TExES Science 4-8 Domain V: Science Learning, Instruction, and Assessment
Overview
The Science Learning, Instruction, and Assessment domain includes 13 questions. There are three competencies within this domain. Overarching concepts covered within these competencies include:
- Teaching Strategies
- Scientific Behavior
- Scientific Communication
Let’s explore a few important specific topics that are likely to appear on the test.
Bloom’s Taxonomy
Bloom’s taxonomy is a model categorizing educational objectives into an organized hierarchy of depth of knowledge. The lowest level on the hierarchy is now called Remember, in which the expectation is that students are able to recall basic facts and concepts. This is best exemplified by definitions, memorization, and forming lists. The next level of the hierarchy is Understand, in which the expectation is that students will be able to explain ideas and concepts. The ability to classify, discuss, describe, and explain is the hallmark of this level of knowledge. Apply is the next level on the hierarchy, which requires students to be able to use information they’ve learned in new situations. To show mastery of this level of knowledge, students solve problems, interpret data, and carry out calculations. The next level is Analyze, in which students begin differentiating between ideas, comparing and contrasting concepts, and carrying out experiments. Near the top of the hierarchy is Evaluate, in which students develop the ability to justify, defend, and critique the application of a concept. The highest level in the hierarchy is Create, in which students construct, design, or develop new or original work based on the concepts they’ve studied.
Lower levels of Bloom’s taxonomy provide necessary foundations for moving into higher levels of thinking. Familiarity with Bloom’s allows the educator insight into the pacing and introduction of new concepts, when to circle back and reinforce content that has been covered previously, and identifying appropriate ways to assess concepts within the course. Look to the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) for your grade level content matter, as the verbs used in the TEKS will help you identify what depth of knowledge you should aim for within Bloom’s Taxonomy. For example: Forces, energy, and motion are concepts introduced to Texas students beginning in kindergarten. The verbs move from “observe and describe” to “demonstrate and record” to “trace and compare,” which is a clear progression from Understand. Apply and finally Analyze before the TEKS add an additional second component to forces, energy, and motion starting in the 3rd grade. By the time students reach 4th grade, the verb in the force and motions TEKS becomes “design” incorporating the highest order of thinking, Create.
Knowing the progression of learning objectives and expectations allows educator and students alike to identify where they have been previously in their learning and where they are expected to go with the current content, even previewing (where appropriate) where they will take the content in the future. Keeping these targets in mind allows the educator to incorporate lessons, activities, and questions at an appropriate level. For instance, by 8th grade students “demonstrate and calculate” unbalanced forces and the changes they can effect on motion of objects. While a review of previous objectives may be appropriate to activate prior learning or to check for understanding, the focus at this level should be on using activities that push students to apply interpretation of data through calculations. Care must be taken to move past simple recall of definitions of terms for force, energy, and motion, as this would be the lowest level of Bloom’s taxonomy. Provide real world examples of balanced and unbalanced forces to ensure relevance, as students work to predict changes in speed and/or direction of an object’s motion using free body diagrams. The emphasis should be on their ability to calculate such changes. For example, consider the following question:
What direction and with how much net force will the soccer ball move when kicked?
When planning activities, consider extensions that take your students one level higher than how they will be assessed on their STAAR exams. Since the lower levels of Bloom’s are foundational and required for success at higher levels, this technique can boost student confidence when they are taking the test and realize that where they are being assessed is below their highest level of learning success. At the very least, push students to be able to answer questions regarding the hows and whys of the concepts you are teaching.
ELL Students
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In Texas it is not uncommon to encounter students in the classroom with little to no English proficiency. Such English-language learners or ELLs deserve the same access to the content as their English proficient counterparts. Science can be particularly frustrating when you have limited proficiency in the language it is being taught in. Take care not to speak too quickly and make sure to enunciate key terms to avoid unnecessary confusion. Focus on visual literacy, making sure to provide (and require ELLs to use) visuals with terms and definitions. Some ways to incorporate visuals into literacy within the content are through using techniques such as anchor charts, graphic organizers, and word walls that draw connections between the necessary vocabulary and the concepts. Other techniques for learning vocabulary that are helpful for ELLs can benefit all learners in the classroom. Draw on previous knowledge in the lexicon and focus on word parts such as roots, prefixes, and suffixes to activate prior knowledge. For example, you might observe that the root of the word “solstice” is “sol-”, which is “sun” in Spanish, in order to make the connection that a solstice occurs when an axial pole is being illuminated fully by the sun.
