Systems for State Science Assessment (2006) / Chapter Skim
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2 A Systems Approach to Assessment
2 A Systems Approach to Assessment
Pages 21-37
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From page 21... ...
This chapter begins with a discussion of what a system is and what it means to take a systems approach to assessment. It then describes the reasoning that underlies the committee's conclusion that states should meet NCLB requirements by developing a system of assessment that incorporates multiple measures and a range of assessment strategies.
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From page 22... ...
As we will discuss in Chapter 8, evaluation and monitoring-which are essentially assessment of the assessment system -- provide another source of feedback that can shape the ways in which the assessment system functions within the education system. THE SCIENCE EDUCATION SYSTEM The goal of a science education system is to provide all students with the opportunity to acquire the knowledge, understanding, and skills that they will need to become scientifically literate adults (science literacy is discussed further in Chapter 3)
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From page 23... ...
Public reactions to results from international comparisons of educational achievement, such as the Third International Mathematics and Science Study or the Programme for International Student Assessment highlight the influence of the international community on science education in the United States.1 1The committee commissioned a paper from Dylan Wiliam, Educational Testing Service, and Paul Black, Kings College, England, to explore the nature of science education in other countries and its effects on science assessment and achievement. The paper, "International Approaches to Science Assessment," is available at http://www7.nationalacademies.org/bota/Test_Design_K12_Science.html.
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From page 24... ...
For example, the preparation of beginning teachers and the ongoing professional development of experienced ones should be guided by the same understanding of what is being attempted in the classroom as are the development of curriculum, establishing goals for instruction, and designing assessments. The reporting of assessment results to parents and other stakeholders should reflect these same understandings, as should the evaluations of effectiveness built into all systems.
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From page 25... ...
Just as the science education system must be coherent, the assessment system must be coherent as well. Coherence in the Science Assessment System Educators at each level of the education system use a variety of assessment strategies to obtain the information they need, and these strategies can take many 2Many state standards are written using terms such as "students will understand," "students will know" (see Chapter 4 of this report)
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From page 26... ...
For example, a classroom assessment designed by a teacher might provide immediate feedback on a student's understanding of a particular concept, while an assessment given throughout the state might address mastery of larger sets of related concepts achieved by all students at a particular grade level. The results might look different in the way they are expressed, but because they would both be linked to the shared goals that underlie the assessment system, they would not cause confusion.
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From page 27... ...
The committee recommends that states should incorporate both multiple measures and a variety of measurement approaches in their science assessment systems for two primary reasons, the second of which has several components. First, as discussed above, different kinds of information are needed at each level of the education system to support the many decisions that educators and policy makers need to make, for example, assessing the status or level of student achievement for the purposes of monitoring progress in the classroom, evaluating programs at the district level, or providing information for accountability purposes at the state level.
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From page 28... ...
provides systematic, ongoing professional development for teachers and oth ers on current science assessment practices, the uses and limitations of assessment results, and processes for developing and using sound assess ments; and (7) is systemically valid -- that is, it promotes in the education system desired curricular and instructional changes that result in increased learning and not just improvement in test scores.
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From page 29... ...
and communication skills. SOURCE: Adapted from Science Assessment and Reporting Support Materials, 1997, De partment of Education, Victoria.
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From page 30... ...
Finally, multiple measures are needed to provide a complete and accurate picture of students' science achievement. Any one test, task, or assessment situation is an imperfect measure of what students understand and can do.
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From page 31... ...
In this model, districts adopt or develop challenging academic content standards, develop or use existing assessments that are aligned to these standards, and set achievement standards. Other states may choose to use a mixed approach by creating mechanisms whereby the state and school district work together to create and implement assessment that fills in the information that is lacking in the state test.
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From page 32... ...
In brief, the commission advocated that tests: · Measure students' mastery of only a modest number of extraordinarily important curricular aims, · Describe what was to be assessed in language that is entirely accessible to teachers, and · Report results for every assessed curricular aim. The design team chose to apply these three principles just in the context of the NSES standards for science-as-inquiry in physical science, which could serve as an example for the way it might be done for an entire set of science standards.
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From page 33... ...
The team took as its starting point the Nebraska STARS assessment system, which uses classroombased assessments for accountability purposes. The team identified professional development as the critical component in the system, with the following specific goals: · Teachers must understand the state content standards and incorporate them into their work, · Teachers must be able to develop instruments to gather information about their students' performance relative to the standards at the classroom level, and · Teachers' reports of their students' achievement can be collected and used in meeting NCLB's accountability requirements.
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From page 34... ...
Models for Multilevel State Science Assessment Systems A third design team was asked to explore two possible means of meeting the NCLB requirements for science: using collaboration among states to minimize the burden of developing new strategies, and using technology in new ways to streamline and improve tasks ranging from developing innovative assessment tasks to scoring and data analysis. The team focused on identifying key ways in which intrastate collaboration and technology could be harnessed, and went on to develop two models that illustrate different ways of implementing the features they identified.
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From page 35... ...
The team assumed that the basic elements of the program that could be reconfigured would include content standards, test blueprints, test items, scoring methods, measurement models, scaling and equating procedures, standard-setting methods, and reporting procedures. After reviewing each of these elements and their implications for the outcome, the team developed a hybrid test design that incorporates a variety of elements in common use.
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From page 36... ...
This team reviewed assessment systems in Australia (Queensland) , France, Germany, Japan, New Zealand, Sweden, and England -- a set that illustrates both important differences from practices in the United States and a wide range of practices in general -- in an effort to identify critical design issues.
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From page 37... ...
For example, does the state have in place a regular cycle for reviewing and revising curriculum materials, instructional practices, and assessments to ensure that they are coherent with each other and with the state science standards, and that they adhere to the principles of learning and teaching outlined in this report? Does the state conduct studies to formally monitor and evaluate the alignment between its standards and assessments?
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