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The Authentic Assessment Toolbox is a resource to help K-12 teachers, especially new teachers, create authentic tasks, rubrics, and standards for measuring and improving student learning.

What is Authentic Assessment? defines and gives examples of authentic assessment, compares it to traditional assessment, and suggests that a combination will most likely meet teacher and student needs.

Why Use Authentic Assessment? explains why authentic assessment is appropriate in certain cases:

it provides direct measures;

captures constructive nature of learning;

integrates teaching, learning and assessment; and,

provides multiple paths to demonstration.

In How Do You Create Authentic Assessments? the development process is presented in four steps, which comprise the heart of the website:

1. Identifying Standards

The section on Standards distinguishes standards from other student performance statements by considering breadth of coverage and feasibility of measurement and observation.

2. Selecting Authentic Tasks

The section on Authentic Tasks describes characteristics of authentic tasks and distinguishes them from traditional tasks.

3. Identifying the Criteria for the Task

An extensive section on types of authentic tasks lists and provides PDFs of examples.

4. Creating the Rubric

The section on Rubrics covers descriptors, levels of performance, and analytic versus holistic rubrics.

A section on Portfolios explains why they are useful, how to create a portfolio assignment, and how teachers who haven't used portfolios before can get some experience by using them on a smaller scale.

A section of Examples provides specimen documents for standards, tasks and rubrics, and portfolios for K-12 and higher.

A Glossary of Authentic Assessment Terms is included.

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The Authentic Assessment Toolbox is a resource to help K-12 teachers, especially new teachers, create authentic tasks, rubrics, and standards for measuring and improving student learning. What is Authentic Assessment? defines and gives examples of authentic assessment, compares it to traditional assessment, and suggests that a combination will most likely meet teacher and student needs.

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This is a video I created comparing the differences between Performance Assessment and Personal Communication as Assessment.

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http://www.readwritethink.org/professional-development/strategy-guides/promoting-student-self-assessment-30102.html?tab=1#tabs

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Activities which promote metacognitive thinking and ask students to reflect on their learning processes are key to the formative assessment process. When students are asked to think about what they have learned and how they have learned it (the learning strategies they've used), they are better able to understand their own learning processes and can set new goals for themselves. Students can reflect on their learning in many ways: answering a set of questions, drawing a picture or set of pictures to represent their learning process, talking with a partner, keeping a learning log or journal, etc.

For example, in my class last month, we did a unit on "celebrating mistakes" where students reviewed important things they had learned through mistakes they had made, and discovered how much we all wouldn't know if we hadn't been willing to risk making them. The teacher can use these kinds of responses to check for student understanding, but also to check the "pulse" of the class in terms of student motivation, confidence levels, and levels of metacognition.

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Using Bloom's Taxonomy to help students create their 

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Using Bloom's Taxonomy to help students create their 

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https://prezi.com/xxlurjtcjflg/blooms-taxonomy-student-created-assessment/

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Authentic Task:  An assignment given to students designed to assess their ability to apply standard-driven knowledge and skills to real-world challenges

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Authentic Task:  An assignment given to students designed to assess their ability to apply standard-driven knowledge and skills to real-world challenges

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Characteristics of Authentic Tasks Types of Authentic Tasks
Authentic Task: An assignment given to students designed to assess their ability to apply standard-driven knowledge and skills to real-world challenges

In other words, a task we ask students to perform is considered authentic when 1) students are asked to construct their own responses rather than select from ones presented and 2) the task replicates challenges faced in the real world. (Of course, other definitions abound.)

If I were teaching you how to play golf, I would not determine whether you had met my standards by giving you a multiple-choice test. I would put you out on the golf course to "construct your own responses" in the face of real-world challenges. Similarly, in school we are ultimately less interested in how much information students can acquire than how well they can use it. Thus, our most meaningful assessments ask students to perform authentic tasks.

However, these tasks are not just assessments. Authentic assessment, in contrast to more traditional assessment, encourages the integration of teaching, learning and assessing. In the "traditional assessment" model, teaching and learning are often separated from assessment, i.e., a test is administered after knowledge or skills have (hopefully) been acquired. In the authentic assessment model, the same authentic task used to measure the students' ability to apply the knowledge or skills is used as a vehicle for student learning. For example, when presented with a real-world problem to solve, students are learning in the process of developing a solution, teachers are facilitating the process, and the students' solutions to the problem becomes an assessment of how well the students can meaningfully apply the concepts.

