Assessment Action Plan s1

Intel® Teach Elements Assessment in 21st Century Classrooms

Intel® Teach Elements: Assessment in 21st Century Classrooms Action Plan: ______

Instructions: Ctrl+click (or Command+click on the Mac* or click for Microsoft Word 2007*) any of the activity names in the Contents to go directly to that section. Type your personalized Action Plan details in the sections indicated.

Table of Contents

Module 1: 21st Century Learning...... 3 Lesson 1: 21st Century Classrooms...... 3 Activity 1: Roles in the 21st Century...... 3 Activity 3: Evolution of Assessment Practices...... 4 Lesson 2: 21st Century Skills in the Classroom...... 5 Activity 3: 21st Century Skill Selection (Optional)...... 5 Lesson 3: 21st Century Assessment Practices...... 7 Activity 1: The Role of Formative Assessment...... 7 Lesson 4: Module Review...... 7 Activity 1: Module Summary...... 7 Module 2: Assessment Strategies...... 9 Lesson 3: Focus on Rubrics...... 9 Activity 3: Rubric Development...... 9 Lesson 4: The Assessing Projects Library...... 9 Activity 2: Assessing Projects Application...... 9 Lesson 5: Module Review...... 10 Activity 1: Module Summary...... 10 Module 3: Assessment Methods...... 10 Lesson 1: Assessment and Instruction...... 10 Activity 2: Instructional Activities as Assessment...... 10 Lesson 3: Classroom Conferences...... 11 Activity 3: Example Conferences...... 11 Lesson 5: Assessment Instruments...... 12 Activity 1: Overview of Assessment Instruments (Optional)...... 12 Lesson 6: Module Review...... 12 Activity 1: Module Summary...... 12 Module 4: Assessment Development...... 12 Lesson 1: Important Learning Goals...... 12 Activity 2: 21st Century Skills Objectives...... 12 Lesson 2: Assessment Plan...... 13 Activity 2: Effective Assessment Timelines...... 13 Activity 3: Assessment Methods and Purposes (Optional)...... 14 Lesson 3: Assessment Instruments...... 14 Activity 3: Rubric and Checklist Adaptation...... 14 Lesson 4: Module Review...... 15 Activity 1: Modules Summary...... 15

Module 5: Assessment in Action...... 15 Lesson 1: Student Roles in Assessment...... 15 Activity 1: Increased Student Responsibility (Optional)...... 15 Activity 2: Peer Feedback...... 15 Lesson 2: Self-Assessment...... 16 Activity 2: Supporting Metacognition (Optional)...... 16 Lesson 3: Assessment Management...... 16 Activity 1: Assessment Management Strategies...... 16 Activity 2: Assessment Routines (Optional)...... 16 Lesson 4: Use of Assessment Data...... 17 Activity 2: Reflection and Goal Setting...... 17 Lesson 5: Grading in a 21st Century Classroom...... 18 Activity 2: Grading Systems (Optional)...... 18 Lesson 6: Module Review...... 18 Activity 1: Module Summary...... 18 Course Wrap-Up...... 19 Summary...... 19 Activity 1: Course Reflection...... 19

Module 1: 21st Century Learning Lesson 1: 21st Century Classrooms

Activity 1: Roles in the 21st Century Estimated Time: 15 minutes

In what ways do you consider yourself a 21st century teacher? Describe how you:

 Collaborate with other teachers  Use technology in your classroom  Act as a facilitator of your students’ learning  Use multiple forms of assessment for content and 21st century skill development

Collaboration: I collaborate with teachers at my school on a regular basis. We have instituted common conference periods to facilitate this interaction as well as early- release Thursdays which allow me to collaborate with teachers from outside my discipline. This grant has also allowed me to collaborate with science teachers from other schools both inside and outside the district.

