How Do I Know If They Really Get It?Effective Assessments for Historical

Thinking

Kirsten Hany and Kate PoleUniversity High School

Freshman Program, World Studies, and U.S. Studies

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Creating Independent and Reflective Learnershttp://hist390assessment.wikispaces.com/

“. . . Historical thinking, in its deepest forms, is neither a natural process nor something that springs automatically from psychological development. Its achievement . . . actually goes against the grain of how we ordinarily think, one of the reasons why it is much easier to learn names, dates, and stories than it is to change the basic mental structures we use to grasp the meaning of the past.”-Sam Wineburg, Historical Thinking and Other Unnatural

Acts: Charting the Future of Teaching the Past

“In the United States, the common obsession of using U.S. history courses to teach the narrative of national development, asking

students to commit this narrative to memory, and testing their recall of the details of this

narrative shows that such an approach consistently does precious little to produce

understanding or proficiency. As such, there is little to recommend it. We need new

teaching and testing approaches if historical understanding is the goal.”

-Bruce Vansledright, Assessing Historical Thinking & Understanding

● Understand the Common Core standards and how they can guide history assessment

● Understand the concept of standards-based grading and how it can help guide your practice and turn your students into reflective learners

● Evaluate and develop effective assessments of historical thinking using the Common Core standards

● Give you time to begin creating your own assessments

Objectives for Today

What is Common Core?

● U.S. initiative to align diverse state curricula into common standards

● Provide a clear and consistent understanding of what students are expected to learn

● historical base

What does Common Core mean for teachers of history? How can we use it to

our advantage?• Ability to identify specific areas of strength and

weakness• rubrics

• Grades accurately reflect student achievementgrade and are less ambiguous • No more “F” pit

• Freedom as an academic professional

What is Standards-based Grading, and what can it tell us as teachers about our

students?

• Teachers provide specific academic goals

• Teachers evaluate if students are meeting/exceeding those goals

• Paradigm shift (norm vs. standard)

What is the difference between formative and summative assessment? Why does it

matter?“. . .the most useful and constructive evidence of student

learning (or lack of it) in history is most valuable to teachers. . . In the case of history education, that means turning attention to how history teachers can teach to improve how students learn. . . To this end, [history assessment should be targeted] at measuring student learning in ways that can give those teachers more of

less immediate feedback on what’s happening with their students. Some call this formative assessment.”

-Bruce Vansledright, Assessing Historical Thinking & Understanding, cofounder of Stanford Group, and

contributor to NCSS C3 Framework

Formative vs. Summative1. Formative Assessment – This type of assessment is most commonly associated with

“homework”. It may include any class work, homework, participation, or other smaller task that allows for a student to practice a newly acquired skill. Since these assessments reflect a student’s earliest stages of learning, they will be weighted as ? of a student’s grade. However, these assessments are the most effective way for me to provide feedback. They will also help determine whether or not a student can redo a summative assessment.

 

2. Summative Assessments – These are any assessments in which students are expected to demonstrate their level of mastery of a particular standard or standards. These assessments are most commonly associated with tests, papers, Socratic discussions, and projects that are assigned at the end of a unit; they will be weighted as ? of a student’s grade. Having had ample formative opportunities to practice and receive feedback, the student should be able to demonstrate mastery of standards on summative assessments.

ELA CC - Reading Informational Texts(SS2 - Reading)

• Students can summarize, analyze, and interpret the key ideas, details, and arguments of primary and secondary sources by citing relevant evidence and attending to dates, origin of information, and other important contextual details. More specifically,

o Students can determine the central ideas and thesis of a primary or secondary source, as well as provide an accurate summary of how key events or ideas develop over the course of the text.

o Students can analyze in detail a series of events described in a text; determine whether earlier events caused later ones or simply preceded them.

o Students will be able to analyze how a writer uses structure to emphasize key points or advance an explanation or analysis and the extent to which the reasoning and evidence in a text support the author’s claims.

o Students can compare the point-of-view of two or more authors in both primary and secondary sources for how they treat the same or similar topics, including which details they include and emphasize in their respective accounts.

o Students can analyze and evaluate how an author’s ideas and specific claims are developed by their use of language (word choice, tone, and structure, etc.) as well as how the author uses rhetoric (SOAPS, logos, ethos, pathos) to advance his/her point of view and can evaluate whether the reasoning is valid and the evidence is relevant and sufficient.

