Syllabus P407

INDIANA UNIVERSITY NORTHWEST Fall 2006

School of Education

P 407 – PSYCHOLOGICAL MEASUREMENT IN THE SCHOOLS

Days/time: Mon-Wed. 2:30 to 3:45pmPlace: Hawthorne Hall –331

Instructor: Dr. FranCina Conard

Phone: (219) 981-5665 Email:

  1. COURSE DESCRIPTION

This course provides the student with modern perspectives on the roles of testing,

evaluation, and performance based assessment in the classroom. A basic understanding of the roles of testing and assessment in schooling together with the skills and concepts acquired in this course enhance the ability of the teacher to study and acquire effective practices. This course expects students to incorporate ethical thinking into the development of assessments which includes awareness of cultural and other forms of diversity. It expects that students understand how to use current forms of media and technology to appropriately assess student learning. This course also expects that students will produce a systematic assessment plan that incorporates expectations for higher order thinking among k – 12 students.

  1. DIVISION MODEL AND INTASC PRINCIPLES

This course is part of the Indiana University Northwest School of Education’s Teacher Education Program. This program is based upon a research-based conceptual framework that incorporates nine themes, all of which are designed to prepare a Reflective Professional. The nine program outcomes of this Reflective

Professional are as listed below.

______Reflective Professional Course Objectives

1. Communication Skills1 thru 14

2. Higher Order Thinking Skills1 thru 14

3. Instructional Media & Technology1,4,8,10,11,13,14

4. Learning and Development2,9,109,12,14

5. School Culture and Diversity12, 14

6. Instructional Design and Delivery11,2,3,4,5,6,7,9,10,11,12,13

7. Classroom Management5,6,12

8. Assessment and Evaluation1,2,3,4,5,7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14

9. Professional Responsibility11,13,14

  1. COURSE OBJECTIVES

THIS COURSE IN INTENDED TO ASSIST THE TEACHER TO:

  1. To identify, select, write, and organize instructional outcomes.

Identify instructional goals at several levels including national, state, local, school, or course. And from such goals, write (or select ) outcomes for a course at the elementary or secondary level.

2. Distinguish among goal analysis, instruction, and assessment, and assure a

match among instruction, goals, and tests or other performance-based

evidence. Make sure that planned outcomes are considered in the development

of instructional activities, and in the kinds of measures or evidence that are used

to determine if the expected outcomes are met.

  1. Identify domains, levels, and forms of objectives. Classify lesson, unit and

and course outcomes (e.g. objectives) on a variety of dimensions including

the following: 1) domain: cognitive, affective, and psychomotor, 2.) level

within a domain; recognition and recall, comprehension, application, analysis,

synthesis, or evaluation; and 3.) form: lifelong learning and other.

  1. Demonstrate understanding of how to administer tests and assessments.

Demonstrate understanding of how to administer tests and assessments under various conditions and to various populations of students including exceptional children.

  1. Identify and describe types of data and tests. Design (or select), and classify

Items and tests as: criterion-referenced, norm referenced, ranking, or simple classification, and be able to distinguish among test data that are nominal, ordinal, interval, or ration in nature.

  1. Interpret teacher made test data. Use test data to estimate the achievement

Characteristics of a given group of students with respect to a set of instructional outcomes. This includes the computation of typical test and item statistics.

  1. Interpret informal assessments. Use informal assessments to determine both

Regular student and special education student needs.

  1. Interpret performance-based evidence. Use criteria and rubrics to estimate the achievement characteristics of a given group of students with respect to a set of standards. This includes understanding and developing criteria and performance-based rubrics for decision-making about student achievement.
  2. Understanding measurement theory. Understand measurement theory as it relates to assessment of students and the use of assessments for special education students.
  3. Interpret standardized test data. Interpret standardized test data accurately and use it to compare educational outcomes to state or national standards and to correctly identify regular and special education student needs.
  4. Identify ethical use of standardized tests for students with exceptionalities.

Communicate an effective assessment sequence for use in the classification of students with disabilities.

  1. Construct testing and assessment plans. Evaluate, select (or design) measures

Measures and criteria or rubrics (tests, quizzes, checklists, interviews, portfolio components for specific times and purposes in the instructional cycle (pre-post, ongoing, practice,) that can be used to evaluate a variety of ongoing practices including the quality of classroom instruction and the extent of student progress.