Another way that authentic assessment is commonly distinguished from traditional assessment is in terms of their defining attributes. Of course, traditional assessments as well as authentic assessments vary considerably in the forms they take. But, typically, along the continuums of attributes listed below, traditional assessments fall more towards the left end of each continuum and authentic assessments fall more towards the right end.
Traditional ------------------------------------------- Authentic
Selecting a Response ----------------------------------- Performing a Task

Contrived -------------------------------------------------------------- Real-life

Recall/Recognition ------------------------------ Construction/Application

Teacher-structured ------------------------------------ Student-structured

Indirect Evidence ------------------------------------------- Direct Evidence

Let me clarify the attributes by elaborating on each in the context of traditional and authentic assessments:

Selecting a Response to Performing a Task: On traditional assessments, students are typically given several choices (e.g., a,b,c or d; true or false; which of these match with those) and asked to select the right answer. In contrast, authentic assessments ask students to demonstrate understanding by performing a more complex task usually representative of more meaningful application.

Contrived to Real-life: It is not very often in life outside of school that we are asked to select from four alternatives to indicate our proficiency at something. Tests offer these contrived means of assessment to increase the number of times you can be asked to demonstrate proficiency in a short period of time. More commonly in life, as in authentic assessments, we are asked to demonstrate proficiency by doing something.

Recall/Recognition of Knowledge to Construction/Application of Knowledge: Well-designed traditional assessments (i.e., tests and quizzes) can effectively determine whether or not students have acquired a body of knowledge. Thus, as mentioned above, tests can serve as a nice complement to authentic assessments in a teacher's assessment portfolio. Furthermore, we are often asked to recall or recognize facts and ideas and propositions in life, so tests are somewhat authentic in that sense. However, the demonstration of recall and recognition on tests is typically much less revealing about what we really know and can do than when we are asked to construct a product or performance out of facts, ideas and propositions. Authentic assessments often ask students to analyze, synthesize and apply what they have learned in a substantial manner, and students create new meaning in the process as well.

Teacher-structured to Student-structured: When completing a traditional assessment, what a student can and will demonstrate has been carefully structured by the person(s) who developed the test. A student's attention will understandably be focused on and limited to what is on the test. In contrast, authentic assessments allow more student choice and construction in determining what is presented as evidence of proficiency. Even when students cannot choose their own topics or formats, there are usually multiple acceptable routes towards constructing a product or performance. Obviously, assessments more carefully controlled by the teachers offer advantages and disadvantages. Similarly, more student-structured tasks have strengths and weaknesses that must be considered when choosing and designing an assessment.

Indirect Evidence to Direct Evidence: Even if a multiple-choice question asks a student to analyze or apply facts to a new situation rather than just recall the facts, and the student selects the correct answer, what do you now know about that student? Did that student get lucky and pick the right answer? What thinking led the student to pick that answer? We really do not know. At best, we can make some inferences about what that student might know and might be able to do with that knowledge. The evidence is very indirect, particularly for claims of meaningful application in complex, real-world situations. Authentic assessments, on the other hand, offer more direct evidence of application and construction of knowledge. As in the golf example above, putting a golf student on the golf course to play provides much more direct evidence of proficiency than giving the student a written test. Can a student effectively critique the arguments someone else has presented (an important skill often required in the real world)? Asking a student to write a critique should provide more direct evidence of that skill than asking the student a series of multiple-choice, analytical questions about a passage, although both assessments may be useful.

I have used the term traditional assessment on this site to refer to the many tests that are commonly administered to assess the acquisition of knowledge and skills. Tests usually consist of selected-response items (see below) and, occasionally, some constructed-response items. In contrast, authentic assessments include tasks such as performances, products and constructed-response items that typically require more direct application of knowledge and skills. These types of tasks are described below along with common examples of each.

