Are your students
developing 21st century
skills?
Assessments You Can
Implement Now to
Find Out
Patte Barth ♦ Director ♦ Center for Public Education
NSBA Annual Conference ♦ San Francisco ♦ April 9, 2011
Agenda
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what’s different?
a 5-minute primer on testing
don’t wait for the state – tests worth teaching to
common core state standards & assessments
q&a
What still works in the
21st century
• Post secondary education and training is more
important than ever
• The traditional college prep curriculum has
benefits for work as well as for college
• The traditional curriculum is not enough
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Core curriculum, version 2.0
• Prepares all students for postsecondary education
and/or advanced training.
• Attends to the application of knowledge and skills
• Develops students’ broader competencies related to
critical thinking, collaboration, and creativity.
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Core curriculum, 2.0:
Knowledge & skills work together
SOURCE: Jerald, Defining a 21 st Century Education, Center for Public Education, 2009
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Which are most critical
skills? The 3 C’s!
• Critical thinking and problem solving
– Labor economists Levy & Murnane call it “expert thinking”
• Communication/Collaboration
– Levy and Murnane call it “complex communications”
• Creativity
-- Knowledge, ability to make connections & creative skills
SOURCE: Jerald, Defining a 21 st Century Education, Center for Public Education, 2009
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Two approaches to
assessing high school
biology
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High school
biology
questions
from a state
assessment
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High School Biology Exam
When scientists design drugs against infectious
agents, the term “designed drug” is often used.
A. Explain what is meant by this term.
______________________________________
______________________________________
______________________________________
SOURCE: Darling-Hammond, Lessons from Abroad, Edutopia, 2009, exam from Victoria, Australia
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Biology exam, Parts B & C
Scientists aim to develop a drug against a particular virus that
infects humans. The virus has a protein coat, and different parts
of the coat play different roles in the infective cycle. Some sites
assist in the attachment of the virus to a host cell; others are
important in the release from a host cell. The structure is
represented in the following diagram:
The virus reproduces by attaching itself to the
surface of a host cell and injecting its DNA into
the host cell. The viral DNA then uses the
components of host cell to reproduce its parts,
and hundreds of new viruses bud off from the
host cell. Ultimately, the host cell dies.
SOURCE: Darling-Hammond, Lessons from Abroad, Edutopia, 2009, exam from Victoria, Australia
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B. Design a drug that will be effective against this
virus. In your answer, outline the important
aspects you would need to consider. Outline
how your drug would prevent continuation of
the cycle of reproduction of the virus particle.
Use diagrams in your answer.
SOURCE: Darling-Hammond, Lessons from Abroad, Edutopia, 2009
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Before a drug is used on humans, it is usually
tested on animals. In this case, the virus under
investigation also infects mice.
C. Design an experiment, using mice, to test the
effectiveness of the drug you have designed.
SOURCE: Darling-Hammond, Lessons from Abroad, Edutopia, 2009
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Think about …
Which test gets at the 3C’s?
How do we know if our students are
developing the 3C’s?
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A 5-minute primer
on testing
A testing glossary
• Standardized test: taken under the same conditions;
sometimes at the same time
– can be multiple-choice or open-ended (constructed response)
• High-stakes tests: consequences attached to the
results
– eg., state tests for ESEA, student advancement, teacher evaluation
• Low-stakes tests: no consequences outside the
classroom
– eg., interim assessments, teacher tests, course finals
SOURCE: A guide to standardized testing, Center for Public Education, 2006
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A testing glossary
• Norm-referenced tests: compare individual students’
achievement to a representative “norm group”
– someone will always be above average, and someone will
be below average
• Criterion-referenced tests: compare individual
students’ achievement to an agreed upon criterion, or
standard
– it’s possible for every student to meet standards, or be
“proficient”
SOURCE: A guide to standardized testing, Center for Public Education, 2006
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A testing glossary
• Formative assessment: diagnostic, gauges where
students are so corrections or interventions can be made
– eg., benchmark assessments, classroom quizzes or tests
– low stakes attached to performance
• Summative assessment: summarizes learning at a
point in time
– eg., end of course, graduation, state tests
– typically higher stakes attached
SOURCE: A guide to standardized testing, Center for Public Education, 2006
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A testing glossary
• Validity: the test accurately measures what it intends to
measure
• Reliability: students taking the test multiple times will
receive approximately the same score each time
• High stakes tests must meet high psychometric
standards for both validity and reliability
SOURCE: A guide to standardized testing, Center for Public Education, 2006
18
Test format
Multiple-choice
• can be standardized & used for
high stakes
• test taker recognizes answer
• machine scorable & cheaper
• objectivity less likely to be
challenged
Performance
• can be standardized & used for
high stakes
• test taker must construct answer
• usually scored by hand; more
costly
• without rigorous scoring
processes, can be viewed as
subjective
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The fact that assessments are
lower stakes allows them to be of
higher quality, both in terms of
the range of ways in which
learning is to be measured and the
performance standards that are
set.
-- Darling-Hammond & Pecheone
SOURCE: Developing an Internally Comparable Balanced Assessment System
That Supports High-Quality Learning, Stanford University, 2010
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How good does your data need to be?
Data alert meter
Continuous
improvement
LOW
Accountability
GUARDED
formative:
teacher quizzes
& tests
benchmark
assessments
ELEVATED
middlin’ stakes:
district
performance
assessments &
projects
HIGH
summative:
state tests
graduation
tests
SEVERE
Don’t wait for the state Tests worth teaching to
Good assessment should be
indistinguishable from
learning.
