Transcript Graduate Teacher Education Program

Developing a Pretest & Posttest
for the Literacy Work Sample
Portland State University
Work Sample Seminar
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Overview
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Constructing a Pretest and Posttest
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A. Identify a possible unit goal/objective
B. Consider Pre-skills
C. Select items that match the objectives
D. Decide on a format
E. Describe how it will be administered
F. Describe how it will be scored
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A. Identify a possible unit goal/objective:
Your unit goal/objective should be at the heart
of your assessment
Plan to create,
assess, and
revise your
assessment
and objectives
several times
Developing a Pretest based
upon the Unit Goal/Objective
Draft Unit Goal:
 Example: Given a narrative text written at the
fourth grade instructional level, Jane will
correctly write answers to comprehension
questions focused upon story elements (i.e.
character, setting, sequence of 3 main events)
with 80% accuracy.
This objective helps students make
progress toward the following Common
Core State Standard:
College & Career Readiness (CCR)
Standard for Reading:
 Key Ideas and Details
 1. Read closely to determine what
the text says explicitly and to make
logical inferences from it; cite specific
textual evidence when writing or
speaking to support conclusions
drawn from the text.
Link to Common Core State
Standards (CCSS)
Grade Level Standard 4.RL.
Key Ideas and Details
4.RL.1
Refer to details and examples in a
text when explaining what the text says
explicitly and when drawing inferences
from the text.
4.RL.3 Describe in depth a character,
setting, or event in a story or drama,
drawing on specific details in the text
(e.g., a character’s thoughts, words, or
actions).
Developing a Pre test based
upon the Unit Goal/Objective
Draft Unit Goal:
Example: Given 20 single syllable words
containing the vowel combinations ai, ow, ea,
and oa in isolation and in the context of a
sentence, students will read the words aloud
with 95% accuracy by May 31, 2014 for three
consecutive days as measured by beginning of
class list word reading activities.
This objective helps students make
progress toward the following Common
Core State Standard:
College & Career Readiness (CCR)
Standard for Reading:
 Range of Reading and Level of Text
Complexity
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10.
Read and comprehend complex
literary and informational texts
independently and proficiently.
Link to Common Core State
Standards (CCSS)
Grade Level Standard 9.RL.10
Key Ideas and Details
9.RL.10 By the end of grade 9, read and
comprehend literature, including stories,
dramas, and poems, in the grades 9–10 text
complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding
as needed at the high end of the range.
B. Consider Pre skills
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What are the pre skills for this unit?
– Read 4th grade text
– Conceptual Understanding:
• Time
• Place
• Sequencing events
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How will you assess the pre skills?
C. Select Items to Assess the Objective –
comprehension example
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Match definitions:
Character
Setting
Problem
Attempts
Solution
how the problem is resolved
who the story is about
how the characters try to solve the problem
the time and place the story occurs
the goal or challenge the characters face in the story
Student reads a passage and writes answers to open ended questions to
identify:
Setting
5. Time _____________
6. Place _____________
7. Main Character ___________
Sequence of 3 events
8. Event 1 (Problem indicator)
9. Event 2 (Attempt to solve it)
10. Event 3 (Solution indicator)
C. Select items that match the objective(s) – phonics
example
Preskills
Way to Assess
1. Recognizing vowels
from consonants
Present 20 letters in random order,
5 of which are vowels. Have student
circle the vowels.
2. Saying the long vowel
sound for a, e, and o.
Point to each circled vowel (above)
and have student say its long sound.
3. Saying most of the
consonant sounds
Have students say the sounds for
the consonants in the list.
4. Blending 3 to 4 letter
sounds –> word
Have students read these
words: pal, rep, tog,
mend, frat.
Select items that match the objectives – phonics
example
Target Skills
Way to Assess
1. Reading words
with ai
Present words with ai in
list and a sentence.
2. Reading words
with ow
Present words with ow
in list and a sentence.
3. Reading words
with ea
Present words with ea in
list and a sentence.
4. Reading words
with oa
Present words with oa
in list and a sentence.
C. Select Items to Assess the Objective –
Vocabulary Example
Step 1: Preskills
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Are prefixes at the beginning or end of a word?
Are suffixes at the beginning or end of a word?
How many syllables are in the word employment? List the syllables, if more than
one.
Step 2: Circle prefixes
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Advertise
Consultation
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Step 3: Circle suffixes
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Financing
Employer
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Step 4: Read the words aloud to the teacher
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Adept
Assiduous
Reference
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Step 5: Write a definition, in your own words, for each word
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Professionalism
budgeting
D. Decide on a format
•Example
Since the unit objective specifies 20 words, select five
words each for ai, ow, ea, and oa. Put four of each word
type in a word list, randomly mixed among the words with
other vowel combinations.
Write four sentences that each have one of the
vowel combination words. (check to make sure
the student can read all the other words in the
sentence!)
To assess preskills, randomly list the vowels and
consonants type the words pal, rep, tog, mend, and frat.
Prepare a sheet for the student to read from and a
scoring sheet.
E. Describe how it will be administered.
1. How will you introduce the test?
2. How will you assess the pre skills?
3. How you will pretest the sequence
objectives?
How will you introduce the test?
Example
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The pre/posttest will be individually
administered to each student in the group.
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Introduce the test by saying, “this short
activity will see which things you know how to
do and which things we want to teach you to
do. Some things will be easy for you and
some things will be hard. Don’t worry about
how you do, just do the best you can.”
F. Decide how you will score it:
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Example:
Give one point for every story element
word the student can match to a
definition (questions 1 – 5).
Give 0 - 2 points for every story
element the student can correctly write
after reading the story.
0 – no answer / incorrect answer
1 – partial answer
2 – fully correct answers
Rubric: Data on Learning Gains
To meet criteria, assessment tools must:
 match description of student performance on unit
/step objective (conditions and behavior),
 include administration procedures and directions to
students,
 include criteria for scoring acceptable/ incorrect
responses,
 have identical or comparable pre and post
measures (difficulty, number of items, format).
Helpful Hints
Order the test items in the same order as you
will teach the skills.
The test must include items that assess your
desired outcome, as indicated in your unit
objective(s).
The test format should match the conditions
part of your unit objectives
Helpful Hints
The pre- and posttest must measure the same
skills in the same way.
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Two options:
1. Posttest = pretest
2. Different items or prompts, but the
same in its format, length, response
modes, and level of difficulty.
Pre test Design Questions:
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Is the pre-test implied in the unit objective/does it match the
objective?
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Does the pre-test scoring match the unit objective criteria?
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Is the pre-test reasonable to complete in a short period of time?
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Does the pre-test measure meaningful skills?
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Does the pre-test measure relevant pre-skills?
Closing
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Read the pre-test assignment and draft a
pretest to assess your unit objectives
Be prepared to administer and revise your
pretest several times
Your students should perform in a range
that indicates the objective is appropriate
(scoring about 20%-70% on the pretest)
Work Sample Seminar
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