  1. Construct reliable and authentic evidence for performance-based assessment. Develop and use criteria, rubrics, and other forms of evidence that provide trustworthy, dependable, and validly authentic evidence that instructional goals and objectives of complex performance have been met.
  2. Relate assessment activities to the primary goal of improving instruction for all students. Provide evidence that the assessment activities are directly related to the expected outcomes and that evidence is used to improve instruction for regular and special education students.
  1. COURSE MATERIALS

Textbook: Linn, Robert L & Miller, David M. Measurement and Assessment In Teaching. 9th Edition. Pearson, Merrill Prentice Hall.

Internet Sites of Interest

Educational Statistics

IDEAnet

Indiana’s Academic Standards

National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) The Nation’s Report Card.

  1. TERM PROJECT - PORTFOLIO ARTIFACT

For this project, you may use a unit plan that you completed for a methods course. You may also use information from other courses, however, please use the format described below.

A. Course Description

This is a brief description (four well-written paragraphs) of the content of a half- year course in the schools for a specific level (i.e. 4th grade social studies, or algebra I: First Semester). Your description should answer questions related to the following concerns:

Content Concerns – A brief identification of the content of the course and why it is important. Be sure to relate this to Indiana Academic Standards and the standards of the appropriate Professional Organization (e.g. The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, The National Council of Teachers of English, The Council for Exceptional Children, etc. )

Student Concerns – Who will be taking the course? What should students already know and be able to do in order to successfully encounter this course?

How will they be different upon completing it?

  1. Course Goals and Projected Units

This is a complete list of goals for this half-year course (about 5 in number) along with a listing of the major instructional units you expect this semester to encompass. The unit as used here comprises about 12 to 15 hours of instruction for the semester course. A semester course will normally have about 5 units each of which requires 10 to 20 hours of instructional time.

A reading of the course introduction should provide the rationale for the goals and units. They should flow naturally from the Introduction. A list of goals is normally limited to 5 or fewer.

C. Unit Introduction

You are to select a unit from among those specified for the semester course. You

are to provide an Introduction to the selected unit that touches on the same

matters as did the course introduction but that focuses on this unit alone, and

concludes with the unit goals and outcomes.

D. Goals

The goals are very few, maybe as few as one or two, and much more specific and

Restricted in scope than those of the course. Their relationship to the course goals

should be obvious.

  1. Instructional Outcomes

Provide a set of instructional outcomes for your unit. The outcomes should reflect

State standards and must be measurable. The outcomes should number about 5 to 7. You may select goals and outcomes from existing commercial materials and/or

School curriculum guides. However, you are expected to make the necessary

Adjustments to make the entire project cohesive and current in terms of good practices, state rules and professional recommendations in the content area.

  1. A Four-Part Unit Assessment Plan

You are to develop an assessment plan relating to the selected unit that includes:

1.)A unit pre-assessment for the selected unit ( not the entire course).

2.)A formative assessment (usually a quiz or perhaps a special assignment)

for the selected unit.

3.)A unit post assessment, that must include an appropriate post-test.

4.)A separate performance assessment related to the unit goals/outcomes. This must be included as a part of the unit post assessment. This maybe a project or a portfolio, etc. However, what is required here is a summative assessment apart from the other three assessments. Performance assessments require a scoring rubric.

Tests and various assessment instruments are provided with commercially prepared teacher materials. However, the tests required for this project are not necessarily available in commercial form. Where they do exist, they will almost always require modifications, deletions, and additions to meet the requirements of this course. At any event, do not simply choose existing tests that form the best match with your selected outcomes and purposes, and stop there.

You are expected to select and modify existing items, and assessment tasks, and create others to fit the specific goals, outcomes, and purposes of the assessment that you are planning. You may select items from textbooks, teacher manuals, school curriculum materials, commercial tests and the like. But please remember to reference all sources from which items are selected.

Criteria The following criteria are to be met by the completed ser of assessment instruments that you provide:

  1. Table of Specifications - Each assessment instrument is described by a

Table of Specifications that you develop for each assessment, and each item is keyed in some clear way to the Specification Chart.

  1. Student Ready - All of the assessments must be in a form ready to be

distributed to students. Use of appropriate technology, e.g. computer based word processing to prepare the draft and final copies. Consider reading levels, size of print, space for responses, etc.

