Assessment Literacy Reflection

Tolman High School is in the process of conducting an action research project to determine if the use of common formative assessments will impact student success on summative assessments. We conducted our research with one core content area class in Math and Science. Teams of Geometry and Biology teachers developed common formative assessments. As teams, teachers identified priority standards and established specific learning targets developed the formative assessments for each unit. Each of the common formative assessments were administered to all Geometry and Biology students. During common planning time, we collected data and engaged in collaborative conversations regarding the results. We recorded our observations and developed action steps for teachers to implement before administering the unit assessment. We used results from the first unit assessments as our baseline data and we tracked pass rates for each formative assessment as well as each unit assessment. 

 As we are writing this blog, we are still in the process of administering assessments, collecting data and engaging in data analysis and collaborative conversations. While we do not know if our project will achieve our intended overall goals, we can reflect on our progress and share our observations thus far. The project has fostered collaboration and reflection among our Geometry and Biology teachers. Much of the math and science department’s common planning time has been focused on this project. Conversations during meetings have been positive, productive and insightful. Teachers have been honest and open with respect to sharing their instructional strategies. Prior to this, we rarely had discussions regarding specific instructional strategies teachers used to teach a particular concept. As we discussed the student results of the formative assessments, we not only identified common errors made by the students but shared ideas about how best to present topics and correct those errors. We have a wealth of resources right in our own building and we were not fully making use of them. This project has had a positive impact on our math and science departments. Now we hope the same holds true for our students.

 If you are planning to try a similar project in your school, we have a few suggestions. First, take time to carefully choose the problems on the common formative assessments. We found that some problems we chose did not adequately measure if a student had mastered a concept. Make sure you are using quality problems. Planning is very important. Second, teachers must be at very similar points in the curriculum for this to be successful. If one or two teachers are ahead of the pack and several are behind, it is extremely difficult to collaboratively discuss results, develop action steps and have teachers implement those action steps in a timely manner. This worked well with the teachers that were in sync but basically left out the others. We wanted this to be a collaborative effort but it was not reasonable to expect that all teachers were always moving at the exact same pace. The purpose of this project was to increase student performance and improve instructional strategies. We believe we have improved instructional strategies now we hope that our data will show that we also increased student performance.

Action Research Sustainability Plan

Action Research Plan

Area of Focus: Sustaining and/or Enhancing Data Use in Your Context

Analyze

Pattern of Need:  Improve student performance on end of unit assessments. What is the pattern of need you want your action research project to address? Ensuring all students can achieve each standard taught in the course. Improving and aligning classroom instruction. Using data to drive instructional practices. What data sources did you use to find your pattern of need? NECAP Data

Research Question: What is your action research question? How can we increase student learning using end of unit assessment data to ensure all students are making progress.

Information Sources: What books, authors, articles, or sources of information (e.g. ERIC, internet websites, workshops) will you consult to find out more about the topic you are researching? Balanced Assessment from Formative to Summative by Kay Burke (2009)

Alignment: How does your Action Research Question align with other related initiatives (e.g. your personal goal from Day 1, School Level Objectives, School Improvement Plan, other RTTT initiatives or other school/district wide initiatives, etc.)? Aligns with school transformation plan Aligns with district PLC initiative Teachers meet by department once every 6 days for 70 minutes

Strategize

Data Collection: What data do you need to answer this question? Unit assessment data by teacher and by course. What data do you have access to already that may help you answer this question? NECAP scores What other sources of data will you use in your data collection (e.g. surveys, focus groups, interviews, student work, etc.)? Remember, you may utilize both qualitative and qualitative data. Teacher formative assessment data. How will you choose to display your data? Data can be collected and recorded in a spreadsheet and display on butcher block paper in the PD room.

