The assessments I give for this unit will range from standard exams to authentic and performance assessments. My goal is to stray away from a criterion-referenced test and move towards a level of performance (James, 2014).
I will begin the unit with a pre-assessment on the computer. My intention is to use this to get a very basic idea of where students are at with money. Can they recognize any coins? Are they confused between coins or symbols? The pre-test, which offers an audio output, will be used to assess these questions. Students are very familiar with this format and are used to taking math tests this way. I am aware that, “traditional exams also give limited opportunities to demonstrate what can be produced with access to appropriate resources, such as reference material (Burns, 2015).” But for pre-assessment purposes, I find this method quick and efficient. The formative assessments I will do will be design tasks. I plan to give my students a variety of real life scenarios where they have to identify the coins, add, and subtract. I will expect a short writing assessment from this activity as well so that students can explain their understandin. For the summative assessment of money, I will do a performance task. Students will create their own project or videotape themselves going to the store and purchasing an item, giving the correct change, and then counting the change they got back. As quoted in Wheatley's journal, "creativity, often cited as the most important student outcome in the 21st century economy and world, has been declining since the beginning of the standards movement, with the sharpest declines in the elementary years (Wheatley, 2015)." My goal is that this unit will stray far from standard testing and allow students to have a meaningful assessment. Performance testing can hardly be testing or rather a pathway for students to see how their learning is relevant and meaningful. Burns, V. (2015). 53 Interesting Ways to Assess Your Students. [N.p.]: Frontinus Ltd. James Popham, W. p. (2014). Criterion-Referenced Measurement: Half a Century Wasted?. Educational Leadership, 71(6), 62-68. Retrieved from: Egan Library http://egandb.uas.alaska.edu:2048/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=eft&AN=94925708&login.asp&site=ehost-live Wheatley, K. F. (2015). Factors that Perpetuate Test-Driven, Factory-Style Schooling: Implications for Policy and Practice. International Journal of Learning, Teaching and Educational Research, 10(2). Retrieved from: http://ijlter.org/index.php/ijlter/article/viewFile/261/pdf
4 Comments
Heather Marie
3/25/2017 01:25:46 pm
Based on the assessments you're describing, I would encourage you to reconsider Popham's explanation of criterion-referenced assessment. You note that your "goal is to stray away from a criterion-referenced test and move towards a level of performance," however, an assessment of a level of performance relating to an objective can be either norm-referenced or criterion-referenced...regardless of the style of test. Further, for a test to be truly criterion-referenced, you must examine the data for areas of weakness and then use it to modify your teaching/content strategies moving forward.
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Shauna
3/25/2017 10:26:36 pm
Jules, I really like your set up for assessments. I agree with you that sometimes it is hard not to use a traditional exam for some pre-data. I also find benefit in doing so because they allow you to do the initial designing of your unit. I prefer student assessments that are authentic throughout the unit, but I also find that the traditional method works well when time is limited. However, I believe summative authentic assessments will allow all students to show their knowledge. I really like how you laid out your assessments. Great job!
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3/25/2017 10:48:50 pm
Great to have kids understand money. I wonder when kids realize the other ways, and maybe more popular ways to purchase items, like with credit cards, or debit cards. I remember when debit cards became a reality years ago. It was interesting to have money taken from your account the “moment” you purchase something. It’s like having cash! I’m surprised we have physical money, especially pennies. I find myself having very little cash or change these days. I like your performance assessment at the end. Very real life!
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Heather Marie
3/26/2017 05:39:24 am
Gerald - I too find it interesting how we teach kids money. But, as long as currency is in circulation, they need to learn. Consider a kid who will grow up to travel - there are parts of the world where cash it the only accepted currency. That said, I love that my nephews have a mini cash register that comes with a card and, at 3 and 4, they know what the card does. It's such an odd thing, and so different from how we learned.
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Author2nd Grade teacher at Keet Gooshi Heen in Sitka, Alaska Archives
April 2017
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