Krajcik

One of the most important ideas from this article is that assessment should not only be summative. If students don't understand a concept, formative assessment allows this concept to be retaught. It's also important that there are several different types of assessment (portfolios, interviews, self evaluations, etc). That way, students will be better able to express their knowledge since there are so many different avenues. Some might be better in an interview than taking a test, for example. This reduces the text anxiety factor for many students. The chapter mentioned that when assessment is ongoing throughout the unit, there is less anxiety concentrated in just a few test experiences. I thought it was also interesting to include parents more in the assessment process. Their observations from the home can be very helpful, and this would make parents more receptive to the teacher's assessment methods.

Another thing I agreed with from this chapter was the importance of rubrics. When teachers use rubrics, students understand the expetations and later have a concrete understanding of what they need to work on. The idea of creating a portfolio also seemed very beneficial to me. Explaining how each piece demonstrates their learning is a great way for students to self-assess. However, assessment isn't all about these types of formal assessment. The chapter's section about informal observations was also very helpful. Using strategies like longer wait time and probing questions during discussions can help teachers make a better formative assessment. Longer wait time will give all students the chance to answer questions posed by the teacher, and probing questions stretch students so teachers can see what they really know--their reasonings behind a belief rather than just a one word answer. I also like the idea of giving students time to jot down their answer before calling on anyone. This gives the teacher a record of all the students' ideas in their science journal along with allowing students more time to think.

One thing which I didn't agree with in this chapter was that the writers included True/False questions as an acceptable form of assessment. I never thought it was a good idea for these questions to be included because students have a 50/50 chance if they simply guess. One way this problem could be remedied, however, is if students were required to supply an explanation for their thinking. This would make the grading process less simple, but teachers could actually assess much more deeply. Another issue I had with this chapter was the idea of peer-assessment. I do think this could potentially have merit, but it's very important to develop a trusting, collaborative classroom before implementing it. Otherwise, I think students could give their classmates a poor assessment just because they dislike them. Also, I don't think that the teamwork aspect shouldn't be emphasized a lot in the grading process because it strays away from assessing the student's actual science learning.

My favorite part of the chapter was the emphasis on performance assessment. I think that this is the most relevant form of assessment because students are doing something like they actually would in real life. Personally, I wouldn't like to take a performance assessment because I've been taking paper-and-pencil tests my whole life. But I think this aversion is a problem. I can do great on a standard test, but in real life, how is that going to help me? Assessments should be more relevant. I think the chapter was very accurate to say that students will remember their performance assessments much more. For instance, I still remember creating a covered wagon in 3rd grade and a volcano in 4th grade. These experiences are hands-on, interesting, and involve social collaboration, so students will remember the lessons that go along with them much better.