Educational Assessments – Sound Design EDU 637 Module 5

Recap Benefits from Precision Teaching Clear and balanced Instructional Objective incorporating essential elements: Topic (learning target from standard), Level of Thinking (from Bloom’s Taxonomy or Depth of Knowledge), and Assessment Challenge the teacher to ensure that the level of rigor is adequate (standards) and that the level of thinking of the assessment and of the instruction is aligned

Recap Benefits from Focused Instruction Alignment, alignment, alignment This is key to exceptional teaching This is the “take away” from Precision Teaching and Focused Instruction The personality and formation of the teacher will have a greater affect on the learning activities

Learning Targets and Instructional Objectives Look at the following ELA Standard – draw out a learning target and then create 1 instructional objective in a lower level of thinking and 1 at a higher level of thinking

Look at the following ELA Standard – draw out a learning target and then create 1 instructional objective in a lower level of thinking and 1 at a higher level of thinking 6.SL.3 Delineate a speaker’s argument and specific claims, distinguishing claims that are supported by reasons and evidence from claims that are not.

6.SL.3 Delineate a speaker’s argument and specific claims, distinguishing claims that are supported by reasons and evidence from claims that are not. Learning targets Definition of argument Definition of claim Definition of evidence IO – Lower Level – Student will be able to demonstrate understanding of key elements of writing a speech incorporating each element

6.SL.3 Delineate a speaker’s argument and specific claims, distinguishing claims that are supported by reasons and evidence from claims that are not. Learning targets Definition of argument Definition of claim Definition of evidence IO – Lower Level – Student will be able to demonstrate understanding of key elements of comparing and contrasting the elements in President Obama’s SOTU address and Mother Teresa’s speech at a graduation at Harvard University

6.SL.3 Delineate a speaker’s argument and specific claims, distinguishing claims that are supported by reasons and evidence from claims that are not. Learning targets Definition of argument Definition of claim Definition of evidence IO – Higher Level – Student will be able to demonstrate analysis of key elements of a speech by comparing and contrasting the elements in MLK’s Speech and George Washington’s farewell address.

Look at the following ELA Standard – draw out a learning target and then create 1 instructional objective in a lower level of thinking and 1 at a higher level of thinking 7.RI.2 Determine two or more central ideas in a text and analyze their development over the course of the text; provide an objective summary of the text.

Educational Assessments – Sound Design

Keys to Quality Assessments Assessment Types What would be the purpose behind varying the type of assessments you give? Keys to Quality Assessments Clear Purpose Formative – Assessment for learning Summative – Assessment of learning How will you use the information gathered Clear Learning Targets What are you going to assess? At what level of thinking are you assessing? Are you assessing content or process? Possible answers – Novelty, differentiated assessments, learning styles, assessing for knowledge vs. assessing for reasoning

Assessment Types Types of Assessments (as opposed to purpose) fall under assessment design This is the third key to a quality assessment Key questions to assessment design: Do they match the learning targets? Do they represent the learning accurately? Is the rubric aiming at the right rigor? Is there control for bias?

There are 4 basic types of assessments Select Response Assessment Types There are 4 basic types of assessments Select Response Written Response Performance Assessment Personal Communication Multiple choice True/False Matching Fill in blank Select Response tests tend to stay at a lower level of thinking – it is not impossible to raise the level of thinking but it can be challenging

Assessment Types Written Response Short Answer Extended Written response Performance Assessment Used to assess a target that is a skill Used to assess a target that is a product Written response can get at higher levels of thinking and make it easy to incorporate ELA standards across the curriculum Performance assessment examples: Skill – playing an instrument, delivering a speech, skill in debating or working in a group, assessing reading skills – Product: lap report, art work, paper

Assessment Types Personal Communication Gathering information from students informally or formally Asking questions about instructions Listening to students during work time Having students keep a journal

Assessment Types If you opt to do a portfolio you need to ask yourself what you are assessing: The skill of doing a portfolio The work in the portfolio Both If both, which one has the higher rate and why? A word about matching the assessment type and the information desired Pont out Figure 4.3 on p. 94 – This tells them how a particular assessment method matches up with the information desired.

Assessment Development Cycle Planning stage Who will use it and how will it be used Purpose – Formative or Summative Identify learning targets Select appropriate assessment method Sample size The content of the assessment that will satisfy you that the purpose was achieved

Planning the assessment Blueprint for assessment design Learning Target  Type of Target  Assessment method  percentage of importance Learning target based on Standards (the Topic) – Type of Target (Content or Process)  Assessment Method (Type of question that gets you the information you want) With percentage of importance, it is acceptable for an assessment to have a mixture of assessment methods and questions that range from lower level of thinking to higher levels of thinking – Your question is, should they carry the same weight?