Performance and Formal Assessments
March 12, 2010
North Middle School in Belleville, MI
Part 1: Description of the Students, the Instructional and Assessment Context
During the time we spent in Mr. Hudock’s sixth and seventh grade “gifted and talented” social studies class, the students completed “Unit 3 – The Arab World: North Africa and Southwest Asia.” In order to develop assessments that would be both fair and challenging for the students we worked with, it was essential to take into account what level of learning they were at, as well as other factors such as the social makeup of the classroom community. In previous years, the sixth and seventh grade gifted and talented programs were separated; however, due to financial constraints and a lower number of students qualifying for the gifted and talented program, the grades were combined into one section. The school only offers the gifted and talented track for English and social studies; thus, Mr. Hudock is the only teacher at the school who teaches this program.
We were informed by the guidance of Mr. Hudock that the students were able to read at around an eighth grade reading level. This was helpful to know, as it gave us the opportunity to challenge the students slightly more than a normal sixth or seventh grade class. The students’ affinity for reading was quite clear, as we would regularly observe a number of students reading novels whenever they had free time in class. Knowing that these students were gifted and talented and that most of them were very proficient readers, we tried to focus the supplemental readings we provided on offering a straightforward analysis while asking the students to synthesize new information through the use of graphic organizers. Also, we understood that some of the material we were covering were subjects they had already worked with (the three main religions of the Arab World), while others were completely new to them (geographic features of the Arab World). Having knowledge of this variety in exposure to the subject, we did not want the students who had less exposure to be at a disadvantage. So, we developed our performance assessment so that our expectations were explicitly clear from the start: the students were given the same rubric that we would later use to grade them on, a list of the key terms that they needed to include, and were given a choice of the type of presentation they could make. We allowed them to have choice in the type of presentation because we hoped that they could mold their topic to the assignment.
The classroom community that Mr. Hudock formed with his students was also a key factor in some of our decisions in terms of the assessments we developed. We found out that many of the students had been in school together since elementary school and we rarely observed any tension or disciplinary problems within the class. One example that showed the close relationship among the class was during a presentation the students had to do in front of their peers on the Five Pillars of Islam. One student, who happens to be diagnosed with autism, was asked to present his poster, and his fear of public speaking was quite evident. He spoke in a way that was barely loud enough to hear and looked petrified to be in front of his peers. However, what was amazing to see was that the class offered encouragement to the student and tried to make him feel more comfortable in front of the class. The class genuinely cared about this student and each other as a whole. Having an environment like this meant that group work was a tool Mr. Hudock could use regularly because he knew that his students would try to work constructively with one another.
Knowing this, we developed our performance assessment so that students would work in groups of five to seven that we chose for them. The grouping itself was a process in which we took the students’ skill level and personalities into account so that each group seemed equal in aptitude and means to get along socially. For example, there was a small contingent of 7th grade girls who were clearly more emotionally developed especially in comparison to the 6th grade boys in the class. In previous observations, we noticed how the older girls were usually the ones to take the lead while doing group work and were much more focused on whatever assignment was offered. This is a topic we have dealt with in our Education Psychology class in describing how girls at this age are usually more socially developed compared to their male counterparts. By spreading out the older girls throughout the groups, we hoped that each could be a leader within their group to help keep them on task – something that actually ended up coming to fruition. Although we were not perfect in our group selection, we developed our rubric on the performance assessment so that group behavior and participation were a part of the grade the students would receive. The students all cared deeply about their grades and many of them reported on their goal sheets for the semester that Mr. Hudock had them fill out that they wanted to receive all A’s for the term. Having this information helped us make the decision that if students wanted to receive a good grade on the performance assessment, they would have to come together as a group and work productively.
Throughout the rotation, Mr. Hudock was more than generous in sharing resources, providing us with samples of the assessments he gives to his students, as well as a few examples of the students’ work. These examples were invaluable in helping us measure the appropriateness of the given assessment and how well the intended learning outcomes were met for the unit.
We gathered a nice collection of performance and achievement assessments that Mr. Hudock used in class. This included examples of restricted and extended performance assessments and select-response and supply-response achievements quizzes and tests according to Pearson’s Assessment of Student Achievement by Norman E. Gronlund and C. Keith Waugh. The Pearson book introduced us to the idea of having “restricted performance” assessments that limit the task at hand and are highly structured, and having “extended performance” assessments that are comprehensive and integrate and apply knowledge in a more realistic setting (Gronlund and Waugh, 146). As stated above, we saw examples of both of these used in the classroom or given as homework while working with Mr. Hudock. One homework assignment that he gave to the students required them to “explain some similarities among the three religions. You WILL be turning this in tomorrow.” This type of task is a formative assessment that emphasizes restricted performance-based skills. It is formative because it is used to monitor student progress during instruction, and the results were then used by Mr. Hudock to measure how well the students had met his intended learning outcomes (Gronlund and Waugh, 146). The “restricted” aspect of the definition for this assignment is used because the scope of the task is limited within the unit. That is, the students were being asked a specific question in Unit 3.
Fortunately, we obtained copies of this homework assignment completed by the students and had a chance to look at Mr. Hudock’s rationale for his grading. Judging from the nature of the assessment and the students’ responses, this was a straightforward task and was very much appropriate for the target learning outcome, which is to “compare and contrast the major religions and beliefs of the Arab World” (this and the rest of the learning outcomes will be explained in further detail in Parts 2 and 5). In grading this, Mr. Hudock wanted the students to explain a few things the religions have in common, and like the Pearson book advocates and like we discussed briefly in an ED 307 discussion with Brian, it is best to plan instruction and assessment hand in hand. The payoff of this method was evinced in how well the students answered the question, as there were many 4.5/5 and 5/5 scores.
Somewhat similar to the homework assignment, the students worked on two other formative performance assessments in class during our rotation. One was a poster to represent the Five Pillars of Islam and the other was a rock band t-shirt that the students had to design for one of the three major religions of the Arab World. These two formative performance assessments went beyond the homework assignment explained above because they were restricted and extended performance assessments. For example, the Five Pillars of Islam poster was extended because it measured more than one skill (Gronlund and Waugh, 146): representing the five pillars in writing with a visual aid, and presenting the poster to the class. Similarly, the rock band t-shirt measured more than one skill and let the students have freedom in choosing which religion to present. Yet, both of these had an element of a restricted performance assessment because they measured only one topic within the unit.
Mr. Hudock definitely utilized having five pre-student teachers in the class on Wednesdays and had us grade both the Five Pillars of Islam posters and the rock band t-shirts. Again, the performance assessments we saw him use during our time with the group accurately reflected the intended learning outcomes. For example, on the rubric for the rock band t-shirt project the high score in the category “tour locations” could be achieved by showing the “locations important to the religion are clearly visible and at least three are written.” One weakness worth mentioning of the rock band t-shirt and Five Pillars of Islam poster was that the projects isolated the similarities and differences that students needed to make among the three major religions of the Arab World (which, we remember is an intended learning outcome). The students only had the homework assignment to show that they knew the ways the three major religions were similar yet different. Leaving the rotation, we wondered if the way that Mr. Hudock utilized these performance assessments adversely affected how the students looked at the similarities and differences among the religions.
Although the students didn’t complete an achievement assessment while we worked with the class, we were able to obtain samples of what he has used in the past. All of the samples obtained were formative achievement assessments that measure student progress during the unit or chapter in the textbook. Also, in all of these achievement assessments, Mr. Hudock used select-response and supply-response items. For example, during a formative achievement quiz on the geographic features of the Arab World, he has a multiple choice section that requires the students to look at a map and chose a given best answer; this is a select-response item according to the Pearson book. In the same quiz, though, he also asks the students to “explain desertification: what is it? Where is it? How is it caused?” This type of question is a supply-response item, because the students must provide a written response and don’t have any given best answers.
Within the first week of working with Mr. Hudock, it was clear that he preferred performance assessments over achievement ones. He explained to us that, although they might take more time to grade, he feels that performance assessments better reflect the students’ abilities because they measure skills and emphasize richness in content (based off of his rubrics). The most important lesson we took away from working with him was that both his performance and achievement assessments are planned at the beginning of the year when he plans instruction with fellow social studies teachers at North Middle School. Furthermore, it was valuable to see how explicit he is with his students about knowing the learning objectives and terms within each unit, as well as applying this knowledge on the performance and achievement assessments.
Part 2: Student Learning Objectives and Instructional Goals
Our assignments from Mr. Hudock were heavily based on the Essential Learning/Standards for Quarter 3 sheet, which came from the Michigan 7th grade History and Geography Content Expectations. Each of us had a group of five to seven students whom we worked with throughout the six weeks. The problem space for all of the groups was the development of the Arab World, while each group had a different entry point into this problem space. Each group had an Arab World topic, or “big question,” to cover, including: major religions and beliefs (Jacob’s group), economic systems (Kristin’s group), government systems (Derek’s group), major geographic features (Kyle’s group), and major historical events and figures (Aeryn’s group).
The first assignment we created for our groups was a graphic organizer which accompanied an article that we each found and/or created from online sources. The learning objective of this assignment was to get the students’ feet wet in the material and to introduce them to the topics their respective groups would cover in the presentations. The objective was not to have them memorize facts from the articles; we merely wanted them to get familiar with the material and gain a grasp on the material. This grasp would be solidified later as they worked on the final project. Overall, the skills the students were to improve upon in this graphic organizer activity were honing their ability to read words that are related to the Arab world. Additionally we wanted them to learn how to pick important parts out of something they read. The graphic organizers acted as scaffolding for this.
