Knowing the Learner:
Learning for All [1], recommends gathering information about each student from the following sources:
- Ontario Student Record (OSR)
- any transition plans the student may have
- Individual Education Plan (IEP) if the student has one
- consultations with current and previous teachers
- consultations with parents, and/or parent–student questionnaires
- consultations with students through surveys (e.g., interest inventories, attitudinal surveys) and conferences or interviews
- classroom observation (e.g., anecdotal notes)
- initial assessments (e.g., pretests)
- class profiles from earlier grades
- Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO) data
Learning preferences:
Both teachers and students need to develop a deep understanding of their interests, goals, values, strengths, needs, and learning preferences. For students who identify as having diverse learning needs, it is particularly important that they develop an understanding of their strengths and needs, the accommodations they require, and how they like to receive or use these accommodations. When students know themselves, they are better prepared to share what they need to be successful with educators.
Do your student’s prefer:
- Quiet or loud learning environments
- Lights on or off in the classroom
- Competitive or collaborative learning
- Short-term or long-term projects
- Assigned or flexible seating
- Slow or fast-paced lessons
- Handwritten or typed work
- Verbal or written feedback
What do your students think they are good at?
- Reading
- Writing
- Math
- Science
- History
- Staying focused
- Following instructions
- Remembering facts
- Class discussions
- Time-management
- Research
- Organization
- Social Interactions
What do your students find difficult?
- Reading
- Writing
- Math
- Science
- History
- Staying focused
- Following instructions
- Remembering facts
- Class discussions
- Time-management
- Research
- Organization
- Social Interactions
How do students like information presented?
- Slide show
- Video
- Graphs and charts
- Discussion
- Activity stations
- Demonstrations
- Read alouds
How do students like to show their learning?
- Written response
- Oral response
- Test
- Report
- Poster or other visual representation
- Performance
- Self-assessment
- Peer-assessment
- worksheet
Use the handout below to get to know your students better, and help tailor your teaching, assessment, and feedback to your student’s learning preferences.
Assessment FOR learning:
You can also leverage assessment for learning to get to know your students better. According to Learning for All, “Assessment for learning is designed to give teachers information to modify and differentiate teaching and learning activities” (p. 27). In essence, assessment for learning allows educators to identify where students are and inform plans to get students where they need to be.
Some examples of Assessment for learning are:
- Screening
- Screeners are very brief, standardized measures of key skills that quickly and efficiently identify which children are at risk. This type of assessment should be given to all students at regular intervals throughout the year (2-3 times per year).
- Diagnostic assessment
- Diagnostic assessments are longer and more in-depth than screening assessments, and are typically not standardized. These assessments are for students already deemed at risk and are usually administered by experts such as doctors, psychologists, and speech-language pathologists.
- Progress monitoring
- Diagnostic assessments are longer and more in-depth than screening assessments and are typically not standardized. Progress monitoring assessments are purposefully brief, so educators can quickly judge if a child’s rate of progress is strong enough to meet the goal.
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