In response to a prompt, students select an answer from among those given or from memory or from allowable study aids. Typically, no new knowledge is constructed; students simply recall or recognize information required to select the appropriate response. Examples include

Multiple-choice tests
True-false
Matching
Fill-in-the-blank
Label a diagram

In response to a prompt, students construct an answer out of old and new knowledge. Since there is no one exact answer to these prompts, students are constructing new knowledge that likely differs slightly or significantly from that constructed by other students. Typically, constructed response prompts are narrowly conceived, delivered at or near the same time a response is expected and are limited in length. However, the fact that students must construct new knowledge means that at least some of their thinking must be revealed. As opposed to selected response items, the teachers gets to look inside the head a little with constructed response answers. Examples include

(product-like):
Short-answer essay questions
"Show your work"
Ordering decimals
Limericks and rubric
Concept maps; another example / rubric
Writing a topic sentence
Identifying a theme
Making predictions
Brief summaries; another example
Peer editing
Figural representation (e.g., Venn diagram; web / rubric)
Journal response; literary journal reflections
Homework reflections; article reflections / rubric
Evaluating work of others; another example; another example
Self-assessment; another example / rubric
Self and group evaluation
Goal setting; another example / reflection
Question generation; another example
Explain your solution

(performance-like):
Typing test
Complete a step of science lab
Measure objects
Conducting bank transactions
Utilizing library services
Computer catalog search
On demand, construct a short musical, dance or
dramatic response
On demand, exhibit an athletic skill
Reading fluently
Conferences
Participation (and self-assessment)

In response to a prompt (assignment) or series of prompts, students construct a substantial, tangible product that reveals their understanding of certain concepts and skills and/or their ability to apply, analyze, synthesize or evaluate those concepts and skills. It is similar to a constructed-response item in that students are required to construct new knowledge and not just select a response. However, product assessments typically are more substantial in depth and length, more broadly conceived, and allow more time between the presentation of the prompt and the student response than constructed-response items. Examples include

Essays, stories, or poems
Ballads
Obituaries
Satirical pieces
Metaphors
School rules
Research reports; another example
Annotated bibliographies
Works cited pages
Reading strategies and rubric
Projects / rubric; another example / rubric; another example
Literary analysis; another example; another example
Character analysis; another example
Diction analysis
Advertisement analysis
Biography/Autobiography analysis
Argument analysis / rubric
Analyzing primary sources
Analysis of painting
Film analysis
Geometric analysis
Article reviews
Book reviews / rubric
Case study / rubric
Speech critiques
Extended journal responses
Identification of goals
Reading guides
Feudal contracts / rubric
Art exhibit or portfolio
Models; another example
Constructing objects
Floor plans
Musical compositions
Photo compositions
Design an advertisement
Design an experiment
Lab reports; another example
Surveys
Data recordings
Graphing of data
Data analysis; another example; another example
Anaysis of statistical use in media / rubric
Real-world problem solutions; another example / rubric
Logical sequences
Error analysis
Planning for a task
Preparing for a discussion
Proposals and criteria
Road trip directions
Map construction / rubric
Road trip budget
Scavenger hunt
Newspapers
Newscasts; another example
Editorials; another example
Peer editing / rubric
Posters; another example; another example / rubric
Collages
Pamplets; another example
Brochures; another example / rubric
Magazine covers
Bulletin boards
Videos / rubric
Podcasts
Games; another example; another example
Comic strips
Books; Booklets
Timelines; another example / rubric
Issue awareness campaigns
Letter writing; persuasive letter writing; complaint letter
Advice letter; letter to Congress; letter to Emperor

In response to a prompt (assignment) or series of prompts, students construct a performance that reveals their understanding of certain concepts and skills and/or their ability to apply, analyze, synthesize or evaluate those concepts and skills. It is similar to a constructed-response item in that students are required to construct new knowledge and not just select a response. However, performances typically are more substantial in depth and length, more broadly conceived, and allow more time between the presentation of the prompt and the student response than constructed-response items. Examples include

Conducting an experiment
Musical auditions; group auditions
Conducting an ensemble / rubric
Conduct band rehearsal / rubric
Create musical arrangement / rubric
Dance or dramatic performances
Dramatic readings
Skits
Role-plays / handout
Talk show performances; another example
Book talks
Debates; another example / rubric
Panel discussions
Fishbowl discussions
Coffee shop conversation
Athletic competitions
Oral presentations; another example; another example
Teaching/explaining
Speeches
Interviews
Self-introduction
Cooperative group behavior; another example

Also, see

Examples of Authentic Tasks
How to Select an Authentic Task

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Authentic Tasks (Authentic Assessment Toolbox)

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Characteristics of Authentic Tasks Types of Authentic Tasks Authentic Task: An assignment given to students designed to assess their ability to apply standard-driven knowledge and skills to real-world challenges In other words, a task we ask students to perform is considered authentic when 1) students are asked to construct their own responses rather than select from ones presented and 2) the task replicates challenges faced in the real world.