1. Arab World Religions Graphic Organizer
The religions graphic organizer was a Venn diagram of Islam, Christianity, and Judaism, and included a spot for all three. It tested students’ ability to pick out information from an article on a larger scope and in a more cohesive way than the other worksheets did. The students essentially had to keep four categories in their minds at all times as they read and synthesize that information onto the diagram. The advantage to this was that it would, ideally, teach the students to be historical multi-taskers and to be able to think about different things in relation to one another as well as separate units with unique characteristic. It hit on the following standards: W3.1.9- Describe the significance of legal codes, belief systems, written languages and communications in the development of large regional empires; W3.2.1- ID and describe the beliefs of the five major world religions; and W3.2.2- Locate the geographical center of major religions.
2. Arab World Economy Graphic Organizer
The economy graphic organizer focused on the number one export from the Arab world: oil. It had two columns, one for the Arab World and one for the rest of the world. Three boxes were under each column with questions about oil such as “Why is oil so important in the Arab World?” and “How has the rise of oil prices impacted other countries?” The organizer is short enough to keep the students’ attention (hopefully) and simple enough that they don’t have to spend an extreme amount of time reading over the article over and over to find the answers. The students seemed to complete it with ease. They gave positive feedback on the format of the organizer and all of them finished it. If the worksheet had been too short/long or easy/complicated, we could alter future worksheets to meet their zone of proximal development. The standard that the organizer addresses is G2.2.1- Describe the human characteristics of the region under study (including languages, religion, economic system, governmental system, cultural traditions).
3. Arab World Government Graphic Organizer
The government graphic organizer was also a Venn diagram of the U.S. government, Afghanistan government and characteristics of both. It assessed how well the students could pick out things that they read in an article. It also sought to challenge the students to compare and contrast an Eastern vs. Western government; this is important because we want students to see views of both East and West, not just Eurocentric ideas. We also want them to be able to compare and contrast Eastern and Western concepts. The worksheet covered the following content standards: W 3.1.8- Describe the role of state authority, military power, taxation systems; W3.1.9- Describe the significance of legal codes, belief systems, written languages and communications in the development of large regional empires; G1.3.3-Explain the different ways in which places are connected and how those connections demonstrate interdependence and accessibility; and G4.4.1- Identify and explain factors that contribute to conflict and cooperation between and among cultural groups.
4. Geographic Features Graphic Organizer
Like the historical events organizer, the geographic features graphic organizer was simple, straightforward, and more of a guide to reading than a regurgitation of facts. It was in a double-entry journal format and asked students to talk about the major geographic features of the Arab world as well as how these features were important to inhabitants. The assignment’s strength was that it beautifully intertwined history and geography in a cohesive way. Evidence for this was in the students’ answers, which showed knowledge of both world history and geography in the Arab World. The worksheet questions and the article cover the following World History (W) and Geography (G) standards extensively: W3.1.2- Using historic and modern maps, locate three major empires of this era, describe their geographic characteristics including physical features and climates, and propose a generalization about the relationship between geographic characteristics and the development of early empires; W3.2.2-Locate the geographical center of major religions; G1.2.1- Locate the major landforms, rivers and climate regions of the Eastern Hemisphere; G1.2.6- Apply the skills of geographic inquiry to analyze a problem or issue of importance to a region of the Eastern Hemisphere; G1.3.1- Use the fundamental themes of geography to describe regions or places on earth, G2.1.1- Describe the landform features and the climate of the region under study; G3.2.1- Explain how and why ecosystems differ as a consequence of differences in latitude, elevation and human activities; G3.2.2- Identify ecosystems of a continent and explain why some provide greater opportunities for humans to use than do other ecosystems and how that changes with technology; and G4.3.1- Identify places in the Eastern Hemisphere that have been modified to be suitable for settlement by describing the modifications that were necessary. These standards are interrelated and effectively fit together because they each cover both historic and geographic aspects.
5. Historical Events Graphic Organizer
For example, the graphic organizer on the historical events of the Arab world scaffolded students’ reading by giving them guidelines and things to look for: they had to identify territory that Arabs and Jews claimed, and identify responses to the conflict over the territory (Balfour Declaration, Great Britain’s role, etc.). Finally, they had to tie it all together by stating what Arab and Jewish relations are like today. This worksheet was intended to help them see the historical conflict in a chronological way (questions were ordered chronologically) and to see it in a broad way. There were no minute details asked for on this organizer. This organizer is related to the following World History (W) and Geography (G) standards: W3.1.8- Describe the role of state authority and military power; G1.3.3- Explain the different ways in which places are connected and how those connections demonstrate interdependence and accessibility; G4.3.2- Describe patterns of settlement by using historical and modern maps; and G4.4.1- Identify and explain factors that contribute to conflict and cooperation between and among cultural groups.
Key Terms
The graphic organizers touched on many of the key terms and concepts that Mr. Hudock wanted his students to learn in this unit, including but not limited to: Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Ottoman Empire, OPEC, Oil, Petrochemicals, Kurds, Zionism and Irrigation. The Michigan Middle School Vocabulary Words that the assignments covered were World Regions, Human Environment Interaction, Occupations, Governments, Economic and Political Connections and Patterns, Global Consequences, and Geographic Aspects of World Events. Though each term was specific to a particular graphic organizer, many overlapped. For example, Islam and Judaism were in both the historical events article and religions articles. Theoretically, in the end the students will be exposed to and be able to learn all of the terms after seeing their classmates’ Big Question presentation. The assessment of this particular learning will be explained later in this paper.
Big Question Project
The culminating project at the end of the unit was called the Arab World “Big Question” Project. Each group had to make a newscast, poem/song/rap, or poster that effectively communicated the answers to their group’s Big Question. All of the groups did a presentation and most did a combination of newscast and rap, newscast and poster, etc. We evaluated these projects based on the title they created, illustrations, thesis that answered their Big Question, use of key terms, supplemental facts and examples, participation, and overall presentation. Our rationale for these categories was that we wanted to cover a broad array of things. This is important because learning is a multi-faceted occurrence and therefore should be evaluated on many different levels and in many different ways. It also allowed for the project to speak to the many different strengths of the groups’ participants.
The Michigan Middle School Content Expectations that were addressed for each project were the same as those that each graphic organizer touched on, respectively. These standards were essentially the primary concepts and facts (i.e. substance) that the students were responsible for learning. Mr. Hudock tested the students’ learning of the presentation material by asking them questions about what they learned from each presentation right after it occurred. This is a fairly simple way to assess students’ understanding but is by no means foolproof. However, it did seem to be a good review for the students; asking them questions after the presentation kept them alert and made them engage in listening to their presenting peers in a more active way.
The skills that we wanted the students to learn by doing the project were many. First of all, teamwork was a big objective. Observation of the groups in action proved that not all of the groups cooperated, but for the most part they did. Since it is impossible to get through middle and high school without working with others, this skill was especially important for us to help foster. The groups also had to hone their organizational and planning skills. This project did not allow them to do things last minute; it all required careful thought and coordination. The students also learned to take information that they learned on previous days and formulate it into a presentation/summary to teach their peers. This is important because it encompasses 2 of the 3 R’s in SQ3R (“Recite” and “Review”). Students had to make sure they reviewed their material and then recited it to the class, which in turn, was a review for themselves, while teaching their peers information at the same time. Evidence that all groups achieved this was evident in their presentations. No presentation was off-base or irrelevant to the information they learned in the graphic organizer and article.
Part 3: Explanation of Key Concepts and Skills under Study
1. What are the similarities and differences between the main religions of the Arab World?
This unit focuses on the people, culture, and religion of the region known as the Middle East, but is often referred to as the “Arab World.” The students have spent a lot of time learning about the three major religions that have made a lasting impact in this area, which are Islam, Christianity, and Judaism. The most important ideas to understand revolve around getting a deeper understanding of what each religion entails, and then being able to compare and contrast them to each other. We wanted the students to see a commonality among the religions instead of viewing them as confusing or distant. By the end of the unit, the students were able to complete a graphic organizer, listing key facts about each religion, along with traits that are shared by Christianity, Judaism, and Islam.
To begin, we show how all three religions have their origin in the Middle East and have lasted for thousands of years. This is significant when stressing the importance of the region, because it still hosts important cities, known as ‘Holy Land,’ and continues to be the site of religious conflict. Looking at how these religions are similar becomes more complicated, but students should be able to find that all three religions have a devotion to a single God, though they have different names such as Yahweh and Allah. All of these religions believe in organized assembly and prayer, which take place in churches, synagogues, and mosques. Also these three groups have a book of prayer, known as the Bible, Koran, and Torah, which is taken as the word of God, outlining guidelines for worship and principles to live by. The last comparison the students were able to make relates to the spread and movement that has been made with the religions, spreading to all parts of the globe, taking on new denominations as cultures shift. The students were able to recognize the important traits in each religion, but had some challenges in learning all three together. Because most of the students were not familiar with Judaism or Islam, it was harder for them to contextualize some of the beliefs, and customs. It was not too difficult for the students to show that they understood the material, because the worksheets gave them indicators and space to list the major events, people, and places that relate to each religion. This connects to HSCE W3.2.1 because it lists and describes the beliefs of major world religions; and also HSCE W3.2.2, becausewe locate the geographical center of major religions, specifically their origins.
2. How does oil in the Arab World impact the economy in that region as well as in the rest of the world?
The Middle East dominates the market for oil production, creating a power struggle by outside nations competing for this valuable natural resource. The richest oil-producing countries include Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, and Bahrain. The rise in technology is directly responsible for the increased dependence on oil, specifically foreign oil, because the Middle East hosts the majority of the world’s oil reserves. The United States produces oil, but consumes far too much to be self-subsistent. The oil crisis has developed after September 11, 2001 and left the prices of oil on the constant rise. This, matched with a steady increase on oil consumption, has made the United States increasingly more vulnerable. Currently the United States imports over 55% of their oil and is seeking alternative solutions.
Another topic to consider is the possible solution to oil monopolies, such as alternative oil sources. One projected solution includes the construction of an oil pipeline through Central Asia to Afghanistan, which could open up a new production market for the West specifically the United States. The HSCE that relates to this topic isG2.2.1, which describes the human characteristics of the region under study (including languages, religion, economic system, governmental system, cultural traditions) This specifically touches on the economic system, but relies on cultural traditions of other “Western” nations.
