1. The science subject knowledge
UNIVERSITY OF COPENHAGEN
DEPARTMENT OF SCIENCE EDUCATION
UNIVERSITY COLLEGE
Teachers’ design and use of rubrics and modeling activities for formative assessment of lower secondary school students’ modeling competence in science
Sanne Schnell Nielsen
Framework used for analyzing teachers’ formative assessment of students’ modeling competence (inspired by: Lehrer & Schauble, 2015; Nicolaou & Constantinou, 2014; Schwarz et al., 2009).
Background
Modeling competence plays a central role in the recently revised science curriculum in Denmark.
Teachers are requested to assess students learning progress targeting the modeling competence in their daily teaching. Accordingly, the teachers must understand this competence and have suitable assessment criteria and methods at hand.
However, the curriculum descriptions of the modeling competence concept is only phrased in general terms and not based on a systematic framework.
In addition, Danish school teachers only have: (a) Limited knowledge on how to understand and enact modeling competence, (b) Limited experience in using formative assessment targeting this competence, and (c) Limited access to curriculum materials which identify what kinds of performance are indicative of this complex competence.
Rubrics are a matrix that articulate the expectations for an assignment, by listing the assessment criteria and by describing levels of quality in relation to each of the criteria. The use of rubrics in this study is inspired by Smith and Birri (2014) who suggested that teachers’ design and use of rubrics can foster understanding of complex competences in science. In addition, rubrics have potential to support the process of formative assessment by making expectations and criteria explicit (Panadero & Jonsson, 2013).
The science subject knowledge
Aspects of practice
1. Use of models for describing, explaining and predicting
2. Selecting, designing, evaluating and revising models
Aspects of knowledge
1. The nature of models
2. Purpose and utility of models
3. Criteria for evaluating models
Modeling competence
In the framework the modeling competence is defined as an interaction between three different aspects: (a) The science subject knowledge in the model, (b) Aspects of knowledge about models, and (c) Aspects of practice with models.
Research questions
RQ 1: What characterizes Danish science teachers’ attitudes towards design and use of rubrics and modeling activities for formative assessment of students’ modeling competence?
RQ 2: What kind of challenges and prospects do teachers perceive when designing and using rubrics and modeling activities for formative assessment of students’ modeling competence?
Data
Focus of the analysis
Curriculum documents.
Challenges and prospects in curriculum content and format to support teachers’ formative assessment of students modeling competence.
Interpretation of the modeling competence concept in the curriculum based on theoretical and empirical literature.
Semi-structured interviews based on pre-formulated statements reflecting different modeling competence aspects.
Teachers’ attitude and use with respect to different modeling competence aspects.
Semi-structured interviews based on pre-formulated statements reflecting different criteria for designing rubrics for formative assessment.
Teachers’ attitude and use with respect to design and use of rubrics in their teaching.
Audio recordings of five teachers’ lesson planning discussions.
Teachers’ modeling activities and rubrics.
Teachers’ attitude, use and intentions on how to enact formative assessment of different aspects and levels of students’ modeling competence.
Observations and audio recordings from five classroom interventions and reflection sessions
Teachers’ practice, rationale and reflections with respect to their practice.
Challenges and prospects when employing rubrics and modeling activities for formative assessment.
Methods
This study is based on a design-based approach to research (Sandoval & Bell, 2004). The processes in the design could be described in four phases:
The participants were five voluntary science teachers representing different teaching experience (2-20 years) and employed at three schools, each representing different academic achievement groups of students. P1
Problem, need and motivation identification
with respect to teachers’ perceptions of enacting formative assessment of students’ modeling competence P2
Development of classroom interventions with rubrics and modeling activities for formative assessment P3
Testing and evaluation of classroom intervention with rubrics and modeling activities P4
Redefinition and generalization of problem, need and motivation analysis for teachers to use rubrics and modeling activities for formative assessment of students’ modeling competence
An example of a detailed subject content specific rubric.
