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I have a confession.  I am a closet viewer of Grey's Anatomy and have been watching it for all 18 seasons. The series follows the life of Meredith Grey, a young medical student, as she and her peers navigate their way through internships, residency programs and subsequent careers as successful surgeons at fictitious Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital.  Yes, admittedly, it's an elevated soap opera but there are often great “take-aways" about life, learning, persevering, commitment, collaboration, relationship, love, loss and resilience!
Each episode begins and ends with Meredith's narrative voice setting the audience up for the thematic punch line.  Between these narrative “bookends," the audience is exposed to often diverse perspectives which pivot around a common theme. In Season 18, Episode 15, Put it to the Test, the theme is stress, particularly test stress. 
The episode begins with sirens wailing in the distance, cars honking, and the predictable “M.G." voiceover:  “Surgeons are put through rigorous tests just to get in the game.  We endure decades of anxiety provoking acronyms . . . SAT, MCAT, USMLE, ABSITE . . . and if we pass that gauntlet, we are rewarded with the need to log 850 surgeries and take an 8 hour multiple choice and oral exam.  There's almost no time to take in the victory or even a nap."
In this episode, the Medical Accreditation Council is conducting an onsite assessment of the residency program. Dr. Richard Webber, the beloved, “hands on" teacher and Director of the program, undergoes a self-inflicted competency assessment to determine whether he is still able to competently operate given his age.  Meredith struggles with a major career path decision and, in the midst of it all, Dr. Bailey, Chief of Surgery, suffers a panic attack.
Floating above the strains of Felix Raaber and Schlindwein's Après Minuit (the soundtrack is always awesome), the end of episode voiceover says: “Researchers studied why some people perform better on tests.  They found that it is not necessarily related to intelligence.  Some people become anxious during exams and divert mental energy toward anxiety instead of expending it on finding the right answers.  Others have a better grasp of how tests work.  They use process of elimination and other techniques to help them make better choices.  Some people study harder.  They start early, make flashcards, or rely on repetition to retrieve answers when they need them.  Tests don't always measure how much you know.  They measure how well you take tests and tests certainly don't measure your worth.  But knowing that doesn't make it hurt less when you don't succeed."  You see?  Nuggets of wisdom and a wonderful segue into our June assessment plan! 
End of semester assessment is not synonymous with testing.  It's certainly not about creating unnecessary stress and anxiety for students which, for many, affects their bodies and minds in ways that interfere with and prevent them from performing at capacity.  It's not about measuring how well students take tests and it most certainly should not negatively impact students' self-esteem.  Assessment is not determined by a mathematical calculation based on weightings and cumulative averages.  Sometimes, I think it is easier to describe what assessment “is not" rather than what “it is." 
Assessment is a complex process that requires the professional judgement of teachers who are guided by current research and best practice.  By semester end, teachers have gathered much evidence of learning from numerous learning cycles.  They review all of the evidence gathered to determine a valid and reliable final grade for each student.  The evidence includes observations of student performance and conversations with students to assess their level of understanding.  The personalized body of evidence for each student is not equal.  If a student is missing evidence for key outcomes, teachers cannot accurately assess.  If patterns of achievement for a student are inconsistent over time, additional corroborating evidence is required to accurately assess.  If it has been weeks since a student has been assessed on a key outcome, teachers cannot assume that their current understanding is the same as it was when last assessed.  And if a student is overwhelmed with debilitating anxiety, what are we assessing?  This is why the focus of June assessments is not to administer a “one size fits all" final exam in a high pressure environment.  Our June assessment plan is thoughtfully designed to provide time for teachers and students to work together to ensure each student has submitted a balanced body of evidence, demonstrating their understanding of curricular outcomes, which is sufficient for teachers to determine a reliable and valid final grade.
For more information on end-of-semester assessment, click here and “Stay calm & carry on!"  You've got this!
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