What IS the Big Idea?

The main focus of this chapter was being able to match assessment to instruction. In this chapter we learn about the three types of assessment, diagnostic, formative, and summative. Diagnostic assessment is when teachers assess the students at the very beginning of the lesson, they do this by asking questions, or a quick recap quiz. Formative assessment is used to gauge students' understanding of a particular topic in a unit in order to judge their progress and adjust the rest the instruction accordingly. Summative assessment comes at the end of a unit or course and is used to document students' acheivement. Final exams are a typical example, but a more thorough example of a students understanding at the end of the unit would be something that they have to create, such as a portfolio. Assessment is not seperate from instruction. In reality the two join naturally together in the instructional context. Whenever we are doing science with students, we are engaged in assessment. Different types of authentic assessment are science notebooks, portfolios, science conversations, concept maps or cartoons, and electronic presentations. When we create our lessons it is important to keep in mind what kind of assessment we will be using, as well as how our lessons connect to both the national and state standards.