Assessment
in
the
Inquiry
Classroom
by
Wynne
Harlen
|
Because
assessment
information
is
a
powerful
tool
for
monitoring
the
development
of
student
understanding,
modifying
activities,
and
promoting
student
self-reflection,
the
effective
teacher
of
science
carefully
selects
and
uses
assessment
tasks
that
are
also
good
learning
experiences.
These
assessment
tasks
focus
on
important
content
and
performance
goals
and
provide
students
with
an
opportunity
to
demonstrate
their
understanding
and
ability
to
conduct
science.
--National
Science
Education
Standards
Assessment--the
process
of
evaluating
the
quality
of
learning--
is
an
integral
part
of
classroom
teaching.
With
children
taking
different
paths
as
they
learn,
assessment
in
the
inquiry
classroom
can
be
a
difficult
task.
But,
as
this
essay
points
out,
the
characteristics
of
inquiry
give
teachers
the
opportunity
to
determine
what
students
are
learning,
recognize
when
they
need
help,
and
identify
appropriate
next
steps
to
take.
"Any
assessment
is
only
as
good
as
the
action
that
arises
from
it."
A
fourth-grade
class
is
involved
in
a
topic
on
sound,
investigating
how
it
is
produced
and
how
we
hear
it.
The
teacher
has
collected
a
number
of
musical
instruments--tambourines,
recorders,
several
homemade
one-string
guitars,
a
real
guitar,
drums,
castanets,
triangles,
and
so
on--
deliberately
including
some
that
can
be
tuned
and
others
that
can't.
These
are
distributed
to
the
students,
who
are
working
in
groups.
The
students
are
asked
to
find
out
several
things,
including
how
to
make
a
loud
sound,
a
soft
sound,
a
high-pitched
sound,
and
a
low-pitched
sound.
They
are
also
asked
how
to
stop
the
instrument
from
making
any
sound
at
all,
and
how
to
stop
themselves
from
hearing
the
instrument
when
it
is
making
a
sound.
The
students
are
to
discuss
their
findings
and
prepare
to
present
what
they
have
done
and
their
ideas
about
it.
As
the
students
work,
the
teacher
circulates,
listening
to
their
talk.
She
encourages
their
thinking
by
asking
questions,
such
as,
What
do
you
do
that
makes
the
difference
between
a
loud
and
a
soft
sound?
or
Why
do
you
think
doing
that
makes
a
difference
to
the
sound?
She
also
encourages
them
to
ask
questions
that
they
can
answer
by
further
investigation.
The
teacher
notes
the
way
the
students
go
about
their
inquiry.
For
example,
she
watches
how
systematically
they
investigate
and
how
thoroughly
they
observe
effects.
During
the
group
presentations,
the
teacher
has
a
further
opportunity
to
observe
how
the
students
communicate
and
explain
what
they
did.
She
also
notes
what
words
they
use.
Then,
the
teacher
asks
each
student
to
select
one
instrument
and
write
and
draw
their
thoughts
about
it,
how
it
makes
sound,
and
how
they
hear
it.
Later,
the
teacher
collects
these
products
and
studies
them
for
evidence
about
the
students'
understanding
of
sound,
their
use
of
evidence,
and
their
reasoning
process.
From
this,
the
teacher
decides
on
the
appropriate
next
steps
for
the
students--whether
they
are
ready
to
move
on
to
other
investigations
of
sound
or
need
to
consolidate
ideas
about
how
sound
is
created
and
how
it
travels
to
our
ears.
What
this
teacher
has
been
doing
in
this
lesson
includes
collecting
a
considerable
amount
of
evidence
about
the
students'
ideas
and
skills.
This
evidence
can
then
inform
the
teacher's
decisions
about
next
steps
in
the
students'
learning.
This
is
assessment.
When
the
assessment
is
carried
out
for
the
purposes
of
helping
teaching
and
learning
(as
it
is
in
this
example),
it
is
called
formative
assessment.
When
it
is
carried
out
in
order
to
provide
a
report
on
where
each
student
has
reached
at
a
certain
point
in
time,
it
is
called
summative
assessment.
What
to
Assess
and
How
to
Assess
It
Here,
we
are
going
to
focus
for
the
most
part
on
formative
assessment,
for
two
important
reasons:
first,
because
it
is
an
integral
part
of
any
teaching
which
attempts
to
build
ideas
and
skills
progressively;
and
second,
because
there
is
solid
evidence
that
effective
teaching
is
characterized
by
good
formative
assessment.