Technology: I regularly use technology in my classroom. Most of it is teacher-based, but many times throughout the year students are required to utilize technology. Teacher-based technology include:  LCD projector  PowerPoint Cornell Notes  Prentice Hall online Active Art, video clips, etc.  Microsoft Office projects in computer lab (PowerPoint, Publisher, Word)  Internet research

Facilitator: Some of the methods I regularly use to facilitate learning include Inquiry- based learning, cooperative grouping, Kagan strategies, and SIOP strategies.

Assessment: CST inspired benchmarks based on district standards. Regular formative assessments that allow me to gauge student learning.

Module 1: 21st Century Learning Lesson 1: 21st Century Classrooms

Activity 3: Evolution of Assessment Practices Estimated Time: 15 minutes

In the chart, record your current assessment practices and how you would like to change your assessment practices.

Current Assessment Practices Changes to Assessment Practices

Student work: Lab reports Use a more standardized format to Class work create lab reports that can be used by Homework other class members and compared to other lab reports in a meaningful way.

Formative Assessments: Increase the use of the strategies and Entry Slips incorporate more uses for the student Exit Slips white boards. White Boards

Benchmarks (6) – given as a summative Give a pre-test to determine actual assessment at the end of the unit. student growth rather than just measuring student knowledge at the end of the unit.

Module 1: 21st Century Learning Lesson 2: 21st Century Skills in the Classroom

Activity 3: 21st Century Skill Selection (Optional) Estimated Time: 20 minutes

1. Consider the units you teach. 2. List units where you explicitly teach, or would like to teach, 21st century skills. 3. For those units, list the technologies you use or would like to use.

Unit 21st Century Skills Technology All Units Critical thinking On-line journaling and Deductive reasoning collaboration with class Data Analysis mates. Accountability Measurement & How to use scientific tools to Electronic balances. Method measure accurately. On-line simulations that use scientific measurement tools.

Density and How to calculate the density of an Virtual lab software and on- buoyancy object and predict whether it will line simulations for buoyancy. sink or float in a given liquid. Use of Excel to graph the buoyancy of various objects. Solar system Identify the major parts of our Use of Excel for graphing of solar system and the processes planet data (size, density, that created them. distance from sun, number of moons, etc.)

Use of Word to design tables to display information. Structure of Identify and predict various On-line resources to learn matter properties of matter based on the more about atomic structure, materials physical and chemical molecular motion in states of properties. matter, and periodic table groupings. Identify a materials state of matter given its physical Use of Excel for graphing and characteristics. predicting states of matter based on an elements Identify the parts of an atom. physical properties. Forces Identify the causes of motion and On-line simulations that deal be able to predict and measure with speed and acceleration the motion of objects affected by and the graphing of these Motion differing forces, including friction. variables.

Module 1: 21st Century Learning Lesson 3: 21st Century Assessment Practices

Activity 1: The Role of Formative Assessment Estimated Time: 10 minutes

How does formative assessment benefit your classroom? What kinds of changes would you need to make in your assessment practices to include more formative assessment?

Benefits: Gives a snapshot of student comprehension.

Changes: More writing prompts - although time consuming, these really help identify misconceptions in the student’s learning. More use of white boards – quick, easy way to see if students are following along and understanding.

Module 1: 21st Century Learning Lesson 4: Module Review Activity 1: Module Summary Estimated Time: 10 minutes

Based on your understanding of assessment, what assessment goals would you like to set for yourself during this course, month, or school year? Write your goals. Some examples include:  Choose 21st century skills to focus on during a particular unit or project  Use formative assessment strategies in my classroom  Add 21st century skills to my rubrics  Use additional assessment instruments to assess  Have students assess themselves and their peers  Distribute rubrics before and during the project  Use journals and/or observations to assess

My assessment goals:

Use more formative assessments

Ascertain a pre-test score to compare to the summative assessment

Use on-line journals to allow student to collaborate with students from other classes.

Distribute clear and concise rubrics before projects are assigned

Module 2: Assessment Strategies Lesson 3: Focus on Rubrics

Activity 3: Rubric Development Estimated Time: 10 minutes

Reflect on your current use of rubrics in your classroom.