The rubric is reflecting a rather product-orientated, summative and performance motivated approach to assessment of students’ modeling competence. An example of a more generic rubric focusing on the utility of models and practice with models reflecting a more process-orientated, formative and mastery motivated approach to assessment of students’ modeling competence:
Trends in preliminary data analysis: RQ 1
Teachers’ approaches to modeling activities in their teaching could be categorized into two different approaches:
Product-orientated: Focus on the nature and use of (authorized) models to describe and explain science concepts and relations.
Process-orientated: Focus on the nature and use of their own or others’ models for prediction, problem-solving, interpretation, discussion and sharing of data, and selecting, evaluating and revising models based on criteria correlated to the purpose and utility of the models.
Teachers’ design and use of rubrics could be categorized into two different approaches to assessment:
Summative-orientated: Focus on the product and to motivate performance orientated students. Rubrics used for teachers’ scoring.
Formative-orientated: Focus on the process students go through while engaged in a task as well as the product. Focus to motivate mastery orientated students. Rubrics use for peer- or self-assessment.
Content
5 points
3 points
1 point
Model: Chemical equations
Can describe, balance and explain the chemical equation for each of the three chemical reactions: ammonia to ammonium; ammonium to nitrite; nitrite to nitrate
Can describe less than three of the chemical equations or describe all three with mistakes
Have no chemical equations
Model: Nitrogen cycle
Can explain the six key elements in the model with the correct terminology
Can in own words correctly explain five elements in the model
Can in own words correctly explain less than five elements in the model
An example of a more generic rubric.
The rubric is focusing on the utility of models and practice with models reflecting a more process-orientated, formative and mastery motivated approach to assessment of students’ modeling competence.
Examples of challenges and prospects as perceived by teachers: RQ 2
Prospects related to clearly stated assessment criteria in the rubrics
The students know what to aim for when the criteria are explicit from the beginning
Helps guiding teaching targeted different student achievers
It helps students in their own and peers’ learning when used for peer-feedback and
self-assessment
It is used for clarification and documentation for parents
It is useful for providing transparency in grading
Challenges related to time
It’s time consuming to design content and context specific rubrics
Limited and fragmented time for students’ to engage in practical and process
orientated modeling activities
It takes time to change class culture to match a new approach
Restricted time allocated for in-service training, team work, preparation and meetings
A: To know and describe
B: To understand and apply
C: To analyze and generalize
Practical inquiries
and modeling
Can conduct simple practical inquiries and use a nitrogen cycle model to describe how their own inquiries correlate to the phenomenon it represents
Can use a nitrogen cycle model to select, conduct and explain their own practical inquiries of sub-process in the model
Can use a nitrogen cycle model to predict and explain results from their practical inquiries
References
Lehrer, R. & Schauble, L. (2015). The Development of Scientific Thinking. In: R.M. Lerner (Ed.), Handbook of Child Psychology and Developmental Science, 2(7), Cognitive Processes. New Jersey, USA: Wiley, pp
Nicolaou, C.T. & Constantinou, C.P. (2014). Assessment of the Modeling Competence: A Systematic Review and Synthesis of Empirical Research. Educational Research Review, 13,
Panadero, E. & Jonsson, A. (2013). The use of scoring rubrics for formative assessment purposes revisited: A review. Educational Research Review, 9,
Sandoval, W. A., & Bell, P. (2004). Design-based research methods for studying learning in context: Introduction. Educational Psychologist, 39(4),
Schwarz, C.V. et al. (2009). Developing a Learning Progression for Scientific Modeling: Making Scientific Modeling Accessible and Meaningful for Learners. J. Res. Science Teaching, 46(6), Smit, R. & Birri, T. (2014). Assuring the quality of standards-oriented classroom assessment with rubrics for complex competencies. Studies in Educational Evaluation, 43, 5-13.