Formative
assessment
is
essential
to
inquiry
teaching
because
the
teacher
must
know
what
understanding
of
scientific
ideas
and
process
skills
the
students
have
already
developed
in
order
to
decide
what
is
needed
to
help
the
children's
progress.
It
is
this
use
of
the
assessment
that
makes
it
"formative."
This
view
of
teaching
and
learning
acknowledges
the
role
of
the
student
in
his
or
her
learning.
No
one
else
can
do
the
learning,
but
the
teacher
who
wants
to
help
the
process
will
need
to
know
where
the
student
has
reached.
Gathering
information
about
the
learning
as
an
ongoing
part
of
teaching,
and
using
it
in
deciding
next
steps,
is
thus
a
necessity.
In
order
to
be
useful,
formative
assessment
must
cover
the
important
outcomes
that
are
intended
in
inquiry
learning.
That
is,
it
must
be
concerned
with
the
process
skills
and
with
the
understanding
of
scientific
ideas.
So
the
outcomes
of
inquiry
learning
have
to
be
identified,
and
it
is
essential
to
know
what
is
meant
by
progression
in
each
of
the
skills,
attitudes,
and
areas
of
understanding.
These
aspects
can't
be
considered
here
in
detail,
but
it
is
useful
to
list
some
of
them.
Information
about
all
of
these
intended
outcomes
of
inquiry
learning
is
needed
at
some
point
for
teachers
to
use
to
help
progress
in
learning.
Furthermore,
experience
has
shown
that
what
is
not
assessed
tends
to
be
devalued
and,
in
fact,
may
not
even
be
taught.
Methods
of
Gathering
Information
The
teacher
whose
work
was
described
at
the
beginning
of
this
essay
was
using
four
main
methods
of
gathering
information:
Let's
look
briefly
at
each
method.
Observing
Students
at
Work
Much
can
be
learned
about
students'
skills
by
observing
them
at
work,
particularly
if
the
teacher
has
a
list
of
things
to
look
for,
either
as
a
mental
or
written
checklist.
This
is
one
example
of
a
simple
checklist
a
teacher
might
use
to
assess
understanding
in
younger
children
who
are
working
on
a
particular
topic
or
project.
1.
Was
at
least
one
relevant
observation
made
(indicated
by
something
said
or
put
on
paper)?
2.
Was
something
drawn
or
described
clearly
enough
for
it
to
be
identified
by
someone
else?
3.
Were
differences
between
things
or
from
one
time
to
another
noticed?
4.
Were
questions
asked
about
what
they
observed?
5.
Were
ideas
suggested,
perhaps
in
answer
to
their
own
questions?
6.
Was
some
interpretation
made
of
findings
by
associating
one
factor
with
another?
7.
Were
perseverance
and
patience
shown?
8.
Were
tasks
shared
cooperatively?
Based
on
Harlen
and
Elstgeest,
1992.
A
more
elaborate
checklist,
which
embodies
a
description
of
development
within
each
aspect
of
inquiry,
helps
to
identify
where
students
are
and
what
their
next
step
might
be.
Each
successive
question
indicates
a
further
step
in
development.
This
example
concerns
ability
in
planning
and
conducting
investigations.
1.
Do
the
students
start
with
a
useful
general
approach,
even
if
details
are
lacking
or
need
further
thought?
2.
Do
they
have
some
idea
of
the
variable
that
has
to
be
changed,
or
what
different
things
are
to
be
compared?
3.
Do
they
keep
the
same
the
things
that
should
not
change
for
a
fair
test?
4.
Do
they
have
some
idea
beforehand
of
what
to
look
for
to
obtain
a
result?
5.
Do
the
students
choose
a
realistic
way
of
measuring
or
comparing
things
to
obtain
the
results?
6.
Do
they
take
steps
to
ensure
that
the
results
obtained
are
as
accurate
as
they
can
reasonably
be?
This
list
is
based
on
Harlen
and
Jelly,
1997,
in
which
similar
developmental
lists
are
suggested
for
other
inquiry
skills.
Asking
Questions
Observation
can
give
a
teacher
a
certain
amount
of
information
about
a
student's
thinking
process.
