Differentiation and assessment in the modern elementary classroom

Abstract

Throughout the history of the United States, the education system has shifted towards a structure that relies almost solely on standardized assessments to determine student achievement. These scores are then applied to unilaterally judge teacher quality and school effectiveness in a way that is entirely unfair to teachers and schools. The current system devalues teachers, causes adverse effects on students, and is not a fair assessment of student learning. Differentiation, an instructional practice that involves teachers individualizing their instruction to student needs, is an effective way to increase student achievement on tests. At first glance, differentiation and standardized assessment may seem mutually exclusive, but, in reality, these two concepts can and should meaningfully coexist in an educational setting. Teachers are too often uninformed or unequipped to balance these approaches. The current education system needs to be reevaluated so that less weight is placed upon a single test score. Schools need to consider multiple forms of assessment, including formative and summative, and understand the unique qualities of children that cannot be evaluated on a standardized assessment.