Discover the transformative power of storytelling in assessment and student learning. Drawing on culturally responsive practices, this approach fosters innovation, self-reflection, and student engagement. Through narrative-based strategies, educators can elevate formative and summative assessments, promoting authentic, competency-based learning; meaningful growth; and deeper connections to critical competencies, as well as cultural archetypes. This guide helps educators reimagine assessment in diverse, student-centered classrooms.
K–12 teachers can use this book to: - Revitalize assessment to encourage students’ growth as critical, creative thinkers
- Elevate student engagement through creative responses and personal reflections
- Employ elements of narrative structure to explore and hone student competencies
- Cultivate student agency and innovation in contemplating and expressing knowledge
- Create opportunities for students to find personal meaning in their learning experiences
Contents: Introduction
Part 1: Looking Back to Look Forward Chapter 1: Humanity Through Story
Chapter 2: Essential Assessment Through Story
Chapter 3: Critical Competencies Through Story
Part 2: Learning Through Story Chapter 4: Conflict Through Story
Chapter 5: Harmony Through Story
Chapter 6: Reflection Through Story
Chapter 7: Perspective Through Story
Chapter 8: Imagination Through Story
Chapter 9: Craft Through Story
Epilogue
References and Resources
Index
Tom Schimmer is an author and a speaker with expertise in assessment, grading, leadership, and behavioral support. Tom is a former district-level leader, school administrator, and teacher. As a district-level leader, he was a member of the senior management team responsible for overseeing the efforts to support and build the instructional and assessment capacities of teachers and administrators.
Tom is a sought-after speaker who presents internationally for schools and districts. He has worked extensively throughout North America, as well as in Vietnam, Myanmar, China, Thailand, Japan, India, Qatar, Spain, and the United Arab Emirates.
Tom is the author and coauthor of multiple books, including Growing Tomorrow’s Citizens in Today’s Classrooms: Assessing Seven Critical Competencies; Standards-Based Learning in Action: Moving From Theory to Practice; Instructional Agility: Responding to Assessment With Real-Time Decisions; Essential Assessment: Six Tenets for Bringing Hope, Efficacy, and Achievement to the Classroom; and Grading From the Inside Out: Bringing Accuracy to Student Assessment Through a Standards-Based Mindset.
He earned a teaching degree from Boise State University and a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction from the University of British Columbia.
To learn more about Tom’s work, visit http://allthingsassessment.info or follow @TomSchimmer on X.
Natalie Vardabasso is an educator, coach, speaker, and passionate learner. Driven to make education empowering for all, she has developed expertise in equitable assessment and grading practices. Natalie is a skilled storyteller who can communicate a compelling rationale for change and break down complex topics into practical strategies to drive school improvement.
Serving as a middle and high school humanities teacher in a special education context, Natalie employed a universal design for learning to meet the complex needs of her students. Following her time in the classroom, she worked as an instructional coach before stepping into the role of assessment lead in a K–12 school. Over a three-year period, she led her school community through the transition to standards-based grading by equipping teachers with the tools to use assessment as a catalyst for learning. This experience sparked a passion for adult learning, change management, and inclusive leadership. As a result, Natalie founded the Empowerment Ecosystem, a program designed to support educators in embracing their roles as change agents, helping them step into leadership and challenge outdated paradigms. Natalie is also a dynamic voice in the education podcast space, having hosted the popular #EduCrush podcast and currently cohosting Assess That With Tom and Nat alongside Tom Schimmer. Through her work, Natalie seeks to liberate learning from traditional constraints and create systems where assessments foster mastery and authentic learning experiences, rather than merely evaluating performance through grades.
Natalie holds a bachelor’s degree in English literature from Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, British Columbia, as well as a bachelor’s degree in education from the University of British Columbia.
To learn more about Natalie’s work, follow @natabasso on X and @assess_THAT on X and Instagram. You can also find Natalie on LinkedIn at linkedin.com/in/nvardabasso.
