Assessing Student Learning
Instructional Planning
Systematic, organized strategy for organizing lessons
Why do teachers need lesson objectives?
Where do I begin?
Set goals -
What are you wanting to accomplish?
Plan activities -
How will I accomplish these goals?
Set priorities -
What is most important?
Make Time Estimates -
How much per activity?
Create a schedule
Be FLEXIBLE!!!
Planning Lesson Objectives
Use behavioral objectives
3 parts
Performance
What should student be able to do?
Condition
Under what conditions do you want the student to be able to do it?
Criterion
How well must it be done?
Condition
State the condition under which learning will be assessed
Given a 30 multiple-choice question exam, students will be able to…………
Via a verbal presentation, the student will be able to………………………..
Performance
Action verb that indicates what students will be able to do
Write
Identify
Compare and Contrast
Distinguish between
Criterion
Criteria for acceptable performance
…at least five words in Spanish
….at least 90%
….. at least 4 characteristics
Objectives
Specific to subject and clear
"Student will appreciate the differences between learners"
How can this be interpreted? Measured?
What would be a better objective?
Link objectives to assessment
Mr. Pallitino, an art teacher, is adamantly opposed to the use of instructional objectives. He argues that they stifle
creativity and spontaneity and promote low-level learning. What are some possible arguments to support Mr. Pallitino’s
claim? What would be some arguments against his claim?
Using Taxonomies of Instructional Objectives
Bloom’s taxonomy
Create an objective for Bloom’s Taxonomies of the cognitive domain
Knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis, evaluation
Use your area of specialization
Should there be objectives for schools that are shaped by a state or national agenda? Who should set the agenda?
Evaluation
Measurement of student performance
Quizzes, tests, grades, written evaluations, etc
Why do teachers/schools use tests and grades?
Is my instruction effective? Is student learning?
What are strengths? Weaknesses?
Placement, evaluation
Evaluations
Serve 6 primary purposes:
Feedback to students
Feedback to teachers
Info to parents
Info for selection and certification
Info for accountability
Incentives to increase student effort
Partner Activity
Discuss each of the 6 aforementioned purposes for student evaluations
Whole-class discussion will follow
What are disadvantages to the following?
Returning student test results after several weeks
Posting test scores without returning actual test papers
Returning answer sheets promptly without reviewing correct answers
How is student learning evaluated?
Formative versus Summative
Norm-referenced vs. Criterion-referenced
Discuss with partner
Whole class discussion to follow
Pre-Instruction
Assess what students know before your lecture
Ask questions, pre-tests, informal observation
Help you to gauge student’s level of….
Guard against developing expectations that will distort your perception!
During Instruction
Formative
Evaluation
Ongoing observations and monitoring
Oral questions, lesson quizzes
Helps you assess:
Where students are at
Where you should go next
Whether or not a student needs help
How might you use pop quizzes to encourage learning while minimizing the anxiety that tests often provoke?
Post-instruction
Assessment after instruction is finished (Summative Evaluation)
Provides info as to:
how well students have mastered the material
Ready for next unit
What grades should be given
Comment to parents
High-Quality Assessments
Reliable
Consistent, reproducible measures of performance
Stable, dependent, and free of errors
Valid
Accurate measure
Does an IQ test really measure intelligence?
Should reflect what you have been teaching
High-Quality Assessments (cont)
Fair
All students should have equal opportunity to learn and demonstrate their knowledge and skill
Unbiased
Traditional Objective Tests
True-False
Multiple-Choice
Matching
True-False
PROS
Useful with only 2 alternatives
Less demand on reading ability
Scoring is easy, objective, reliable
Large number of questions in small amount of time
CONS
No evidence that student knows correct answer
More influenced by guessing
No diagnostic info provided by wrong answers
Difficult to write undeniably t/f statement
Tips for True-False Qs
One central idea
Keep statement short
Precise wording
Avoid double negatives
Avoid extraneous clues
T/F Examples
Which is better? Why?
Springfield is the capital of Illinois
Springfield is the capital of Illinois, is the home of Abe Lincoln and has less than 150,000 people
MLK made important civil rights speeches
MLK never made an unimportant speech
Multiple-Choice Questions
PROS
Simple & complex LO can be measured
Broad sample of achievement
Scoring is easy, objective, reliable
Less influenced by guessing
CONS
High prep time
Difficult to find distractors
Difficult to assess problem-solving skills
Score can be influenced by reading ability
Tips for MC Questions
Present single problem
Avoid exact textbook wording
Avoid unessential details
Avoid in/exclusive words (none, all)
Avoid obvious patterns
Don’t use narrow distinctions
One best option
Do not give away answer in another test question
MC Examples
The answer to this one refers to an:
A. Overture
B. Mountain
C. Building
D. Misnomer
Why is this a bad question?
MC Examples
The word "gordo" in Spanish means:
A. thin
B. underweight
C. skinny
D. fat
What is wrong with this one?
The freezing point of water is:
A. 31 F
B. 32 F
C. 30 F
D. 33 F
What is wrong with this question?
Culture-fair tests are:
A. always reliable
B. Always Valid
C. Power tests
D. usually nonverbal in order to offset cultural
differences in language
What is wrong with this question?
Matching
PROS
finding links/associations
Large amount of content
CONS
Rote memorization
Students can answer by process of elimination
Constructed-Response Tests
Subjective Tests
Fill in the blank
Short-answer
Essays
Write out answers rather than select from list
Short-Answer/Fill-in the Blank
PROS
Forces recall
Problem-solving assessment
CONS
Unanticipated responses
Score is based on judgment
Essays
PROS
Highest level of LO can be measured
Integration/application
Less prep-time
CONS
High score time
Bluffing
Time constraints
Bad Essay:
Describe all of the significant developments in Mesopotamia from 2,000 to 1,000 BC
TIPS
Allow time
Worth how many points
Clear and precise questions
Higher-order thinking
Objective or Subjective Test?
test students’ knowledge of terminology used in lab experiments
test must be given and graded in the 2 days before the end of the 6-week grading period
test students’ ability to present a logical argument
test students’ understanding of a few major principles
You have limited time to construct the test
students’ ability to differentiate between major philosophies of democracy and socialism
test students knowledge of foreign countries’ major export goods
Alternative Assessments
Authentic/Performance-Based
student’s ability to perform task in real-life contexts
Portfolios
Collection of student’s work showing growth, self-reflection, achievement
Grades
List the incentives/disincentives of:
Being graded on a curve?
Receiving cooperative group grades?
Having to get 90 percent to
make an A?
Pass/fail grading method?
If all forms of evaluating students were eliminated in schools, what would be the impact on students? On teachers? On parents?
What might teachers use to motivate students to complete assignments?
