IDENTIFICATION AND CHARACTERISATION OF EXEMPLARY SCIENCE ASSESSMENT PRACTICES
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.52634/mier/2012/v2/i1/1591Keywords:
Science Assessment, SPAQ, Exemplary Science Teachers.Abstract
The research described in this paper was aimed at identifying exemplary assessment practices in secondary science classes. In the first stage, following a review of the literature, a six-scale instrument of 48 items was trialled with a sample of 470 students from grades eight, nine and ten in 20 science classrooms in three Western Australian schools. Based on internal consistency reliability data and exploratory factor analysis, refinement decisions resulted in a five-scale instrument that was named the Student Perceptions of Assessment Questionnaire (SPAQ). In the second stage, the SPAQ was used with an attitude scale, and a self-efficacy scale. This survey was administered to a larger sample of 960 students from 40 science classes from the same grades as in the first stage. Statistical analyses confirmed the validity and reliability of the SPAQ. Based on the results of this survey exemplary teachers were identified. In the third and last stage interviews with teachers and students were conducted. Classes of these exemplary teachers were also observed. These exemplary teachers were found to be thorough in their teaching, giving students enough time to prepare for the assessment, giving students freedom to choose from a variety of assessments and were flexible in teaching and assessment. They also demonstrated in-depth understanding of the science topics they were teaching.
Downloads
Metrics
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2021 Rekha B Koul
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
The articles published in the MIER Journal of Educational Studies, Trends and Practics (MJESTP) are distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
- Copyright on any open access article in the MIER Journal of Educational Studies, Trends and Practics (MJESTP) published by Model Institute of Education and Research (MIER) is retained by the author(s).
- Author(s) grant MIER a license to publish the article and identify himself/herself/themselves as the original publisher.
- Authors also grant any third party the right to use the article freely as long as its integrity is maintained and its original authors, citation details and publisher are identified.
- The Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0 formalizes these and other terms and conditions of publishing articles.
References
Aldridge, J.M., Fraser,B.J., & Huang, T. (1999). Investigating classroom environments in Taiwan and Australia with multiple research methods. Journal of Educational Research, 93,48-57.
Bandura, A. (1997). Self-efficacy: The exercise of control. New York: Freeman.
Bellar, M., & Gafni, N. (1996). The 1991 international assessment of educational progress in mathematics and sciences: The gender differences perspective. Journal of Educational Psycology, 88, 365-377.
Berry, J. M. (1987). A self efficacy model of memory performance. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, New York.
Black, P., & William, D. (1998). Assessment and classroom learning. Assessment in Education, 5 (1), 7-74.
Cowie, B. (2005). Student commentary on classroom assessment in science: A sociocultural interpretation. International Journal of Science Education, 27(2), 199-214.
Cronbach, D. J. (1951). Coefficient alpha and internal structure of tests. Psychometrika, 16(3), 297-334.
Crooks, T. J. (1988). The impact of classroom evaluation practices on students. Review of Educational Research 58, 438-481.
Cronbach, D. J. (1951). Coefficient alpha and internal structure of tests. Psychometrika, 16(3), 297-334.
De Vellis, R. F. (1991). Scale development: Theory and application. Newbury park: Sage Publications.
Dorr-Bremme, D., & Herman, J. (1986). Assessing student achievement: A profile of classroom practices. Los Angeles, CA.
Dunkin, M. J., & Biddle, B. J. (1974). The study of Teaching: New Yok: Holt, Rinehart & Winston.
Farenga, S.J., & Joyce, B. A. (1997). What children bring to the classroom: Learning science from experience. School Science and Mathematics, 97, 248-252.
Fraser, B. J. (1981). Test of Science-Related Attitudes: Handbook. Melbourne, Australia: Australian Council for Educational Research.
Fraser, B. (1994). Research on classroom and school climate. In D. Gabel (Ed.), Handbook of research on science teaching and learning (pp. 493-541). New York: Macmillan.
Fraser, B. J. (1998). Science learning environments: Assessments, Effects and determinants. In B. J. Fraser & K. G. Tobin (Eds.), International handbook of science education (pp. 527-564). Dordrecht, The Netherlands: Kulwer.
Fraser, B.J., Tobin, K., & Kahle, J.B. (1992). Learning science with understanding: In search of holy grail. Research in Science and Technological Education, 10, 65-81.
Fraser, B.J., Fisher,D.L., & McRobbie, C.J. (1996). Development, validation and use of personal and classforms of a new classroon environment instrument. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research association, April in New York, USA.
Fraser, B.J., & Wallberg, H.J. (Eds.)(1991). Educational environments: Evaluation, antecedents and consequences. Oxford; Pergamon Press Gardner, P.L. (1996). The dimensionality of attitude scales: A widely misunderstood idea. International Journal of Science Education, 18, 913919.
Goodrum, D., Hackling, M., & Rennie, L. (2001). The status and quality of teaching and learning in Australian schools. Canberra.
Greenfield, T. A.(1996). Gender, ethnicity, science achievement and attitudes. Journal of Research in Science teaching, 33, 901-933.
Harlen, W. (1998). Teaching for understanding in pre-secondary science. In B.