But
even
more
information
can
be
obtained
when
observation
is
combined
with
asking
questions
designed
to
probe
this
thinking.
The
most
useful
kinds
of
questions
for
this
purpose
are
ones
that
are
open,
as
opposed
to
closed,
and
person-centered,
as
opposed
to
subject-centered.
Open
questions
invite
the
student
to
give
his
or
her
view
of
things
("What
do
you
notice
about
the
bubbles?"),
rather
than
respond
to
what
the
teacher
suggests
("Do
you
see
the
colors
in
the
bubbles?").
Person-centered
questions
ask
directly
for
the
students'
ideas
("Why
do
you
think
the
bean
plant
grew
more
quickly
in
the
closet?"),
rather
than
focusing
on
the
subject
of
a
particular
answer
("Why
did
the
bean
grow
more
quickly
in
the
closet?").
Asking
such
questions
during
activities
means
that
evidence
can
be
gathered
about
students'
understanding,
as
well
as
about
skills
and
attitudes.
Looking
Closely
at
Products
The
products
of
students'
inquiry,
whether
they
are
drawings,
constructions,
or
pieces
of
writing,
give
clues
to
their
thinking
and
are
especially
useful
in
assessing
understanding
of
scientific
ideas.
These
products
are
more
useful
if
the
task
is
set
to
elicit
the
students'
reasoning
about
what
they
have
found.
The
following
example
is
a
result
of
a
request
that
a
teacher
made
for
a
student
to
be
self-critical
about
her
investigation
of
how
far
away
the
sound
could
be
heard
when
a
coin
was
dropped:
"If
I
did
this
again
I
would
try
to
think
of
a
way
to
test
the
sound
and
not
just
guess
and
try
to
think
of
more
surfaces
and
try
with
different
coins
at
different
heights.
On
the
sound
I
have
got
two
ideas,
one,
see
how
far
away
you
can
here
[sic]
it
drop,
and
two,
get
a
tape
recorder
with
a
sound
level
indicator."
Students'
drawing
and
writing
can
also
provide
evidence
of
their
conceptual
development.
The
two
figures
show
examples
of
students'
work
on
the
subject
of
sound.
The
first
figure
shows
the
product
of
a
10-year-old
in
response
to
being
asked
to
write
and
draw
about
how
the
drum
makes
a
noise,
and
how
the
sound
travels.
The
idea
of
sound
being
associated
with
vibration
is
evidently
being
developed,
but
this
student
considered
that
sound
could
only
travel
through
air
and
so
had
to
emerge
from
the
drum
through
the
holes.
In
the
second
figure,
the
student
has
been
investigating
a
string
telephone.
Although
the
student
used
the
word
"vibration,"
it
is
clear
that
this
is
applied
only
to
the
sound
going
along
the
string,
and
that
these
vibrations
are
converted
to
"sound"
in
the
air.
Both
of
these
examples
indicate
to
the
teacher
the
kinds
of
further
experience
and
discussion
that
will
help
these
students'
understanding
of
ideas
relating
to
sound.
Of
course,
the
teacher
will
be
gathering
similar
evidence
from
other
students
in
the
class
and
will
be
able
to
find
out
to
what
extent
these
ideas
are
generally
held.
This
information
will
help
to
decide
what
issues
should
be
addressed,
and
whether
it
applies
to
all
or
just
some
of
the
students.
A
10-year-old's
representation
of
how
a
drum
makes
a
sound,
and
how
the
sound
travels.
A
10-year-old's
representation
of
sound
travelling.
Students
are
ultimately
responsible
for
their
own
learning.
Thus,
if
the
assessment
information
is
going
to
be
used
formatively--for
helping
learning--
then
it
is
the
student
who
is
the
user,
and
the
student
who
needs
the
information.
How
valuable
the
products
of
classroom
activities
are
for
formative
assessment
will
depend
on
these
factors:
the
way
the
request
is
expressed,
and
the
extent
to
which
the
teacher
tries
to
understand
the
work
and
to
find
clues
to
points
of
development.
In
making
the
request,
the
teacher
must
ask
for
the
thinking
behind
the
work.
The
two
figures
would
have
been
much
less
informative
had
the
teacher
simply
asked
the
students
to
draw
the
instruments.
Instead,
the
request
was
a
much
more
demanding
one:
to
use
writing
and
drawing
to
express
their
ideas.