Many ELLs may actually do very well with conversational English but not the written word. ELLs at this level of learning excel in group settings where there is an emphasis on communicating verbally with group members as they work together to solve a problem, design an investigation, or analyze data. Encourage participation among your ELLs and consider pairing beginning and intermediate ELLs with more advanced ELLs, particularly if they speak the same home language.
Lastly, do not discount giving all students the opportunity to write frequently. Proficiency in academic English cannot come without practice. The use of writing prompts encourages ELLs and all students to expand their familiarity with and mastery of the English language and science concepts.
Types of Assessment
A variety of assessment methods is necessary in any classroom. Properly selecting, designing, and administering assessment in the classroom requires familiarity with the array of assessment methods. Performance assessment is any assessment that measures the application of knowledge and skills to new or authentic problems. Performance assessment should require higher-order thinking skills to apply conceptual knowledge to problems students have not seen before. For example, 6th grade TEKS require students to be able to calculate density, mass, and volume. Students should be able to use their knowledge of how density, mass, and volume are related, including the formula for density, to calculate unknown information about an object or to predict what might happen to another variable when one variable has been changed. A sample question: If a block has a mass of 10 g and 5 cm3 what is its density? or If the volume of a sample expands but its mass stays the same what happens to the sample’s density?
Self-assessment is the evaluation of student work and tracking progress by both students and teachers. This allows students to identify their own gaps in content knowledge in order to make plans to improve their comprehension level. Educators naturally assess student work and observe student success patterns to help them adjust their pace. However, putting some of this responsibility into student hands gives them ownership over their learning and helps create investment in growth.
Both performance assessments and self-assessments can be categorized as either formal or informal assessments. Major differences between formal and informal assessments include that formal assessments tend to be high-stakes whereas informal assessments are typically low-stakes. Formal assessments are very data-driven and provide comprehensive information used in comparisons in order to identify students’ knowledge and competency levels. We primarily see standardized assessment and exams as examples of formal assessment. By contrast, informal assessment is much more content- and performance-driven as opposed to being data-driven. Everyday grades such as projects, quizzes, portfolios, and daily activities fall into the category of informal assessment because they are designed to give both the teacher and the student feedback as they progress through their learning. Valid and informative informal assessments draw connections between concepts and real life examples.
Lastly, there are formative and summative assessments. These categories are very similar to formal and informal assessments, with a few key differences. Formative assessments take place while learning is still forming and solidifying. The purpose of formative assessments is to monitor progression through learning concepts. Formative assessments give both students and teachers the opportunity to examine results and outcomes throughout the learning process. These are low-stakes assessments that may come in the form of activities such as Think-Pair-Share, Argument Driven Inquiry, Polling, Admit/Exit Tickets, or Bell Ringers, or visual aids like concept maps and other graphic organizers. As the word summative implies, these assessments occurs at the summation of a set period of time, often at the end of a unit, semester, or year. The goal of summative assessments is evaluation of knowledge and skills. Summative assessments include unit exams, campus and district benchmark exams, end-of-semester exams, and state exams such as the STAAR and EOC exams. Additionally, summative assessments can be long-term projects, papers, or lab reports.
While there is some overlap in the types of assessment, it is important to make sure that as an educator you are intentional about the types and frequencies of each type of assessment you use throughout the unit, semester, and year. Make sure you’re providing enough opportunity for receiving feedback and self-evaluation by students ahead of formal and summative assessments in order to give students adequate time to make an investment in their own learning process.
And that’s some very basic information about the Science Learning, Instruction, and Assessment domain of the TExES Science 4-8 test.