1. Formative Assessment on the Fly~ Asking Questions, Getting Answers
MILWAUKEE PUBLIC SCHOOLS
Lee Ann Pruske
Mary Mooney
April 12, 2013

3. Professional practice
Work with one teacher on the formative assessment process. Elicit, interpret, make decisions about the next steps in instruction, and implement those decisions with students.
Prepare a short vignette around the work with teachers and students to share at the April ACM meeting.

4. Give One, Get One With your typed vignette in hand, find a partner .
Share your stories, trade vignettes
Find a new partner and share, trade vignettes

5. Learning Intention Success Criteria
We are learning to use the formative assessment process within the classroom DURING instruction.
We will know we are successful when we recognize formative assessment opportunities in classrooms.

6. “…it is essential that teachers explore students’ thinking before assuming that students have understood something.”
D. Wiliam, 2011

7. Why ask questions?
1. Cause thinking
2. Provide teacher with information to assist instructional decision making*
*Ask questions that students can’t get the correct answer with incorrect thinking.
Summarize the activity
Some tasks are better for discussion, others for student work samples, teachers have to be aware of both types of tasks to gauge understanding.
Over generalize p x10=2.30 from 8x10=80
Apply information in the wrong place, students making sense of their world

8. What is the purpose of the question?
Discussion Questions
Whole class discussion
Surface student thinking, and justifications
Teachers can probe for details
Takes class time
Diagnostic Questions
Individual responses
Discussion not needed
Be careful students don’t get right answer, for incorrect thinking
Summarize the activity
Some tasks are better for discussion, others for student work samples, teachers have to be aware of both types of tasks to gauge understanding.
Over generalize p x10=2.30 from 8x10=80
Apply information in the wrong place, students making sense of their world

9. Misconception Managed
Take a card out
Individually solve the problem
Discuss how you might surface student understanding through this problem
Would you use the problem as a classroom discussion, or individual diagnostic tool
Pass the envelope and repeat
Activity cards

10. Simplify (if possible)
Problem A
Simplify (if possible)
2a + 5b
Problem – insights into student’s understanding
Diagnostic

11. Problem B Make this true: 3a = 24 a + b = 16
Uncovers understanding, and beliefs, that a and b can’t stand for the same value in an equation.
Discussion

12. Problem C Which is larger: 3/7 or 3/11
Discussion of how students are thinking about the relationships in the problem

13. Problem D In this sequence 3, 7, 11, 15, 19
Which is the best rule to describe the sequence.
n + 4
3 + n
4n – 1
4n + 3
Discussion of how students think about the problem and the relationships within the expressions.
C one few or D 3 times greater than the 4 times tables

14. Formative Assessment…on the fly

15. Diagnostic Questions
“Range-finding” questions find out what students already know before beginning a topic.
“Hinge point” diagnostic questions are used in the middle of instruction to check for understanding. Next step hinges on student understanding.
When you are listening for teachers questions, it helps to understand the different types of questions for possible learning focused conversations for which to shift up to increase the level of cognition.
Pages

16. Types of Listening Evaluative listening Interpretive listening
Listening for knowledge, content, correctness.
(Do they get it?)
(Do I need to re-teach this content or can I move on?)
Interpretive listening
What are students’ thinking?
(How can I build on their understanding?)
Shifting Up teacher moves
Evaluative listening responses: Teacher Responses : almost, close, nearly, try again.
Wellman and Lipton Shifting up moves

17. Instructional Practice Skill
Use your ABCDEF cards to answer
Hold up the correct cards indicating your answer.
No discussing please.

18. Watch for answers on cards

19. What is the relationship among the sides of a right triangle?
Find student with the right answer to articulate relationship with the given triangle, that is without labeling the sides.. Ask 1-2 students who previously had wrong answer to paraphrase the relationship

20. What is the relationship among the sides of a right triangle?c b a
Find student with the right answer to articulate relationship with the given triangle, that is without labeling the sides.. Ask 1-2 students who previously had wrong answer to paraphrase the relationship given by first student

22. Instructional Strategy Revisited
Diagnostic question
All student response through A-F cards
Interpretive listening

23. Professional Practice
Observe a teacher or two in your building listening for opportunities to work with student misconceptions. Type up what you observe and put it in the TLC under Listening Practice. Consider the following in your summary:
Why did the student answer incorrectly?
What is the misconception?
Was the teacher engaged in evaluative or interpretive listening?
How does/did the teacher plan for misconceptions?
Did misconceptions derail instruction?
What did the teacher do next?
Post by May 10, 2013,
Reply to at least 2 colleague’s posts by May 24, 2013
P 102

24. Feedback question
What is your hunch about the types of questions (diagnostic, discussion, range finding, hinge point) teachers in your building will be asking when you listen in for misconceptions in math?

25. Spring CR items are up! www.mmp.uwm.edu Instructional Guides
Use them with your teachers.

26. Milwaukee Public Schools
TITLE OF PRESENTATION
MPS Board of School Directors
Dr. Michael Bonds, President Larry Miller, Vice President
Mark Sain, District 1
Jeff Spence, District 2
Annie Woodward, District 4
Dr. Peter Blewett, District 6
David Voeltner, District 7
Meagan Holman, District 8
Terrence Falk, At-Large
Senior Team
Dr. Gregory Thornton, Superintendent
Naomi Gubernick, Chief of Staff
Darienne Driver, Chief Innovation Officer
Tina Flood, Executive Director, Curriculum and Instruction
Dr. Karen Jackson, Chief Human Resources Officer
Michelle Nate, Chief Operations Officer
Gerald Pace, Esq., Chief Financial Officer
Anita Pietrykowski, Director, School Administration
Denise Callaway, Communications & Partnerships
Patricia Gill, Executive Director, Family Services
Sue Saller, Coordinator to the Superintendent