3. Scoring Keys and Rubrics - Make a copy of any assessment instruments or tests that are to be used, and indicate correct responses. Each

performance assessment must have a scoring rubric.

4. Grading - You are to determine a plan for monitoring, recording, and

reporting student achievement during the course of the unit. A grade book is to be part of such a plan, but you are also to describe how you will keep

a portfolio of student work. Your plan should be sufficient to provide information that a teacher should have before judgments are made about student progress, mastery, and the students’ instructional needs. This plan should include definitions of mastery or other criteria for the objectives and ranking of the students. Thus you should provide:

  1. a Grade Book
  2. a descriptive paragraph about the contents of a portfolio, and

whether it will be graded, and how it will showcase student work.

  1. a descriptive paragraph about how you will maintain

confidentiality and report to students, parents and the administration.

5. An Interpretation of ISTEP scores. You will identify two (2) schools in

Indiana, one with ISTEP passing rates at or above the state average, and one with passing rates below the state average.

Retrieve the applicable information from:

Compare the results regarding pass rates, the number of title I students,

and other pertinent data for each school. What do these results mean?

How does each school compare to all others schools in the district, and in

the state?

  1. Discussion with parents of a regular student.

Suppose you taught at the lower scoring school. What would you say to a parent or guardian of a child who did not pass? What suggestions would you make? Provide a full page discussion of some of the points you could bring up that would help the parents or guardian to help their child.

For questions 4 thru 6, use each question as a heading or topic, and

Then respond to the question.

  1. ADDITIONAL COURSE REQUIREMENTS

Measurement Article Presentation - (45 points)

Each student is to select an article/study on a measurement topic and present it to the class. The student is to prepare 5 questions representing information we should have learned as a result of the presentation. The instructor must ap0prove the article prior to the presentation

Group Take-Home Assignment - (55 Points)

The group take-home assignments will involve:

1.)the interpretation of standardized test data, and

2.)the evaluation of test preparation practices.

Time will be allowed for group collaboration in class.

Multiple- Choice Tests - ( 30 Points each)

There will be three (3) multiple choice test during the semester. These tests will be taken in class.

Major Project – Artifact - ( 70 Points)

For this project you will use a unit plan that you completed for a methods course. (If you do not have a unit plan, please see the instructor.) You will develop and apply the assessment portion of the Unit Plan in this course. That will include developing Tables of Specification and various assessment instruments. There will be additional materials and information that you will add including an analysis of ISTEP TEST SCORES.

VII. SCHEDULE

DATESTOPIC CHAPTERS

Aug 28 - 30 Intro to Educational Measurement1

Sept 4 - 6Measurement & Assessment in Instruction2

Sept 11 – 13Validity and Reliability4 & 5

Sept 18 - 20Standardized Achievement Tests19

Interpreting test scores & norms

Sept 25 - 27Video: How a Standardized Test is built

Elementary Statistics Appendix 2

Oct 2 - 4Test I - Group Exercise

Oct 9 - 11Planning Classroom Tests & Assessments 6

Oct 16 - 18Constructing Objective Tests Items 7 & 8

Oct 23 - 25Assembling, administering & appraising tests 14

Oct 30 - Nov 1Measuring complex achievement 9 & 10

Nov 6 - Nov 8Performance Assessment & Portfolios 11 & 12

Nov 13 - Nov 15Test II

Nov 20 - Nov 22Test Preparation Practices Handout

Nov 27 - Nov 29Observational Techniques & Grading 13 & 15

Dec 4 - Dec 6 Aptitude Tests & Test Selection 17 & 18

Dec 11Paper Presentations

Dec 13Test III - Term Project due

VIII. GRADING/EVALUATION

Tests – Multiple Choice 3 @ 30 points each = 90 points

Paper Presentation1 @ 45 points = 45 points

Group- Take Home1 @ 25 points = 25 points

1 @ 30 points = 30 points

Term Project1 @ 70 points = 70 points

______

TOTAL 260 points

SCALE

94% = 100% = A

90% = 93% = A-

83% = 98% = B

80% = 82% = B-

73% = 79% = C

70% = 72% = C-

63% = 69% = D

60% = 62% = D-

Below 60% = F

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