SCALE Science at WestEd

Assessment

SCALE’s work on performance assessment is grounded in a philosophy that teaching and learning is most effective when instruction is supported by a coherent system of assessments. A critical part of this system is tasks that provide information about students’ thinking that can be used to guide instruction that is responsive to their ideas, needs, and interests.

The projects described below outline a selection of our recent efforts to build capacity across the entire education system, from policymakers to curriculum developers to classroom teachers and researchers, in the development and asset-based use of performance assessments to enhance students’ learning and engagement in science.

Stanford NGSS Assessment Project

The Stanford NGSS Assessment Project (SNAP) was started as a collaboration between experts in science performance assessment at SCALE and lead authors of the Framework for K-12 Science Education Jonathan Osborne and Helen Quinn. SCALE Science at WestEd is building on the SNAP library of resources to support schools, districts, and states in exploring ways that performance assessments can be used to support NGSS teaching and learning.

Twig

SCALE collaborated with Twig on the development of a coherent system of assessments integrated into a K-5 NGSS curriculum and developed an assessment framework, performance assessments, and 3D rubrics for their grade 6-8 NGSS curriculum.

The Teacher Learning Mechanisms (TLM) Project is a multi-institution collaboration of performance assessment experts, learning scientists, and cognitive scientists exploring how teachers develop their capacity to use ambitious science teaching practices when implementing 3D performance assessments by engaging in analysis of video clips of the performance assessments. Learn more

SCALE Science is building PBLWorks staff’s capacity to develop instructionally-embedded performance assessments that are seamlessly integrated into PBL units. Capacity-building activities include a year-long training series focused on creating a coherent assessment system, developing performance assessments, analyzing pilot data and revising assessments, and constructing equitable and educative rubrics. SCALE Science also provides direct coaching services and the development of exemplar tasks and rubrics to serve as models for developers and to embed into the units.

Formative Assessment Network

Since 2021, SCALE Science has been working with the New Mexico Public Education Department to enhance the way formative assessment is used to drive student-centered instructional practices in science. District teams, comprised of teachers and leaders, engage in year-long sequences of in-person, asynchronous, and synchronous learning activities to develop culturally and linguistically responsive 3D assessments. Teams develop their practice with using these assessments to leverage students’ ideas and linguistic resources to attend to, and advance, their thinking. Administrators also develop their leadership practices around supporting teachers in integrating these collaborative assessment practices into their school or district.

 

Building Science Leaders Network

In 2023, SCALE Science, in collaboration with the K-12 Alliance and the NM Public Education Department, began building a statewide community of practice, comprising district and school teams, dedicated to enhancing participants’ leadership in promoting equitable instruction and assessment practices. This network unites SCALE Science’s Formative Assessment Network and the K-12 Alliance’s Storyline Network in order to build leaders’ capacity to support teachers in using responsive instructional practices to enhance science learning experiences and outcomes for all students.

Agricultural-based Science Assessments

SCALE Science supported Vivayic staff by building their capacity to develop, pilot test, and strengthen performance assessments focused on agricultural contexts. See the assessments here or in our task bank.