3. How do the governments of the Arab World, specifically Afghanistan, compare and contrast to the democratic government in the United States?
The United States has played an important role in influencing the new Afghan government. We wanted students to see how similar this government is to our own and to be able to make specific connections linking the two. The region of the Middle East that encompasses Afghanistan has been a location which has been occupied, and fought over by foreign powers throughout its existence. In more modern times, Great Britain and the Soviet Union have exploited the area for its strategic location and natural resources, resulting in many years of fighting and unrest. The instability in the region has only intensified within the past twenty years as the United States has imposed a War on Terror and ousted the Taliban regime. We wanted students to first understand the nations’ history, especially with the Taliban, because of its role in the previous government. An important aspect of Afghanistan is that it has hosted nearly every type of government, and for a long time, the Taliban government brought the much sought stability. The important turning point was in 2001 when the Taliban fell and the United States began to work to promote a democratic government.
Afghanistan developed a written constitution, heavily influenced by the United States Constitution, which outlined the new form of government to become an Islamic Republic. The new government is very comparable to the U.S. which also has a judicial, legislative, and executive branch, to set up checks and balances. They also created a Supreme Court, where Justices are also appointed, to uphold the laws and to hold elections for president. One other issue that both nations face deals with elections and complications. The 2004 presidential elections were surrounded by controversy regarding voter fraud, corruption, and miscounting of ballots. We did however expect that some students may have trouble with the actual article and some of the vocabulary. The article contained a lot of specific facts regarding political parties, history, and events. This required some explaining of terms and review, but the students were able to pull out the necessary information and easily make connections linking the Afghan government to the United States government. This fits the HSCE G.1.3.3 because it explains the different ways in which places are connected and how those connections demonstrate interdependence and accessibility.
4. What are the main major geographic features of the Arab World and what are some of the characteristics of these features? In what ways are they important to humans?
The Middle East has always served as a strategically important place, which has only become more essential with discovery of rich natural resources such as petroleum. The geographic features that are important for the students to learn center on water which includes, rivers, deltas, seas, and gulfs. Agriculture has been important in the Middle East for thousands of years, and has made them dependent on water systems for irrigation, mobility, and sustaining life. The richest soil in the area is found in Mesopotamia, which is now known as Iraq, Syria, and Turkey. The reason this area has been so important throughout history is because it sits between two of the largest river systems in the World, the Nile and Euphrates Rivers. The students needed to be able to understand where these rivers are located and how they affect the surrounding areas.
The other major geographical area is the Persian Gulf, located between Iran, Oman, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, and Iraq. This is a strategic location, because it is the only access from these nations to the ocean waterways. Because of this, it has become a major trade route currently utilized for shipping of crude oil, which dominates the World market. The students may have a difficulty understanding the land borders of these nations and how they have shifted over time. The waterways have not changed though governments and nations have undergone several transformations over the past three thousand years. The students should have no trouble identifying the important roles that each system plays within the region, nor the history of people depending on them. This matches HSCE G1.3.1 because it uses the fundamental themes of geography to describe regions or places on earth.
5. What was the impact of the Arab-Israeli Conflict on the development of current Arab World societies?
The area known as Palestine has been the center of a religious war between Israel and Palestine since Biblical times but is most violent in the modern day. This area changed hands many times but was affected the most as result of the Zionist movement in the mid-Twentieth Century as large numbers of Jewish people moved into the previous Muslim territory. We expect students to understand how the British and Balfour Declaration opened up the floodgates for civil unrest in Palestine, and changed the religious demographics of the area. We also want to show the redistricting of national lines, as Israel began to take over large parts of Palestine after gaining independence in 1948. There are key locations that are important to know, such as the Gaza Strip, Sinai Peninsula, West Bank, Golan Heights, and Jerusalem, the “holy city.” The important events that brought so much attention to this part of the World were the uprisings in the late 1980’s, which led to mass violence until 1993 and the Oslo Accord. This significant peace treaty was orchestrated by President Bill Clinton to bring some stability to the region. There is still a great tension among Israeli and Palestinian people, largely to do with Israelis settling deeper into Palestinian territory. Other key players in these events is Yasser Arafat, who was the leader of the PLO (the Palestine Liberation Organization), which used violence as its primary strategy to retake land. It is important to understand the important roles a leader can play as they represent an entire nation, and how they have the authority to control a military or call upon citizens to take violence into their own hands. The HSCE that fits this is W3.1.8, because it describes the role of state authority and military power, along with patterns of settlement by using historical and modern maps. The other standard represented is G4.4.1 , which identifies and explains factors that contribute to conflict and cooperation between and among cultural groups.
Part 4: Achievement Test
Professional Rationale
Part I – Multiple Choice
Question 1 - In this question, we wanted to make sure that students knew the term “monotheism,” because the three main religions covered in Unit 3: The Arab World are monotheistic. Also, Mr. Hudock wanted us to include this question, because “monotheism” is a key term for the unit. It is important to consider that this question is aimed at the larger general learning outcome[1] of the unit, which is something the Pearson book advocates. In this case, one of the outcomes is “to compare and contrast the major religions.”
Q2 – Again, this question requires that students know another key term for the unit, “Zionism.” Following the guidelines for writing multiple choice selection items, the choices in the question are given in similar length to eliminate length as a clue. In addition, this question is aimed at a specific point in the general learning outcomes of the unit because students must be familiar with the philosophies of the main religions.
Q3 – This is a geography question and was designed for students to visualize what “southeast from Turkey into the northern end of the Persian Gulf” means. Working with this wording, they should realize that this is the Tigris River. One of the intended learning outcomes of the unit is to “identify major geographic features” and this question meets that purpose. Also, the choices in the question are worded similarly and there is no other best answer. If we had included the Euphrates River as another option, this would confuse the students because no answer would clearly be best between “the Tigris” or “the Euphrates.”
Q4 – Irrigation is a key term in the unit, so this question meets an intended learning outcome. The wording among the choices is consistent so as not to slow down the students while reading the choices. This is an important term not only to this unit, but to other units and even other subjects.
Q5 – Another geography question, again with consistent wording among the choices, this item asks that students identify “The Red Sea” as the inlet between Africa and Asia. However, students were confused by this question, because another item could have technically answered the question. The Pearson book says that one choice must clearly be best or correct. In this case, the “Gulf of Aden” could technically be an answer, even though we didn’t discuss this term in class.
Q6 – The answer to this question, “oil,” is an important and recurring key term in the unit. This question asks that students identify “oil” in a geographic context, which partially matches the intended learning outcome for the unit. We say “partially matches,” because the students must also know the significance of oil to society.
Q7 – When students took this quiz, this question consistently saw very poor results. Therefore, the responsibility lies with us as teachers for this outcome. The question loosely correlated with the intended learning outcome “identify government systems of the Arab World,” because the government of Afghanistan was the focus government. However, this fact-based geographical question doesn’t match the learning task to be measured or the outcome.
Q8 – This question measures the intended learning outcome much better than the last, as the students were required to know “the similarities and differences between them (government systems of the Arab World, in this case, Afghanistan) and our government. Still, the question focuses more on a fact than students showing their skills and could’ve been improved by having the student show that they can identify what the function of the executive branch is in both governments. That way, the intended learning outcome quoted above would still be met.
Q9 – Another fact-based item that asks the students to identify who divided Palestine in half, this question was intended to align with the intended learning outcome “explain the impact of major historical events on the development of current Arab World societies ” However, it only asks the students to identify the fact about an event, not the actual impact.
Q10 – This is an excellent question, because it requires that the students apply a key term (in this case, “the Ottoman Empire”) to the stem of the question “What is the Balfour Declaration.” With a right answer, the students show that they have the skill to explain the impact of a major historical event on the development of current Arab World societies.
Q11 – In this item, we’re attempting to assess that the students know how the existence of the Palestine Liberation Organization is related to the creation of Israel as a state. The students must know that the creation of Israel made possible the existence of the PLO, which matches the intended learning outcome. Again, note how the items are of similar length and wording.
Q12 – In this item, we’re attempting to see if the students know the very basic, yet important function of OPEC. This is a key term and relates to the intended learning outcome of “developing knowledge of the economic systems of the Arab World and understand their impact on the global world.”
Q13 – Similar to Q12, this question asks that students show they know how an embargo impacts the global world (intended learning outcome). Moreover, the question requires the students to have the skill necessary to know the effect of the embargo.
Part II – True/False
Q14 – Here, we’re looking to assess that the students know a specific belief about one of the three major religions of the Arab World (Judaism, specifically Orthodox). This falls in accordance with the intended learning outcome. Also, we’re hoping that the students know that the word “orthodox,” no matter the religion, means a strict interpretation.
Q15 – “Kurds” is a key term and this question assesses if the students know the geographic location of the Kurds, which is an intended learning outcome.
Q16 – It is important that the students know that some governments of the Arab World that they hear about in the news, in this case the Taliban, are not actually the legitimate government in power. One part of the intended learning outcome that this question relates to is “identify government systems of the Arab World.” Here, the students have to identify an illegitimate government.
Q17 – The term “mandate” is a key term and the only way to get this answer right (besides guessing) is to know the definition. As the Pearson book advocates, a true/false item must contain one central idea and the idea must be unequivocally judged true or false. Here, the student has to know the definition of “mandate.”
Q18 – In this item, we’re trying to see if the students know the similarities among the Afghan government and our own, which follows the intended learning outcome. Also, in accordance with the Pearson book, this question focuses on one central idea and that idea can (again) be unequivocally judged true or false.
Part III – Fill in the Blank
Q19 – This Fill in the Blank item asks that students know how oil has impacted the Arab World as an economic source of power and influence. We’re assessing that the students see this connection, because it’s an intended learning outcome.