How might you use rubrics in new or different ways to improve your students’ learning?

Currently: Rubrics only used for large projects and generally turn into a paper-based check-list that students follow to complete their projects. Improved use: On-line rubrics for students to use to self assess and monitor progress on completing a project.

Module 2: Assessment Strategies Lesson 4: The Assessing Projects Library

Activity 2: Assessing Projects Application Estimated Time: 20 minutes

Explore the rubrics shown in the table or in the Assessing Projects library. Select and save at least one product or performance rubric and at least one 21st Century skill rubric to your Course Folder or to your Personal Library if using Assessing Projects. Describe how and when you would use each assessment.

Product or Performance Rubric name:

Multimedia Presentation Rubric

How I will use the rubric:

I will use this rubric when the students do their presentations on the elements.

21st Century Skill Rubric:

Creativity Rubric

How I will use the rubric:

I will use this rubric in combination with the above rubric to judge the creativity of the element presentations.

Module 2: Assessment Strategies Lesson 5: Module Review

Activity 1: Module Summary Estimated Time: 10 minutes

Reflect on your learning in this module.

This module has made me think more about using rubrics in different scenarios. Rubrics don’t necessarily have to be used only with large projects, but can also be used for writing assignments, multimedia presentations and to judge the overall creativity of a project.

Module 3: Assessment Methods Lesson 1: Assessment and Instruction

Activity 2: Instructional Activities as Assessment Estimated Time: 20 minutes

Describe how you might integrate assessment methods as part of classroom activities.

 Graphic Organizers

Have students organize vocabulary in a graphic layout and justify why they designed the organizer the way they did.

 Journals and Learning Logs

Have students reflect on their learning and exchange logs to develop a deeper understanding of the material being covered.

 Discussions

Have students discuss the material in groups and use this as a formative assessment by having them write a summary of their group discussion.

 Products and Performances

These are currently called lab reports. During a lab scenario I can move around the class and ascertain where students are in their learning. Then after the lab I can read their lab reports to ascertain what the students understand and any misconceptions in their learning. I would like to be able to use a standard layout and have students exchange them and compared them to deepen their

understanding.

Module 3: Assessment Methods Lesson 3: Classroom Conferences

Activity 3: Example Conferences Estimated Time: 20 minutes

Describe how you might include each assessment method in your classroom.

 Observation

Move around the classroom and watch students perform lab activities to ascertain if they understand the concepts that they are exploring.

 Peer Assessment

Have students read other students lab reports and then write a critical analysis of the other groups report based on the concepts that are being explored in the lab activity.

 Self-Assessment

Have students then write a rebuttal to the critical analysis that the other group wrote for them about their lab activity. Not only can they self-assess their lab report, but now they have another set of observations in which to reevaluate their learning.

 Student-Teacher Conferences

To meet with students during the planning phase of their projects to ensure that they are moving in the right direction and that specific learning goals can be accomplished by completing the project.

Module 3: Assessment Methods Lesson 5: Assessment Instruments

Activity 1: Overview of Assessment Instruments (Optional) Estimated Time: 30 minutes

Explore the assessment instruments (rubrics and checklists) shown in the table or in the Assessing Projects library. Select and save any that you would like to use or adapt for your classroom. Note how and when you might use the assessments.

Assessment Instrument When and How I Will Use

Argumentation checklist I can use this checklist when students are writing their lab reports, their critical analysis of other lab reports, and the rebuttals to the critical analysis of their labs.

Research rubric I can use this rubric during the creation of their research project, students will have to include research from other sources not just what they have received in class or from prior knowledge.

Multimedia rubric and Creativity I can use this for the development of the rubric student’s element project as well as the presentation of this project.

Module 3: Assessment Methods Lesson 6: Module Review

Reflect on how implementing what you have learned in this module might change your classroom.

