DTE Social Studies Methods
PACT Assessment Assignment
Fall 2008
This document outlines the PACT portion of your social studies methods course. You will be
looking at student work from a social studies pre-assessment that was administered to 20 fourth grade
students during the first week of school this year. Its purpose was to find out what students know at
the beginning of the year in preparation for lessons in world and California geography and American
Indian history and culture. The assessment also covered some third grade material in order to assess
what they remember to bridge connections between the years.
Your assignment is to select and analyze three student work samples and to write 5 to 8 single-spaced
pages in response to the prompts below. Detailed guidelines for the assignment are below.
Background Information
The Social Studies pre-assessment was administered to 20 fourth grade students at a public
elementary school in mid-east Oakland in the “flatlands.” The school is in its third year as a public
new small school, and with cohesive vision and action plan that focuses on student achievement
through explicit instruction, data assessment, and parent involvement. All of the students in the class
are English language learners and come from homes where Spanish is the primary language. Most
are on the free or reduced lunch program.
About the Assessment
The assessment is based on California State Standards for the elementary grades. The specific
standards covered by the assessment are as follows:
Grade Three: Continuity and Change
Students in grade three learn more about our connections to the past and the ways in which
particularly local, but also regional and national, government and traditions have developed and left
their marks on current society, providing common memories. Emphasis is on the physical and
cultural landscape of California, including the study of American Indians, the subsequent arrival of
immigrants, and the impact they have had in forming the character of our contemporary society.
3.1 Students describe the physical and human geography and use maps, tables, graphs,
photographs, and charts to organize information about people, places, and environments in a
spatial context.
3.1.1 Identify geographical features in their local region (e.g., deserts, mountains, valleys, hills,
coastal areas, oceans, lakes).
3.2 Students describe the American Indian nations in their local region long ago and in the
recent past.
3.1.2 Discuss the ways in which physical geography, including climate, influenced how the local
Indian nations adapted to their natural environment (e.g., how they obtained food, clothing,
tools).
Grade Four: A Changing State
Students learn the story of their home state, unique in American history in terms of its vast and varied
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geography, its many waves of immigration beginning with pre-Columbian societies, its continuous
diversity, economic energy, and rapid growth. In addition to the specific treatment of milestones in
California history, students examine the state in the context of the rest of the nation, with an emphasis
on the U.S. Constitution and the relationship between state and federal government.
4.1 Students demonstrate an understanding of the physical and human geographic features that
define places and regions in California.
4.1.4 Explain and use the coordinate grid system of latitude and longitude to determine the absolute
locations of places in California and on Earth.
4.1.5 Distinguish between the North and South Poles; the equator and the prime meridian; the
tropics; and the hemispheres, using coordinates to plot locations.
4.1.6 Identify the locations of the Pacific Ocean, rivers, valleys, and mountain passes and explain
their effects on the growth of towns.
4.2 Students describe the social, political, cultural, and economic life and interactions among
people of California from the pre-Columbian societies to the Spanish mission and Mexican
rancho periods.
4.2.1 Discuss the major nations of California Indians, including their geographic distribution,
economic activities, legends, and religious beliefs; and describe how they depended on,
adapted to, and modified the physical environment by cultivation of land and use of sea
resources.
Kindergarten through Grade Five: Historical and Social Science Analysis Skills
The intellectual skills noted below are to be learned through, and applied to, the content standards for
kindergarten through grade five. They are to be assessed only in conjunction with the content
standards in kindergarten through grade five.
In addition to the standards for kindergarten through grade five, students demonstrate the following
intellectual, reasoning, reflection, and research skills:
Chronological and Spatial Thinking
1. Students place key events and people of the historical era they are studying in a chronological
sequence and within a spatial context; they interpret time lines.
3. Students explain how the present is connected to the past, identifying both similarities and
differences between the two, and how some things change over time and some things stay the same.
4. Students use map and globe skills to determine the absolute locations of places and interpret
information available through a map or globe's legend, scale, and symbolic representations.
Guidelines for Assessing Student Work and Responding to the Prompts
To avoid confusion, in this document “candidates” refer to you, and “students” refers to the fourth
graders who completed the assessment. We suggest you review the rubrics that will be used to
analyze candidates’ work so you know what is expected. In this assignment you will be summarizing
and analyzing meaningful patterns in whole class performance on selected individual student
assessments. You will analyze further the performance of two assessments and diagnose individual
learning needs.
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Before responding to the prompts:
1. Analyze the student work to identify patterns in understanding across the class.
2. Select three student work sample which together represents what students generally understood
and what a number of students were struggling to understand.
3. Label these samples as “Work Sample 1”, “Work Sample 2”, and “Work Sample 3”. If your
students use invented spelling, please write a translation directly on the work sample. Be sure
reviewers can distinguish any written feedback to students from the students’ written work.
