FL reviewing the NGSS and YOU can help!

Hey Floridians!

The DoE has fairly quietly initiated a statewide public review of the Next Generation Science Standards. The period will last until the end of this month. The first thing we are asking each and every one of you to do is take some time to go to the review site and participate.

I've followed the development of the standards and they are good standards. These standards support all the things you expect science to support while provide excellent cross-cutting concepts to undercut the "I'll never use this" mentality.

If you're a Floridian, parent or not, teacher or not, this effects you. How and what students learn now effects YOUR future. So please, take a minute to either A: Peruse the standards and voice your opinion, or B: Yes, I'm ok with you taking my very responsible word in vouching for them, and selecting any grade level (I choose HS, of course) and clicking "Accept" under each of the subheadings, and "Approve" at the bottom.

If YOU don't take an interest in children's education, someone else will. 
Thank you.

The site to do so is: http://www.cpalms.org/standards/NGSS_Public_Opinion_Survey.aspx

If you'd like to become more familiar with the NGSS, you can check out their website: http://www.nextgenscience.org/.

You can also get a great overview of their purpose from this 6 minute video from BozemanBiology, a science teacher that posts student-friendly lectures on YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o9SrSBGDNfU

Test Anxiety: A quick note.

Test anxiety interferes with students performance in a variety of ways. For one, if a student has a panic attack at the beginning of the exam they seriously shorten the amount of time they have to complete said exam. Test anxiety is is characterized by four factors: tension, worry, test-irrelevant thinking, and bodily reactions (Nitko, 2011). Any of these are enough to interfere with performance on an exam. Bodily reactions like headaches, stomach-aches, or palpitations can make it very difficult to pay attention and recall information. If a student is preoccupied with external factors, such as how their parents will react if they bring home a bad grade, they are not focusing on the exam and that effects performance as well.

To address test anxiety a teacher's best defense is a good offense. Inform the students what the assessment covers, how long they will have, what format it's in, etc. Avoid telling students that an assessment is going to be “hard, difficult, etc”. Provide sincere and comprehensive feedback throughout the year so a student can work on their weaknesses. Dr. Nitko suggests frequent testing to improve performance in anxious students (Nitko, 2011) and arranging assessment tasks from easiest to hardest. Avoid placation like “you'll do fine” and “don't worry”. Instead address the students concerns by answering questions about content and reinforcing the areas they're worried about. During the assessment, try not to walk around and look over students' shoulders. Talking and interrupting the student is obviously a bad idea. Convey a sense of confidence about the students' performance on the exam (Nitko, 2011). If YOU think that the students will not do well, YOU did not do your job in preparing them.

Nitko, A. J. (2011). Educational Assessment of Students. (6^th Ed). Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon. 

Assessments Assessments Assessments!

In order to best prepare students for an upcoming assessment an educator must provide certain minimum information in order for those students to be able to perform at their best. By using multiple instructional techniques that result in enhanced test performance, that also reflects an increased mastery of the content domain, the validity of the score interpretation is not compromised (Coleman-Ferrell, 2013). Effective methods that fit these requirements include

• The date and time when the assessment will be given.
• The conditions under which it will be given. For instance, how long they have to take it; whether the exam will be in-class or take-home; whether it will be a “speed test” exam, and so forth.
• The content areas the assessment covers.
• The emphasis or weighting (point value) of content areas to be included on the assessment.
• The types of performance the student will have to demonstrate (the kinds of items on the test, the degree to which memory will be required.)
• The way the assessment will be scored and graded (e.g., will partial credit be given?).
• The importance of the particular assessment result in relation to decision about the students (e.g., it will count for 20% of the marking period grade) (Nitko, 2011).

According to Dr. Nitko's “Educational Assessment of Students” there exists necessary test-taking skills and how they should be taught to students. He outlines nine necessary skills:

• 1. Paying attention to oral and written directions and finding out the consequences of failing to follow them.
• 2. Asking how the assessment will be scores, how the individual tasks will be weighted into the total, and how many points will be deducted for wrong answers, misspellings, or poor grammar.
• 3. Writing their responses or marking answers neatly to avoid lowered scored because of poor penmanship or mismarked answers.
• 4. Studying throughout the course and in paced reviewing to reduce cramming and fatigue.
• 5. Using assessment time wisely so that all tasks are completed within the given time.
• 6. Using their partial knowledge and guessing appropriately
• 7. Reflecting, outlining, and organizing answers to essays before writing; using an appropriate amount of time for each essay.
• 8. Checking the marks they make on the separate answer sheets to avoid mismatching or losing one's place when an item is omitted.
• 9. Reviewing their answers to the tasks and changing answers if they can make a better response. (Nitko, 2011).

