MAP Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

MAP - Essay Example In order to better the performance of students who are perhaps still in grade 2 or grade 5, various modern assessments kits have been developed to help students, parents and teachers monitor the progress of the children so that the final objectives of learning are realized through a computerized adaptive test device. Various methods of assessments which have been formulated recently to facilitate learning include MAP test method which is an acronym of the term Measure of Academic Progress. MAP was introduced to students around 2005 in order to help teachers, children and school administrators find the best methods possible to help improve learning and the performance of students. MAP works under the principle that the more grades or marks a student scores, the more the difficult his or her tests are likely to be in future. The computer which is used for the assessment and storage of results of students is thus programmed in a way that it stores all the information of students includi ng their progress in the continuous assessment tests done (DeLong 60). The Measure of Academic Progress depends on various tests administered to students during specified sessions, most preferably during the first few weeks in school. The MAP sessions cover various areas studied in schools and the probability of each student answering questions correctly determines how difficult the progressive questions will be. That is to say, when a child answers questions correctly in one test it means that the next test has to be difficult. That is when it would be possible to determine the academic progress of the child. Likewise, children who have difficulties answering questions are always given simpler questions in the next tests in order to determine if they grasped the content which was taught earlier on. This method is an effective tool for assessing students’ capabilities because of the fact that it focuses on a student’s strengths and weaknesses rather than a whole class. It therefore helps teachers in knowing the ability of each student since each student has the opportunity to do unique tests. Measure of Academic Progress of students is also important because the progressive test helps determine the intelligent quotient of children. Through this, teachers are able to identify children who are gifted and talented. It is equally vital to students because they are able to gauge their potential (Frederiksen, Mislevy and Bejar 382). Theoretically, it is right for curricular designers to employ this technology in assessing the progress of children in schools since it cannot be assumed that every child is intellectually prepared to move to the next grade. However, the MAP method has limitations. For example, it can demoralize students who might feel looked down upon given the fact that the more a student fails in an assessment test the simpler the subsequent tests become. Some students therefore are bound to take the whole test as a specimen for ridiculi ng them because they are tested on simpler things as compared to children who are brighter and are given more difficult work (Skipi 74). On the contrary, even though the application of the MAP in schools set up has bottlenecks, it is not just important to center on the limitations without considering its advantages as a primary tool for doing assessment.. Its function