Education 317: Evaluation of Learning and Teaching*
Instructor: Dr. Martha Crothers Lab Instructors:
( or ) Phoebe Chin()
Office: Wham 223D (Crothers) Song Gao ()
Phone: 536-7763 or 687-2341 ext. 206 (mornings) Office Hrs: TBA
Office Hours: Crothers: Monday, 1:00-2:00 p.m.
Tuesday and Thursday, 1:30-3:00 p.m.
Note: Alternate meeting times are available by appointment.
Class website address is: http://mypage.siu.edu/mcrother (Note http not www in address)
Course notes, objectives, syllabus, schedule, and assignments may be found on this site. You are expected to read all assignments. Lectures will cover more than what is included in the reading assignments. You are expected to download the course notes, fill in the cloze blanks prior to lecture to assist you in keeping up with the lectures. Lectures may cover more than just the notes from the web-site.
Lecture is on Monday, from 3:00-4:50 p.m. Lab meetings and locations vary by section. To change lab section, contact your lab instructor. Do not assume changing of lab sessions will be automatically approved.
Course Goals and Objectives
The overall goal of this course is for you to learn the assessment techniques needed to reliably assess and make valid inferences about your future students. There are over one hundred objectives that you will need to meet in this course. The objectives are located on the website.
Required Texts
Gronlund, Norman E. (2006). Assessment of Student Achievement, Eighth Edition. Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.
Popham, W. James. (2003). What Every Teacher Should Know About Educational Assessment. Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.
Major Reference: The notes and curriculum for this class was developed using the following text: Trice, Aston D. (2000). A Handbook of Classroom Assessment. New York: Addison Wesley Longman, Inc.
Course Description
This course covers the construction and use of teacher-made tests of classroom learning; the descriptive statistics necessary for the interpretation and use of standardized tests of aptitude and achievement; procedures for determining and reporting grades; and procedures for measuring and evaluating instructional effectiveness.
Classroom Conduct. You are expected to be on-time and prepared for class. You are expected to pay attention and not disrupt the class via talking, playing computer games, using a cell phone, sleeping, or using any other electronic device. You are expected to respect the opinions of your classmates and instructors. No verbal or physical violence of any kind will be tolerated. You are expected to complete all readings and homework on time. No handwritten assignments will be accepted. You will be allowed to use a hand calculator for some exams and assignments using math: however, you may not use a calculator attached to a computer, cell phone, or any other form of electronic equipment. If you do not have a simple calculator you will need to purchase one.
No cell phones will be allowed in class. Turn off all cell phones and store them away or they may be confiscated until the end of class.
Plagiarism/Cheating statement: Cheating in any form will not be tolerated and will result in a possible failure of the assignment, exam, or course. It is common to review another's previous homework assignments to help you learn to do the assignment. Exemplars are in fact on the website. However, using past student's assignments or downloading someone else's work from the web or any other source, and representing that work as your own with little or no changes, are a form of cheating called Plagiarism. This will not be tolerated!!! If discovered, you will fail the assignment and possibly the course.
Disability Policy
Please notify your lab instructor immediately if you have any disability that may inhibit you so that accommodations can be made. Accommodations must be coordinated through Disabled Student Services or Project Achieve.
Course Grades
Grades will be earned based on your performance in the four areas described below. Weighted means are used to calculate grades in this course. Each area’s contribution to, or weight on, your final grade is indicated in parentheses. The standard 10 percent grading scale will be used to determine final grades. (e.g. 90-100 = A, 80-89 = B, 70-79 = C, 60-69 = D, 0-59 = F)
1) Exams (60%)
There will be three exams worth 75 points each (total 225 points) Exams will be administered on the dates shown in the schedule below. Although the material in this course is cumulative, the 3rd exam is not comprehensive and will cover the material shown on the schedule and will be given during the scheduled final exam date. Make-up tests will only be given in extreme circumstances. The make-up test will either be a parallel form of the missed test or an oral examination given by the instructor. If you must miss a test, it is your responsibility to make arrangements with your lab instructor to take the test at an alternate time prior to the time the test is scheduled, when possible or prior to the next lecture period. You will be required, as per University policy, to verify those circumstances. If you miss a test, you will receive a failing grade.
2) Homework (15%):
During the semester, you will receive four homework assignments. All homework is to be completed by the due date. Check syllabus schedule for due date. Homeworks 2, 3, and 4 pertain to the assessment portfolio described below and must be kept for the entire semester in the same 2-pocket folder. All assignments related to the assessment portfolio must be typed. If you fail to complete one of these assignments by the date due, without making prior arrangements with your lab instructor, you will loose 5% of the total possible points for every day the assignment is late. Homework 1 relates to descriptive statistics. It absolutely must be turned in on time or you will receive a grade of zero.
