Assessing Student Compositions

Many teachers believe in the importance of compositional and creative tasks but don’t find the time to assess those tasks and provide feedback to students. This column encourages teachers to determine why, what, and how assessments will be given. By planning out why (formative or summative), what kind of task will be assessed, and choosing a tool for how assessments will be given, teachers can maximize the amount of feedback they give to students and help students grow as composers. This column provides teachers with solid strategies and methods for implementing student composition assessments in general music classrooms.