I think that the use of graphic organizers to allow students to manipulate key vocabulary is essential in not only the learning of key vocabulary, but also the usage of said vocabulary in a meaningful way. I also think that making the students accountable for their lab reports by having a peer grading system in place will raise the level of lab reports and encourage students to put their learning into concrete

Module 4: Assessment Development Lesson 1: Important Learning Goals

Activity 2: 21st Century Skills Objectives Estimated Time: 20 minutes

In this module, focus on a single project as you complete each Your Turn activity. Note that the planning steps build on each other.

Choose standards and write objectives for your unit. Remember to write objectives that tie to targeted standards, are measurable, and incorporate 21st century skills.

Unit/Project: Elements Presentation Project

Targeted Standards Objectives

Students know that substances can be 7c: Periodic Table classified by their properties, including their melting temperature, density, hardness, and thermal and electrical conductivity. Students know each element has a 7b: Periodic Table specific number of protons in the nucleus and each isotope of the element has a different but specific number of neutrons in the nucleus.

Communication and collaboration Students will collaborate with group members as well as those in other groups in order to get the information needed to complete their project. Students will present their project to the class.

Research Students will create a project that includes a technology-based presentation that will include the focus standard requirements with information obtained on the internet as well as printed resources.

Module 4: Assessment Development Lesson 2: Assessment Plan

Activity 2: Effective Assessment Timelines Estimated Time: 20 minutes

Create an Assessment Timeline for your project. Remember to plan assessments throughout the project that meet all five purposes:

 Gauging Student Needs  Encouraging Collaboration and Self-Direction  Monitoring Progress  Checking Understanding and Encouraging Metacognition  Demonstrating Understanding

Assessment Timeline

Before project After project work work begins During project work is completed

 Unit pre-test to  on-line journal entries to  multimedia ascertain the level of track progress presentation rubric knowledge students  checklists for inter-group  summative currently possess collaboration assessment  brainstorm  rubric for requirements  journal summaries characteristics that all and research on the effectiveness elements have  conferences with group of the project.

Module 4: Assessment Development Lesson 2: Assessment Plan

Activity 3: Assessment Methods and Purposes (Optional) Estimated Time: 20 minutes

To complete your Assessment Plan for your unit, develop a table of assessment strategies that aligns to the Assessment Timeline you created in Activity 2.

As you think through the purpose and process for each assessment, you may need to modify your Assessment Timeline to best meet each of your goals and objectives.

You may want to review the Guiding Questions document in the Module 4 section of the Resources tab to help you write your Assessment Plan.

Table of Assessment Strategies

Assessment Process and Purpose of Assessment

Project Rubric This will allow the students to self assess and peer assess during the process.

Journal Students reflect on what they have done daily, with feedback from teacher or peers on varied days. Any changes or contributions made to their project including suggestions and the incorporation of these ideas into their project. Also, a summative journal entry to wrap-up the project and gauge what the students gleaned from the experience.

Presentation Summative assessment to gauge what the students have learned throughout the unit.

Module 4: Assessment Development Lesson 3: Assessment Instruments

Activity 3: Rubric and Checklist Adaptation Estimated Time: 30 minutes

1. Adapt a rubric or checklist that you selected in Module 2, Lesson 4, Activity 2 or Module 3, Lesson 5, Activity 1. Use Assessing Projects to adapt an assessment in your personal library, or modify an assessment in your Course Folder using a word processor.

2. Describe how you adapted the assessment and how you will use it in your classroom.

In order to use this assessment in my classroom I deleted the sections of the Research Rubric that don’t fit the project and added several from the Multimedia Rubric that do align with the learning goals for this project. I also modified some descriptors to include what I will be having students accomplish.

Module 4: Assessment Development Lesson 4: Module Review

Activity 1: Modules Summary Estimated Time: 10 minutes

Reflect on your learning from Module 4 and record your reflections.

I think the project timeline will be incredibly useful, but instead of doing the assessment portion of the plan in isolation of the unit, I would complete it at the same time as I plan the unit. This will allow me to focus on the purpose for assessing at that point in the unit. Creating these together allows me to set an endpoint and then design the lessons to lead the students to that assessment. This activity also introduced me to more resources for creating learning tools that can be used in my classroom, specifically rubrics that are designed specifically for my projects.

