| States are in varying stages of developing their NCLB | | | | the teacher (and student) of what the student |
| science assessments. Typically, states contract with | | | | understands versus what bubble he may have |
| assessment companies which have a history of | | | | guessed to be right. |
| producing standardized, norm referenced tests, e.g., the | | | | Performance assessment in science requires students |
| Iowa Test of Basic Skills (ITBS), the Tera Nova, the | | | | to perform various science skills (observation, data |
| Stanford Achievement Test (SAT-9, SAT-10). | | | | collection, organizing data, data analysis, drawing |
| These new NCLB science tests must include either | | | | conclusions, etc.) as they manipulate equipment. |
| criterion-referenced assessments or augmented | | | | Science equipment, typically organized in classroom |
| norm-referenced assessments, or both. The world of | | | | sets, is delivered as science kits. |
| the standardized, multiple-choice, norm referenced test | | | | As the need for criterion-referenced science |
| is disappearing as standards-aligned, | | | | assessment of inquiry skills takes hold, the demand for |
| criterion-referenced tests emerge. | | | | science kits will continue to increase. States, districts, |
| Because many states' science standards include | | | | and schools are realizing that to assess science inquiry |
| science inquiry and science process skills that are | | | | adequately, kits are a necessary, essential part of the |
| difficult to assess with conventional multiple-choice | | | | assessment program. Educators also realize that if |
| questions, more and more science assessments are | | | | they are to meet the NCLB requirements for science |
| taking on a different format and look. To assess a | | | | assessment, i.e., to use up-to-date measures to assess |
| student's skills, students must "perform". | | | | mastery of science standards, and the states' science |
| Performance assessment is moving us "beyond the | | | | content standards include science inquiry, then the |
| bubble" of Scantron forms. When students are asked | | | | tests themselves need to include student performance |
| to perform, they are better able to utilize their unique | | | | tasks. And since "what gets tested gets taught," we |
| learning styles (kinesthetic, visual, aural, etc.) as they tap | | | | will see an increasing number of science inquiry learning |
| into their own content knowledge of science. Student | | | | activities in classroom curriculum throughout the school |
| work from performance assessments better informs | | | | year. |