Lesson 21: Using Performance T a s k

Identify effective and engaging assessment forms for the fo llow ing target competencies in eartn science and physics.

Competencies

Identify things that can make objects move such as people, water, wind, and magnets.(S3FE-lllc-d-2)

Describe the changes in the weather over a period of tim e. (S3ES-IVe-f-3)

Communicate how the natural objects in the sky affect daily activities. (S3ES-IVg-h-7)

Explain the effects of force applied to an object. (S4FE- llla-1)

Investigate properties and characteristics of lig h t and sound. (S4FE-lllh-5)

Describe ways to protect oneself from exposure to excessive light, heat, and sound. (S4FE- llli-j-6 )

Assessment Strategies

III. Lesson Synthesis

How can assessments be made more effective and engaging?

I. Learning Objectives

At the end of this lesson, you should be able to:

• characterize traditional assessment strategies in science;

• examine advantages and disadvantages of traditional forms o f assessment in science; and

• provide alternative forms of assessment for given competencies and traditional assessment forms. V ___________________________________________________________________ _______________________

II. Learning Activities

Traditional assessment is the classic way of testing and evaluating the students' learning with the use of standardized pen and paper. It makes use of multiple-choice, true or false, or matching type test items.

Assessment is often separate from the instruction, and the curriculum drives the traditional assessment (Abdao, 2015). The main purpose of traditional assessment is to evaluate if the students have truly learned the content or to determine if the students are successful in acquiring the necessary knowledge from the class lecture/discussions or activities. The students are ranked or given grade according to standards or other learners.

This form of assessment gives the teacher a snapshot of the students' knowledge of the content as the students demonstrate what they know through paper-and-pen tests. The students often display lower level of th in kin g skills because they are asked to recall and comprehend body of knowledge that has been taught to them. It is easy to prepare, administer, and score. It is practical, product-oriented, reliable, valid and summative (Abdao, 2015). The students are evaluated easily and quickly. Other examples of this method of assessment are standardized tests, aptitude tests, intelligence tests, and achievement tests.

With this method of assessment, the students are not evaluated as to what they can do w ith the knowledge that they have acquired. It is rigid and fixed because it provides lim ited ways o f assessing the students' knowledge and comprehension. The students are asked to memorize and recall inform ation. They do not necessarily practice th e ir higher-order th in k in g skills. It may also stim ulate feelings of anxiety that are not helpful for the students. Most of the tim e, the students work alone durin g activities, thereby prom oting competitiveness.They are pressured to finish the exam/test in a fixed tim e.

Activity A. 1.

Traditional forms of assessment in science include m u ltip le choice, matching, gap -filling, and tru e - false tests. Discuss with a partner the advantages and disadvantages of each type of test. Complete the table below w ith your answers.

Type of Assessment Advantages Disadvantages

M u ltip le Choice

Gap fillin g

True-False

Matching

B. A N A L Y Z E

Activity B. 1.

Below are alternative forms of assessment that you can use in the classroom. You ju st need to make sure it is aligned w ith the target competencies, d e ve lo p m e n ta l^ appropriate, and feasible.

• Game playing - Games are challenging and more engaging than form al tests. Skills and knowledge are concretely revealed when the students engage in m eaningful games. Online platforms and applications can be used in designing games.

• Story w ritin g - Reading or w ritin g stories is an engaging way to present inform ation and to assess the students' knowledge.

• Letter w ritin g - This provides opportunity for the students to demonstrate th e ir ability to communicate science ideas and advance their advocacies. Persuasive w ritin g is central to the relationship between science, mathematics, and science and te c h n o lo g y .'

• Advertisements - Statistics and experiment results are used in advertisements and campaigns. Since the students are immersed nowadays in the digital world, they w ill find this activity interesting and relevant as they can practice th e ir computer and data literacies.

• Reflections - When the students reflect in an open-ended way about what they know, their perspective is broadened. W ritten reflections can be recorded as journal entries and persuasive w ritin g and may be published in school publication.

• Model making - Models are sim plified representations of the world that enable the students to im agine about it in new ways, make predictions, and test ideas.

• Experiments - Conducting experiments allow the students to demonstrate th e ir understanding of concepts and th e ir ability perform ing science process skills, values, and attitudes.

• Investigations - Scientific investigations provide the students the opportunity to pose and answer questions and utilize a variety of tools and strategies to come to the best possible answer. These pieces of ou tp u t encompass the entire scientific method.

• Conventions, Conferences, and Debates - At scientific conventions, the students share ideas and research outputs w ith the larger community. They learn about each other's work, evaluate, and debate.

C . A B S T R A C T A N D A P P L Y

Activity C. 1.

