Return-Path: <nifl-assessment@literacy.nifl.gov> Received: from literacy (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by literacy.nifl.gov (8.10.2/8.10.2) with SMTP id fABKHC017686; Sun, 11 Nov 2001 15:17:13 -0500 (EST) Date: Sun, 11 Nov 2001 15:17:13 -0500 (EST) Message-Id: <82.12eb520c.292036a2@aol.com> Errors-To: listowner@literacy.nifl.gov Reply-To: nifl-assessment@literacy.nifl.gov Originator: nifl-assessment@literacy.nifl.gov Sender: nifl-assessment@literacy.nifl.gov Precedence: bulk From: LELemke@aol.com To: Multiple recipients of list <nifl-assessment@literacy.nifl.gov> Subject: [NIFL-ASSESSMENT:46] Re: question X-Listprocessor-Version: 6.0c -- ListProcessor by Anastasios Kotsikonas X-Mailer: AOL 5.0 for Mac sub 36 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Status: O Content-Length: 1837 Lines: 30 Dear George, Thank you for your indepth response. One other area that has not been discussed is timed tests. There are opposing thoughts on this issue, but from my perspective I do not think they should be timed at the lower levels, and especially not on the pre test. I have found that a learner may "know" how to solve a math problem, for example, but just not in the allotted time. This can be for many reasons, to include simply because the assessment is so foreign to the learner that it takes a bit longer for him/her to wade through the material, at least the forist time. I always try to put my students at ease and remind them that not only are they going to learn new skills in reading, math, and language, but also in test taking. So I don't time the E level or the pre M level. I do time the post M level, but if the timer should ring before the learner has finished, I have him/her draw a line under the question completed in the timed period and then complete the assessment. I realize this negates the norming of the test, but at the E and M level, who cares. The learner can't pass the GED at that level anyway. By the D level, I do time, but by that time the learner has been learning test taking skills, mastering weak areas, and just becoming more capable all around. Consequently, the learner is most often able to complete the test in the timed period. I not, we continue to work on speed (there are many strategies for solving problems in a more timely fashion) and then post test. By then the learner is generally ready to take the GED. Remember, I KNOW I'm being a bad person by not timing a normed test, but after ten years, I also know the low level learners have enough concerns without having to worry about being timed. Call me a wimp; I can handle it!! :-)) Ellie
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