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Assessment Strategies

Instructor Objective:

A. The teacher has knowledge and understanding of assessment strategies.

B. The teacher has skills to implement assessment strategies.

Strategy for Acquiring Instructor Objective:

All of the objectives of A and B can best be met by:

  1. Completing a university program to prepare rehabilitation teachers
  2. Completing courses in psychological measurements, tests and measurements, or literacy assessment.
  3. Completing courses in the education and assessment of adult learners.
  4. Keeping abreast of new instruments and techniques to assess the potential and performance of adult learners.
  5. Keeping abreast of new instruments and techniques to assess literacy potential and performance.
  6. Conferring with colleagues in the rehabilitation system who are responsible for the assessment of clients who are blind.
  7. Teaming with colleagues in the assessment of your students.
  8. Assuming responsibility of literacy assessment.
  9. Continuing to gain experience in assessing braille literacy.
  10. Practice good assessment, focus on the learner rather than the instrument.

Instructor Objective:

A. The teacher understands:
1.a Principals of assessment/evaluation

Strategy for Acquiring Instructor Objective:

  1. Can best be met by taking a special course or by acquiring and reading the textbook used in the course.

Instructor Objective:

1.b Purposes of assessment as related to braille literacy instruction

Strategy for Acquiring Instructor Objective:

  1. Refer to appropriate items in list above for Objectives A and B.
  2. Identify your purpose(s) for assessment. You are likely to be pioneering in this area.
  3. Identify your purpose for assessment of each individual student.
  4. Relate this objective to IV-B-1-q, the Research objective.

Instructor Objective:

1.c Process and procedure of a team approach to assessment for braille literacy instruction

Strategy for Acquiring Instructor Objective:

  1. Work with person responsible for assessment in your setting.
  2. Learn assessment principles, process, and procedure from your teammate.
  3. Teach your teammate the principles, process, and procedures of assessing braille literacy.
  4. Work as a team to determine client’s potential for literacy as well as his potential for braille literacy.

Instructor Objective:

1.d Process and procedure of referral for braille literacy instruction

Strategy for Acquiring Instructor Objective:

  1. If not already in place, establish policy and procedure for roles of team members in the referral for braille literacy instruction.
  2. Following reassessment of functional vision review the appropriateness of referring the client for literacy instruction.
  3. Extremely important to include reassessment at a later date if client is not referred due to large amount of remaining vision. Reassessment should be a part of policy and procedure document.
  4. Consider client’s attitude toward learning to read and write using braille.
  5. Consider family’s attitude toward braille literacy and provide for counseling if needed.

Instructor Objective:

2. The teacher knows: a. Techniques and instruments utilized in center-based assessment

b. Techniques and instruments utilized in itinerant based assessment.

Strategy for Acquiring Instructor Objective:

  1. Instruments selected for use in either setting should be comparable.
  2. Techniques selected for use in either setting should be comparable.
  3. Competency of the evaluator should be comparable regardless of the setting.
  4. In both center-based settings and itinerant based settings assessment should take place prior to placement in a braille literacy program and both formative and summative assessment should be conducted during instruction.

Instructor Objective: B. The teacher has skills to implement assessment strategies

1. The teacher will be able to implement appropriate methods for assessment of skills of readiness for instruction:
a. Tactual perceptual abilities
b. Tactual discrimination abilities

Strategy for Acquiring Instructor Objective:

  1. Use Mangold, The Mangold Developmental Program of Tactile Perception and Braille Letter Recognition.
  2. Use Level A of Caton, Pester, and Bradley, Read Again (see Braille Curriculum Materials Review).

Instructor Objective:

c. Language Abilities

Strategy for Acquiring Instructor Objective:

  1. Choose one or more of the instruments available from Pro-Ed publishers to assess various aspects of oral and written language, including instruments developed for assessment of adults.
  2. Confer with personnel in the local Adult Basic Education program as to methods and tools used in assessing adult language.