Fraser & K. Tobin (Eds.), International handbook of science education (pp. 183-198). Dordrech, The Netherlands: Kulwer.
Harding, J. (1996). Girls' achievement in science and technology-Implicatins for pedagogy. In P. F. Murphy & C. V. Gipps (Eds.), Equity in classrooms (pp. 111-123). London: The Falmer Press.
Henderson, D., Fisher, D. L., & Fraser, B. J. (1995). Gender differences in biology students perceptions of actual and preferred learning environments. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the National Association for Research in Science Teaching, April in San Francisco, CA.
Kahle, J. B., & Meece, J. (1994). Research on gender issues in the classroom. In D. Gabel (Ed.), Handbook of research on science teaching and learning (pp.542-557). New York.
Kim, H., Fisher, D., & Fraser, B. J. (2000). Classroom environment and teacher interpersonal behaviour in secondary classes in Korea. Evaluation and Research in Education, 14, 3-22ork: Macmillan.
Klopfer, L.E. (1976). A structure for the affective domain in relation to science education. Science Education, 60, 299-312
Koul, R., & Fisher, D. (2006). An investigation into teacher interaction, perceptions of learning environment cultural differences and science achievement in India. In D. Fisher, D. Zandvliet, I. Gaynor & R. Koul (Eds.), Sustainable communities and sustainable environments: Envisioning a role for science, mathematics and technology education (pp. 323-335). Perth: Curtin University of Technology.
Lewin, K. (1936). Principals of topological psychology. New York: McGraw.
Lyman, R. D., Prentice-Dunn, S., Wilson, D. R., & Bonfilio, S. A. (1984). The effect of sucess or failure on self-efficacy and task persistence of conduct-disordered children. Psycology in the Schools, 21, 516-519.
McRobbie, C. J., & Fraser, B. J. (1993). Associations between student outcomes and psychosocial mathematics laboratory environments. Journal of Educational Research, 87, 78-85.
Midgley, C., & Urdan, T. (1995). Predictors of middle school students' use of self handicapping strategies. Journal of Early Adolescence, 15, 389-411.
Murphy, P. (1996). The IEA assessment of science achievement. Assessment in Education,3, 213-232.
Newby, M., & Fisher, D.L. (1997). An instrument for assessing the learning environment of a computer laboratory. Journal of Educational Computing research, 16, 179-190.
Plake, B. S. (1993). Teacher assessment literacy: Teachers' competencies in the educational assessment of students. Mid-Western Educational Researcher, 6, 21-27.
Popham, W. J. (1997). Consequential validity: Right concern-wrong concept. Educational Measurement: Issues and Practice, 16(2), 9-13.
Radnor, H. (1996). Evaluation of key stage3 assessment in 1995 and 1996 (research report). University of Exceter.
Reynolds, D. S., Doran, R. L., Allers, R. H., & Agruso, S. A. (1995). Altenative assessment in science: A teacher's guide. Buffalo. NY: University of Buffalo.
Sadler, D. (1989). Formative assessment and the design of instructional systems. Instructional Science, 18, 119-144. Schaffuer, M., Burry-Stock, A., Cho, G., Boney, T., & Hamilton, G. (2000).
What do kids think when their teachers grade? Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, April in New Orleans, LA.
Schunk, D. H. (1989). Self-efficacy and cognitive skill learning. In C. Ames & R. Ames (Eds.), Research on motivation in education 3, 13-44). San Diego, CA: Academic.
Schunk, D. H. (1995). Self-efficacy and education and instruction. In J. E.
Maddux (Ed.), Self-efficacy, adaptation, and adjustment: Theory, research, and application (pp. 281-303). New York: Plenum.
Schunk, D. H., & Hanson, A. R. (1985). Peer models: Influence on children's self-efficacy and achievement. Journal of Educational Psycology, 77, 312-322.
Stiggins, R. (1994). Student-centered classroom assessment: Macmillan College Publishing Co.
Stolarchuk, E., & Fisher, D. (1999). The effect of using laptop computers on attitude and achievement in science. Computers in New Zealand Schools, 11, 40-43.
Taylor, P.C., Fraser, B.J., & Fisher, D.L. (1997). Monitoring constructivist classroom learning environments. International Journal of Educational Research, 27, 293-302.
Tobin, K. (1998). Issues and trends in the teaching of science. In B.J. Fraser and K. Tobin (Eds). International handbook of science education (pp. 129-151). Dordrecht, The Netherlands: Kluwer
Walberg, H. J. (1976). Psychology of learning environments: Behavioral, structural, or perceptual. Review of Research in Education, 4, 142-178.
Waldrip, B. G., Fisher, D., & Dorman, J. P. (2009). Identifying exemplary science teachers through their student perceptions of assessment process. Research in Science and Technological Education, 27(1), 117-129.
Warrington, M., & Younger, M. (1996). Goals, expectations and motivation: Gender differences in achievement at GSE. Curriculum,17,80-93.
Wubbles, T., & Levy, J. (1993). Do you know what you look like/: Interpersonal relationships in Education. London: Falmer.
Zimmerman, B. J. (1995). Self-efficacy and educational development. In A. Bandura (Ed.), Self-efficacy in changing societies (pp. 202-231). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