The alternative assessment forms indicated above are indeed engaging when im plem ented properly. Look up online and p rint sources about these strategies. Write on the table below the useful guidelines for the teachers to consider when utilizing alternative forms of assessment.

Assessment Forms Guidelines

x ♦

III. Lesson Synthesis

How can teachers strike a balance in the use of traditional and alternative forms of assessment?

I. Learning Objectives

At the end o f the lesson, you are expected to:

• characterize effective use of performance tasks in classroom instruction;

• discuss guidelines in designing and im p lem enting performance tasks;

• distinguish among the types of performance task;

• examine samples of performance tasks; and

• design performance task for earth science and physics.

II. Learning Activities

A . A C T I V A T E

Activity A. 1.

Recall a performance task you demonstrated when you were still in high school or in one of your subjects in your undergraduate studies. What kind of task was assigned to you or your group? How did you complete the task?

B. A N A L Y Z E

Now, you may already have an idea what a performance task is. Let us dig deeper into the idea of using performance-based assessment. When can we actually use it and effectively im p le m e n t in class?

W hat is Performance-based Assessment?

A performance-based assessment is the assessment of a student's a bility to apply knowledge, skills, and understanding, usually in authentic, real-life settings that are sim ilar to those encountered in the world outside the classroom (Murchan & Shiel, 2017). Typically, the students are required to create a product or demonstrate a process. Performance-based assessment can be used to measure a broad range of learning outcomes, including more complex outcomes that cannot be assessed using indirect

• representing a character from a drama or play;

• keeping a portfolio of artwork;

• demonstrating a routine, movement, or dance;

• making a video to dramatize a historical theme;

• editing a story, term paper, or essay;

• conducting a science experiment;

• working w ith a group of students to design a student attitude survey;

• using equipm ent/m achine to complete a task;

• preparing a m eal/baking pastries or cakes in a culinary subject; and

• reporting on a project by delivering a m ultim edia presentation.

Typically, assessing performance involves evaluating student learning. The evaluation (making ju d g m e n t about the quality of a performance) can be conducted by a teacher, an external marker, or the students themselves. Klenowski and Wyatt-Smith (2014) addressed student self-assessment, whereby the students evaluate their own learning, and, most im portantly, internalize assessment standards or criteria, as a major benefit of performance-based assessment. In conducting an assessment, the rater may use a scoring tool such as a checklist, a rating scale, o ra scoring rubric. The use of an appropriate scoring tool is essential to ensure that relevant aspects of the performance are assessed (validity) and that the assessment is marked in a consistent manner (reliability). Evaluation can occur durin g (e.g., delivery of oral presentation) or afte rthe performance (e.g., com pletion of an essay, portfolio, or project).

Performance assessments can vary in length, from activities that take ju st a few minutes to complete to tasks that take several weeks and require the students to present th e ir findings to an audience inside and outside the school.

Various authors have identified aspects of knowledge and dispositions that can best assessed using performance-based assessments, and some of these frameworks overlap:

• Habits of m ind - According to Costa and Kallick (2008), these are problem-solving, life- related skills that are needed to operate effectively in society and include persisting, thinking flexibly, managing im pulsivity, th in k in g about one's th in k in g or m etacognition, applying past knowledge to new situations, taking responsible risks, th in k in g independently, and remaining open to continuous learning.

• Collaborative problem-solving -The students are assessed as they work together to complete a project or another performance task (e.g., Von Davier & Halpin, 2013). In ju d g in g the outcomes of cooperative learning, there may be learning outcomes relating to the overall success of the project as well as outcomes specifying the expected contributions of the individuals.

• Twenty-first century skills - These are skills that are deemed im portant for the world of work in the 21st century. Griffin and Care (2015) describe these as: ways of th in kin g (creativity and innovation, critical problem-solving, metacognition); ways of working (com m un;cation, collaboration/teamwork); tools for working (inform ation literacy, I Q literacy); and living in the world (citizenship, life and career, personal and social responsibility).

• Higher-order th in k in g skills - These comprise the more advanced skills on Bloom's revised taxonomy (Anderson & Krathwohl, 2001) and include applying (using inform ation in new situations), analyzing (drawing connections among ideas), evaluating (justifyin g a stand or decision), and creating (producing new or original work).

A key rationale in using performance-based assessment is that it is possible to establish strong links between curriculum (expressed as goals or objectives), learning (expressed as performance standards or learning outcomes), and assessment. Specifically, aspects of the curriculum that cannot otherwise be assessed, like collaborative problem-solving, are emphasized, and the students can demonstrate their strength in these areas. The outcomes of assessment can then feed into fu rther teaching and learning activities, and gaps in student performance can be addressed. Klenowski and Wyatt-Smith (2014) proposed that performance-based assessment, when used effectively, has considerable potential as an instrum ent of educational reform and as a disincentive to teaching of the test (that is, preparing to sit examinations that are often predictable in form at and content). In addition, they suggest that it is consistent w ith social constructivist learning theories.

