To get an idea of how exemplary your Biblical perspective assessments are, complete the following self-assessment for 1 class you teach: ___________________ (name of class). Next, use your self-assessment data to develop action plans.
 
Rate each statement below. Use the following scale: 4 Definitely • 3 Usually • 2 Sort of • 1 Rarely
___ My Biblical perspective assessments are standards-based.
___ My assessments require students to connect what they study and what the Bible teaches.
___ My Biblical perspective assessments give students opportunities to make choices.
___ My Biblical perspective assessments are rigorous.
___ My Biblical perspective assessments are even worthy to be taught to.
___ My Biblical perspective assessments are student-friendly in terms of vocabulary and length (prompts are 75 words or less).
___ My Biblical perspective assessments are exemplary assessments (SCORES).
 
Now, ask yourself 4 questions about the data:

1. How many 4s, 3s, 2s, and 1s do I have?
2. What’s satisfying/unsatisfying about my data?
3. What can I do improve my Biblical perspective assessments?
4. What will I do?

Use assessment. Develop an exemplary assessment. Today.

You: Got a minute?
 
Me: Yeah. What’s up?
 
You: I just had a great conversation after class with Josh, a senior in my English class. Do you know Josh?
 
Me: Yes, I do. He’s on the wrestling team, right?
 
You: Yes. Well, I told him that I really wanted to help him and the other seniors connect what they study and what the Bible teaches. And I asked him what I could do to help.
 
Me: What’d he say?
 
You: He looked at me and sat there thinking. I tried another approach that tied into wrestling. He’s on the wrestling team, you know. I asked him, “If I wanted to help you make connections as well as you want to wrestle in the tournament, what would I need to do?”
 
And he said, “You need to help me connect my life to what we’re studying and what the Bible teaches.”
 
Me: I can see why you said you just had a good conversation. What do you think about Josh’s emphasis on tying in life experience?
 
You: I think it’s a good idea. I mean, things make more sense to me when I can make connections to my life. So, I think things would make more sense to my students. I think they’d better understand what they’re studying and what the Bible has to say about what they’re studying.
 
Me: Makes sense. What are you doing to do?
 
You: I think I’ll put a “life” component into my next writing assessment. Instead of having my students analyze a designated poem and evaluate it from a Biblical perspective, I’ll have them analyze a favorite song lyric and evaluate it from a Biblical perspective. And if I let them know that they’ll be analyzing a favorite lyric at the end of the unit, they’ll probably pay more attention when we work on literary conventions and so forth. And they’ll probably be more vested in thinking through what the Bible has to say about their favorite lyrics.
 
Bottom line: Use assessment to require your students to connect what they study, what the Bible teaches, and their lives. Today.

Me: Yes or No—Do your assessments require your students to connect what they study and what the Bible teaches?
 
Joel: I can see why you’re asking that question. I mean, I did say that I want more of my students to connect what they study and what the Bible teaches. Assessment is way to get them to make connections. But some of my students already make connections, even though I don’t ask.
 
Me: So, are you saying your assessments don’t require your students to connect what they study and what the Bible teaches?
 
Joel: I’m saying that some of my students already make connections. Why can’t all my students just do that? Do I really have to require them to make connections on my assessments?
 
Me: I’m sorry. I’m not sure I got an answer to my question. Do your assessments require your students to connect what they study and what the Bible teaches?
 
Joel: Well, no. My assessments don’t require my students to make those connections. They don’t actually have to make those connections in order to do a good job on my assessments. They could even get an A without making any connections.
 
Me: You said that you wanted to help your students to make connections and that assessment is a way to do that. What might happen if you developed an assessment that required your students to connect what they study and what the Bible teaches?
 
Joel: I guess more of my students would make connections. I mean, they’d have to if they wanted to do well—and I think my students want to do well. If I required connections in my assessment, I’d probably spend more class time on helping kids make connections. And if I spent more time helping kids make connections, more kids would make connections.
 
Me: So, what’s next?
 
Joel: Could you show me some assessment prompts that require students to connect what they study and what the Bible teaches?

