation was great. It was really informative, and I enjoyed how it was not lecture, your activity really got me thinking about standardized and authentic assessment. As the discussion came to an end I felt as if, I myself, could really never pick a side during the debate, let alone stick with it for the rest of my future SLP days. I believe that the assessment a SLP chooses to use could be different with every client. I only say this because I feel as if we are taught to work with each client as an individual, not by generalizing a client into a group and assuming because the assessment went well with the past clients it will work for this one too. My concluding thoughts of the class made me believe that both assessments are very affective separately but I think that they are the most affective when you are able to use a mixture of both.
ReplyDeleteThe debate was a great idea, Kaitlynn! It definitely served its purpose in getting all of us to consider the pros and cons of both standardized and authentic testing. I just wanted to say I agree with what Kaitlin and Sam have said too - that it's difficult to choose between the two and that neither is more superior than the other. Both types of testing can be really useful in different situations, and can sometimes serve a purpose when used together as well.
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