4. Document your feedback to these three students, either as individuals or as part of a larger group.
If it is not written directly on the work sample, provide a copy of any written feedback or write a
summary of oral feedback (summary may be included with Commentary Prompt #6).
Assessment Commentary Prompts
Write a commentary of 5-8 single-spaced pages (including the prompts) that addresses the following
prompts. Respond to each prompt separately.
1. Identify the standards and any other evaluative criteria or rubric you are using to assess
student work. (The California standards addressed by this assessment are included
above. Be sure to explain if you are using other criteria or a rubric that you have
created to assess student work.
2. How do the evaluative criteria measure student proficiency for these
standards/objectives? Evaluative criteria are performance indicators that you use to
assess student learning. Categories of evaluative criteria include correct identification of
key historical facts or people, or appropriate application of specific concepts or skills.
3. Create a summary of student learning across the whole class relative to your evaluative
criteria. Summarize the results in a graph. You may use the optional chart provided
following the Assessment Commentary prompts to provide the evaluative criteria,
including descriptions of student performance at different levels.
4. Discuss what most students appear to understand well, and if relevant, any
misunderstandings, confusions, or needs (including a need for greater challenge) that
were apparent for some or most students. Cite evidence to support your analysis from
the three student work samples you selected.
5. Choose two of the three samples you collected. Describe the two students’ prior
knowledge of the content and their individual learning strengths and challenges (e.g.,
academic development, language proficiency, special needs). What did you conclude
about their learning based on specific evidence from the assessment?
6. Provide written feedback on the selected student work and attach to your commentary.
How and why do your approaches to feedback support students’ further learning? In
what ways does your feedback address individual students’ needs and learning goals?
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Cite specific examples and reference the three student work samples as evidence to
support your explanation.
7. Based on the student performance on this assessment, describe the next steps for
instruction for the students. If different, describe any individualized next steps for the
two students whose individual learning you analyzed. These next steps may include a
specific instructional activity or other forms of re-teaching to support or extend
continued learning of objectives, standards and/or central focus/big ideas for the
learning segment. In your description, be sure to explain how these next steps follow
from your analysis of the student performances.
Rubrics used to analyze candidates’ work
ASSESSMENT: ANALYZING STUDENT WORK FROM AN ASSESSMENT
EH6: How does the candidate demonstrate an understanding of student performance with
respect to standards/objectives? (TPEs 1,3)
Level 1
Level 2
Level 3
Level 4
 The criteria/rubric and
analysis have little
connection with the
identified
standards/objectives.
OR
 Student work samples do
not support the
conclusions in the
analysis.
 The criteria/rubric and
analysis focus on what
students did right or
wrong in relationship to
identified
standards/objectives.
 The analysis of whole
class performance
describes some
differences in levels of
student learning for the
content assessed.
 The criteria/rubric and
analysis focus on
patterns of student
errors, skills, and
understandings to
analyze student learning
in relation to
standards/objectives.
 Specific patterns are
identified for individuals
or subgroup(s) in
addition to the whole
class.
All components of Level
3 plus:
 The criteria/rubric and
analysis focus on
partial
understandings as
well.
 The analysis is clear
and detailed.
ASSESSMENT: USING ASSESSMENT TO INFORM TEACHING
EH7: How does the candidate use the analysis of student learning to propose next steps in
instruction? (TPEs 3,4)
Level 1
Level 2
Level 3
Level 4
 Next steps are vaguely
related to or not
aligned with the
identified student
needs.
OR
 Next steps are not
described in sufficient
detail to understand
them.
OR
 Next steps are based on
inaccurate conclusions
about student learning
from the assessment
analysis.
 Next steps focus on
improving student
performance through
general support that
addresses some
identified student
needs.
 Next steps are based on
accurate conclusions
about student
performance on the
assessment and are
described in sufficient
detail to understand
them.
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 Next steps focus on
improving student
performance through
targeted support to
individuals and groups
to address specific
identified needs.
 Next steps are based on
whole class patterns of
performance and some
patterns for
individuals and/or
subgroups and are
described in sufficient
detail to understand
them.
All components of Level 3
plus:
 Next steps demonstrate a
strong understanding of
both the identified content
and language
standards/objectives and of
individual students and/or
subgroups.
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ASSESSMENT: USING FEEDBACK TO PROMOTE STUDENT LEARNING
EH8: What is the quality of feedback to students? (TPEs 3,4)
Level 1
Level 2
Level 3
Level 4
 Feedback is general and
provides little guidance
for improvement related
to learning objectives.
OR
 The feedback contains
significant inaccuracies.
 The feedback identifies
what was done well and
areas for improvement
related to specific
learning objectives.
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 Specific feedback helps
the student understand
what s/he has done well,
and gives suggestions to
guide improvement.


Specific comments are
supportive and prompt
analysis by the student
of his/her own
performance.
The feedback shows
strong understanding
of students as
individuals in reference
to the content and
language objectives
they are trying to meet.
Development Teacher Education, UC Berkeley
UCSB, 11•14•08