Instructor Objective:

d. Previous print reading/writing ability

Strategy for Acquiring Instructor Objective:

  1. Check the client’s secondary school records (if available)
  2. Check the client’s work records for indication of earlier literacy abilities
  3. Conduct your own Informal Reading Inventory and Writing Inventory in the media in which the client is now able to read/write
  4. Chat with the client or those familiar with him as to the kinds of things previously read and the types of writing activities

Instructor Objective:

e. Current braille reading/writing ability

Strategy for Acquiring Instructor Objective:

  1. Check the client’s secondary school records (if applicable)
  2. Check the client’s work records
  3. Use one or more of the instruments available from the American Printing House for the Blind to assess braille reading and writing
  4. Conduct your own Informal Reading and Writing Inventory

Instructor Objective:

f. Overall readiness to enter a braille literacy program

Strategy for Acquiring Instructor Objective:

  1. Develop a composite Assessment Summary based on performance in
    tactual perceptual abilities
    tactual discrimination abilities
    language abilities
    background of experiences
    knowledge background
    cognitive development
    fine motor abilities
    physical condition
    attitude toward the braille medium
    motivation to become literate in braille
    support of family and significant others

Instructor Objective:

2. The teacher will be able to implement appropriate methods for assessment of individual braille literacy needs in
a. Daily living activities
b. Personal management
c. Household management

Strategy for Acquiring Instructor Objective:

  1. Identify student’s literacy needs in each of the three areas
  2. Work with your colleagues who are responsible for instruction in each of the areas for assistance in the assessment process

Instructor Objective:

d. Communication

Strategy for Acquiring Instructor Objective:

  1. Identify social and work activities in which the client will communicate
  2. Assess listening skills
  3. Assess speaking skills

Instructor Objective:

e. Education

Strategy for Acquiring Instructor Objective:

  1. Review past educational records
  2. Identify present educational needs
  3. Use instruments developed specifically for persons who are blind (see American Printing House for the Blind catalog of Assessment and Evaluation tools)
  4. Modify or adapt instruments developed for sighted adults using caution as to interpretation and use of results.

Instructor Objective:

f. Vocation/Employment

Strategy for Acquiring Instructor Objective:

  1. Identify literacy needs in these areas
  2. Become familiar with the instruments used in your center or itinerant program
  3. Work with your colleagues who are responsible for this area of assessment

Instructor Objective:

g. Recreation

Strategy for Acquiring Instructor Objective:

  1. Identify literacy needs in client’s current recreational activities
  2. Identify literacy needs in possible new recreational activities of the client

Instructor Objective:

h. Indoor environment and i. Outdoor environment

Strategy for Acquiring Instructor Objective:

  1. Identify literacy needs in client’s current environment, both indoors and outdoors
  2. Collaborate with the orientation and mobility instructor in your assessment of the methods used in literacy instruction

Instructor Objective:

3. The teacher will be able to utilize appropriate assessment strategies during the instructional process to: a. Assist the client to set goals for a literacy program

Strategy for Acquiring Instructor Objective:

  1. Help the client to set realistic goals based on
    assessed potential to progress in braille literacy
    assessed independent living needs
    assessed employment/vocational needs
  2. Provide formative evaluation with feedback to the client of the extent to which goals are being met.

Instructor Objective:

b. Develop the IWRP

Strategy for Acquiring Instructor Objective:

  1. Utilize all the assessment/evaluation information provided at the client’s referral for a braille literacy program
  2. Establish program goals based on that information
  3. Provide formative and summative evaluation as the IWRP is implemented in the braille literacy program

Instructor Objective:

c. Develop and implement the braille literacy instructional program

Strategy for Acquiring Instructor Objective:

  1. Develop the program based on pre-program assessment
  2. Establish the goals based on pre-program assessment
  3. Conduct a formative evaluation following each session focusing on and including
    client’s performance and progress
    effectiveness of the materials and strategies used
    a self-evaluation of your performance
  4. Conduct a summative evaluation at periodic intervals of the three areas mentioned in #3.
  5. Keep the client informed of the outcome of these evaluations.
  6. Revise client goals based on the outcomes of both formative and summative evaluation.
  7. Change the approach, techniques and strategies used, as well as your performance, if needed.

Instructor Objective:

d. Determine the client’s daily and/or weekly program

Strategy for Acquiring Instructor Objective:

1. See Objective B-3-c above, parts 3, 5, 6.

Instructor Objective:

e. Determine the student’s annual progress

Strategy for Acquiring Instructor Objective:

1. See Objective B-3-c above, parts 4, 5, 6.

Instructor Objective:

f. Determine a client’s specific needs for remediation

Strategy for Acquiring Instructor Objective:

  1. Such assessment should be a part of both the formative and summative evaluations mentioned in Objective B-3-c-6.
  2. Use information from the identification of specific needs, as well as overall performance, to change or modify the instructional program, to set new goals.