Q20 – Similar to Q19, this question requires students to know the connection between oil as a natural resource and oil in the Arab World. This goes hand in hand and the students must know this for Unit 3.
Q21 – OPEC is a key term and this item requires the students to know that four countries originally founded the organization. This item is more introductory level and fact-based, but is nonetheless reinforcement. And, as Willingham says, repetition, reinforcement and practice is the only way to get students to free up space in their working memory for more advanced tasks. Hopefully the students have this aspect of OPEC stored in their long-term memory.
Q22 – This item again emphasizes the economic importance of oil and we’re trying to assess if the students know the connection between oil and the U.S. and our dependence on oil from Southwest Asia.
Q23 – Here, we’re trying to assess if the students know the impact of WWII on the countries of the Arab World. This is a great item, because it mixes two of the intended learning outcomes: the economic systems of the Arab World, and the impact of major historical events on the development of current Arab World societies.
Part IV – Short Answer
Q24 – This short answer, supply-type item is made to assess whether or not the students know the significance of the geographic key term “fertile crescent” to greater society. This short answer item matches the intended learning outcome of geography in Unit 3 and calls for a single, brief answer. When given to the class, approximately 90% of the students answered this question correctly and briefly.
Q25 – With this short answer question, we’re trying to see if the students can simply state the main religious figures of the three major religions of the Arab World. The Pearson “checklist for evaluating short-answer items” found on p. 131, says that there must be a single, brief answer. In this question, the students should respond with a number of single answers, while still making the response brief.
Q26 – This is a well-stated, incomplete sentence short answer item and is made to assess if the students know the number one reason for the Persian Gulf War. Furthermore, this item correlates with the intended learning outcome about major historical events and the reasons they occurred and impact they have had on the Arab World.
Part V – Essay
Q27 – In the essay part of the test, we want to have one “restricted-response question” that requires a brief, precise response and one “extended-response question” that gives more freedom in the response, according to the Pearson book. This question, which asks the students to “list impacts of oil on the Arab World”, is a “restricted-response question,” because the task is clear with the word “list.” In this question, we want to assess that the students knew how oil connects to almost all of Mr. Hudock’s “essential learning standards” or intended learning outcomes.
Q28 – This supply-type item is an “extended-response question,” because it asks the students to include many ideas and develop a more free form response than a restricted-response question. In this item, we want to assess if the students can “describe” the overall impact that the intended learning outcomes have on the Arab World. It’s difficult developing unit-wide essay questions, but we want the students to make connections among outcomes like geographic features, economic systems, historical events, and governments.
Challenges
Based on observations from the students’ presentations of the Unit 3 “Big Question” performance assessments, we have found that the students could have some challenges in translating each other’s information to an achievement assessment. Since the class has worked in groups of five to seven and have focused on only one of the five big questions within the unit, they might have trouble recalling information that they only studied in the textbook or had been taught by their peers. Although they should master the content that their performance assessment has focused on, this is only a fifth of what is on the Unit 3 test. In order to counter this challenge presented by the nature of the performance assessment’s role in the unit, we had a class discussion led by Mr. Hudock after each group finished presenting their “Big Question” project in order to recap and locate the main ideas from each group. By summarizing what the students just learned from their peers and asking the students to recall specific ideas or terms, we hope that knowledge will transfer well on the test.
Part 5: Performance Assessment
Through this performance assessment, students will become the “experts” of a specific topic. The topics for this performance assessment were based off of the five content expectations of this unit, as mentioned in Part II. Following Bob Bain’s advice in They Thought the World Was Flat? about the importance of questioning, we turned these content expectations into “big questions” that we wanted the students to investigate and, eventually, answer (see Part 3). As previously mentioned, students were be split up into small groups (of five to seven students), and each group will be assigned one of the unit’s big questions. After reading the supplemental articles we provided and filling out the graphic organizers we created (see appendices # and #), they will teach the class what they have learned. Thus, the students will demonstrate their learning through these class presentations.
There are several objectives of this performance assessment that we want all students to master. Through this performance assessment, students will be able to:
1. answer their topic’s central question by constructing a thesis
2. demonstrate an understanding of their topic by providing specific facts/examples
3. define and explain the significance of their topic’s key terms
4. demonstrate an understanding of their topic by clearly and effectively teaching their classmates the information.
These objectives refer to the specific learning goals of each group. However, as each group will only be learning one topic, it is important that we consider the objectives of the performance assessment as a whole. Essentially, after listening to the other groups’ presentations, each student in the class will (hopefully) be able to demonstrate an understanding of all of the topics, shown by summarizing the key points and ideas during a class discussion. Students’ responses during this discussion will inform us how clear and effective each of the group’s presentations were and if all class objectives were met.
The focus of this assessment will mainly be on each group’s final product, instead of on the procedure. Each group had the freedom to choose how they were going to present their material (either in the form of a poem/rap, a poster, or a news cast). By giving the students various options, we are (as one bright seventh-grader stated) giving them “the illusion of freedom”; yet at the same time, the options emphasize the importance of the final product. We chose to focus our assessment on the product because we believe that “different procedures can result in an equally good product” and that “the product has qualities that can be clearly identified and judged” (Gronlund and Waugh, 150). Essentially, through this performance assessment, we are looking to see if the students understand the material and can fulfill the stated objectives.
At the same time, however, we are not simply disregarding the procedure aspect of this project. In middle school classrooms, working in a group setting can be just as much a learning experience as the material itself; students are learning important skills and lessons about cooperation and equal participation. In the project’s rubric, we acknowledge the importance (and sometimes, the difficulty) of working together as a group and we will award up to five points for group dynamics and equal participation. As Gronlund and Waugh point out, procedure evaluation is often challenging because it can be subjective, inconvenient, and the “procedure is [sometimes] not available for observation” (Gronlund and Waugh, 150). However, with so many pre-student teachers working directly with the groups, we feel that we will be able to properly assess the groups’ cooperation and participation.
Through the rubric we created (see below), we feel that the scoring of this performance assessment will be clear and objective. We have created a rating scale that will “provide an opportunity to mark the degree to which an element is present” (Gronlund and Waugh, 160). Each required aspect of the presentation is clearly defined and explained, which will help reduce student confusion about our expectations. For example, we require that each group incorporates their topic’s key terms; for this, the rubric clearly explains how groups that define all key terms will receive full points (5 points out of 5), while groups with 1-2 key terms missing will receive partial credit (2- 3 points out of 5) and groups with only a couple of key terms correctly defined will receive little or no credit (0-1 points out of 5). The explicitness of the rubric helps keeps the performance assessment objective and clear; and, by giving students a copy of the rubric in advance, there should (potentially) be no confusion about the project’s requirements or our expectations.
Comments:
According to Gronlund and Waugh in Assessment of Student Achievement, students often need guidance to familiarize themselves with a performance assessment. Historically, most classrooms in public schools administer traditional “paper-and-pencil” tests, which have clear expectations and grading procedures. As Gronlund and Waugh point out, “the performance assessment is a new experience” and many students “have not had a prior history to guide behavior and form expectations” (Gronlund and Waugh, 173). Undoubtedly, we cannot overlook the fact that these students are in the sixth and seventh grades and may feel unprepared for such assessments. For some of the quieter, more reserved students, presenting in front of the class may cause them to feel apprehensive or nervous; even the more outgoing students may feel nervous or unsettled by being placed in such a situation. However, such performance assessments are very familiar to the students in Mr. Hudock’s class. Throughout the last semester, the students have had experience with such assessments due to their previous projects with the pre-student teachers from the University of Michigan. Also, Mr. Hudock often has his students present different assignments and projects in front of the class; by making class presentations a regular aspect of the class, students may feel more comfortable and prepared during our performance assessment. Furthermore, as these students have—for the most part—been in the same gifted and talented program since elementary school, they are very comfortable around each other; through our observations, it is clear that most students in the class feel confident and safe sharing their ideas during class discussions. This creates a comfortable class environment that may help reduce student apprehension and nervousness.
Many students may find themselves feeling confused about the performance assessment’s expectations and requirements. While it helps that students have already experienced this kind of assessment with previous pre-student teachers, it is still important that we properly prepare students for the performance assessment. Gronlund and Waugh suggest the following: clearly explain the assessment’s expectations, show the tools and resources that they can (and should) use, explain how the performance will be assessed, and explain how feedback will be provided (Gronlund and Waugh, 174). For the most part, we followed these suggestions: we provided students with a clear and concise rubric that outlined the expectations of the project; we provided students with the materials, the informational articles, and the project supplies needed to be successful; and we explained to students how and when they will present. Looking back, however, it is clear that we failed to explain how feedback will be provided: on the day of the performance assessment, for example, many students were surprised to hear that we—the pre-student teachers—would be the ones to assess the presentation. Informing the students of this earlier may have changed how much they valued our input and suggestions while preparing for their presentation, and how they presented the material. While we don’t feel that this would have caused any major changes in the students’ presentations, it is something for us to keep in mind as we become teachers.
However, going beyond the potential issues of apprehension and confusion, performance assessments such as this one present other challenges and difficulties. For example, by having students work in groups, we run the risk of the students being distracted and not staying on task; these students (as a result of being together since elementary school) are very talkative, which may potentially take away from the productivity of the group. By having one pre-student teacher per group, we feel that the students will be more focused and productive than if they were working on their own.
Furthermore, as in any middle school classroom, there will be challenges with students not working well together or not getting along. While Mr. Hudock’s class is unique in the fact that the students have been together since elementary school, this does not necessarily mean that arguments and clashing personalities will be avoided. To prevent any problems, we carefully assigned groups based on student personalities, work ethic, and previous group interactions. Also, we had Mr. Hudock look at the groups before hand, and he gave us input about potential problems that we may encounter between students. While no group will work perfectly together, we feel that we have established groups that will cooperate and work well together.