• Students can use a variety of strategies to read and comprehend a variety of informational texts (news stories, blogs, opinion pieces/editorials, textbooks, non-fiction historical texts, academic articles, etc.) by applying literacy strategies, formative work, content, and conferencing in order to develop and communicate new understanding.

Using the Standard 2 (CCSS.ELA - Literacy RI), the ARCH Rubric, and edTPA rubrics 12 and 14, evaluate the efficacy of this U.S. History reading assessment:

EXAMPLE 1: U.S. Studies Vocabulary Assessment

DIRECTIONS: Read sections 1 and 2 of chapter 12 (pages 364 – 375). Take notes on the following terms and ideas for an open-note quiz:

SECTION 1Crittenden Compromise, Confederacy (you may have to look this up elsewhere), Ft. Sumter, border states, West Virginia,

Northern and Southern advantages, Robert E. Lee, conscription, Loreta Janeta Velazquez, Elizabeth Blackwell, Clara Barton, Sally Louisa Tompkins, American Freedmen’s Aid Commission

SECTION 2First Battle of Bull Run, General Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson, Joseph Johnston, Northern strategies, Southern strategies, what

was responsible for more than 65% of all Civil War deaths, Copperheads, habeas corpus

NOTE: Be sure that you know important generals, importance strategic value, important outcomes/results, and winners and losers for ALL battles (i.e. Ft. Sumter, First Battle of Bull Run).

*How did I do? Is this an effective reading assessment? Why or why not?

Using the Standard 2 (CCSS.ELA - Literacy RI), the ARCH Rubric, and edTPA rubrics 12 and 14, evaluate the efficacy of this U.S. History reading assessment:

EXAMPLE 2: U.S. Studies Vocabulary Assessment DIRECTIONS: Read sections 1 and 2 of chapter 12 (pages 364 – 375). Take notes on the terms you find below, but make sure you include the following

information in those notes for each term. A. Who?

-If not a person, include important people or groups of people associated with the term. B. What?

-If it is a person, what important event, organization, or incident is this person often associated with? Make sure your answer is relevant to the American Civil War!

C. Where? if applicable -Include the location of the event or incident. If a person, include his/her location as it applies to the Civil War. In other words, Abraham

Lincoln may have been born in Kentucky, but that is doesn’t tell me anything about his importance to the war. D. Why? -If an event, tell me why it happened. If an organization or a person, tell me why s/he/i was significant to the American Civil War. E. When? if applicable -Although I don’t need specific dates for each person (i.e. birth/death dates) or event, you should be able to explain when this person,

organization, battle, etc. was the most significant to the goings-on of the Civil War.

SECTION 1 TERMSCrittenden Compromise, Confederacy (you may have to look this up elsewhere), Ft. Sumter, border states, West Virginia, Northern and Southern advantages,

Robert E. Lee, conscription, Loreta Janeta Velazquez, Elizabeth Blackwell, Clara Barton, Sally Louisa Tompkins, American Freedmen’s Aid Commission

*How did I do? Is this an effective reading assessment? Why or why not?

Using the Standard 2 (CCSS.ELA - Literacy RI), the ARCH Rubric, and edTPA rubrics 12 and 14, evaluate the efficacy of this U.S. History reading assessment:

EXAMPLE 3: U.S. Studies Vocabulary Assessment DIRECTIONS: As your read sections 1 and 2 of chapter 12 (pages 364 – 375), find five vocabulary words (terms, people, events, etc.) that you suspect are important to understanding the author’s overall point, including words you do not know. Complete the chart below as you read.

REFLECTION QUESTIONS

1. Using only the words you selected above, put the reading excerpt aside, and write a insert number of sentences—keep it short, or they will miss the point of summary! –sentence summary of the article’s main point.

