rodekohr_journal1

This week, the students in my second grade placement had a spelling test which was administered by the teacher. Students are given the words at the beginning of the week and there is a focus on each of the words throughout the week. There are twelve spelling words with two challenge words. The challenge words are words that they encounter throughout the week in different books or lessons. Fifteen minutes before the start of the spelling test, the teacher gives the students time for “buddy study”, where students work with a partner and sit eye-to-eye and knee-to-knee and quiz each other on their spelling words. This is a time for students to clarify the spelling of the words with one another, and if necessary, with the teacher. Once the students are finished with their “buddy study”, students go to their allotted testing positions around the room. Some students sit at different tables with books or binders separating their papers. Students that remain in their seats are staggered to avoid the temptation of looking at another students’ paper. As the teacher begins the test, she reminds students to put their names on their papers and have their pencils ready. The teacher then begins the spelling test. She says the first word, followed by the word used in a sentence. After she uses the word in a sentence, she repeats the spelling word again. The teacher is constantly looking around the room to see if students are ready for the next word. Once the teacher finishes all twelve words, she moves on to the challenge words, and follows the same format. After the challenge words, the teacher gives the students two bonus words, that follow the same spelling rules as the spelling list. For example, one of the spelling words was large. One of the bonus words was barge. The teacher says the word, then says this sentence, “If you can spell large, you can spell barge”, and then sounds out the word again slowly. After the test is finished, the teacher will ask the students if anyone needs a word repeated, then all of the tests are collected and put in a pile to be graded by me. In the class, there are two students that have full-time aides to help them as they do the test. Both of the students are on the autism spectrum and can spell very well, they just need assistance with the writing and with repeating the words slower. A different student is a student that is struggling with spelling. The student only has to do the first five spelling words, and then make an attempt at the challenge and bonus words. Getting through the entire test was too difficult for this student, so the teacher made an accommodation for her. Once all of the tests are collected, I begin to grade the tests. Since the spelling list had twelve words with two challenge words, the base score is a twelve. Students are awarded extra points if they spell the bonus and challenge words correctly. Students are not penalized if they get any of those words incorrect. If a student misspells a word, it is circled, and then the correct spelling is given. If a student spells all of the words correct, they get a 12/12 +4. If a student gets all of the spelling words correct they get a star on their paper as well as a sticker. If a student gets ten spelling words correct, they get a smiley face and a sticker on their paper. Students receiving less than ten correct answers on the test do not receive either a sticker or a star or a smiley face. There are several students that always receive the full amount of points for the spelling test. The majority of students get ten spelling words right, however, there are approximately eight students that consistently receive low scores. It is helpful to have the addition of the bonus and challenge words for these students, but usually if they cannot grasp the spelling words, they have a difficult time with the bonus and challenge words. After the tests are graded, the teacher looks over them and makes notes as to who struggled with the words, and works with those students a little more the next week. If a high percentage of students get a lot of words wrong, the teacher will focus the entire class on the same sound combinations for the next week. I like the way that the teacher administers the spelling tests. I think that it is important for students to have the opportunity to review with their peers and ask clarifying questions. Each week, the words deal with words that make the same sound but are spelled differently. This helps students to be able to differentiate between the spelling rules. I think that spelling tests are necessary to build on students’ vocabulary and spelling. Students are also encouraged to work on organization by remembering to number each word, and neatly write the words on the paper. It is also important for students to be aware of their penmanship. If students write illegibly, they will not get the word correct on the test. The one part of the assessment that I would change is how the scores are written on the paper. It is important to have the total number of points earned, but I think that the teacher should put a sticker on all of the papers instead of just the ones who earned top marks. I think that all children are trying hard and deserve to be recognized for that effort. Spelling is difficult for many students, and just because they do not receive a high score does not mean that they are not trying hard. Not receiving a sticker on their paper like the other students could make it seem that their effort was not as good as the other students and they might get discouraged. For the most part, the spelling test is a good assessment to see how well students grasp different concepts in spelling. The administration of the test is fair for all students and the teacher has allowed for accommodations for students with special needs. The teacher has an opportunity to modify her teaching if the tests as a whole are on the low end.