> Reflection of Lesson
For more information about North Middle School, visit their website.
North Middle School in Belleville, MI
Part 1: Description of the Students, the Instructional and Assessment Context
During the time we spent in Mr. Hudock’s sixth and seventh grade “gifted and talented” social studies class, the students completed “Unit 3 – The Arab World: North Africa and Southwest Asia.” In order to develop assessments that would be both fair and challenging for the students we worked with, it was essential to take into account what level of learning they were at, as well as other factors such as the social makeup of the classroom community. In previous years, the sixth and seventh grade gifted and talented programs were separated; however, due to financial constraints and a lower number of students qualifying for the gifted and talented program, the grades were combined into one section. The school only offers the gifted and talented track for English and social studies; thus, Mr. Hudock is the only teacher at the school who teaches this program.
We were informed by the guidance of Mr. Hudock that the students were able to read at around an eighth grade reading level. This was helpful to know, as it gave us the opportunity to challenge the students slightly more than a normal sixth or seventh grade class. The students’ affinity for reading was quite clear, as we would regularly observe a number of students reading novels whenever they had free time in class. Knowing that these students were gifted and talented and that most of them were very proficient readers, we tried to focus the supplemental readings we provided on offering a straightforward analysis while asking the students to synthesize new information through the use of graphic organizers. Also, we understood that some of the material we were covering were subjects they had already worked with (the three main religions of the Arab World), while others were completely new to them (geographic features of the Arab World). Having knowledge of this variety in exposure to the subject, we did not want the students who had less exposure to be at a disadvantage. So, we developed our performance assessment so that our expectations were explicitly clear from the start: the students were given the same rubric that we would later use to grade them on, a list of the key terms that they needed to include, and were given a choice of the type of presentation they could make. We allowed them to have choice in the type of presentation because we hoped that they could mold their topic to the assignment.
The classroom community that Mr. Hudock formed with his students was also a key factor in some of our decisions in terms of the assessments we developed. We found out that many of the students had been in school together since elementary school and we rarely observed any tension or disciplinary problems within the class. One example that showed the close relationship among the class was during a presentation the students had to do in front of their peers on the Five Pillars of Islam. One student, who happens to be diagnosed with autism, was asked to present his poster, and his fear of public speaking was quite evident. He spoke in a way that was barely loud enough to hear and looked petrified to be in front of his peers. However, what was amazing to see was that the class offered encouragement to the student and tried to make him feel more comfortable in front of the class. The class genuinely cared about this student and each other as a whole. Having an environment like this meant that group work was a tool Mr. Hudock could use regularly because he knew that his students would try to work constructively with one another.
Knowing this, we developed our performance assessment so that students would work in groups of five to seven that we chose for them. The grouping itself was a process in which we took the students’ skill level and personalities into account so that each group seemed equal in aptitude and means to get along socially. For example, there was a small contingent of 7th grade girls who were clearly more emotionally developed especially in comparison to the 6th grade boys in the class. In previous observations, we noticed how the older girls were usually the ones to take the lead while doing group work and were much more focused on whatever assignment was offered. This is a topic we have dealt with in our Education Psychology class in describing how girls at this age are usually more socially developed compared to their male counterparts. By spreading out the older girls throughout the groups, we hoped that each could be a leader within their group to help keep them on task – something that actually ended up coming to fruition. Although we were not perfect in our group selection, we developed our rubric on the performance assessment so that group behavior and participation were a part of the grade the students would receive. The students all cared deeply about their grades and many of them reported on their goal sheets for the semester that Mr. Hudock had them fill out that they wanted to receive all A’s for the term. Having this information helped us make the decision that if students wanted to receive a good grade on the performance assessment, they would have to come together as a group and work productively.
Throughout the rotation, Mr. Hudock was more than generous in sharing resources, providing us with samples of the assessments he gives to his students, as well as a few examples of the students’ work. These examples were invaluable in helping us measure the appropriateness of the given assessment and how well the intended learning outcomes were met for the unit.
We gathered a nice collection of performance and achievement assessments that Mr. Hudock used in class. This included examples of restricted and extended performance assessments and select-response and supply-response achievements quizzes and tests according to Pearson’s Assessment of Student Achievement by Norman E. Gronlund and C. Keith Waugh. The Pearson book introduced us to the idea of having “restricted performance” assessments that limit the task at hand and are highly structured, and having “extended performance” assessments that are comprehensive and integrate and apply knowledge in a more realistic setting (Gronlund and Waugh, 146). As stated above, we saw examples of both of these used in the classroom or given as homework while working with Mr. Hudock. One homework assignment that he gave to the students required them to “explain some similarities among the three religions. You WILL be turning this in tomorrow.” This type of task is a formative assessment that emphasizes restricted performance-based skills. It is formative because it is used to monitor student progress during instruction, and the results were then used by Mr. Hudock to measure how well the students had met his intended learning outcomes (Gronlund and Waugh, 146). The “restricted” aspect of the definition for this assignment is used because the scope of the task is limited within the unit. That is, the students were being asked a specific question in Unit 3.
Fortunately, we obtained copies of this homework assignment completed by the students and had a chance to look at Mr. Hudock’s rationale for his grading. Judging from the nature of the assessment and the students’ responses, this was a straightforward task and was very much appropriate for the target learning outcome, which is to “compare and contrast the major religions and beliefs of the Arab World” (this and the rest of the learning outcomes will be explained in further detail in Parts 2 and 5). In grading this, Mr. Hudock wanted the students to explain a few things the religions have in common, and like the Pearson book advocates and like we discussed briefly in an ED 307 discussion with Brian, it is best to plan instruction and assessment hand in hand. The payoff of this method was evinced in how well the students answered the question, as there were many 4.5/5 and 5/5 scores.
Somewhat similar to the homework assignment, the students worked on two other formative performance assessments in class during our rotation. One was a poster to represent the Five Pillars of Islam and the other was a rock band t-shirt that the students had to design for one of the three major religions of the Arab World. These two formative performance assessments went beyond the homework assignment explained above because they were restricted and extended performance assessments. For example, the Five Pillars of Islam poster was extended because it measured more than one skill (Gronlund and Waugh, 146): representing the five pillars in writing with a visual aid, and presenting the poster to the class. Similarly, the rock band t-shirt measured more than one skill and let the students have freedom in choosing which religion to present. Yet, both of these had an element of a restricted performance assessment because they measured only one topic within the unit.
Mr. Hudock definitely utilized having five pre-student teachers in the class on Wednesdays and had us grade both the Five Pillars of Islam posters and the rock band t-shirts. Again, the performance assessments we saw him use during our time with the group accurately reflected the intended learning outcomes. For example, on the rubric for the rock band t-shirt project the high score in the category “tour locations” could be achieved by showing the “locations important to the religion are clearly visible and at least three are written.” One weakness worth mentioning of the rock band t-shirt and Five Pillars of Islam poster was that the projects isolated the similarities and differences that students needed to make among the three major religions of the Arab World (which, we remember is an intended learning outcome). The students only had the homework assignment to show that they knew the ways the three major religions were similar yet different. Leaving the rotation, we wondered if the way that Mr. Hudock utilized these performance assessments adversely affected how the students looked at the similarities and differences among the religions.
Although the students didn’t complete an achievement assessment while we worked with the class, we were able to obtain samples of what he has used in the past. All of the samples obtained were formative achievement assessments that measure student progress during the unit or chapter in the textbook. Also, in all of these achievement assessments, Mr. Hudock used select-response and supply-response items. For example, during a formative achievement quiz on the geographic features of the Arab World, he has a multiple choice section that requires the students to look at a map and chose a given best answer; this is a select-response item according to the Pearson book. In the same quiz, though, he also asks the students to “explain desertification: what is it? Where is it? How is it caused?” This type of question is a supply-response item, because the students must provide a written response and don’t have any given best answers.
Within the first week of working with Mr. Hudock, it was clear that he preferred performance assessments over achievement ones. He explained to us that, although they might take more time to grade, he feels that performance assessments better reflect the students’ abilities because they measure skills and emphasize richness in content (based off of his rubrics). The most important lesson we took away from working with him was that both his performance and achievement assessments are planned at the beginning of the year when he plans instruction with fellow social studies teachers at North Middle School. Furthermore, it was valuable to see how explicit he is with his students about knowing the learning objectives and terms within each unit, as well as applying this knowledge on the performance and achievement assessments.
Part 2: Student Learning Objectives and Instructional Goals
Our assignments from Mr. Hudock were heavily based on the Essential Learning/Standards for Quarter 3 sheet, which came from the Michigan 7th grade History and Geography Content Expectations. Each of us had a group of five to seven students whom we worked with throughout the six weeks. The problem space for all of the groups was the development of the Arab World, while each group had a different entry point into this problem space. Each group had an Arab World topic, or “big question,” to cover, including: major religions and beliefs (Jacob’s group), economic systems (Kristin’s group), government systems (Derek’s group), major geographic features (Kyle’s group), and major historical events and figures (Aeryn’s group).
The first assignment we created for our groups was a graphic organizer which accompanied an article that we each found and/or created from online sources. The learning objective of this assignment was to get the students’ feet wet in the material and to introduce them to the topics their respective groups would cover in the presentations. The objective was not to have them memorize facts from the articles; we merely wanted them to get familiar with the material and gain a grasp on the material. This grasp would be solidified later as they worked on the final project. Overall, the skills the students were to improve upon in this graphic organizer activity were honing their ability to read words that are related to the Arab world. Additionally we wanted them to learn how to pick important parts out of something they read. The graphic organizers acted as scaffolding for this.
