MSTA/MCTM Leadership Conference February 5-6, 2010

1. MSTA/MCTM Leadership Conference February 5-6, 2010 Jean Howard, OPI Mathematics Specialist Katie Burke, OPI Science Specialist Judy Snow, OPI State Assessment Director

2. I can explain to a colleague the main points of the research linking formative assessment to student achievement. • Yes, I am confident I could sufficiently answer this prompt. • I could partially answer this prompt • No, I cannot adequately answer this prompt. [Default] [MC Any] [MC All]

3. I can explain the relationship between formative assessment and standard-based instruction. • Yes, I am confident I could sufficiently answer this prompt. • I could partially answer this prompt • No, I cannot adequately answer this prompt. [Default] [MC Any] [MC All]

4. I can explain the difference between formative assessment and spontaneous assessment. • Yes, I am confident I could sufficiently answer this prompt. • I could partially answer this prompt • No, I cannot adequately answer this prompt. [Default] [MC Any] [MC All]

5. I can explain the standard-based framework and its components and describe how they can be implemented. [Default] [MC Any] [MC All] • I feel confident I can sufficiently answer this prompt. • I could partially answer this prompt. • I cannot adequately answer this prompt.

6. Clapping Hands Exercise

7. Assessment Cycle Expert Jigsaw • Work in Expert Groups – 30 minutes • Share with original team – 30 minutes • Write your muddiest point about the assessment cycle on a note card- turn into Jean, Katie or Judy as your ticket to lunch!

8. What is the relationship between…? • Curriculum • Assessment • Content Standards • Instruction

9. An Aligned Standards-Based Program

10. Montana Standards-Based Education Framework

11. Yikes Statements • Why would I make a significant changes in my classroom practice? • What kind of resources should I need? • What kind of support would I need? • How do I know if the changes are working ?

12. “A strong sense of efficacy enhances human accomplishment and personal well-being in many ways. People with high assurance in their capabilities approach difficult tasks as challenges to be mastered rather than as threats to be avoided. Such an efficacious outlook fosters intrinsic interest and deep engrossment in activities. They set themselves challenging goals and maintain strong commitment to them. They heighten and sustain their efforts in the face of failure. They quickly recover their sense of efficacy after failures or setbacks. They attribute failure to insufficient effort or deficient knowledge and skills which are acquirable. They approach threatening situations with assurance that they can exercise control over them. Such an efficacious outlook produces personal accomplishments, reduces stress and lowers vulnerability.” 12

13. “In contrast, people who doubt their capabilities shy away from difficult tasks which they view as personal threats. They have low aspirations and weak commitment to the goals they choose to pursue. When faced with difficult tasks, they dwell on their personal deficiencies, on the obstacles they will encounter, and all kinds of adverse outcomes rather than concentrate on how to perform successfully. They slacken their efforts and give up quickly in the face of difficulties. They are slow to recover their sense of efficacy following failure or setbacks. Because they view insufficient performance as deficient aptitude it does not require much failure for them to lose faith in their capabilities.” 13

14. What If? Well-conducted and documented research found that the practice produces significant learning gains, particularly for low achieving student? And that the practice works in all content areas? And that STUDENT learning/self-efficacy is the centerpiece? 14

15. One-on One Tutoring The Gold Standard

16. Studied ways to foster development and improvement within an ongoing activity, product, program, etc. to evaluate curriculum. Formative: “on-going improvement of the curriculum--During Summative: “enable administrators to decide whether the entire finished curriculum, refined by use of the evaluation process in its first role, represents a sufficiently significant advance on the available alternatives to justify the expense of adoption by a school system--After Scriven, 1967 11

17. Bloom, 1971 and 1984 Mastery of Learning • Students do not progress to the next learning objective until they have mastered a current one. • Instruction followed by formative assessment. • Classroom activities that improve student learning. • Formative assessment 17

18. Ramaprasad (1983) “Feedback is information about the gap between the actual level and the reference level of a system parameter that is used to alter the gap in some way” (p 4.) 14

19. Sadler (1989) Stresses feedback as a key element in “altering the gap”: Two audiences for feedback: the teacher and the student Teacher gets feedback from formative assessment. Students acquire feedback from external sources and through self-monitoring. Engage in appropriate action which leads to some closure of the gap.

