Page 235 - Powerful Social Studies for Elementary Students 4th Edition

FIGURE 9.3 Lab Test Checklist
CHAPTER 9 How Can I Assess Student Learning? 207
Did you . . . .
acquire clipboards for students to use?
match test items to objectives (subsets of goals)?
match test items to concepts and skills?
design test items that include higher-order thinking?
use the wide variety of instructional materials that you used in teaching?
use student-made materials? (Gradually infuse these after several successful lab experiences.)
provide optional test items for diverse learners at some of the stations?
make provisions for students to catch up on their writing as they progress through the test?
attempt to make items at each station similar in length, or make necessary accommodations?
provide answer sheets that are easily interpreted?
plan for students who complete the test in minimum time? prepare an effective feedback strategy?
plan a strategy for reteaching (if necessary)?
plan a strategy for collecting and recording student results?
piece(s) of work are you most proud of and why?” “What would you add or do differently next time?” “Which social studies unit was most meaningful to you and why?” “What do the portfolio entries say about you as a learner?”
Potential portfolio contents should reflect the diversity of reading, writing, question- ing, analyzing, and experiences that are incorporated with the social studies units. They also should reveal students’ continuing development. The social studies section should represent the important things learned in that subject. It should serve as a powerful stim- ulus for students to use as they articulate the major understandings in the units of study and evaluate their own work.
Periodically, students should be expected to confer about their work with their peers and with you as their teacher. One teacher we observed also has her students confer with the teacher they will have next year, explaining what they have learned across the year and what knowledge, skills, understandings, appreciations, applications, and curiosities they will bring to the next grade.
Student-Led Parent Conferences
We also have witnessed students, beginning in the early grades, conducting conferences with their teachers and family members regarding their social studies goals and show- ing work samples to represent where they are in their development, what aspects they need to work on more diligently, and what types of assistance and support they think they need from the family. Student-led conferences provide an opportunity to talk about what has been learned, using the contents of the portfolio as the springboard for discussion. These conferences between the student and the teacher are often arranged on an informal, ongoing basis. Ideally, they include one or two sessions during the year with students and their families. The combination of students’ work collected over time with their own explanations of what they did and why provides a powerful venue for students to begin assessing their own progress. Often students
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