1. Arab World Religions Graphic Organizer
The religions graphic organizer was a Venn diagram of Islam, Christianity, and Judaism, and included a spot for all three. It tested students’ ability to pick out information from an article on a larger scope and in a more cohesive way than the other worksheets did. The students essentially had to keep four categories in their minds at all times as they read and synthesize that information onto the diagram. The advantage to this was that it would, ideally, teach the students to be historical multi-taskers and to be able to think about different things in relation to one another as well as separate units with unique characteristic. It hit on the following standards: W3.1.9- Describe the significance of legal codes, belief systems, written languages and communications in the development of large regional empires; W3.2.1- ID and describe the beliefs of the five major world religions; and W3.2.2- Locate the geographical center of major religions.
2. Arab World Economy Graphic Organizer
The economy graphic organizer focused on the number one export from the Arab world: oil. It had two columns, one for the Arab World and one for the rest of the world. Three boxes were under each column with questions about oil such as “Why is oil so important in the Arab World?” and “How has the rise of oil prices impacted other countries?” The organizer is short enough to keep the students’ attention (hopefully) and simple enough that they don’t have to spend an extreme amount of time reading over the article over and over to find the answers. The students seemed to complete it with ease. They gave positive feedback on the format of the organizer and all of them finished it. If the worksheet had been too short/long or easy/complicated, we could alter future worksheets to meet their zone of proximal development. The standard that the organizer addresses is G2.2.1- Describe the human characteristics of the region under study (including languages, religion, economic system, governmental system, cultural traditions).
3. Arab World Government Graphic Organizer
The government graphic organizer was also a Venn diagram of the U.S. government, Afghanistan government and characteristics of both. It assessed how well the students could pick out things that they read in an article. It also sought to challenge the students to compare and contrast an Eastern vs. Western government; this is important because we want students to see views of both East and West, not just Eurocentric ideas. We also want them to be able to compare and contrast Eastern and Western concepts. The worksheet covered the following content standards: W 3.1.8- Describe the role of state authority, military power, taxation systems; W3.1.9- Describe the significance of legal codes, belief systems, written languages and communications in the development of large regional empires; G1.3.3-Explain the different ways in which places are connected and how those connections demonstrate interdependence and accessibility; and G4.4.1- Identify and explain factors that contribute to conflict and cooperation between and among cultural groups.
4. Geographic Features Graphic Organizer
Like the historical events organizer, the geographic features graphic organizer was simple, straightforward, and more of a guide to reading than a regurgitation of facts. It was in a double-entry journal format and asked students to talk about the major geographic features of the Arab world as well as how these features were important to inhabitants. The assignment’s strength was that it beautifully intertwined history and geography in a cohesive way. Evidence for this was in the students’ answers, which showed knowledge of both world history and geography in the Arab World. The worksheet questions and the article cover the following World History (W) and Geography (G) standards extensively: W3.1.2- Using historic and modern maps, locate three major empires of this era, describe their geographic characteristics including physical features and climates, and propose a generalization about the relationship between geographic characteristics and the development of early empires; W3.2.2-Locate the geographical center of major religions; G1.2.1- Locate the major landforms, rivers and climate regions of the Eastern Hemisphere; G1.2.6- Apply the skills of geographic inquiry to analyze a problem or issue of importance to a region of the Eastern Hemisphere; G1.3.1- Use the fundamental themes of geography to describe regions or places on earth, G2.1.1- Describe the landform features and the climate of the region under study; G3.2.1- Explain how and why ecosystems differ as a consequence of differences in latitude, elevation and human activities; G3.2.2- Identify ecosystems of a continent and explain why some provide greater opportunities for humans to use than do other ecosystems and how that changes with technology; and G4.3.1- Identify places in the Eastern Hemisphere that have been modified to be suitable for settlement by describing the modifications that were necessary. These standards are interrelated and effectively fit together because they each cover both historic and geographic aspects.
5. Historical Events Graphic Organizer
For example, the graphic organizer on the historical events of the Arab world scaffolded students’ reading by giving them guidelines and things to look for: they had to identify territory that Arabs and Jews claimed, and identify responses to the conflict over the territory (Balfour Declaration, Great Britain’s role, etc.). Finally, they had to tie it all together by stating what Arab and Jewish relations are like today. This worksheet was intended to help them see the historical conflict in a chronological way (questions were ordered chronologically) and to see it in a broad way. There were no minute details asked for on this organizer. This organizer is related to the following World History (W) and Geography (G) standards: W3.1.8- Describe the role of state authority and military power; G1.3.3- Explain the different ways in which places are connected and how those connections demonstrate interdependence and accessibility; G4.3.2- Describe patterns of settlement by using historical and modern maps; and G4.4.1- Identify and explain factors that contribute to conflict and cooperation between and among cultural groups.
Key Terms
The graphic organizers touched on many of the key terms and concepts that Mr. Hudock wanted his students to learn in this unit, including but not limited to: Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Ottoman Empire, OPEC, Oil, Petrochemicals, Kurds, Zionism and Irrigation. The Michigan Middle School Vocabulary Words that the assignments covered were World Regions, Human Environment Interaction, Occupations, Governments, Economic and Political Connections and Patterns, Global Consequences, and Geographic Aspects of World Events. Though each term was specific to a particular graphic organizer, many overlapped. For example, Islam and Judaism were in both the historical events article and religions articles. Theoretically, in the end the students will be exposed to and be able to learn all of the terms after seeing their classmates’ Big Question presentation. The assessment of this particular learning will be explained later in this paper.
Big Question Project
The culminating project at the end of the unit was called the Arab World “Big Question” Project. Each group had to make a newscast, poem/song/rap, or poster that effectively communicated the answers to their group’s Big Question. All of the groups did a presentation and most did a combination of newscast and rap, newscast and poster, etc. We evaluated these projects based on the title they created, illustrations, thesis that answered their Big Question, use of key terms, supplemental facts and examples, participation, and overall presentation. Our rationale for these categories was that we wanted to cover a broad array of things. This is important because learning is a multi-faceted occurrence and therefore should be evaluated on many different levels and in many different ways. It also allowed for the project to speak to the many different strengths of the groups’ participants.
The Michigan Middle School Content Expectations that were addressed for each project were the same as those that each graphic organizer touched on, respectively. These standards were essentially the primary concepts and facts (i.e. substance) that the students were responsible for learning. Mr. Hudock tested the students’ learning of the presentation material by asking them questions about what they learned from each presentation right after it occurred. This is a fairly simple way to assess students’ understanding but is by no means foolproof. However, it did seem to be a good review for the students; asking them questions after the presentation kept them alert and made them engage in listening to their presenting peers in a more active way.
The skills that we wanted the students to learn by doing the project were many. First of all, teamwork was a big objective. Observation of the groups in action proved that not all of the groups cooperated, but for the most part they did. Since it is impossible to get through middle and high school without working with others, this skill was especially important for us to help foster. The groups also had to hone their organizational and planning skills. This project did not allow them to do things last minute; it all required careful thought and coordination. The students also learned to take information that they learned on previous days and formulate it into a presentation/summary to teach their peers. This is important because it encompasses 2 of the 3 R’s in SQ3R (“Recite” and “Review”). Students had to make sure they reviewed their material and then recited it to the class, which in turn, was a review for themselves, while teaching their peers information at the same time. Evidence that all groups achieved this was evident in their presentations. No presentation was off-base or irrelevant to the information they learned in the graphic organizer and article.
Part 3: Explanation of Key Concepts and Skills under Study
1. What are the similarities and differences between the main religions of the Arab World?
This unit focuses on the people, culture, and religion of the region known as the Middle East, but is often referred to as the “Arab World.” The students have spent a lot of time learning about the three major religions that have made a lasting impact in this area, which are Islam, Christianity, and Judaism. The most important ideas to understand revolve around getting a deeper understanding of what each religion entails, and then being able to compare and contrast them to each other. We wanted the students to see a commonality among the religions instead of viewing them as confusing or distant. By the end of the unit, the students were able to complete a graphic organizer, listing key facts about each religion, along with traits that are shared by Christianity, Judaism, and Islam.
To begin, we show how all three religions have their origin in the Middle East and have lasted for thousands of years. This is significant when stressing the importance of the region, because it still hosts important cities, known as ‘Holy Land,’ and continues to be the site of religious conflict. Looking at how these religions are similar becomes more complicated, but students should be able to find that all three religions have a devotion to a single God, though they have different names such as Yahweh and Allah. All of these religions believe in organized assembly and prayer, which take place in churches, synagogues, and mosques. Also these three groups have a book of prayer, known as the Bible, Koran, and Torah, which is taken as the word of God, outlining guidelines for worship and principles to live by. The last comparison the students were able to make relates to the spread and movement that has been made with the religions, spreading to all parts of the globe, taking on new denominations as cultures shift. The students were able to recognize the important traits in each religion, but had some challenges in learning all three together. Because most of the students were not familiar with Judaism or Islam, it was harder for them to contextualize some of the beliefs, and customs. It was not too difficult for the students to show that they understood the material, because the worksheets gave them indicators and space to list the major events, people, and places that relate to each religion. This connects to HSCE W3.2.1 because it lists and describes the beliefs of major world religions; and also HSCE W3.2.2, becausewe locate the geographical center of major religions, specifically their origins.
2. How does oil in the Arab World impact the economy in that region as well as in the rest of the world?
The Middle East dominates the market for oil production, creating a power struggle by outside nations competing for this valuable natural resource. The richest oil-producing countries include Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, and Bahrain. The rise in technology is directly responsible for the increased dependence on oil, specifically foreign oil, because the Middle East hosts the majority of the world’s oil reserves. The United States produces oil, but consumes far too much to be self-subsistent. The oil crisis has developed after September 11, 2001 and left the prices of oil on the constant rise. This, matched with a steady increase on oil consumption, has made the United States increasingly more vulnerable. Currently the United States imports over 55% of their oil and is seeking alternative solutions.
Another topic to consider is the possible solution to oil monopolies, such as alternative oil sources. One projected solution includes the construction of an oil pipeline through Central Asia to Afghanistan, which could open up a new production market for the West specifically the United States. The HSCE that relates to this topic isG2.2.1, which describes the human characteristics of the region under study (including languages, religion, economic system, governmental system, cultural traditions) This specifically touches on the economic system, but relies on cultural traditions of other “Western” nations.
