| Process Phases | Student Progress | Strategies | Student Assessment | Record Keeping | Program Evalution | Curriculum Evaluation |
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Much research in education around the world is currently focusing on assessment and evaluation.
It has become clear, as more and more research findings accumulate, that a broader range of
attributes need to be assessed and evaluated than has been considered in the past. A wide variety of
ways of doing this are suggested. Assessment and evaluation are best addressed from the viewpoint
of selecting what appears most valid in meeting prescribed needs.
In Student Evaluation: A Teacher Handbook (Saskatchewan Education, 1991) the difference
between the various forms of evaluation is explained. Student evaluation focuses on the collection and interpretation of data which would
indicate student progress. This, in combination with teacher self-evaluation and program evaluation, provides a full evaluation.
Information in Saskatchewan Education documents should be used to help develop an
overall evaluation plan.
| Why Consider | Student Progress | Strategies | Student Assessment | Record Keeping | Program Evalution | Curriculum Evaluation |
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| Why Consider | Process Phases | Strategies | Student Assessment | Record Keeping | Program Evalution | Curriculum Evaluation |
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Specific assessment techniques are selected in order to collect information about how well students are achieving objectives. The assessment technique used at any particular time depends on what facility with the knowledge, skills or processes the teacher wants the students to demonstrate. The appropriateness of the techniques therefore rests on the content, the instructional strategies used, the level of the development of the students, and what is to be assessed. The environment and culture of the students must also be considered.
Various assessment techniques are listed below. The techniques listed are meant to serve only for reference, since the teacher exercises professional judgement in determining which techniques suit the particular purposes of the assessment. For further information on the various assessment strategies and types of instruments that can be used to collect and record information about student learning, refer to the Student Evaluation: A Teacher Handbook (Saskatchewan Education, 1991).
| Why Consider | Process Phases | Student Progress | Student Assessment | Record Keeping | Program Evalution | Curriculum Evaluation |
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Methods of organization
Methods of data recording
Ongoing student activities
Quizzes and tests
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A teacher must be aware that "graded" teaching resources and standardized tests are built on what is accepted as normal or average for a student of that age group and often for a specific segment of society. In using standardized tests a teacher is assessing how a child matches these cultural standards over a very narrow range of skills. The results must be considered in that context. This measure may be unattainable by some students. Alternately, some students may not reach full potential because they are not challenged but are allowed to remain at the acceptable "average". The Adaptive Dimension recognizes that the needs of all students must be considered for effective teaching and learning to occur.
In assessing the factors of scientific literacy, methods can be established for addressing knowledge (Dimensions A, B, D), values (Dimensions G and F), and abilities (Dimensions C and E) in ways that suit the nature of the factor. See Figure 4.
The factors of scientific literacy in Dimensions A through E can be assessed through manipulation of factual knowledge. However, it is quite possible to assess only factual knowledge and this is a fault of much current student assessment. When examined, this assessment is often little more than simple recall or limited application of facts. When assessment does go further and appears to include abilities, often too much emphasis is still devoted to straight recall. Students deserve to be assessed on the range of abilities they have been using. The overall assessment plan should reflect the students' different learning styles, and different ways of displaying their learning and the nature of the abilities being assessed. Self-referenced assessment may be encouraged.
Assessment can be oral, written, practical, or some combination of these. Practical exercises are the best way to assess scientific and technical knowledge and skills (Dimension E). For example, reading a thermometer diagram is not the same as knowing how best to use and place the thermometer in order to measure temperature. The best way to assess whether students can perform an activity is to observe them while they are actually performing the activity. Ask them probing questions. The use of anecdotal records, observation checklists, and rating scales can assist in data collection when these observations have taken place.
The types of tasks and questions which students are expected to address influence their responses. When the tasks and questions are limited, so are the responses. Tasks and questions which elicit only one word or simple sentence answers test only basic recall of factual knowledge. It is very important to consider that once students have, for example, formulated a model in a particular context during a science activity, if that exact same context is given in the assessment, the response is only recall, and not a test of any conceptual or process ability. Assessment must require slightly different conditions so the ability is tested through a new set of events.
Good questioning is extremely important for effective teaching and testing. Avoid questions where there is only a single response. Structure questions so that some type of reasoning is required. How? Why? Explain . . . Present problem solving activities. Develop Critical and Creative Thinking. All of these things promote and challenge higher level thinking.
Students may be asked to interpret a graph or photograph, or to answer a question orally. Assessment does not have to consist totally of written work. Varied formats adapt to students' differing learning styles.
Summative assessment items following the completion of a unit can cover more scope and depth than formative assessment items. Apart from the scope and depth of the activities selected, the format of summative assignments can be just as varied, including practical tasks (to reflect practical knowledge and abilities), interpretation of graphs and photographs, and investigative problems and assignments.
Multiple choice, true or false, or fill-in-the-blank tests usually assess only basic factual recall. Such tests should be used as little as possible and fewer "marks" should be awarded them in comparison with those items that require process abilities.
