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= How can alternative assessments benefit struggling readers? =

My research question was one that I have been thinking about since I began discussing assessments in my education classes. Learning some about alternative assessments - how they worked, what forms they could take - made me curious and want to learn more. I definitely want to incorporate as many alternative, authentic assessments as I can because research shows they lead to more authentic learning, greater student motivation, and more accurate information for the teacher about the ability levels of students. Most importantly, alternative assessments allow students to focus on their strengths and make sure they convey what they know to the teacher, which would be difficult for struggling readers in a language arts or social studies with standardized tests filled with long reading passages and multiple choice questions. These tools demonstrate a combination of what I learned through this inquiry project. They show some general information about how alternative assessments are beneficial, give examples of alternative assessments, and give examples of what alternative assessments (specifically by struggling readers) could look like.