3. How do the governments of the Arab World, specifically Afghanistan, compare and contrast to the democratic government in the United States?
The United States has played an important role in influencing the new Afghan government. We wanted students to see how similar this government is to our own and to be able to make specific connections linking the two. The region of the Middle East that encompasses Afghanistan has been a location which has been occupied, and fought over by foreign powers throughout its existence. In more modern times, Great Britain and the Soviet Union have exploited the area for its strategic location and natural resources, resulting in many years of fighting and unrest. The instability in the region has only intensified within the past twenty years as the United States has imposed a War on Terror and ousted the Taliban regime. We wanted students to first understand the nations’ history, especially with the Taliban, because of its role in the previous government. An important aspect of Afghanistan is that it has hosted nearly every type of government, and for a long time, the Taliban government brought the much sought stability. The important turning point was in 2001 when the Taliban fell and the United States began to work to promote a democratic government.
Afghanistan developed a written constitution, heavily influenced by the United States Constitution, which outlined the new form of government to become an Islamic Republic. The new government is very comparable to the U.S. which also has a judicial, legislative, and executive branch, to set up checks and balances. They also created a Supreme Court, where Justices are also appointed, to uphold the laws and to hold elections for president. One other issue that both nations face deals with elections and complications. The 2004 presidential elections were surrounded by controversy regarding voter fraud, corruption, and miscounting of ballots. We did however expect that some students may have trouble with the actual article and some of the vocabulary. The article contained a lot of specific facts regarding political parties, history, and events. This required some explaining of terms and review, but the students were able to pull out the necessary information and easily make connections linking the Afghan government to the United States government. This fits the HSCE G.1.3.3 because it explains the different ways in which places are connected and how those connections demonstrate interdependence and accessibility.
4. What are the main major geographic features of the Arab World and what are some of the characteristics of these features? In what ways are they important to humans?
The Middle East has always served as a strategically important place, which has only become more essential with discovery of rich natural resources such as petroleum. The geographic features that are important for the students to learn center on water which includes, rivers, deltas, seas, and gulfs. Agriculture has been important in the Middle East for thousands of years, and has made them dependent on water systems for irrigation, mobility, and sustaining life. The richest soil in the area is found in Mesopotamia, which is now known as Iraq, Syria, and Turkey. The reason this area has been so important throughout history is because it sits between two of the largest river systems in the World, the Nile and Euphrates Rivers. The students needed to be able to understand where these rivers are located and how they affect the surrounding areas.
The other major geographical area is the Persian Gulf, located between Iran, Oman, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, and Iraq. This is a strategic location, because it is the only access from these nations to the ocean waterways. Because of this, it has become a major trade route currently utilized for shipping of crude oil, which dominates the World market. The students may have a difficulty understanding the land borders of these nations and how they have shifted over time. The waterways have not changed though governments and nations have undergone several transformations over the past three thousand years. The students should have no trouble identifying the important roles that each system plays within the region, nor the history of people depending on them. This matches HSCE G1.3.1 because it uses the fundamental themes of geography to describe regions or places on earth.
5. What was the impact of the Arab-Israeli Conflict on the development of current Arab World societies?
The area known as Palestine has been the center of a religious war between Israel and Palestine since Biblical times but is most violent in the modern day. This area changed hands many times but was affected the most as result of the Zionist movement in the mid-Twentieth Century as large numbers of Jewish people moved into the previous Muslim territory. We expect students to understand how the British and Balfour Declaration opened up the floodgates for civil unrest in Palestine, and changed the religious demographics of the area. We also want to show the redistricting of national lines, as Israel began to take over large parts of Palestine after gaining independence in 1948. There are key locations that are important to know, such as the Gaza Strip, Sinai Peninsula, West Bank, Golan Heights, and Jerusalem, the “holy city.” The important events that brought so much attention to this part of the World were the uprisings in the late 1980’s, which led to mass violence until 1993 and the Oslo Accord. This significant peace treaty was orchestrated by President Bill Clinton to bring some stability to the region. There is still a great tension among Israeli and Palestinian people, largely to do with Israelis settling deeper into Palestinian territory. Other key players in these events is Yasser Arafat, who was the leader of the PLO (the Palestine Liberation Organization), which used violence as its primary strategy to retake land. It is important to understand the important roles a leader can play as they represent an entire nation, and how they have the authority to control a military or call upon citizens to take violence into their own hands. The HSCE that fits this is W3.1.8, because it describes the role of state authority and military power, along with patterns of settlement by using historical and modern maps. The other standard represented is G4.4.1 , which identifies and explains factors that contribute to conflict and cooperation between and among cultural groups.
Part 4: Achievement Test
Professional Rationale
Part I – Multiple Choice
Question 1 - In this question, we wanted to make sure that students knew the term “monotheism,” because the three main religions covered in Unit 3: The Arab World are monotheistic. Also, Mr. Hudock wanted us to include this question, because “monotheism” is a key term for the unit. It is important to consider that this question is aimed at the larger general learning outcome[1] of the unit, which is something the Pearson book advocates. In this case, one of the outcomes is “to compare and contrast the major religions.”
Q2 – Again, this question requires that students know another key term for the unit, “Zionism.” Following the guidelines for writing multiple choice selection items, the choices in the question are given in similar length to eliminate length as a clue. In addition, this question is aimed at a specific point in the general learning outcomes of the unit because students must be familiar with the philosophies of the main religions.
Q3 – This is a geography question and was designed for students to visualize what “southeast from Turkey into the northern end of the Persian Gulf” means. Working with this wording, they should realize that this is the Tigris River. One of the intended learning outcomes of the unit is to “identify major geographic features” and this question meets that purpose. Also, the choices in the question are worded similarly and there is no other best answer. If we had included the Euphrates River as another option, this would confuse the students because no answer would clearly be best between “the Tigris” or “the Euphrates.”
Q4 – Irrigation is a key term in the unit, so this question meets an intended learning outcome. The wording among the choices is consistent so as not to slow down the students while reading the choices. This is an important term not only to this unit, but to other units and even other subjects.
Q5 – Another geography question, again with consistent wording among the choices, this item asks that students identify “The Red Sea” as the inlet between Africa and Asia. However, students were confused by this question, because another item could have technically answered the question. The Pearson book says that one choice must clearly be best or correct. In this case, the “Gulf of Aden” could technically be an answer, even though we didn’t discuss this term in class.
Q6 – The answer to this question, “oil,” is an important and recurring key term in the unit. This question asks that students identify “oil” in a geographic context, which partially matches the intended learning outcome for the unit. We say “partially matches,” because the students must also know the significance of oil to society.
Q7 – When students took this quiz, this question consistently saw very poor results. Therefore, the responsibility lies with us as teachers for this outcome. The question loosely correlated with the intended learning outcome “identify government systems of the Arab World,” because the government of Afghanistan was the focus government. However, this fact-based geographical question doesn’t match the learning task to be measured or the outcome.
Q8 – This question measures the intended learning outcome much better than the last, as the students were required to know “the similarities and differences between them (government systems of the Arab World, in this case, Afghanistan) and our government. Still, the question focuses more on a fact than students showing their skills and could’ve been improved by having the student show that they can identify what the function of the executive branch is in both governments. That way, the intended learning outcome quoted above would still be met.
Q9 – Another fact-based item that asks the students to identify who divided Palestine in half, this question was intended to align with the intended learning outcome “explain the impact of major historical events on the development of current Arab World societies ” However, it only asks the students to identify the fact about an event, not the actual impact.
Q10 – This is an excellent question, because it requires that the students apply a key term (in this case, “the Ottoman Empire”) to the stem of the question “What is the Balfour Declaration.” With a right answer, the students show that they have the skill to explain the impact of a major historical event on the development of current Arab World societies.
Q11 – In this item, we’re attempting to assess that the students know how the existence of the Palestine Liberation Organization is related to the creation of Israel as a state. The students must know that the creation of Israel made possible the existence of the PLO, which matches the intended learning outcome. Again, note how the items are of similar length and wording.
Q12 – In this item, we’re attempting to see if the students know the very basic, yet important function of OPEC. This is a key term and relates to the intended learning outcome of “developing knowledge of the economic systems of the Arab World and understand their impact on the global world.”
Q13 – Similar to Q12, this question asks that students show they know how an embargo impacts the global world (intended learning outcome). Moreover, the question requires the students to have the skill necessary to know the effect of the embargo.
Part II – True/False
Q14 – Here, we’re looking to assess that the students know a specific belief about one of the three major religions of the Arab World (Judaism, specifically Orthodox). This falls in accordance with the intended learning outcome. Also, we’re hoping that the students know that the word “orthodox,” no matter the religion, means a strict interpretation.
Q15 – “Kurds” is a key term and this question assesses if the students know the geographic location of the Kurds, which is an intended learning outcome.
Q16 – It is important that the students know that some governments of the Arab World that they hear about in the news, in this case the Taliban, are not actually the legitimate government in power. One part of the intended learning outcome that this question relates to is “identify government systems of the Arab World.” Here, the students have to identify an illegitimate government.
Q17 – The term “mandate” is a key term and the only way to get this answer right (besides guessing) is to know the definition. As the Pearson book advocates, a true/false item must contain one central idea and the idea must be unequivocally judged true or false. Here, the student has to know the definition of “mandate.”
Q18 – In this item, we’re trying to see if the students know the similarities among the Afghan government and our own, which follows the intended learning outcome. Also, in accordance with the Pearson book, this question focuses on one central idea and that idea can (again) be unequivocally judged true or false.
Part III – Fill in the Blank
Q19 – This Fill in the Blank item asks that students know how oil has impacted the Arab World as an economic source of power and influence. We’re assessing that the students see this connection, because it’s an intended learning outcome.