Essay questions are more useful tests. They can promote the processes of science and can be used in both formative and summative assessment. For those students who have difficulty writing, discuss the essay topic for the assessment. Illustrations or art projects, an oral report, a concept map, a project, journal writing, or some other challenging activity may serve as innovative alternatives to the written essay.
Projects are useful items for recording as summative assessments, because they usually cover a topic in depth as well as scope. They also involve the use of a range of process abilities. Difficulties might arise in assessing the individual participation of each child, if the project is a group effort. The contributions and participation of individuals within a group can often be determined by observing the ways in which the group members interact with one another and with other members of the class or by using student self- assessment. The number and type of assignments completed in a learning centre can also be recorded as a summative assessment. Test stations are particularly useful for allowing students to demonstrate competence.
Assessing values is the most difficult of all the areas of assessment and evaluation. At one time, values were not considered a part of the school's written curriculum. Parents and society certainly required that students develop acceptable behaviours and attitudes, but these were promoted through the "hidden curriculum" Ä the teachers' and school's influences. Now, specific attitudes and values are to be openly promoted in students, so the teacher's influence must be directed to these objectives. Accordingly, they must be assessed. For further information on values review Chapter VI in Understanding the Common Essential Learnings: A Handbook for Teachers (Saskatchewan Education, 1988).
Both in questioning and the matter of values, there is a need for knowledge about cross-cultural communications. Teachers must recognize and be sensitive to such differences. Values are a direct result of culture and as such, the connection between the two may need to be made explicit.
There are valid reasons to assess students' value and attitude outcomes at school and to attempt to promote these with effective teaching methods and individual student reflection. Since the values listed in Dimensions F and G of the factors of scientific literacy may be developed over time, teachers should be emphasizing many of the same values through the grades, but developing them to higher levels. This reinforcement helps to take students to a point where the level achieved may become a feature of their characters, and may continue to develop further in adult life.
Through the school years, students display their current values and attitudes by what they say, write, and do. These three actions can be used for assessment purposes. When a value or attitude is observed, record the observation.
Figure 4 Including Dimensions of Scientific Literacy in Planning for Assesment
| DSL | Possible evaluation techniques (abbreviation key below) | ||||||||||||
| % wt. | ar | co | lr | oc | or | pa | pf | pr | pt | rs | sa | wt | |
| A. nature of science | 5-15 | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | ||||
| B. key concepts | 25-40 | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | ||
| C. processes | 15-30 | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | |||
| D. STSE | 5-15 | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | |||||
| E. skills | 5-15 | X | X | X | X | X | X | ||||||
| F. values | 5-10 | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | |||
| G. attitudes | 5-10 | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | ||||
| Key to abbreviations of evaluation techniques: | An 'X' in a cell indicates a strategy that might be
appropriate for assessing that Dimension of
Scientific Literacy. The placement of an x in a cell
is not definitive. You may not be able to use that
technique to assess factors from the Dimension
indicated. You may find that where there is a
blank cell is a combination which is appropriate
for use in your class room. The terms for
evaluation strategies are taken from Student
Evaluation: A Teacher Handbook. Assistance in
designing an evaluation plan that uses these
techniques can be found in that document.
Summary of % weight by domains and DSLs:
|
Laboratory Problem - 13 marks (20 min)
This problem is reproduced with the permission of
the Ontario Ministry of Education from Criteria
for the Design of the Examination and the
Evaluation of Student Responses in OAC Physics,
Draft Handbook, Physics writing team, Ontario
Ministry of Education, Toronto, 1989.
This problem is suitable for use on a written exam. How could you modify it to allow students to demonstrate their abilities related to Dimension E of the Dimensions of Scientific Literacy?
The wavelength of waves in water can be directly measured. The wavelength of light is not directly measurable.
| Marks | |
| 1 | What do we mean when we say that the wavelength of light is not directly measurable? |
| 2 | Outline an experiment that could be used to determine the wavelength of the light emitted by a helium-neon laser. |
| 2 | Describe the pattern that would be observed. |
| 3 | What quantity would be measured directly in order to calculate the wavelength of the light? Describe a procedure for measuring this quantity that would help increase the precision of the measurement. |
| 3 | State the equation you would use to calculate the wavelength. Indicate clearly the meaning of the symbols in your equation. |
| 2 | Assuming that the laser light has a wavelength in the range 600-700 nm, state approximate values for the dimensions of the experimental apparatus that would produce an easily measured pattern. |
Solutions and Marking Scheme
would be measured. To
increase the precision of measurement, the distance across a
number of bright fringes could be measured, and determined by
dividing this measurement by the number of intervals measured.
where is the fringe spacing, L is the
distance from the slits to the screen, 
is the wavelength of the
light, and d is the slit spacing.
is to be in the range of a few millimetres,
with about 600 nm, slit spacing of 0.3 mm
and an of about 1 m would work.
Laboratory Problem - 5 marks (5 minutes) This problem is adapted from an idea by Dean Elliott of Saskatoon.
Software exists which will take input from a motion detector interface and immediately display d versus t, v versus t, or a versus t graphs of objects either moving toward or away from the detector.
