Assessments In Early Childhood

As a teacher who teaches kindergarten and first grade I all to often am required to spend valuable teaching time giving assessments to children who do not even understand the response method or the importance of assessments.  Teachers across out district were fed up with the multiple assessments both formal and informal that we were required to give to all of our students.  These assessments included the Florida Fair Testing, Math unit pre and post tests, running records, FLKRS, weekly reading assessments, weekly spelling tests, unit tests for each area of reading covered and show what you know.  These assessments were only in the are of reading and math we had other additional assessments that we were required to give in the areas of science and social studies.   Teachers signed a petition demanding that the number of assessments given in k and 1st grade be greatly reduced.  Our Superintendent decided that Kindergarten would be given one base line assessment in phonemic skills at the beginning of the school year and no additional assessments given until the 2nd semester of school.  The assessments were also reduced to one reading assessment and only unit math test.  First grades assessment requirements were also greatly reduced requiring only a minimal amount of assessments.
So far this seems to be working out great.  I find that my best assessments are given through observation as I watch a child demonstrate the skills and knowledge that they possess.  I can also engage in conversations with my students, asking questions that are prompting responses.  This gives me an additional opportunity to assessment their understanding of what they are learning.  I think this reduction in assessment should occur in all school districts and more time should be dedicated to the teaching process rather than the assessment process.

After doing some research on assessments given to students in other parts of the world I found it interesting that it really was not all the different.  Kellaghan (2001) describes in his study of the globalization of assessment in the 20th century the considerable increase in the 1990s in the number of countries involved in national and international assessments of pupils in their education systems. While participation in international comparative studies is largely confined to industrialized countries, many developing countries have even begun to carry out national student assessment in the last ten years.  

References:
Retrieved from: http://www.bing.com/search?q=how are elementary children assesssed in other contries&pc=conduit&pt

US Perspectives on Student Assessment in Other Countries
Report Issued by the US-China Center for Research on Educational Excellence Prepared by David E. Kirkland