Schools that use standardized educational survey tests that have been developed using empirical research benefit from a high level of standardization and usually reliability and validity. Multilevel survey batteries will assess the assessment for content and learning targets covered, reliability data, and bias screenings. These assessments will have two equivalent forms and permit both in-level and out-of-level testing. That is, the assessment is given to students who are both in and out of the grade level appropriate for the assessment. A student Is measured best when a test is tailored to the student's functioning level (Nitko, 2011).

There is a certain benefit to using the tests that come with curriculum materials. Namely, the topics in the tests closely match the material that is being taught. They are convenient and little alteration needs to be done to have them ready for student use. Unfortunately the quality of assessments that come with curriculum material is usually poor (Nitko, 2011). Dr. Nitko states that text-series authors are seldom proficient in assessment development and that the editorial staff probably do not edit the questions for technical correctness or appropriate rigor (Nitko, 2011). Accompanying assessments must be looked over carefully and checked for completeness, to be sure the questions make sense, and to adjust tasks that may be too hard or too easy. Do not forget to make sure the sure the questions match the objectives you are teaching!

Teachers can write their own assessments, of course, but this also has pros and cons. The obvious benefits of writing one's own questions is knowing that the tasks match the objectives and what is being taught in class. Tests teachers write for themselves risk poor reliability however. Unless the teacher has had time to try the assessment previously and assess the item difficulties and consistency of scores the teacher risks giving an assessment they may have to adjust for later depending on the students' overall performance.

Personally, I support standardized testing to a large degree and yet wish it was not such a large part of student assessment. I feel it is hard enough on students to struggle in a national economy and global job market when the schools cannot agree on even content standards. Standardized tests represent the baseline that students must meet or exceed in order to, supposedly, do well after they have graduated a certain grade level. However, there are so many failings in standardized tests. They cannot possibly assess all the cognitive levels and reach students of all different learning styles. They test largely fact retention; training hordes of academic Trivial Pursuit players who are terrified when confronted with public speaking, mathematicians who do not understand the question unless a formula has been provided, and historians who know which battles were certainly NOT fought at a particular time but not quite which ones were.

I dream of those project based curricula that guide students in the ways of the real world. Students completing projects and applying knowledge drawn from more than one class to solve problems and never again complain “I will never ever use what I learned in this class again!” Alas, it cannot be. Even those schools who use performance based assessment still must adhere to standardization in order to prove the objectives have been met. I am rather okay with that. Until all schools are created equal, standardization is the tool that ensures they at least pretend to be.

References:

Coleman-Ferrell, T. (2013). Standardized Achievement Tests in the Era of High-Stakes Assessment (Slides). Retrieved from www.Blackboard.com.

Ellis, K. (2002). Comprehensive Assessment: An Overview. Retrieved from http://www.edutopia.org/comprehensive-assessment-overview-video

Nitko, A. J. (2011). Educational Assessment of Students. (6th Ed). Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon.

Microsoft Free Clipart. Retrieved from http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/images/results.aspx?qu=exam&ex=1#ai:MP900402266|

Goal Driven Assessment

Assessment is the broad term for obtaining information about something in order to evaluate it (Nitko 2011). The teacher derives a number of tests and non-tests from the learning targets presented to the students. The student's job is to understand the learning goals and strive to master them and display mastery through the tests and non-tests. Tests are systematic observations of a students' knowledge usually obtained using short-answer recollection or multiple-choice selection of facts, concepts, and procedures. Non-tests can be described as projects, essay papers, oral presentations, etc. The results of the tests are classified and numerically assessed or measured for grading and to represent the degree to which the student mastered the concept. These measurements combined with the teacher's experience of the student's performance is used to judge the evaluate the mastery of knowledge in the curriculum (Nitko 2011). 

Any and all information that a teacher gathers about a student can be considered an assessment used to inform various decisions, though not all of the information will be assessed for the student's educational evaluation. A teacher may assess, through observation of a particular student struggling with a lesson, that the student could reduce their struggle through a different study habit. The teacher may assess, through observation of the the entire class, that foundational material needed for the current lesson was not completely understood. 

Learning objectives should clarify the purpose and intent of the block of instruction for both the student and the instructor. By stating the objectives with behavioural criteria, such as particular verbs to universally mean particular actions, a teacher can succinctly state learning objectives to mean what they were intended to mean (Kizlik 2012). An example of an unclear objective is asking a student to “understand” something, as in “understand global climate change”. The student may not know where to start and probably will not study whatever learning objective the teacher had in mind. By using behavioral criteria and stating “identify causes of global climate change” the student has a concise goal. Having these concise goals helps the teacher communicate the lessons more fully as the students understand their part more easily. Within a lesson plan these specific learning targets written in behavioral language the teacher's curriculum and objectives can be communicated more efficiently to all parties and thereby helps organize teaching. 