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Criteria for a Meaningful Classroom Assessment

1. Does the assessment involve project-based learning?

2. Does it allow for student choice of topics?

3. Is it inquiry based?

4. Does it ask that students use some level of internet literacy to find their answers?

5. Does it involve independent problem solving?

6. Does it incorporate the 4Cs?

7. Do the students need to communicate their knowledge via writing in some way?

8. Does the final draft or project require multiple modalities (visual, oral, data, etc.) in its presentation?

4Cs -- Creativity and Critical Thinking (through performance-based assessments), Collaboration, and Communication (through the use of interdisciplinary writing)

Creativity Are they students creating or just regurgitating? Are they being given credit for presenting something other than what was described?

Collaboration Have they spent some time working with others to formulate their thoughts, to brainstorm, or to seek feedback from peers?

Critical Thinking Are the students doing more work than the teacher in seeking out information and problem solving?

Communication Does the assessment emphasize the need to communicate the content well? Is writing involved, as well as other modalities? If asked to teach the content to other students, what methods will the student use to communicate the information and help embed it more deeply?

http://www.edutopia.org/blog/making-assessments-meaningful-heather-wolpert-gawron

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Rubrics to the Rescue: Helpful rubric info and resources.....

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Rubrics to the Rescue: Helpful rubric info and resources.....

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TeachersFirst - Rubrics to the Rescue: Involving Students in Creating Rubrics

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As educators, teachers have the responsibility to create assessments that encourage students to work towards a higher level of achievement. Rubrics are motivational tools for students, especially when students are involved in process. Students who are involved in the process of creating a rubric have a better understanding of the standards, gradations, and expectations of the assignment.

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1. Students were given a list of 7 types of problems they were to write.  I gave them specifics in terms of what the problems needed to include as well as level of difficulty that was expected. I graded them on a rubric in terms of what they included in their test and how well they met the expectations of difficulty and type of problems.

2. Students made TWO copies of their assessment on a template they downloaded from the class website.  One copy had just the problems they wrote and directions to follow.  The other had the problems, directions, AND step-by-step work and a solution.

3. Students brought their assessment to class on Wednesday.  After all of them were turned in, I randomly distributed them in partners.  I did use discretion and tried to partner up students at similar achievement levels in class so it was a little more "fair" in my opinion.

4. Students had a class period to take their classmate's test.  If they found an error in the problem (like it didn't make sense, it was missing information, etc) they brought it to me and I fixed it or added information.  The person who wrote the test would receive deductions for errors like these.

5. Students spent the period comparing work and answers,
figuring out who was right and where errors were made.Today (Thursday), students came in and got in their partners.  They spent the period "grading" the tests.  They graded both the "answer key" and the test that was taken, comparing work and answers to decide who was correct - whether that be both of them, one of them, or neither of them.  They could only use red/purple/pink/green pen all period so any changes, edits, comments, etc they made on the tests were clearly visible.  They also decided on a point value for each problem, so they had to analyze how "big" the mistakes were and how many deductions should be taken.

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Project Appleseed Parental Involvement in Public Schools

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Performance assessment is one alternative to traditional methods of student achievement. While traditional testing requires students to answer questions correctly (often on a multiple-choice test), performance assessment requires students to demonstrate knowledge and skills, including the process by which they solve problems. Performance assessments measure skills such as the ability to integrate knowledge across disciplines, contribute to the work of a group, and develop a plan of action when confronted with a new situation. Performance assessments are also appropriate for determining if students are achieving the higher standards set by states for all students. This brochure explains features of this assessment alternative, suggests ways to evaluate it, and offers exploratory questions you might ask your child's teacher about this subject.

What Are Performance Assessments?

The Office of Technology Assessment of the U.S. Congress described performance assessment as that requires a student to create an answer or a product that demonstrates his or her knowledge or skills. Examples of performance assessments include:

Group projects enabling a number of students to work together on a complex problem that requires planning, research, internal discussion, and group presentation.