20. Landmark Research Questions Is there evidence that improving formative assessment raises standards? Is there evidence that there is room for improvement? Is there evidence about how to improve formative assessment? 20

21. Landmark ResearchBlack and Wiliam, 1998 Answered YES to the research questions • Inside the Black Box.  • Report on a large and methodical review of research studies of classroom assessment. Reviewed over 250 studies from around the world • Concluded that formative assessment, (filling the gaps) used properly, will help students learn what is being taught to a “substantially better degree.” 19

22. Feedback: Filling the Gaps Integration of formative assessment within each instructional activity More diversity in how learning is assessed ( e.g., observation, teacher-student dialogue, student-student dialogue and whole class discussions) Students as active participants in assessment 13

23. What is formative feedback? • Praise and encouragement • Grades • Information about what was incorrect • Information on how to improve • All of the above • [Default] • [MC Any] • [MC All]

24. What Makes it Effective Black and Wiliam’s research review identified a number of important studies that shed light on what makes feedback effective • Butler, 1988 • Butler, 1987 • Simmons, M. and Cope, P., 1993 • Day, J. D. and Cordon, L. A. , 1993 • Kluger, A. N. and DeNisi, A., 1996 24

25. Research on effective feedback suggests Feedback is not effective when: • Grades and comments are given together • It is focused on praise • It is given too soon • It takes the thinking away from the learner Feedback is effective when: • It provides specific details about how to improve • It is focused on the task, not the individual • It allows students to grapple with the problem first • It is “just enough”

26. [Default] [MC Any] [MC All] Feedback Example – 1“This is generally fine, but you are mixing up the terms ‘particle,’ ‘element’ and ‘compound.’ Look at the glossary we made and use it to check through this piece again.” • Focuses on the task not the student? • Causes students to think in language they can understand? • Recipe for future action? • Can be actually used by students to make improvements?

27. [Default] [MC Any] [MC All] Feedback Example – 2“There are two key aspects that you need to work on. You must show all your work so that we both know you understand all the stages to get the answers. Also, you must keep up with the work in class even if you have to finish it at home.” • Focuses on the task not the student? • Causes students to think in language they can understand? • Recipe for future action? • Can be actually used by students to make improvements?

28. Classroom Issues: Time for Feedback • Select the pieces of work will provide most benefit to students if feedback is provided • Not every piece of work lends itself to rich comments • Better do it less frequently and well • What might not get done? Identify trade-offs 28

29. Classroom Issues: Time for Students to Respond Students’ beliefs about themselves as learners will impact their response to feedback (Cowie, 2005) If comments are provided by the teacher, but students do not have time to read them/use them, it was wasted effort. Responding to the comments may draw on other strategies – using peers as resources to provide a sounding board for next steps, groups of students working together to compare work etc. 29

30. Timing is crucial A study of geometry students, half worked with paper and pencil and half used a computer program. Students given feedback after carefully considering their revisions learned more. Students given feedback too early or too easily learned less. If feedback is given to students before they have a chance to grapple with a problem, they have no motivation to think deeply about the content and learning is hindered.

31. In Summary … Feedback Focuses on the task not the student Causes students to think in language they can understand Recipe for future action Can be actually used by students to make improvements 31

32. Just enough feedback Students given only as much help as they need to make progress, learn more and retain their learning longer When students are given complete solutions, an opportunity for learning is missed Developing skills of “minimal intervention” promotes better learning. Feedback needs to make students think, not just give them the right answer

33. Traditional vs. Standard-based Instruction

34. Reflection • What do you regard as the major difference between traditional and standard-based approaches to designing instruction? • Which of the two models makes the most sense to you? • What makes this approach preferable? • What do you see as the most immediate difficulty in implementing a standard-based model?

35. Individual Work Time

36. In your journal, bullet point the main points that would be in an answer to the following: • I can explain to a colleague the main points of the research linking formative assessment to student achievement. • I can explain the relationship between formative assessment and standard-based instruction. • I can explain the difference between formative assessment and spontaneous assessment. • I can explain the standard-based framework and its components and describe how they can be implemented.