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PISA - problem solving in math
SOURCE: PISA Released Items – Mathematics, OECD, 2006
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question
Looking at the diagram, the teacher claims that Group B did
better than Group A in this test.
The students in Group A don’t agree with their teacher. They try
to convince the teacher that Group B may not necessarily have
done better.
Give one mathematical argument, using the graph, that the
students in Group A could use.
SOURCE: PISA Released Items – Mathematics, OECD, 2006
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Ohio performance
assessment project
• pilot project with 15 participating districts
• tasks will require students to demonstrate
mastery of 21st century skills
• assessment will be curriculum-embedded,
teacher-managed, rich performance tasks that
are both content-focused and skills-driven
SOURCE: Beyond Basic Skills, Stanford Center for Opportunity Policy in Education, 2010
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Think about …
Look at the “Heating Degrees” task
What content knowledge is required to
perform this task?
Are 21st c. skills called for (the 3Cs)? How?
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Project-based assessment
• Project-based learning (PBL) is learning through
exploration of real-world problems
– Typically cross-curricular & collaborative; ends with a culminating
project
• Culminating projects are sometimes used as end of
course assessment or required for graduation
– Requires some standardization to assure that common expectations for
all students
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Guiding elements of a
culminating project
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clear & aligned purpose
explicit, rigorous standards
student-directed learning & youth engagement
clear scaffolding & support of skills
authentic project
community & parent involvement
coordination & comprehensive communication
ongoing professional development & program improvement
celebration & recognition
risk management & liability
SOURCE: Project Service Leadership, Developing Civically Rich Culminating Projects, WA, 2005
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Examples
• A senior seminar course culminating in a small group project.
Groups design organize, implement, and evaluate a sustainable
service project to address a problem or issue.
• Practicum in Community Involvement. Students intern with a
local nonprofit and produce a project that meets a need with the
organization/agency.
• Youth Service Center. Students staff a service project resource
center that features past projects and helps students design
new projects.
SOURCE: Project Service Leadership, Developing Civically Rich Culminating Projects, WA, 2005
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Graduation project –
Charlotte-Mecklenburg
• 3Ps: Product, portfolio, presentation
• Counts as part of the English IV grade at 40% of 4th
quarter grade
• Intended to reflect work through grades 9 – 12
• Evaluated according to detailed, common scoring guides,
or rubrics
SOURCE: CMS Graduation Project, www,cms.k12.nc.us retrieved April 4, 2011
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Project-based assessment
pros and cons
Pros
• model real world activity
• integrate knowledge & skills
• learning is more relevant
• students are more engaged
• mentorships strengthen student
& school relationships with
community
Cons
• requires considerable staff &
student time
• finding mentors is challenging
• student supervision can be
problematic
• large-scale attempts have
produced mixed student results
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Coming soon –
The common core state
standards
The Common Core Standards are
intended to be:
• Aligned with college and work expectations
• Focused and coherent
• Include rigorous content and application of knowledge
through high-order skills
• Build upon strengths and lessons of current state standards
• Internationally benchmarked so that all students are
prepared to succeed in our global economy and society
• Based on evidence and research
• State led – coordinated by NGA Center and CCSSO
SOURCE: Common Core State Standards, www.corestandards.org
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40 states & DC have adopted
the CCSS
adopted
not
adopted
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PARCC
Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for
College & Careers
• 26-state coalition to develop 21st century assessments aligned to
common core standards
• headed by Achieve, Inc.
• supported with $170 million federal grant
• tests will be ready 2014-15
• emphasis on formative, or benchmark assessments to monitor
students’ progress toward college/career readiness
• assessments will be computer-based
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26 states & DC are in the
PARCC consortium
participant
non
participant
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SMARTER
SMARTER Balanced Assessment Consortium
• 30-state coalition to develop computer adaptive tests aligned to
common core standards
• centered at University of Washington
• supported with $176 million federal grant
• tests will be ready 2014-15
• emphasis on twice-yearly summative exams
• optional formative, or benchmark exams, tools for teachers’ ongoing
classroom assessment
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30 states are in the SMARTER
consortium
participant
non
participant
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45 states & DC are involved
involved
not
involved
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Points of collaboration
SMARTER & PARCC
• working to ensure comparability of scores
• developing protocols for Artificial Intelligent
scoring
• working toward same deadlines
SOURCE: Center for K-12 Assessment & Performance Management at ETS, webinar April 4, 2011
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What local districts can do
• ask – what do we know about our students’ readiness for
21st century life and work? how do we know it?
• engage teachers and your communities in developing
21st century assessment strategies and policies,
including what stakes should be attached to results
• districts in CCSS states … form study groups to examine
the common core standards against current practices
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What local districts can do
• form partnerships with local colleges to develop better
assessments, provide professional development and
align expectations
• start small with project-based assessments; evaluate
closely
• engage your stakeholders!
• get involved with state efforts!
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Questions?
Resources & tools
Center for Public Education
 Objective, easy to understand research
 Up to date analysis
 School success stories
Data First
 Data Center with national & state data
 Learning Center with downloadable
videos
 Ask the expert
learn more
check out our websites at
www.centerforpubliceducation.org and
www.data-first.org
contact me
pbarth@nsba.org