Module 5: Assessment in Action Lesson 1: Student Roles in Assessment

Activity 1: Increased Student Responsibility (Optional) Estimated Time: 15 minutes

Considering your students and their experiences with peer assessment, what concerns do you have about transitioning them to be successful assessors? List your concerns and brainstorm solutions.

Concerns Solutions

Keeping students on task and interested Make it part of their grade. in helping their classmates. Assign the students a role to play and stress that their input will be listened and responded to by the group creating the project.

Giving useful constructive criticism. Give the critiquing students a script for different areas of criticism. Make this part of their grade.

Module 5: Assessment in Action Lesson 1: Student Roles in Assessment Activity 2: Peer Feedback Estimated Time: 30 minutes

1. Review the Tips for Student Feedback document. 2. Create a resource to support or scaffold peer assessment, such as a checklist, presentation, tips sheet, dialog for modeling, and so on. You may modify any of the resources you viewed in this activity for use in your own classroom. Consider using collaboration and self-direction resources from the Assessing Projects library as well. 3. Describe how you will use the support material.

I will use the support material in my elements presentation project in order to have students display and present a more complete and interesting elements presentation. Also, peer-feedback in the form of a peer assessment will help make sure their presentation is understandable and complete. They will give input to edit each others initial presentations and group scripts.

Module 5: Assessment in Action Lesson 2: Self-Assessment

Activity 2: Supporting Metacognition (Optional) Estimated Time: 30 minutes

1. Review the Metacognition document. 2. Consider the resources you could use to support self-assessment and metacognition in your classroom. Identify an assessment instrument you have already created, modify any of the samples you have viewed, or use the Assessing Projects application to create one. 3. Describe how you will use the support material.

Using their journals, students reflect on what they have done daily, with feedback from teacher or peers on varied days. Any changes or contributions made to their project including suggestions and the incorporation of these ideas into their project. Also, a summative journal entry to wrap-up the project and gauge what the students gleaned from the experience.

Module 5: Assessment in Action Lesson 3: Assessment Management

Activity 1: Assessment Management Strategies Estimated Time: 15 minutes

1. Describe how you will organize and track student assessment data.

Students will keep an on-going journal of their project completion. They will also have a rubric to follow as they create their presentation. Students will also have an on-line storage place to share and collaborate with group members throughout the project. Reflections can be written in their journal on specific points of evidence for their project. Also, as I move around to different tables during class time and during group conferences, I can monitor their progress.

2. Describe how you will help your students organize their assessment data.

Students can store all electronic documentation on-line to be shared with other group members during the creation process. It will include the rubric for all items and assessments done within the project. Students will also have a journal that they can use to record daily ideas and peer feedback of their project.

Module 5: Assessment in Action Lesson 3: Assessment Management

Activity 2: Assessment Routines (Optional) Estimated Time: 15 minutes

What assessment activities do you want to routinely occur in your classroom? What technology do you think could help support those activities?

Routine Assessment Activities Technology

Formative assessments of content Interactive Quiz System knowledge

The analysis of data from lab Excel Spreadsheets to create graphs and experiments analyze data.

Peer and self assessments Spreadsheets, on-line calendar, on-line surveys, on-line blogging from peers that incorporate criticism and ideas.

Reflective journaling Blogs, on-line surveys.

Module 5: Assessment in Action Lesson 4: Use of Assessment Data

Activity 2: Reflection and Goal Setting Estimated Time: 15 minutes

Review your ideas for tracking and organizing student assessment data from Module 5, Lesson 3, Activity 1. How will you and your students use the information from the assessment data?

1. Consider how students can use the assessment information to:

 Reflect on their learning  Modify their goals or actions  Revise their work  Build on their 21st century skills, and so on

Describe what you will have your students do with the assessment data they collect and organize.

