>>Teacher: Today we're going to take SAT I.
>>Narrator: Tests, from national, standardized tests
to final exams are the most common form of student assessment.
But many educators believe we need better ways
to measure learning and achievement.
>>Howard: People may be good test takers but once you leave the world
of testing you have to think for yourself
because the world doesn't come organized in four choices
with the fourth one being "None of the above".
>>Student: Well can I show you something on the computer?
>>Teacher: Absolutely.
>>Narrator: Comprehensive assessment provides ongoing feedback
so that teachers, principals,
parents and students can constantly improve teaching and learning
on a daily and weekly basis.
>>Teacher: As far as listening and speaking
and writing you're making steady progress.
>>Narrator: Comprehensive assessments provide a picture
of the whole student, and can include more traditional measures
like multiple choice tests and essays as well as portfolios, experiments,
and role play that mirrors real life tasks.
>>Hi my name is Eddie Kim.
I am a site planner and thank you for letting us propose a plan.
>>Narrator: In the Urban Plan project students learn state standards
and economics by working in teams to create development proposals.
>>Yeah, that's way too high.
How do we kill our percent but still make the city go up?
>>Dong-Jin: The project as a whole, it gets you ready for the real world.
Just looking out of the book it gets pretty tedious,
like you're just looking in a book.
You're memorizing facts and stuff.
But once you learn how to actually use those facts,
you get a deeper understanding and you can better interpret questions
and so you build up like really useful skills.
>>The number is going to be about one point five million.
>>Narrator: While comprehensive assessment requires a significant
amount of time and energy, proponents insist the investment pays
big dividends.
>>Linda: Students have to develop the performances.
The teachers have to evaluate them.
But the time is not lost to teaching and learning.
The time is teaching and learning because the actual conduct
of the assessment is a learning experience for the students.
It informs teaching.
It actually gives teachers feedback immediately about what they need
to do to meet students' needs, so it's actually productive time.
>>In the year 2050 education has become project-based.
>>Narrator: Comprehensive assessment promotes student accountability
for learning, self-reflection,
and presentation skills needed for the work world.
>>Transportation, four facts.
>>Hugh: As I was mulling all these issues about assessment,
I was struck by the fact that there are all other sorts of attributes
like drive and grit and determination,
ability to problem solve, communication skills,
leadership skills, these intangibles that were critically important.
>>Teacher: Football field 100 yards, 300 feet.
>>Hugh: And that by virtue of the excessive reliance
on the testing scores you're ruling out large numbers of youngsters
of all races, and all complexions
who may not have stratospheric test scores,
but who have these other kinds of attributes
that experience shows contribute to high-level success in the real world.
>>Teacher: Oh so you're just going to have a bunch of paths through here?
>>Students: Yeah.
>>For more information on what works
in public education go to edutopia.org
