Assessment for Kids

[ekfleet]

Hi everyone- I was wondering if you could recommend the best places or resources to get a comprehensive assessment for me to check to see where my girls are at.
We have used HOD for several years now and I have never had them tested. I am concerned that my oldest might have some gaps and might need to reinforce some things with her this summer before she starts RTR.

(Oklahoma doesn’t require testing for homeschoolers so this would just be for our benefit)

Thanks so much! E

[Rice]

Gaps in skills or gaps in knowledge?

Are you doing HOD as written, using what is recommended for grammar, writing/composition, and overall expectations? (If not, is there an academic reason or just personal preference?)

Is she struggling with what is expected in HOD? If so, what areas? (Are you adapting in any way to accommodate where you are guessing she has "gaps"?)

What are you expecting testing (against a completely arbitrary standard which doesn't follow HOD's scope and sequence) to tell you beyond what you can already observe in her work?

Personally, following HOD has filled the gaps (in skills) my children came with from our previous curriculum.

Here are my thoughts on standardized testing, if that was what you were considering: Testing only tells you where your children are compared to others, not compared to where they "should" be. If they are below average in one area does that mean they are not learning what they've been taught, or that they weren't taught what was tested (and would you know the difference)? If they weren't taught it, does that mean you will change how/what you teach based on the test? (Who decides what is important for your children to know at what age? Someone who wrote a test or someone [ie Carrie Austin] who created an amazing curriculum intended to give your children an excellent education while also shepherding their hearts towards Jesus?)

Of course, if you suspect your child may be struggling in some way, it makes sense to find out, but IMO it is better to find a professional (via an educational assessment) who can help you pinpoint areas of need and discover/give direction how to bridge the gap, rather than using a standardized test to merely point out deficits but offer no solutions. (I'm from Canada, so can't make recommendations where to look for those kinds of resources.)

I think the only way standardized tests provide perspective is if you do them year after year and look at their scores over time - do they improve or have a worse result from one year to the next in a given area, as opposed to whether they can perform as well as other students taught a different way?

But, despite what I think about testing, answering some of my original questions might help others make recommendations.
Blessings,

[daybreaking]

We started testing using the CAT-E, but found the results didn't give us much detail. We then switched to the IOWA and found the results to be much more thorough and very helpful. You can see an example of the IOWA test results here: https://www.setontesting.com/wpsetontes ... eports.pdf

We order through Seton testing at https://www.setontesting.com/ and have been extremely pleased with their service!

[StephanieU]

If you think your child has gaps in math or grammar, you might want to use some placement tests to spot those. Many curriculums have placement tests, and most are free.