Essays assessing students' understanding of a subject through a written description, analysis, explanation, or summary.

Experiments testing how well students understand scientific concepts and can carry out scientific processes.

Demonstrations giving students opportunities to show their mastery of subject-area content and procedures.

Portfolios allowing students to provide a broad portrait of their performance through files that contain collections of students' work, assembled over time.

One key feature of all performance assessments is that they require students to be active participants. They also focus attention on how students arrive at their answers and require students to demonstrate the knowledge or skills needed to obtain a correct answer. To illustrate, if high school juniors are asked to demonstrate their understanding of interest rates by shopping for a used-car loan (i.e., comparing the interest rates of banks and other lending agencies and identifying the best deal), a teacher can easily see if the students understand the concept of interest, know how it is calculated, and are able to perform mathematical operations accurately.

What Are the Advantages of Assessing My Child This Way?

Instruction in most subject areas is being altered to include more practical applications of skills and to incorporate a greater focus on the understanding and combining of content and skills.

Performance assessments closely tied to this new way of teaching provide teachers with more information about the learning needs of their students and enable them to modify their methods to meet these needs. They also allow students to assess their own progress and, therefore, be more responsible for their education.

Advocates of performance assessment believe these tests will prompt educators and school officials to identify the skills and knowledge they want their students to acquire and to focus on teaching students this information. It also provides educators with information about what students have learned, not just how well they can learn.

What Are the Disadvantages of Assessing My Child This Way?

Performance assessments usually include fewer questions and call for a greater degree of subjective judgement than traditional testing methods. Since there are no clear right and wrong answers, teachers have to decide how to grade and what distinguishes an average performance from an excellent one. This potential disadvantage can be avoided if teachers set up an evaluation rubric (rating scale with several categories) that clearly defines the characteristics of poor, average, and excellent performances so teachers can score them in a consistent manner.

Critics argue that performance assessments will not improve schooling and could be harmful. The following concerns have been expressed about performance-based assessments: teachers might teach only to the test, thereby narrowing the curriculum and reducing the test's value. When using performance assessments such as portfolios, teachers and other individuals who are grading the work may differ greatly in their evaluations. Students may be unintentionally penalized for such things as having a disability, being from a certain cultural background, or attending classes at a school with limited resources.

How Can I Evaluate Performance Assessments?

Project Appleseed encourages you to ask questions. Parents who wish to evaluate the effectiveness of performance assessments should ask the following questions:

Does the performance assessment cover important skills and knowledge?

Are the test items varied to fairly test students having different experiences, backgrounds, and motivations?

Does the assessment give my child worthwhile educational experiences?

Does the assessment require my child to use higher level thinking and problem-solving skills rather than simply memorizing to determine the answer?

Are teachers receiving training and assistance in designing and using performance assessments?

How are assessment results going to be used? Are teachers using the results to evaluate their student's performance in their own classrooms and then tailoring instruction in areas of weakness? Or are the results being compared to those in other classrooms and schools and for evaluating the teacher or school? If assessments are going to be used as accountability measures, reliability (the degree to which a test can be depended on to produce consistent results repeatedly), and validity (the extent to which a test accurately measures the result that it is intended to measure), become critically important.

How Can I Help My Child Do Well on Performance Assessments?

Students who are accustomed to traditional testing will need to be carefully prepared for these new approaches to assessment. Project Appleseed engages parent involvement in schools. Parents can help their children in the following ways:

Ask the teacher to explain the types of performance assessment to be used so that you can answer your child's questions and help him or her decide how to prepare for the assessment.

Request that the school give a presentation on performance assessment for parents.

When you talk with your child about what he or she is learning in school, ask questions that encourage problem solving or creativity. Help your child see that learning is a process and demonstrate how it is applied to real-life situations.

Ask your child if he or she understands what will be expected on the assessment. If you notice confusion or anxiety, encourage him or her to ask the teacher for help.

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Project Appleseed Parental Involvement in Public Schools

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Performance assessment is one alternative to traditional methods of student achievement. While traditional testing requires students to answer questions correctly (often on a multiple-choice test), performance assessment requires students to demonstrate knowledge and skills, including the process by which they solve problems. Performance assessments measure skills such as the ability to integrate knowledge across disciplines, contribute to the work of a group, and develop a plan of action when confronted with a new situation.

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A helpful definition/example of what this means.....