3) Assessment Portfolio Final Project ((15%): Homeworks 2, 3, and 4 are products of assignments that lead up to your final project. The project is worth 75 points. (Note that this assignment is equal to one exam in points). Your 3 homework assignments help you to develop a portfolio project consisting of objectives, table of specifications, test construction using select-response and constructed-response items, and all related scoring tools or methods which your assessment requires. Specific instructions for this portfolio will be provided. You must purchase a 2-pocket folder in which to store your homework assignments, modifications, and materials from throughout the semester. Homework assignments are included in this folder and turn-in with each successive homework assignment. All materials must be typed, printed and presented in a professional manner according to this course guideline. Remember failure to complete any assignments or the final project will result in a failing grade for this course. Remember, any assignments turned in late will loose 5% of the points for EACH DAY THE ASSIGNMENT IS LATE.
4) In-class Formative Assessments (10%):
Full attendance is expected. If you are not attending class and or lecture, it leaves the impression that you are not serious about being a teacher. A number of unannounced quizzes and activities, worth 10 points each, will be given during lectures and in labs throughout the semester. The Quizzes will pertain to material covered during previous lectures and labs; the assignments will pertain to current topics. There will also be assessments and surveys that will be given during lab. Your lowest score will be dropped before grades are calculated. For this reason, formative assessments, including quizzes may not be made up.
Activities: There will be several lab activities to be completed throughout the semester. Each activity is worth 10 points. The activities will normally be due at the end of lab each week, unless otherwise stated.
NOTE: Failure to complete all activities and homework will result in a failing grade for this course.
5) Participation in Educational Research (Extra-Credit Opportunity)
You should be aware of the fact that your chosen field is actually a science as well as an art, and as such, is built upon a tradition of scientific research. As future professional educators, and students in this class, you are required to become aware of some aspects of research methodology. Some of the material covered in this course relates directly to scientific method. Another meaningful way to learn more about educational research is to actually participate in educational research projects. The faculty of the Department of Educational Psychology and Special Education, here at SIU, are continually conducting studies relating to education with the goal of better understanding human learning or human nature. Therefore, during this semester, you will be given the opportunity to be a participant in one of these studies.
You are not required to participate in a study; it is strictly voluntary on your part and you will in no way be penalized if you choose not to participate in a study.
If, however, you would like to be a respondent in a research project, you will be awarded extra credit points toward your final grade. Those who do not wish to participate in the study, or who are unable to participate, but still wish to earn extra credit, may do so by writing a short paper relating classroom assessment. Any short papers must be pre-approved by the Instructor. All extra credit points will be added to the exam portion of your grade.
Note: Modifications to the syllabus may occur during the semester depending on circumstances.
*Dr. James Schrieber and Cassandra Tate are to be recognized for their significant contributions to the development of this curriculum.
EDUC 317 Tentative Assignment Schedule, Spring 2007 (all changes will be announced in Lecture)
Date Lecture Material Lab Assignments
01/15 No Lecture Introductions, attendance Print and read Syllabus
issues off web-site
01/22 Go over Syllabus
Lecture1 Finish Lecture 1 Gronlund Chpt. 1-3
Basic Definitions clarify definitions Gronlund Chpt. 13
& history Popham Sec. 2-3
01/29 Lecture 2 Reliability
Reliability & Validity Validity No text readings
02/05 Lecture 3 Central Tendency HW1 Statistics
Descriptive Stats Gronlund Chapt. 4-5
Popham Sec. 4
02/12 Lecture 4 Objectives
Objectives & Tables of Specif. HW1 due No text readings
02/19 Lecture 5 Table of Specification Study for Exam 1
Correlation Discuss HW1.
02/26 Exam 1 Correlation Gonlund Chpt. 6&7
Lectures 1-4 Weighted Mean Popham, Sec. 6&14
Have 2-pocket folder
Hw2
03/05 Lecture 6 review exam 1 No text readings
Objective items Practice objective item
HW2 due
03/12 No classes-Spring Break
03/19 Lecture 7 Practice item analysis Gronlund Chpt. 8
Item analysis review HW2 Popham Sec. 7
03/26 Lecture 8 Practice writing subjective Gronlund Chpt. 9
Subjective items/Essays Items Popham Sec. 8
HW3
04/02 Lecture 9 Practice writing rubrics Gronlund Chpt. 10
Rubrics & Performance HW3 due Popham Sec. 9
Assessment
04/09 Lecture 10 Discuss HW3 No text readings
Portfolios types of performance HW4
Writing for Content/skills assessments
04/16 Exam 2 HW4 due Gronlund Chapt. 11
Lectures 5-9 Discuss projects & revisions Popham Sec. 15
Of HWs 2, 3, 4.
04/23 Lecture 11 Review HW4 Gronlund chapt 12
Grading & accommodations Grading Popham Sec. 13 Final Project
04/30 Lecture 12 Standardized tests Study for exam 3
Standardized tests
& interpretations
Final Project due
05/07 Extra class as needed
Finals Week Exam 3 (absolutely no makeup available)
Lectures 10-12