Me: Sure. Take a look at these 3 prompts:

1. Social Studies 6: Teach your classmates about the aspect of ancient Egyptian culture/history you researched. Show what the Bible teaches about it and how it connects to you.
2. Science 8: Give a five-minute presentation on a piece of electricity-related technology in which you present the electrical device, the science of how it works, and a response to the following questions: How has this device impacted society? What’s a Biblical perspective of that impact?
3. English 10: Compare/contrast how 2 characters from Alan Paton's Cry, the Beloved Country illuminate the Biblical concept of shalom and apply that to a current event or personal situation.

Joel: I teach 8th grade, so seeing the Science 8 assessment prompt helps. Putting in something that requires students to make connections doesn’t look that difficult. The Science 8 teacher put in “What’s a Biblical perspective of that impact?” I think I could do something like that. And I think that if I require my students to make connections, I’ll make progress toward my goal of having my students connect what they study and what the Bible teaches.
 
Bottom line: Use assessment to require your students to connect what they study and what the Bible teaches. Today.

To get an idea of how you can more effectively use assessment to help your students connect what they study and what the Bible teaches, complete the following self-assessment for 1 class you teach: ___________________ (name of class). Next, use your self-assessment data to develop action plans.
 
Rate each statement below. Use the following scale: 4 Strongly Agree • 3 Agree • 2 Disagree • 1 Strongly Disagree
 
___ My assessments require my students to connect what they study and what the Bible teaches.
___ My assessments require my students to connect what they study, what the Bible teaches, and their lives.
___ My Biblical perspective assessments are exemplary assessments.
___ I use my Biblical perspective assessment data to help my students better connect what they study and what the Bible teaches.
___ I am committed to using assessment to help my students connect what they study and what the Bible teaches.
 
Now, ask yourself 4 questions about the data:

1. How many 4s, 3s, 2s, and 1s do I have?
2. What excites/concerns me about my data?
3. What can I do to more effectively use assessment to help my students connect what they study and what the Bible teaches?
4. What will I do?

Use assessment to help your students connect what they study and what the Bible teaches. Today.
 
*Here are additional resources that can help you use assessment to target Biblical perspective:
Tutorials
Videos
Self-assessments
Testimonials

You want your students to apply a Biblical perspective to what they study. You’ve heard that assessment can help. So, you want to learn more. Good.

Question: How can you learn more about using assessment?

Answer: By exploring the following list of 12 questions.

1. How does assessment impact student learning?
2. What type of assessment can you use?
3. What makes a good assessment good?
4. How good is your assessment?
5. How can you make your assessment even better?
6. How proficiently do you want your students to use a Biblical perspective?
7. How much practice do your students need?
8. What makes a good rubric good?
9. How can you use a rubric?
10. How can you use assessment data?
11. What's your vision for using assessment?
12. How committed are you to having your students apply a Biblical perspective to what they learn?

Remember: The real question isn't "How can you learn more about using assessment?" The real question is "How will you use assessment help your students apply a Biblical perspective to what they study?”


Additional resources:

1. Videos: Teach and assess Biblical perspective, Biblical perspective assessment helps, Assessment helps students value and get proficient at Biblical perspective,
2. Teacher testimonials regarding using assessment
3. Self-assessment: To get started with using assessment, take this self-assessment
4. Tutorial: Use assessment to help students understand and apply a Biblical perspective
5. Use assessment

You want to use assessment to help your students develop a Biblical worldview. You want to use assessment to help your students connect what they study, the Bible, and their lives. Good. Just make sure your assessment is a good assessment.

1. Question: How good is your assessment?
2. Answer: To answer that question, consider the following 5 questions:

1. To what extent is your assessment Student-friendly in terms of vocabulary and length (75 words or less)? Your assessment needs to be student-friendly because students are taking the assessment. Your assessment doesn’t need to be teacher-friendly because the teacher isn’t taking the assessment. What do I mean by teacher friendly? I mean the prompt is written for the teacher. I’ve seen prompts only the teacher could really understand—500 words with no clear point.
2. To what extent does your assessment require your students to Connect content/skills, Biblical principle(s), and life? Don't give an assessment that leaves things disconnected. That’s like putting chocolate chip cookie ingredients (flour, sugar, butter, eggs, vanilla, and chocolate chips) in a bowl, but not stirring them together to make dough. Which would you rather eat: chocolate chip cookie dough or unmixed ingredients?
3. To what extent does your assessment give Opportunities for student choice, as appropriate? Giving your students the opportunity to make choices unleashes student learning and potential. I’ve seen this repeatedly. So have you.
4. To what extent is your assessment Rigorous?A rigorous assessment inspires student learning. In my experience, students enjoy challenging assessments and don’t enjoy easy assessments.
5. To what extent is your assessment Even worthy of being taught to? Prepare your students by teaching to the assessment. Just make sure your assessment is actually worthy of being taught to!

