1. A design-focused dissertation by Carrie Holmberg
Formative Assessment for Middle School Mathematics Instruction: An Evidence-based Approach to Evaluating Teacher Posing, Pausing, and Probing Moves
A design-focused dissertation by Carrie Holmberg
Chair: Brent Duckor, Ph.D.
Committee members: Joanne Rossi Becker, Ph.D. & Diana Wilmot, Ph.D.

2. 3 conceptual frameworks and 1 set of standards informed study design & methodology
qualitative, n = 6
MS math Ts at 3 schools in 1 high-needs district
Ss: 21-46% ELs, % low SES
purpose: to inform the empirical foundations of TLP in FA as a basis for providing feedback about Ts’ growth
L-T goal: help Ts realize more equitable instruction

3. Research Questions
Is there a continuum of practice from novice to more expert knowledge and skills in teachers’ posing questions, pausing for a variety of purposes, and probing student thinking in middle school mathematics?
How can levels of practice be represented along a generalized continuum in mathematics teaching and learning at the classroom level?
Can teacher practices of posing, pausing, and probing along any or all of these proposed dimensions of practice be reliably and validly evaluated?
Data sources:
pre- and post-study surveys, in-person interviews, responses to EAs (e.g., concept-mapping item), video of enacted lessons, lesson plans, lesson artifacts

4. Noble purpose: CM approach using a moves-based conceptualization of FA
Adapted from Duckor, Draney & Wilson, 2009
Duckor, Holmberg, Rossi Becker, 2017

5. What made it a “design-focused” dissertation?
Creation/refinement of instruments & tools:
Analysis and presentation of data that resulted in:
2 surveys (46 and 10 items)
lesson planning template
method for selecting & analyzing episodes of instruction
3 performance tasks
3 construct maps
3 scoring guides
video-stimulated recall (VSR) protocol
6 profiles of practice (Ch. 5)
6 examples of individualized feedback to study subjects (Ch. 5)
explicit use of highly regarded approach to design of educational assessments: the “Constructing Measures” approach (Wilson, 2005) ; study employed first 3 of 4 “building blocks”

6. “Clearly the Ph. D. is to understand the world and the Ed. D
“Clearly the Ph.D. is to understand the world and the Ed.D. is to change the world.” —Gordon Kirk
The moves-based conceptualization of formative assessment employed in the study shows promise in helping teachers realize more equitable instruction during class. The implications of this should not be understated. Lenses and frameworks used to examine teaching are not neutral. The moves-based framing of formative assessment has been shown in this study and in previous work to foreground the use of academic language in lessons and to play an important role in supporting teachers in making more productive improvisational moves during class time. When teachers of different disciplines can use the work of this study to self-assess their practice, maintain meaningful inter-disciplinary conversations, and use the work and their conversations to create more equitable opportunities for student learning across departments, schools, and districts, a powerful possible application of this work will have come to fruition. —Carrie Holmberg (p. 272, 2017)