In my assessment class, our professor valued self assessment. On every assignment we were to hand in she would have us assess ourselves on the assignment. She then provided feedback if she agreed or what we could do to reach the goal we set for ourselves. I believe it is very important to provide feedback to students and have a conversation with them on how they should be graded. Self-assessment allows students to take ownership of their learning and be more motivated to succeed.
On a professional development day I 
attended a workshop by Jennifer Moroz on Portfolio Design- Ready for CSL. This was a great learning experience because I was interested on how to use portfolios as an assessment piece. I love the idea of creating individual student portfolios so that students can file their best work. As an educator you can include all of the curricular competencies and content you want to focus on in each binder. Portfolios are great to use for parent teacher interviews as well.
During my practicum at Terry Fox Elementary, I was introduced to Seesaw. My coaching teacher referred to it as “Facebook for students.” This is a great tool that allows the classroom teacher to share and post newsletters and student work with families. Families are able to interact with the teacher and like or comment on their child’s work. Students also have access to this app through the classroom iPads and are able to post their own work through activities set up by the classroom teacher. This is an interesting tool that creates a classroom community.
During my practicum, I used the PM Benchmark to assess students on their reading level. Students varied drastically in their reading levels. We had discussed the PM Benchmark in my assessment class, therefore, I was familiar with this form of assessment. This can be very time consuming but it is easy to learn and contains valuable information.