Use assessment to help your students develop a Biblical worldview. Give them a good assessment. Today.

You want your students to apply a Biblical perspective to what they study. You’ve heard that assessment can help. So, you want to use assessment.

Question: How can you get started?

Answer: By taking the following self-assessment. Rate each item, using the following scale:

4: Strongly agree • 3: Agree • 2: Disagree • 1: Strongly disagree

___ I understand how assessment impacts student application of a Biblical perspective.
___ I know what type of assessment to use to help my students apply a Biblical perspective.

___ I know what makes a good assessment good.
___ The assessments I give my students are good.
___ I work to make my assessments even better.

___ My students proficiently apply a Biblical perspective to what they study.
___ My students apply creation-fall-redemption-restoration to what they study.
___ My students get sufficient practice in applying a Biblical perspective to what they study.

___ The rubrics I use to score my assessments are good.
___ I use my rubrics effectively.
___ I use my assessment data to modify instruction.

___ I use assessment to help my students apply a Biblical perspective.
___ I have a clear vision for using assessment to help my students apply a Biblical perspective.
___ I want to learn more about using assessment to help my students apply a Biblical perspective.
___ I am committed to helping my students apply a Biblical perspective to what they study.


Now, ask yourself 4 questions about the data:

1. How many 4s, 3s, 2s, and 1s do I have?
2. What satisfies/concerns me about the data?
3. Which items would it be helpful to learn more about?
4. What will I do?

Additional resources:

1. Videos: Teach and assess Biblical perspective, Biblical perspective assessment helps, Assessment helps students value and get proficient at Biblical perspective,
2. Teacher testimonials regarding using assessment
3. Tutorial: Use assessment to help students understand and apply a Biblical perspective
4. Use assessment
5. To learn more about using assessment, explore these 12 questions

Question: Is it OK to teach to an assessment?
 
Answer: Yes. In fact, teaching to an assessment is an effective practice. Read More...

Question: What inspires students learning?
 
Answer: Rigor. Students may not want to admit it, but they enjoy rigorous education. So, make your Biblical perspective assessment rigorous, not easy. Read More...

Dan Beerens, vice president of learning services at Christian Schools International, focuses on Christian education in his blog Nurturing Faith. In this blog entry, he makes a case for quality faith integrated assessments.

If one of the most important things in a Christian school is to nurture faith through the ability of a student to apply a Christian perspective (or worldview) to contemporary life, then we should make sure that our assessments are top notch and will drive our instruction. Additionally we need to make sure that the assessments involve the higher level thinking skills of application, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation. Read More...

You want to help your students better connect what they study and what the Bible teaches. You know that assessment helps your students learn, so you want to give your students good assessments. Specifically, you want to give your students assessments that give them opportunities to make choices—because you know making choices helps your students get engaged. Read More...

At Christian schools, we want our students connecting:

1. Content/skills and life. We want students connecting ecology with how they dispose of trash.
2. Content/skills and Biblical principles. We want students connecting decisions made by government with Biblical principles regarding justice and peace.
3. Biblical principles and life. We want students connecting Biblical principles regarding wealth, love, and the sanctity of life with the movies they watch.

Question: How can you help your students make connections? Read More...

Question: Who is the audience of an assessment prompt? Read More...

Like you, I want students to develop a Christ-centered worldview. Like you, I want students to understand the importance of connecting what they study and Biblical principles, and I want students to proficiently connect what they study and Biblical principles. Read More...

You’ve done it! You’ve developed a biblical perspective assessment that meets the following 4 criteria. Read More...

Using assessments can help your students increase their application of a biblical perspective to course content, particularly if the assessments are good assessments. So, what makes a good assessment good? Read More...

Learning involves practice: How many math problems does a student need to successfully complete to learn math? How many essays does a student need to write to write effectively and efficiently? How many times does a choir need to rehearse a song in preparation for a concert? Read More...