Students will use their journals and blogs to reflect on their learning during the creation process and use these formative assessments as a way to modify their project. Students can use this information to modify and revise their presentations and the goals of their projects. During the modification process students will be building their technology skills by using technology to move their projects forward.

2. Determine how you will use the assessment data to:

 Modify instruction  Determine proficiency  Plan future units, and so on

Plan how you will use student assessment data that you organize and track.

If most students provide the incorrect answer or can’t apply the knowledge to a new situation, then instruction will need to be simplified. I can go back to review or add another activity to clarify misconceptions. Also, I can simplify language used, in case the objective is lost in translation. I can determine proficiency by assessing their presentations and their journal entries to track their learning and ascertain where they may have moved off track from the learning goals. I can use these assessments to plan future units based on the knowledge that the students have acquired. Also, reviewing or relating the misconstrued topics to a new topic would allow for review of the old topic and an introduction of the new topic. Also, it would help students realized that concepts are not isolated from each other,

Module 5: Assessment in Action Lesson 5: Grading in a 21st Century Classroom

Activity 2: Grading Systems (Optional) Estimated Time: 10 minutes

What strategies will you use to assign grades to student work and processes?

I plan on giving less points at the beginning of the project and more at the end, so the students realize that the delivery of a finished project that showcases their research and learning is the goal of this activity. I also plan on giving a formalized content-based grade following a rubric for the student’s class presentation. I also plan on giving effort points at the beginning and throughout the project in addition to the formalized content-based grades at the end. Finally, I also plan to allow students to replace lower grades when they have redone a project or shown a better understanding of the concepts being assessed.

Module 5: Assessment in Action Lesson 6: Module Review

Reflect on the learning from this module.

I think this type of assessment just isn’t possible for daily activities, however there is definitely some value to thinking about formative assessing and allowing students to collaborate to develop and enhance their projects. One of the more difficult areas of assessing comes from distinguishing the gap in knowledge for each student. Are students leaving assignments blank because they just don’t want to do the assignment or because they actually don’t understand the assignment or concept? I have found that one-on-one conferences work well to help answer this question and have incorporated it in the past as a station lab. I look forward to incorporating peer editing to this assessment equation as well. As I think feedback from a student that understands the concept is much more palatable to struggling students than probing questions from me. There is a lot of information to get through in a school year and these strategies are all very time demanding, so this is difficult to do with the constraints on time. The choice of project must be made with particular care so that the student’s project can relate to as many content standards as possible, since so much time will be taken to produce this project.

Course Wrap-Up Summary

Activity 1: Course Reflection Estimated Time: 20 minutes

Revisit the goals you set for assessment in your classroom from Module 1, Lesson 4, Activity 1. Write about your progress toward those goals.

I have a general idea of how I want to handle assessing throughout a unit. At first I will give effort grades on the first assignments (points just for completion regardless of correctness), actual grades on key assignments (content-based grades on key portions of the project) and grades on the summative assignments and projects (Final projects and summative written assessments). It will be interesting to see how students react to assessing each other. I have a feeling that higher performing students or those in AVID, who have a background with group structured learning, will do well with this feedback, but the lower level students who are difficult to motivate will not be as involved. Also, in order to do all of this in a science classroom, I will have to do less labs and hands-on activities. This poses problem with motivation and engagement for the lower level students that may have difficulty completing this task.

What new goals do you have for assessment in your 21st Century classroom? What goals do you have for your students?

I plan on using a pre-test to determine the level of content knowledge students possess before I begin teaching the topic. I plan on using more graphic organizers with student led creation, description and peer review of said organizers. I plan on incorporating a class blog/journal to help facilitate content acquisition and peer feedback of project goals. Finally, I plan on using more content-based rubrics to allow students to collaborate within their group and with students in other groups to offer constructive criticism during the creation process. I also plan on using the multimedia presentation rubric and the creativity rubric to assist me in grading the summative project assessment at the end of this unit.

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