The Making of a Homegrown Assessment System

A Kentucky district puts to the test its students’ exhibitions of learning and expected skills

The parking lot was full with vehicles parked along both sides of the main street and in every grassy area available. It was a typical Thursday night at Painted Stone Elementary School in Shelbyville, Ky., before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. There was neither a basketball game going on in the gym nor a school play being performed on the stage.

This was Exhibition Night at Painted Stone, serving 464 kindergarten through 5th-grade pupils. This night was the opportunity for the 2nd graders to show the community how they were growing in their abilities to become effective communicators and responsible collaborators. They were portraying these competencies through exhibitions of learning. The content was centered around animal habitats, but the enduring skills of communication and collaboration were on display for parents, grandparents and community leaders.