Implementation Steps and Timeline: What are the steps you need to take to implement your action research project, and when will you complete those steps? Common unit assessments have been created this year. Unit assessments need to be aligned to the standards (Common Core, GSE’s, NGSS) (Fall 2013) Collect data from teachers after each unit assessment has been administered. (School year 2013-2014) Analyze data to identify strengths and weaknesses (School year 2013-2014) Participate in data conversations to share best practices

Resources: Who will be involved? School Principal School Data Leadership Team (SDLT) Department Chairs Teachers What materials will you need to access or create?      Align standards to all end of unit assessments Data collection tool (spreadsheet) (Google Drive)

Documentation: How will you document your progress? All departments have created common unit assessments during common planning time (CPT) this year that are used by teachers in the same content area. Data in the form of unit assessment scores will be collected and compared by classroom and standard. What visual data display will you utilize? Google presentation to departments Graphs

Analyzing Data: How are you going to analyze your data from your data collection? Collect data from classroom teachers Work in teams during common planning time When are you going to analyze your data? At particular intervals? During common planning time after each unit, when all assessments have been administered.

Act

Assess: How will you know if it is working? Unit assessment scores improve

Reflect and Share Results: What stakeholders would be interested in your research? Teachers Administrators Where could you share your results? (e.g. staff meetings, PTA meetings, etc.) Faculty Meetings Leadership Team Meetings PD & CPT What visual data display will you choose to share with stakeholders? Presentation with Graphs

Plans for Next Steps: Review all end of unit assessments and align to standards (Common Core, GSE’s, NGSS) Administer unit assessments at the end of each unit and collect data from teachers Record data in spreadsheets Analyze data during CPT Discuss data and instructional strategies

Action Research Planning Form

Action Research Planning Form

Designed by Cassandra Erkens, © 2014

Context:  

• Conduct with 1 core content area class in Math and Science

• Purpose is to increase student performance and instructional strategies
• Develop common formative assessments in teams of teachers during common planning time
• Administer 2 common formative assessments per unit (1 every 3 weeks)
• Collect data and compare with others on the team.
• Report to department during CPT
• Engage in collaborative conversations regarding results
• Goal:  Increase student achievement on unit assessments
• Encourage collaboration by course
• Improve content specific instructional strategies

Action Research Questions:

How can we best design and employ common formative assessments in highly effective ways? What impact will common formative have on unit assessment grades? Classroom Strategies & Actions Indicators of Success Monitoring Impact Research successful   formative assessment practices Work collaboratively to choose formative assessments strategies from research Collect developed formative assessments (2 for each unit) and baseline data Use Sample Protocol for Developing an Assessment    (©2012 Solution Tree Press) Product:  The collaboratively developed formative assessment. Develop rubrics and grading criteria specific to each assessment. Work in teams to develop    assessments using the protocol (Biology & Geometry teachers) Teams decide what to assess for each assessment in each unit. Collect and Compute the pass rate data from baseline assessments. Collaboratively score assessments during common planning time. Minutes from collaborative scoring session. Identify and document achievement gaps. Google Form:  Collect and compare data by assessment and by class. Survey of teachers: What skills or concepts did you re-teach in response to data collected? Administer and collect unit assessment data. Compute pass rates for each assessment. Conduct an analysis of the pass rates for all formative and  unit assessments.

Resources:

1. Tools for Formative Assessment - Techniques to check Understanding - Processing Activities (K.Lambert, OCPS Curriculum Services, 4/2012)
2. Sample Protocol for Developing an Assessment (©2012 Solution Tree Press)

Audience with whom to share your findings:

• Math and science department during common planning time. Specifically teachers of geometry and biology

Final report expectations:

• Write up your action research findings in a manner that addresses all of the following:
• Share your action research question
• Share the strategies you employed to answer your question
• Share the tools you used to gather evidence that your strategies were working
• Share the data – the aggregate of your findings
• Share the results – any resulting protocols, schedules, templates, policies, etc.

           that you employed as your framed your answer to your question

• Share your new insights and possible next steps you would take IF you were to

           continue the work of action research at the leadership level.