Designing Assessments into Activities that Meet Learning Goals Michelle Hall-Wallace

Think Spend 2 minutes writing the questions or concerns you have about assessment. These questions could be related to your classroom teaching or your online resources.

Questions/Concerns What do we we want to assess--role of goals? Why assess at all? Who benefits? For planning? To give grades? To get input from students and others to guide design/redesign (Are they doing what we think they are doing?) Where are the human resources for assessment--faculty time issues?

Questions/Concerns How to separate assessing of CT from content How to move assessment from artificial or punitive to an authentic tool for learning Role of summative and formative assessment Strategies for assessing on the web (distance learning concern)

Good Assessment Depends on… Clear goals Creative approaches An emphasis on reinforcing learning rather than separating the wheat from the chaff

Formative Assessments - Part of the Learning Process to give students feedback to guide student effort to diagnose problems in learning to encourage students to give students experience with diverse assessment methods to help direct the teaching effort

Summative Assessment - Measure Performance to discriminate between students to provide quality assurance checks both within the institution and externally to motivate students to judge student progression to award marks and enable a final degree classification

Guiding Questions for Resource Design What is worthy and requiring of understanding? What is evidence of understanding? What learning experiences and teaching promote understanding, interest and excellence?

Guiding Questions for Assessment Design Are students learning what you expect? Are they learning it in ways (using the methods) that you like?

Creative Assessment Knowledge (terms, principles, procedures) List the evidence for plate tectonics Comprehension (understanding terms and principles; interpretation) Summarize the evidence for and against the expanding Earth theory Which of these examples represents the principle of… Application (solving problems, applying concepts and principles to new situations) Assuming Airy isostasy, calculate the elevation of the continent in the given model. Predict an outcome…

Creative Assessment (cont.) Analysis (recognition of facts, inferences, unstated assumptions, logical fallacies) What are the facts supporting Wegner’s hypothesis for continental drift and what are the underlying assumptions? Synthesis (integrate learning from different areas or solve problems with creative thinking) Design a monitoring system for geologic hazards in the Seattle area. Evaluate (judging or assessing) Evaluate the evacuation plan for Seattle assuming that flooding will be associated with the next major earthquake or volcanic eruption.

How are Online Assessments Different? Allows for test-study-retest - promote mastery Can be done outside the classroom setting Allow for animations, dynamic model analysis, color imagery Rapid feedback with guidance on reading or problem sets to remediate gaps Motivation and reinforcement Can be embedded throughout the learning experience Requires access to technology Provides data for analysis of resource and assessments

In small groups of 7… Describe your most creative / effective or “best” assessment strategy. Explain why it is your best. How can this type of assessment strategy be used with online resources?