A Pilot Study Aiming to Promote Parents’ Understanding of Learning Assessments at the Elementary Level


Article de revue

Contributeurs:

État de publication: Publiée (2013 Décembre )

Nom de la revue: School Community Journal

Intervalle de pages: 9-31

URL: http://www.adi.org/journal/2013fw/SCJFallWinter2013.pdf#page=9

Résumé: The new Québec curriculum is different from other curriculum reforms in that it is based on a competency approach, both cross-curricular and disciplinary. It thus means a move from knowledge-based to competency-based assessments which represents a real challenge to parents who may find it hard to understand learning assessments and their child’s report card. In this article, the authors focus on a recent effort aimed at piloting workshops to promote parents’ understanding of assessments. The article describes two case studies of workshops using an experiential learning approach conducted with parents of kindergarten and 6th grade students. In general, the parents who participated as active learners reported more knowledge and understanding related to school assessment practices. They also felt more equipped for interacting with their children to monitor academic progress. The workshops represent a potentially effective way of communicating with parents regarding learning assessments to help them better understand the evaluation methods used by teachers.