A broad, heterogeneous domain tends to represent a developmental learning target that will require various mastery learning target to cover the whole domain. Each of the skills required will develop at different rates throughout the learning process. Reaching one mastery learning target does not represent mastery of all the learning targets within the broad domain, thus the two contraindicate each other. An example of such a broad, heterogeneous domain is “interpret statistical data found in material from a variety of disciplines” (Nitko 2011). The name of the task itself belies its broad and nonspecific nature. A narrow domain would be “construct a scatter plot of the statistical data presented in the paper Physiological Effects of Generational Organochlorine Contamination on Arctic Seabirds by J.A. Kepley”. In this narrower domain the task will show mastery of one of the skills contained within “interpret statistical data found in material” while concentrating the task on a single objective. However this domain is too narrow as the head and beak length of the Arctic penguin is not the real target of learning. A better learning target would be “construct a scatter plat from statistical data”. To determine if a learning goal is too broad, attempt to find several mastery objectives within it; if multiple objectives can be identified the learning goal is not suitable as a “mastery learning target”.

References

Angeli, E., Wagner, J., Lawrick, E., Moore, K., Anderson, M., Soderlund, L., & Brizee, A. (2010, May 5). General format. Retrieved from http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/

Kizlik, Bob (2012). A rationale for learning objectives that meet demanding behavioral criteria. Retrieved from http://www.adprima.com/objectives2.htm

Nitko, Anthony J. (2011). Educational Assessment of Students. Boston, MA: Pearson.

(Image Credit) Developers are not good testers. What you say? Software Testing Help (2012). Retrieved from http://www.softwaretestinghelp.com/developers-are-not-good-testers/

Bloom's Taxonomy

The original Bloom's Taxonomy of the Cognitive Domain (Bloom, Englehart, Furst, Hill, & Krathwohl,1956) contained six hierarchical levels of learning comprised of knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, and synthesis. Each level was defined by what the student could achieve once mastering the level and the website gives sample verbs that would appear in learning objectives pertaining to that level and a sample behavior.

In 2001 the taxonomy was revised to “fit the more outcome-focused modern education objectives “ (Huitt 2011). Some of the hierarchies were reordered, renamed, and titled “Cognitive process dimension” but the real revision was in adding the “Knowledge dimension”. In this second dimension each of the original “Knowledge” dimensions now had an inner hierarchy. The Cognitive dimension includes Factual Knowledge, Conceptual, Procedural, and Meta-Cognitive Knowledge. The intersection of these two dimensions shows how a student can “know” the cognitive process after learning the material. For example, using the Bloom's taxonomy, to “apply” “conceptual knowledge” of Bloom's Taxonomy a student should be able to “write objectives using taxonomy” (Huitt 2011).

Personally, as an aspiring teacher, this new taxonomy does not change my opinion about what assessment, evaluation and test are based on my reading of Chapter 1 in Nitko's fifth edition of Educational Assessment of Students. What this revised taxonomy will do is increase the effectiveness of evaluation,testing, and overall assessment by allowing me to refine my learning targets using the two-dimensional taxonomy as a sort of map. I will be able to ensure that throughout the course of instruction in a concept or unit I cover learning objectives from nearly all of the two-dimensional intersections presented in the revised taxonomy, thereby giving my students better scaffolding for their study.

References:

Huitt, W. (2011). Bloom et al.'s taxonomy of the cognitive domain. Educational Psychology Interactive.Valdosta, GA: Valdosta State University. Retrieved from http://www.edpsycinteractive.org/topics/cognition/bloom.html

(Image Credit) Heer, Rex (2011) A Model of Learning Objectives–based on A Taxonomy for Learning, Teaching, and Assessing: A Revision of Bloom's Taxonomy of Educational Objectives, Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching, Iowa State University. Retrieved from http://www.celt.iastate.edu/teaching/RevisedBlooms1.html

Learning Targets

Learning targets are statements about the information or skills students need to learn. There is a hierarchy of learning targets: State Standards are learning targets written by the local government mandating what students should know or master by a certain grade. These can be broken down into “content standards” written within a discipline to mandate what the student should know after instruction, or as “performance standards” which state what the student should be able to do after the content is learned. With these two types of standards the teacher shapes the curriculum. The teacher takes the content and performance standards and breaks them down into specific learning targets which define, in concise language, what the student will do or learn and be assessed on. These specific learning targets may be either “mastery learning targets” that can be assessed by knowledge recall such as a multiple choice test, or “developmental learning targets” which require several modes of assessment to accommodate the lifelong nature of the learning goal.

