Student Assessment

Student Assessment

Formal student assessment will consist of an identical written pretest and posttest that require the learners to demonstrate knowledge of important terminology and concepts as well as ability to produce a complete, well-written instructional objective. For the following reasons, no prerequisites test will be administered

The entry level behaviors are, for the most part, general competencies (e.g., “Read and interpret written material at a college level of vocabulary and syntax) that, given time constraints and course requirements, would be impractical and inappropriate for the instructor to address directly as part of the course curriculum. On an ongoing basis, of course, students will receive feedback and encouragement to increase their prerequisite competencies as they work on various assignments; students exhibiting serious weaknesses in such entry behavior skills as writing grammatically correct, coherent, and logical sentences, would be encouraged to seek assistance from the university remedial writing lab and/or to meet individually with the instructor outside of class for one-on-one assistance.
Since the learners in this case are college students pursuing a degree in teaching, the presumption is that they possess the entry level skills necessary to complete the instruction module successfully. The learner/context analysis that was done in an earlier phase of the instructional design process indicates that the students do in fact possess, to varying degrees, the prerequisite skills for this instruction.

In addition to the formal assessment instruments that will be used to measure student performance, the practice exercise that the students will engage in as part of the instruction itself, will produce evidence of student progress that could be used by the instructor to determine if additional practice is needed for adequate development of skill in writing complete, well-written objectives.

Following is the pretest/posttest instrument developed to determine prior knowledge and achievement of the instructional objectives, respectively. Items were constructed to elicit recall and application, rather than mere recognition; and to minimize the possibility that the answer to one question would be provided in the content of another question.

Instructional Objectives Test

Instructions: Answer each item below clearly and completely, but briefly (no more than 2 or 3 sentences per answer). Partial credit will be given, so it is better to attempt an answer than not write anything, if you are unsure of the correct answer.

1) List the 5 types of learning (learning domains) suggested by Gagne, and briefly explain what type of learning is included in each one.

2) According to Mager, there are 3 major elements in a well-written objective. List these three elements. For each one, write a brief explanation and give an example.

3) Define the term observability and give an example.

4) For each of the following 3 examples, indicate if the stated outcome is observable (by circling the letter O) or not observable (by circling the letter N). For any sentence that you circled N, explain in a few words why the stated outcome is not observable, and revise the statement so that the outcome is observable.

O N 1. The student will gain an understanding of the Pythagorean Theorem.

O N 2. The student will demonstrate the proper way to serve a volleyball.

O N 3. The student will gain an appreciation of classical music.

5) Briefly (in about 3 sentences), describe a group of learners and scenario of your choice (grade level, subject, topic, learning environment). Write a performance objective that is appropriate, given the conditions you have created.

Answer Key: Instructional Objectives Test

1) List the 5 types of learning (learning domains) suggested by Gagne, and

briefly explain what type of learning is included in each one.

Verbal information – requires a specific response from the learner in answer

to a fairly specific question. Used in recall and recognition of facts. Verbal

information objectives use words such as define, state, describe, or list for the

verb.

Intellectual skills – require unique cognitive activity on the part of the

learner. Formation of concepts and application of rules or principles are

types of intellectual skills; problem-solving may also be included in this

category.

Psychomotor skills – requires coordination of physical and mental activity,

for example, serving a tennis ball, learning to write in cursive, mastering an

ice skating move, performing a modern dance.

Attitudes – (for objective-writing purposes) the tendency to make decisions

or choose one option over another.

Cognitive strategies – complex sets of cognitive activities used in solving ill-

structured problems; figuring out how to do complex tasks, organizing and

applying new information; also, metacognition

2) According to Mager, there are 3 major elements in a well-written objective. List these three elements. For each one, write a brief explanation and give an example.

Behavior (performance) – what the learner is expected to do to demonstrate successful achievement of the objective; the (observable and measurable) desired outcome resulting from instruction. Examples: Student will name the capitals of the Midwestern states in the U.S.; student will run a mile.

Conditions – describes the important elements governing the performance; stimulus or cue that is involved in carrying out the performance. Examples: Given the names of the Midwestern states, the student will verbally…; Wearing athletic shoes, on a regulation cinder track, student will run…

Criterion – describes the level of performance that is considered acceptable. Sometimes the criterion is understood rather than explicitly stated (e.g., the students will [correctly] complete 5 math problems). Examples: Given the names of the Midwestern states in the U.S., students will verbally name their capitals. (correctly is implied); …students will run one mile, exhibiting the form specified in the Track and Field manual, 4^th edition, (1999).

3) Define the term observability and give an example.

Observability: able to be seen or recognized. Example: Student will list, run, answer, write a paragraph.

O N 1. The student will gain an understanding of the Pythagorean Theorem.

N. A person can not directly observe “gain an understanding”; words like understand, appreciate, etc. should be avoided in writing performance objectives.

Sample Correction: Given all the necessary information, the student will draw a right triangle and calculate the length of the hypotenuse, showing all work in writing

O N 2. The student will demonstrate the proper way to serve a volleyball.

O N 3. The student will gain an appreciation of classical music.

N. A person can not directly observe “gain an appreciation”; words like

appreciate, understand, etc. should be avoided in writing performance

objectives.

Use Objective Evaluation Rubric to determine acceptability of answers.