Language Arts/English Curriculum Frameworks - Albemarle County ...

first. Coaching, with opportunities for higher-level questions for all students, always follows explicit
instruction.
Assessment
Both informal and formal assessment takes place in the classroom. Formative assessments are
to be used to monitor and adjust instruction based on student knowledge. Formative assessments provide
diagnostic information that help teachers know what to teach and are considered a mandatory part of the
language arts program. Summative assessments are meant to provide evidence of cumulative student
achievement and generally take place at the end of units or the end of the year.
Teachers are expected to have documentation of instructional reading levels, word study stages,
and writing development for all students through the use of QRIs, running records, DSAs, writing samples,
and student work. These assessments informs instruction, provide guidelines for appropriate small group
placement for students, and alert a teacher to those students who are in need of additional support in
order to meet the grade level benchmarks. This body of assessments should not be given all at once.
Rather, choosing the correct assessment and administering it is a purposeful process. The teacher
administers the assessment that provides the information needed about a particular student at a given
time.
© ASPIRE K-12, Albemarle County Public Schools, 2003
Appendix B
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