Set up a station in the classroom with the motion detector connected to the computer. Ask students to come individually to the station. Give each a graph drawn on paper representing some sort motion represented by a d versus t, v versus t, or a versus t curve. Ask the student to use the motion of the hand towards or away from the detector to duplicate that curve on the computer display. Allow a specified number of trials (perhaps five).
| Why Consider | Process Phases | Student Progress | Strategies | Student Assessment | Program Evalution | Curriculum Evaluation |
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To aid data collection in order for the factors of scientific literacy to be addressed in student assessment, checklists have been included in the Science Program Overview and Connections K-12 and in this guide. Teachers should adapt these to suit their needs.
Teachers often differ in the way they like to collect data. Some prefer to have a single checklist, naming all the students in the class (or in one work group) across the top and listing the criteria to be assessed down the side. The students' columns are then marked if a criterion is met. In this case some information would have to be transferred later to a student's individual profile.
Other teachers prefer to have one assessment sheet per student, which is kept in the profile. That sheet would list the factors for assessment down the side, but along the top might be a series of dates indicating when assessment took place. Such an individual file would illustrate development over the year. In this case, information might have to be transferred from the profile to the official class mark book, as required.
Examples of these types of assessment sheets are also given in Science Program Overview and Connections K-12.
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Program evaluation is a systematic process of gathering and analyzing information about some aspect of a school program in order to make a decision, or to communicate to others involved in the decision-making process. Program evaluation can be conducted at two levels: relatively informally at the classroom level, or more formally at the classroom, school, or school division levels.
At the classroom level, program evaluation is used to determine whether the program being presented to the students is meeting both their needs and the objectives prescribed by the province. Program evaluation is not necessarily conducted at the end of the program, but is an ongoing process. For example, if particular lessons appear to be poorly received by students, or if they do not seem to demonstrate the intended learnings from a unit of study, the problem should be investigated and changes made. By evaluating their programs at the classroom level, teachers become reflective practitioners. The information gathered through program evaluation can assist teachers in program planning and in making decisions for improvement. Most program evaluations at the classroom level are relatively informal, but they should be done systematically. Such evaluations should include identification of the areas of concern, collection and analysis of information, and judgement or decision making.
Formal program evaluation projects use a step-by-step problem-solving approach to identify the purpose of the evaluation, draft a proposal, collect and analyze information, and report the evaluation results. The initiative to conduct a formal program evaluation may originate from an individual teacher, a group of teachers, the principal, a staff committee, an entire staff, or central office. Evaluations are usually done by a team, so that a variety of background knowledge, experience, and skills are available and the work can be shared. Formal program evaluations should be undertaken regularly to ensure programs are current.
To support formal school-based program evaluation activities, Saskatchewan Education has developed the Saskatchewan School-Based Program Evaluation Resource Book (1989) to be used in conjunction with an inservice package. Further information on these support services is available from the Evaluation and Student Services Division, Saskatchewan Education.
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During the decade of the 1990's, new curricula will be developed and implemented in Saskatchewan. Consequently, there will be a need to know whether these new curricula are being effectively implemented and whether they are meeting the needs of students. Curriculum evaluation, at the provincial level, involves making judgements about the effectiveness of provincially authorized curricula.
Curriculum evaluation involves the gathering of information (the assessment phase) and the making of judgements or decisions based on the information collected (the evaluation phase), to determine how well the curriculum is performing. The principal reason for curriculum evaluation is to plan improvements to the curriculum. Such improvements might involve changes to the curriculum document and/or the provision of resources or inservice to teachers. It is intended that curriculum evaluation be a shared, collaborative effort involving all of the major education partners in the province. Although Saskatchewan Education is responsible for conducting curriculum evaluations, various agencies and educational groups will be involved. For instance, contractors may be hired to design assessment instruments; teachers will be involved in instrument development, validation, field testing, scoring, and data interpretation; and the cooperation of school divisions and school boards will be necessary for the successful operation of the program.
In the assessment phase, information will be gathered from students, teachers, and administrators. The information obtained from educators will indicate the degree to which the curriculum is being implemented, the strengths and weaknesses of the curriculum, and the problems encountered in teaching it. The information from students will indicate how well they are achieving the intended objectives and will provide indications about their attitudes toward the curriculum. Student information will be gathered through the use of a variety of strategies including paper-and-pencil tests (objective and open-response), performance (hands on) tests, interviews, surveys, and observation.
As part of the evaluation phase, assessment information will be interpreted by representatives of all major education partners including the Curriculum and Evaluation Divisions of Saskatchewan Education and classroom teachers. The information collected during the assessment phase will be examined, and recommendations, generated by an interpretation panel, will address areas in which improvements can be made. These recommendations will be forwarded to the appropriate groups such as the Curriculum and Instruction Division, school divisions and schools, universities, and educational organizations in the province.
All provincial curricula will be included within the scope of curriculum evaluation. Evaluations will be conducted during the implementation phase for new curricula, and regularly on a rotating basis thereafter. Curriculum evaluation is described in greater detail in the document Curriculum Evaluation in Saskatchewan (Saskatchewan Education, 1991).