2. How many of your word choices were concept words?  How many were content words?  How many did you decide were not relevant to the text? How did that impact the way your comprehended this excerpt?

3. Should you go back and read it again?  Why or why not?

*How did I do?  Is this an effective reading assessment?  Why or why not?

REFLECTION QUESTIONS1. Using only the words you selected above, put the reading excerpt aside, and write a insert number of sentences—keep it short, or they will miss the point of summary! –sentence

summary of the article’s main point.2. How many of your word choices were concept words? How many were content words? How many did you decide were not relevant to the text? How did that impact the way your

comprehended this excerpt?3. Should you go back and read it again? Why or why not?

*How did I do? Is this an effective reading assessment? Why or why not?

VOCAB WORD

+ = I have seen

this word before and can

guess its meaning

- = I have no idea what this word means.

+ = Guess at the definition based on contextOR- = Look up the word, and write a definition ONLY if it is crucial to your overall understanding of the materialORNI = You decided the word was not important to understand the meaning of the text.

Write the word in its context. 1. Is this a history-specific (CONCEPT WORD) word?

OR

2. Is this a word that you need to know to understand a particular sentence or paragraph (CONTENT WORD)?

If it’s a CONCEPT WORD, write down one of the following:A. The word’s significance to the entire section of reading

B. How the word connects with other ideas we’ve discussed in class.

*If it’s a CONTENT WORD, leave this column blank.

BREAK

ELA CC - Writing for a Variety of Purposes(SS3 - Writing)

A. Text Types and Purposes - Students can create history-specific types of writing, including the following:

1. Informative/Explanatory: Students can write informative/explanatory texts, including the narration of historical events or processes. More specifically . . .

• Students can introduce a topic and organize ideas, concepts, and information to make important connections and distinctions, including proper formatting.

• Students can develop the topic with well-chosen, relevant and sufficient facts, extended definitions, concrete details, quotations, or other information and examples appropriate to the audience’s knowledge of the topic.

• Students will be able to maintain a formal style and objective tone appropriate to the discipline of history.

2. Argumentation/Claim: Students can write arguments to support a claim (i.e. thesis) in an analysis of an important topic using valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence. More specifically . . .

• Students can recognize, identify, and create precise arguments, distinguish them from alternate or opposing arguments, and organize them in ways that establish clear relationships. The student will be able to do all of this in a history-appropriate format that accounts for the audience’s level of knowledge.

• Students are able to develop argument/s and counterclaims fairly, supplying reliable, academic data and evidence for each, while pointing out the strengths and limitations of each argument/claim.

• Students will be able to maintain a formal style and objective tone tone appropriate to the discipline of history.

(CONTINUED ON NEXT SLIDE)

ELA CC - Writing for a Variety of Purposes (continued)(SS3 - Writing)

B. Research to Build and Present Knowledge

• Students will be able to draw evidence from informational texts to answer teacher-generated inquiries (i.e. journals, webquests, etc.), as well as to support analysis, reflection, and independent research.

• Students will be able to conduct short as well as more sustained research projects to answer a question (including a self-generated question) or to solve a problem; narrow or broaden the inquiry when appropriate; synthesize multiple sources on the subject, demonstrating understanding of the subject under investigation.

• Students will be able to gather relevant information from multiple, academic, reliable print and digital sources, using advanced searches effectively; assess the usefulness of each source in answering the research question; integrate information into the text selectively to maintain the flow of ideas, avoiding plagiarism and following a standard format for citation.

C. Production and Distribution of Writing

• Students will employ the tools of effective writing: varied transitions, sentence fluency, and precise history-specific language.

• Students use the writing process (planning, revising, editing, rewriting, and trying a different approach) to change big ideas and focus writing on what is most important for the rhetorical situation (SOAPS).

• Students will use technology, including the Internet, to produce, publish, and update individual or shared writing projects, taking advantage of technology’s capacity to link to other information and to display information dynamically.