Q20 – Similar to Q19, this question requires students to know the connection between oil as a natural resource and oil in the Arab World. This goes hand in hand and the students must know this for Unit 3.
Q21 – OPEC is a key term and this item requires the students to know that four countries originally founded the organization. This item is more introductory level and fact-based, but is nonetheless reinforcement. And, as Willingham says, repetition, reinforcement and practice is the only way to get students to free up space in their working memory for more advanced tasks. Hopefully the students have this aspect of OPEC stored in their long-term memory.
Q22 – This item again emphasizes the economic importance of oil and we’re trying to assess if the students know the connection between oil and the U.S. and our dependence on oil from Southwest Asia.
Q23 – Here, we’re trying to assess if the students know the impact of WWII on the countries of the Arab World. This is a great item, because it mixes two of the intended learning outcomes: the economic systems of the Arab World, and the impact of major historical events on the development of current Arab World societies.
Part IV – Short Answer
Q24 – This short answer, supply-type item is made to assess whether or not the students know the significance of the geographic key term “fertile crescent” to greater society. This short answer item matches the intended learning outcome of geography in Unit 3 and calls for a single, brief answer. When given to the class, approximately 90% of the students answered this question correctly and briefly.
Q25 – With this short answer question, we’re trying to see if the students can simply state the main religious figures of the three major religions of the Arab World. The Pearson “checklist for evaluating short-answer items” found on p. 131, says that there must be a single, brief answer. In this question, the students should respond with a number of single answers, while still making the response brief.
Q26 – This is a well-stated, incomplete sentence short answer item and is made to assess if the students know the number one reason for the Persian Gulf War. Furthermore, this item correlates with the intended learning outcome about major historical events and the reasons they occurred and impact they have had on the Arab World.
Part V – Essay
Q27 – In the essay part of the test, we want to have one “restricted-response question” that requires a brief, precise response and one “extended-response question” that gives more freedom in the response, according to the Pearson book. This question, which asks the students to “list impacts of oil on the Arab World”, is a “restricted-response question,” because the task is clear with the word “list.” In this question, we want to assess that the students knew how oil connects to almost all of Mr. Hudock’s “essential learning standards” or intended learning outcomes.
Q28 – This supply-type item is an “extended-response question,” because it asks the students to include many ideas and develop a more free form response than a restricted-response question. In this item, we want to assess if the students can “describe” the overall impact that the intended learning outcomes have on the Arab World. It’s difficult developing unit-wide essay questions, but we want the students to make connections among outcomes like geographic features, economic systems, historical events, and governments.
Challenges
Based on observations from the students’ presentations of the Unit 3 “Big Question” performance assessments, we have found that the students could have some challenges in translating each other’s information to an achievement assessment. Since the class has worked in groups of five to seven and have focused on only one of the five big questions within the unit, they might have trouble recalling information that they only studied in the textbook or had been taught by their peers. Although they should master the content that their performance assessment has focused on, this is only a fifth of what is on the Unit 3 test. In order to counter this challenge presented by the nature of the performance assessment’s role in the unit, we had a class discussion led by Mr. Hudock after each group finished presenting their “Big Question” project in order to recap and locate the main ideas from each group. By summarizing what the students just learned from their peers and asking the students to recall specific ideas or terms, we hope that knowledge will transfer well on the test.
Part 5: Performance Assessment
Through this performance assessment, students will become the “experts” of a specific topic. The topics for this performance assessment were based off of the five content expectations of this unit, as mentioned in Part II. Following Bob Bain’s advice in They Thought the World Was Flat? about the importance of questioning, we turned these content expectations into “big questions” that we wanted the students to investigate and, eventually, answer (see Part 3). As previously mentioned, students were be split up into small groups (of five to seven students), and each group will be assigned one of the unit’s big questions. After reading the supplemental articles we provided and filling out the graphic organizers we created (see appendices # and #), they will teach the class what they have learned. Thus, the students will demonstrate their learning through these class presentations.
There are several objectives of this performance assessment that we want all students to master. Through this performance assessment, students will be able to:
1. answer their topic’s central question by constructing a thesis
2. demonstrate an understanding of their topic by providing specific facts/examples
3. define and explain the significance of their topic’s key terms
4. demonstrate an understanding of their topic by clearly and effectively teaching their classmates the information.
These objectives refer to the specific learning goals of each group. However, as each group will only be learning one topic, it is important that we consider the objectives of the performance assessment as a whole. Essentially, after listening to the other groups’ presentations, each student in the class will (hopefully) be able to demonstrate an understanding of all of the topics, shown by summarizing the key points and ideas during a class discussion. Students’ responses during this discussion will inform us how clear and effective each of the group’s presentations were and if all class objectives were met.
The focus of this assessment will mainly be on each group’s final product, instead of on the procedure. Each group had the freedom to choose how they were going to present their material (either in the form of a poem/rap, a poster, or a news cast). By giving the students various options, we are (as one bright seventh-grader stated) giving them “the illusion of freedom”; yet at the same time, the options emphasize the importance of the final product. We chose to focus our assessment on the product because we believe that “different procedures can result in an equally good product” and that “the product has qualities that can be clearly identified and judged” (Gronlund and Waugh, 150). Essentially, through this performance assessment, we are looking to see if the students understand the material and can fulfill the stated objectives.
At the same time, however, we are not simply disregarding the procedure aspect of this project. In middle school classrooms, working in a group setting can be just as much a learning experience as the material itself; students are learning important skills and lessons about cooperation and equal participation. In the project’s rubric, we acknowledge the importance (and sometimes, the difficulty) of working together as a group and we will award up to five points for group dynamics and equal participation. As Gronlund and Waugh point out, procedure evaluation is often challenging because it can be subjective, inconvenient, and the “procedure is [sometimes] not available for observation” (Gronlund and Waugh, 150). However, with so many pre-student teachers working directly with the groups, we feel that we will be able to properly assess the groups’ cooperation and participation.
Through the rubric we created (see below), we feel that the scoring of this performance assessment will be clear and objective. We have created a rating scale that will “provide an opportunity to mark the degree to which an element is present” (Gronlund and Waugh, 160). Each required aspect of the presentation is clearly defined and explained, which will help reduce student confusion about our expectations. For example, we require that each group incorporates their topic’s key terms; for this, the rubric clearly explains how groups that define all key terms will receive full points (5 points out of 5), while groups with 1-2 key terms missing will receive partial credit (2- 3 points out of 5) and groups with only a couple of key terms correctly defined will receive little or no credit (0-1 points out of 5). The explicitness of the rubric helps keeps the performance assessment objective and clear; and, by giving students a copy of the rubric in advance, there should (potentially) be no confusion about the project’s requirements or our expectations.
Comments:
According to Gronlund and Waugh in Assessment of Student Achievement, students often need guidance to familiarize themselves with a performance assessment. Historically, most classrooms in public schools administer traditional “paper-and-pencil” tests, which have clear expectations and grading procedures. As Gronlund and Waugh point out, “the performance assessment is a new experience” and many students “have not had a prior history to guide behavior and form expectations” (Gronlund and Waugh, 173). Undoubtedly, we cannot overlook the fact that these students are in the sixth and seventh grades and may feel unprepared for such assessments. For some of the quieter, more reserved students, presenting in front of the class may cause them to feel apprehensive or nervous; even the more outgoing students may feel nervous or unsettled by being placed in such a situation. However, such performance assessments are very familiar to the students in Mr. Hudock’s class. Throughout the last semester, the students have had experience with such assessments due to their previous projects with the pre-student teachers from the University of Michigan. Also, Mr. Hudock often has his students present different assignments and projects in front of the class; by making class presentations a regular aspect of the class, students may feel more comfortable and prepared during our performance assessment. Furthermore, as these students have—for the most part—been in the same gifted and talented program since elementary school, they are very comfortable around each other; through our observations, it is clear that most students in the class feel confident and safe sharing their ideas during class discussions. This creates a comfortable class environment that may help reduce student apprehension and nervousness.
Many students may find themselves feeling confused about the performance assessment’s expectations and requirements. While it helps that students have already experienced this kind of assessment with previous pre-student teachers, it is still important that we properly prepare students for the performance assessment. Gronlund and Waugh suggest the following: clearly explain the assessment’s expectations, show the tools and resources that they can (and should) use, explain how the performance will be assessed, and explain how feedback will be provided (Gronlund and Waugh, 174). For the most part, we followed these suggestions: we provided students with a clear and concise rubric that outlined the expectations of the project; we provided students with the materials, the informational articles, and the project supplies needed to be successful; and we explained to students how and when they will present. Looking back, however, it is clear that we failed to explain how feedback will be provided: on the day of the performance assessment, for example, many students were surprised to hear that we—the pre-student teachers—would be the ones to assess the presentation. Informing the students of this earlier may have changed how much they valued our input and suggestions while preparing for their presentation, and how they presented the material. While we don’t feel that this would have caused any major changes in the students’ presentations, it is something for us to keep in mind as we become teachers.
However, going beyond the potential issues of apprehension and confusion, performance assessments such as this one present other challenges and difficulties. For example, by having students work in groups, we run the risk of the students being distracted and not staying on task; these students (as a result of being together since elementary school) are very talkative, which may potentially take away from the productivity of the group. By having one pre-student teacher per group, we feel that the students will be more focused and productive than if they were working on their own.
Furthermore, as in any middle school classroom, there will be challenges with students not working well together or not getting along. While Mr. Hudock’s class is unique in the fact that the students have been together since elementary school, this does not necessarily mean that arguments and clashing personalities will be avoided. To prevent any problems, we carefully assigned groups based on student personalities, work ethic, and previous group interactions. Also, we had Mr. Hudock look at the groups before hand, and he gave us input about potential problems that we may encounter between students. While no group will work perfectly together, we feel that we have established groups that will cooperate and work well together.
> Reflection of Lesson
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