There are four major ways that learning targets contribute to improved classroom assessment. The instructor is able to align assessments with mastery learning targets and ensure that the assessment is really evaluating what the student is supposed to be learning from that unit. Secondly, learning targets allows the instructor to evaluate a student's progress in developmental domains by giving them concrete skills and processes that can be assessed in part and contribute to an overall assessment of the degree to which a student is mastering the developmental learning target at that level. Third, learning targets allow instructors to align assessments with state standards. This is especially true when the learning targets are derived directly from the state standards (which are really just learning targets) (Nitko 2011)! Fourthly, since learning targets specify what student should achieve by the end of instruction (Nitko 2011) the student, and their parents, will have scaffolding around what to be assessed on and thus study accordingly.

Nitko, Anthony J. (2011). Educational Assessment of Students. Boston, MA: Pearson.

(Image credit) Townsend, Matt (2012) Target's City Ambitions. Retrieved from

http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-05-31/targets-city-ambitions

Recognizing Effective Teachers

Best "Best Teacher" medal:
Made out of chocolate!

Oftentimes it may seem that the only reward for an effective teacher is the teacher seeing the growth of their students under their tutelage. Certain school districts and educational programs have instituted “merit pay” systems that rewards teachers whose students receiver overall higher grades on standardized tests. However, this merit pay can leave students, parents, and even other teachers, skeptical that teachers are being rewarded for “teaching to a test” by way or emphasizing rote memorization or test-taking skills in lieu of actual critical thinking skills.

A method more akin to non-educational promotional methods is the “career ladder”. Effective teachers may be recognized for their skill as an educator by evaluation and achieve “rank” such as “master” or “mentor teacher” (Sadker 432). These ranks give the recognized teacher more say in things like selecting textbooks and shaping curricula. This seems to be one of the rewards beneficial to not only the recognized teacher but the rest of the department as the effective teacher has a chance to share what has been working for them with the other teachers.

A very prestigious for of recognizing teachers comes from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. Teachers put together portfolios including videos, lesson plans, project mock-ups, etc, to show their level of effectiveness and ingenuity in the classroom. These portfolios are evaluated by the Board and the teachers put through challenging tests, observational sessions and, if the teacher is found to be exemplary, are awarded one of several “board certifications”. A certification complements a state teaching certification but is not a replacement for it. In fact, other than the prestige itself, the certification is not a guarantee of a raise or other monetary prize from the teacher's school districts. As the certification is an expensive process for the teacher some schools offer fee reimbursement should the teacher pass the certification.

Whether a teacher receives recognition for their effectiveness through monetary rewards, more responsibility, or wider influences, the main reward for teachers will always be making a difference in the lives of young adults.

Sadker, David Miller. Teachers, Schools, and Society, 2010 McGraw-Hill. New York.

Image: "Teachers Medal" Trulychocolates.co.uk Accessed 2012 Nov 27. [http://trulychocolates.co.uk/Teachers%20Medal]

Standards Based Education

            A standards based education  is one where the student is expected to learn a certain, pre-determined knowledge base. Often, the student's progress is tracked by performance standards in the form of frequent standardized testing and is built around preparing the student for the multitude of other standardized tests that will be foisted on them by the teacher, to pass; by the district, for funding; by the school, to graduate; and by the university, to get in. Then the cycle begins over again. The standards set down for the student's education are often lofty and overly-optimistic. The standards may presume that a student arrives in a certain grade completely prepared by previous education to start material and simply absorb it. Teacher pay and bonuses often go on the line as bets against how their class performs on the standardized tests molded to represent the latest set of standards.

            The standards themselves, called “content standards” are usually determined by someone who has not seen the inside of a primary or secondary school for decades. These standards are not even universal! Certain districts with poor grades on standardized tests may lower the standards to meet the students in order feel they are preparing the students better. It is completely possible for a student to excel under the standards at one school, move, and then completely fail to meet the standards of the next school. The difficulty may not be the only thing to change as those who edit the standards decide exactly what content goes in them. Does the content revolve largely around a textbook? Does the school need a new textbook to fit the new standards? Can the school afford new textbooks?

            The changing content for standards based education and individual school districts' ability to keep up with these standards creates a risk of disconnect between what government says the students should be learning and what they actually learn. This disconnect results in changing standards which results in more disconnect and a caterpillar effect in which the governments are constantly trying to do what is best for the student while the student ends up further and further behind the “standard”.

1. Sadker, David Miller. Teachers, Schools, and Society, 2010. Page 151.
2. Image: "Regents? Hey, they’re a breeze". Published August 18, 2010 at 7:12 am by Michael Huber, timesunion.com  Accessed 2012 Nov 27. [http://blog.timesunion.com/schools/regents-hey-they/970/]