Prompt: On page 45, Aronson makes a controversial statement.  He states, “In fact, it was just in this

period, as Christianity split off from Judaism, that the idea of Satan was invented. He does not exist in the Old Testament.” Dr. Aronson gets this information from Elaine Pagels' book Origin of Satan. You have learned that she is a credible source with impressive academic credentials in theology.  Nonetheless, is Aronson's articulation of her argument accurate? In other words, how clearly do you think he interprets her thesis? In order to fully answer this question, you must include the following components:

• Rearticulate Pagel's thesis using the book review excerpts/video clip from your "Checking the Source" assignment. Make sure to include textual evidence to support your answer.

• Articulate Aronson's overall point on page 45, especially the last paragraph.  Again be sure to use textual evidence as part of your explanation.

• Now that you have this information, do you agree with Aronson's interpretation, or is there a disconnect between Aronson and Pagels? In other words, does Aronson do justice to Pagel's thesis? If yes, why?  If not, what should have written, and why?  Make sure to use textual evidence to support your answer.

Go to Student Sample 1

Go to Student Sample 2

“‘Presentism’-- the act of viewing the past through the lens of the present--is not some bad habit we’ve fallen into. It is, instead,

our psychological condition at rest, a way of thinking that requires little effort and comes

quite naturally.”

-Wineburg, Historical Thinking and Other Unnatural Acts

The Difficulty of Assessing Contextualization

Tackling the edTPA RequirementsRUBRIC 11: Analysis of Student Learning

• Guiding Question: How does the candidate (that’s you!) analyze student learning?

LEVEL FIVE

Analysis uses specific evidence from work samples to demonstrate the connections between quantitative and qualitative patterns of student learning for individuals or groups.

TRANSLATION: How are you analyzing student learning – can students explain what they learned and identify what would be the most productive next step?

HELPFUL HINTS:

• Choose students who struggle with specific skills. If you choose your best students, it’s difficult to find the “quantitative and qualitative patterns” that rubric is asking you for.

• Create and choose assessments that are directly linked to the skills your focus students struggle with. This is where the standards can be very helpful! For example, if Student A struggles with her organization in writing, but has a strong voice, showcase the feedback you’ve give him/her to help him/her strengthen this skill.

Tackling the edTPA RequirementsRUBRIC 12: Providing Feedback to Guide Learning

• Guiding Question: What type of feedback does the candidate provide to students?

LEVEL FIVE

Candidate describes how he/she will guide focus students to use feedback to evaluate their own own strengths/needs.

TRANSLATION: Can your feedback be used comprehensively and how will students be able to use this information to identify areas of strength and weakness

HELPFUL HINTS:

• Use rubrics with common language. Reinforce the student’s strengths and weaknesses over and over again, and they will begin to learn and anticipate those strengths and weaknesses themselves.

Tackling the edTPA RequirementsRUBRIC 13: Student Use of Feedback

• Guiding Question: How does the candidate provide feedback - does this feedback help students identify their strengths/weaknesses and monitor their own learning

LEVEL FIVE

Candidate guides students to generalize feedback beyond the current work sample

TRANSLATION: What types of opportunities are you giving your students to use feedback to guide further learning

HELPFUL HINTS:

• make sure that all formative work is aligned with the summative - when you provide feedback on the formative work is a consistent manner (using common language) students will be able to identify areas of strengths and weaknesses

Tackling the edTPA RequirementsRUBRIC 14: Analyzing Students’ Language Use and History/Social Studies Learning

• Guiding Question: How does the candidate analyze students’ use of language to develop content understanding?

LEVEL FIVE

Candidate explains and provides evidence of language use and content learning for students with varied needs

TRANSLATION: Do you identify and explain how your students are using historical vocabulary (plus syntax/discourse) to develop content learning

Tackling the edTPA RequirementsRUBRIC 15: Using Assessment to Inform Instruction

• Guiding Question: How does the candidate use the analysis of what students know and are able to do to plan next steps in instruction?

LEVEL FIVE

Next steps provide targeted support to individuals AND groups to improve their learning relative to:

• facts and concepts

• interpretations and/or analysis

• building and supporting arguments

Next steps are justified with principals from research and/or theory

TRANSLATION: How are you able to support both individuals and groups in relation to the “next steps” – do your research principles connect?