Assessment of an Arts-Based Education Program: Strategies and Considerations

1. Assessment of an Arts-Based Education Program: Strategies and Considerations Noelle C. GriffinLoyola Marymount University and CRESST CRESST Annual Conference September 8, 2005

2. HistoryArtful Learning Program • Leonard Bernstein Center for Learning • The Artful Learning Program • Based on the work of the late composer • Implemented through the Grammy Foundation

3. Artful Learning Program • Arts-based education model • Best School Practice Components • Teacher as Expert • Currently implemented in 9 states, 23 schools

4. Evaluation Overview • 3 year evaluation project • Focus on implementation process, and the impact of school and teacher-level factors • Quantitative data • Qualitative data

5. Original Data Collection Plan • -Student achievement data • -Survey of teacher practice • -Implementation interviews • -Professional development evaluation

6. Limits of “Traditional” Approach • -Standardized test data: focus on basic reading/math skills only, “trailing” indicators at best • -Lack of applicable student assessment instruments • -Ignore teacher transformation

7. Delving Deeper into Teacher Experience • Teachers • Teacher attitude • Teacher practice • Teacher collaboration • Students • Motivation • Content Retention Led us to explore collective teacher efficacy during Y3

8. Collective Teacher Efficacy • Teachers’ beliefs in the shared ability as a group to achieve goals/tasks • Analysis of the teaching task (Task Analysis) • Assessment of teaching competence (Group Competence) *Integrated into quantitative and qualitative data collection

9. Task Analysis • -The process of analyzing what is required for the school to be effective in the process of teaching. • Sample Items • “The lack of instructional materials and supplies makes teaching very difficult.” • “The quality of school facilities here really facilitates the teaching and learning process.”

10. Group Competency • -The assessment of quality and competence of the teaching staff. • Sample Items • “If a child doesn’t learn something the first time, teachers will try another way.” • “Teachers in this school do not have the skills to deal with student disciplinary problems.”

11. Dependent Variables ·     Total Efficacy ·     Group Competency ·     Task Analysis Independent Variables ·    Grade Level Taught ·    Teaching Experience (years) ·    Professional Development ·    School-Level Collaboration ·    Shared Leadership ·    Artful Learning Program Use (years) ·    Extent of Artful Learning Implementation Dependent & Independent Variables

12. Total Efficacy Grade Level Taught Group Competency Teaching Experience (number of years) Shared Leadership Task Analysis Collective Teacher Efficacy Scale Multiple Regression Findings *All Significant relationships are negative *No significant relationship to other Artful learning implementation variables

13. Interview Findings • Teacher experience • Experiences of primary vs. secondary teachers • The role of shared leadership: importance of structural support

14. Tailoring an Approach to Student Learning: Available Resources • -Artful Learning Units: Structured archives of student work • -Artful Learning teams, cadres, and other teacher-based organizational structures • -Regular training opportunities • -Pre-existing “rubric” approach

15. Example: Artful Learning Classroom Rubirc

16. Example: Artful Learning Student Rubric - In Progress

17. Alternative Assessment Approaches • -Use classroom rubrics to assess teacher work/curriculum • -Develop more comprehensive rubrics for student work to assess quality of student learning • -Use scoring rubrics for both evaluative and formative assessment purposes

18. Considerations/Roadblocks • -Refinement of rubrics: elaborated and usable • -Selection of student data • -Reliability and validity considerations • -Training and on-going technical support

19. Links • -Grammy Foundation & Leonard Bernstein Center • www.grammy.com/foundation/ • -CRESST • www.cresst.org