Curriculum, including problem solving, collaboration, critical thinking

Teaching, learning, and assessment cycle.

A performance-based assessment task can be developed and scored by an in dividual teacher, a subject department, an external assessor, or an exam ining board. A performance task seeks to assess learning targets or objectives that are specified in curriculum documents (Murchan & Shiel, 2017).

Such tasks may be carried out by individuals or groups. They can be scored as the students work on the task and/or after it has been completed. Often, curriculum objectives are expressed as standards or learning outcomes, and these become the focus of a rating scale or a rubric.

A moderation process may be put in place, where a check on the quality of the grades assigned by the teacher is undertaken (Murchan & Shiel, 2017). This could involve a different rater taking a random sample of completed tasks and scoring them independently. Discrepancies between two or more raters can then be addressed in a marking or moderation conference. Sometimes, when moderation unearths a discrepancy, the assessor may need to review the standards (learning outcomes) to achieve a better understanding of them.

The final stage in assessing performance on a task is to assign a grade or mark.This may take the form of a numerical score, a descriptor, or a grade. More extensive feedback may be provided to the student who completed the task, such as comments, an indication of areas in need of fu rther improvement, or targets that the student should strive to reach in the future.

Developing Observable Performance Criteria

The value and richness of performance assessments depend heavily on identifying criteria that can be observed and ju dged. It is im portant that the criteria be clear in the teacher's m ind and that the students be taught the criteria. Russell and Airasian (2012) proposed the fo llow ing guidelines that are useful for the said purpose:

1 ) Select the performance or product to be assessed and either perform it yourself or im agine yourself perform ing it.

2 ) List the im portant aspects o f the performance or product.

3) Try to lim it the num ber of performance criteria, so they all can be observed during a student's performance.

4 ) If possible, have groups of teachers th in k through the im portant criteria included in a task.

5) Express the performance criteria in terms of observable student behaviors or product characteristics.

6 ) Do not use am biguous words th a t cloud the m eaning of the performance criteria. Avoid adverbs such as those ending in -ly, remarks such as good or appropriate, etc.

7) Arrange the performance criteria in the order in which they are likely to be observed.

8 ) Check for existing performance criteria before defin ing your own.

There are four tools that can be used to assess how well the students do on a performance-based task: anecdotal records, observational checklists, rating scales, and scoring rubrics.

1. Anecdotal records

These are notes based on the teachers' observations about the students as they perform an assessment task. They allow the teachers to document the students' strengths and weaknesses as they edit a text, solve a problem, or search for inform ation. Data gleaned from anecdotal notes can be reviewed w ith other inform ation (such as a finished product) to arrive at an overall ju d g m e n t of a student's performance (Murchan & Shiel, 2017).

Of ail the tools use in assessing the student's performance, the anecdotal record is the most detailed yet the most tim e consuming. It is not meant to be a free-flowing report or a description of a student's performance. Rather, it should provide a purposeful, detailed description of the strengths and weaknesses of a student's performance based on prespecified performance criteria intended to be used as a guide fo rth e observer's decision.Thus, ju d g m e n t and recommendations are absent from the record and are made when the record is reviewed at a later tim e.

2. Observational checklist

A checklist consists of a list of behaviors, characteristics, or activities and a place for marking w hether each is present or absent. It can focus on a procedure, a behavior, o ra product (Murchan & Shiel, 2017). Checklists are diagnostic, reusable, and capable of charting the student progress. They provide a detailed record of the students' performances, one that can and should be shown to the students to help them see where im provem ent is needed (Russell & Airasian, 2012).

The students may use a self-evaluation checklist to review th e ir own work. This may enable them to internalize the criteria for perform ing well on a task, and they can also build metacognitive knowledge as th e ir understanding of th e ir own learning processes increases. On the other hand, a potential disadvantage of a checklist is that it does not show degrees of q u a lity - only whether a criterion has been met or not.

There are, however, disadvantages associated w ith checklists. One im portant disadvantage is that checklists give the teacher only two choices for each criterion: performed or not performed. A checklist provides no m iddle ground for scoring (Russell & Airasian, 2012). Another drawback is the difficulty of summarizing a student's performance into a single score.

In order to solve these concerns, summarizing performances from a checklist can be done by setting up rating standards or by calculating the percentage of criteria accomplished (Russell & Airasian, 2012).

3. Rating scales

These are often used for aspects of a complex performance that do not lend themselves to a yes-no or present-absent ju d g m e n t. A rating scale assesses the degree to which a student has attained the learning outcomes linked to a performance task. It can be used as a teaching tool