Joseph A. Brobst & Eric M. Eslinger School of Education, University of Delaware

1. Meta-Content Informal Formative Assessment & its Influence on Middle School Students’ Developing Science Knowledge Joseph A. Brobst & Eric M. Eslinger School of Education, University of Delaware

2. Research Question / Hypothesis • RQ: How does the use of Meta-Content IFAs by middle school science teachers during a software-based inquiry unit influence students’ developing knowledge of basic genetics and inheritance concepts? • RH: Students engaged in Meta-Content IFAs will demonstrate stronger, more sophisticated understandings on an end-of unit test of genetics & inheritance concepts.

3. Study Context / Participants • Private, university-affiliated school for students with identified learning disabilities • Two classroom teachers, one reading specialist • 12 students per classroom • “grades” 5-6; 7-8 • Students worked in pairs on laptop computers • Genetics curriculum incorporated into Inquiry Island software program

4. Data Sources • Ubiquitous Data Collection • Webcam video captured via Inquiry Island software • Student-teacher IFA interactions were transcribed • Allele Model Worksheet • Post-assessment of genetics content knowledge • Identification of dominant & recessive alleles based on inheritance patterns • Interpretation of sample genetic crosses • Design of test crosses to determine status of novel alleles

5. Informal Formative Assessment Types Identified • Mechanical Spelling, grammar, sentence structure “Might want to put a period in there.” • Procedural Organization, following directions, staying on task “These actually go in the evaluate section. You might want to move that stuff.” • Content Checking understanding of scientific concepts & vocabulary “What was different about this dark green cross compared to the first one?” • Meta-Content Prompting students to reflect & elaborate on their understandings “How do you know?”; “Isn’t that a better question?”

6. Case Study Selection • “Ms. Green’s” classroom • Significantly more IFA interactions identified vs. other teacher (n = 91 versus n = 69) • More IFA interactions were Meta-Content in nature • Significant variation in student understandings of genetics concepts as demonstrated on Allele Model Worksheet

7. Variations found in: • Students’ ability to use patterns of inheritance to identify dominant & recessive alleles • Students’ ability to define dominant & recessive in scientific rather than everyday terminology • Students’ ability to design & interpret crosses to determine if a newly presented allele is dominant or recessive • Effects of Meta-Content IFAs on students’ Allele Model Worksheet performance

8. Findings • Examples of Strong Student Understandings • Identifying dominant & recessive alleles from inheritance patterns: “I think dark green is dominant because no matter what way you crossed it in the first generation you got dark green.” • Defining dominant & recessive in scientific terms: “It means dark green overrules light green. Recessive means receding and dominant means that’s the one you’re going to have.” • Designing & interpreting crosses “I would pollinate the purple stemmed plant with the green stemmed plant and when I get a seed I would plant it and see what color the offspring were. If the offspring are purple I would know that the purple is dominant, if the offspring are green I would know the green is dominant.”

9. Findings • Examples of Student Misunderstandings / Misconceptions • Identifying dominant & recessive alleles from inheritance patterns: “The dark green allele is dominant because when we crossed dark and light green Brassica rapa, dark green was dominant light green was recessive.” • Defining dominant & recessive in scientific terms: “It means that the dark green has more power and the light green does not have that much power as the dark green.” • Designing & interpreting crosses “I could figure out if it was dominant or recessive by testing to see what its parents’ color leaves were and that would give me some information but not enough. I would also test to see what color its grandparents were; if that gives me a lot of information I would probably figure out that the purple stem trait was recessive.”

10. Effects of Meta-Content IFAs: • Prompted students to discuss ideas, establish a consensus view or conclusion, then record it in their Inquiry Island notebooks • Beneficial when they included checks of students’ ideas / conclusions for scientific accuracy & justifiability • Could foster student misunderstandings / misconceptions if: • Emphasis was just on getting ideas recorded and moving on • No check for appropriateness of students’ ideas / conclusions

11. Future Work • Investigate IFA usage in a second iteration of the same genetics curriculum • Use combination of UDC & stimulated recall interviews to determine factors leading to teachers’ differential usage of IFAs with different students • NARST • University of Delaware Office of Graduate & Professional Education • Teachers, staff, & students of TCS • For insight regarding this presentation: Eric Eslinger, Nicole DiGironimo, Bridget Brennan • For help with physical arrangement of the poster: Jennifer Brobst, Erin Brobst • E-mail: joebro@udel.edu • Paper URL: http://udel.edu/~joebro/narst2010.pdf Acknowledgments Contact Information