The
advantage
for
the
teacher
in
making
this
request
was
matched
by
the
advantage
for
the
students,
who
would
see
a
purpose
for
their
work,
as
a
contribution
to
sharing
ideas.
Similarly,
the
student
who
wrote
the
passage
quoted
above
would
see
that
the
point
of
the
work
was
improving
the
investigation,
and
not
just
a
matter
of
writing
something
as
a
routine.
As
the
teacher
studies
the
students'
work,
all
the
information
gathered
is
potentially
helpful,
not
just
the
mistakes
children
make.
It
may
mean
talking
with
the
students
to
clarify
meaning,
which
is
time-consuming.
But
a
few
pieces
of
work,
valued
by
both
student
and
teacher,
are
of
far
greater
value
for
learning
than
are
many
pieces
of
work
to
which
both
teacher
and
student
may
give
less
attention.
Discussing
work
in
this
way
is
also
an
ideal
opportunity
for
teachers
to
help
students
share
goals
of
learning,
and
for
the
students
to
begin
making
decisions
for
themselves
about
improving
their
work.
Special
Tasks
Special
tasks
designed
to
give
students
opportunities
to
use
the
skills
of
inquiry
can
be
both
hands-on
and
written.
Hands-on
tasks
can
often
be
adapted
to
increase
assessment
opportunities.
For
example,
activities
that
challenge
students
to
find
out
"which
x
is
best
for
y"
could
be
about
soap
solutions
for
blowing
bubbles,
paper
towels
for
soaking
water,
types
of
salt
crystals
for
dissolving
quickly,
fabrics
for
muffling
sound,
and
so
on.
In
all
cases,
investigable
questions
have
to
be
identified,
and
decisions
must
be
made
about
the
variable
that
should
be
changed,
those
variables
that
have
to
be
controlled,
and
what
has
to
be
measured.
Students
also
have
to
work
out
how
to
put
these
decisions
into
operation
and
how
to
interpret
the
results.
Good
written
assessment
tasks
are
less
easy
to
create
than
are
hands-on
activities,
but
can
be
adapted
from
published
examples.
Giving
Feedback
to
Students
As
we
have
already
noted,
students
are
ultimately
responsible
for
their
own
learning.
Thus,
if
the
assessment
information
is
going
to
be
used
formatively--for
helping
learning--then
it
is
the
student
who
is
the
user,
and
the
student
who
needs
the
information.
Giving
a
student
feedback
about
a
teacher's
assessment
is
an
important
matter
to
consider,
since
it
can
have
both
positive
and
negative
effects
on
learning.
For
feedback
to
have
a
positive
effect,
it
should
not
incorporate
comparisons
with
other
students;
that
is,
each
student
should
be
given
feedback
in
relation
to
his
or
her
progress.
Further,
the
teacher
should
avoid
making
judgments
about
the
student's
ability.
Comments
should
be
closely
related
to
the
work
and
how
it
can
be
improved.
For
example,
if
a
teacher
finds
that
a
student
has
some
results
about
how
far
away
different
sounds
can
be
heard,
and
those
results
clearly
indicate
that
a
fair
test
has
not
been
made,
a
teacher
might
comment,
"You
have
some
interesting
results
there.
Are
you
quite
sure
that
you
kept
things
the
same
for
each
of
the
different
sounds
that
you
tried?
Why
don't
you
check
up
on
that
and
see
if
your
results
are
the
same?"
This
would
help
learning
far
more
than
commenting
that
the
results
were
wrong,
or,
indeed,
just
saying
"fine"
and
not
using
the
work
to
show
the
student
how
to
improve
it.
Negative
effects
tend
to
follow
when
there
is
an
over-reliance
on
rewards
and
competition
among
students.
Research
shows
that
this
results
in
students
focusing
on
those
aspects
of
work
that
are
rewarded;
those
who
don't
get
rewards
often
settle
for
just
enough
to
"get
by"
(Black
and
Wiliam,
1998).
There
is
also
the
danger
that
low
marks
may
be
interpreted
by
students
as
meaning
that
they
lack
ability,
and
this
may
lead
them
to
consider
that
nothing
they
can
do
will
change
this.
In
Conclusion
While
the
information
gathered
by
the
teacher
in
the
scenario
at
the
beginning
of
this
essay
was
used
for
formative
purposes,
all
the
methods
of
information
gathering
that
were
used
can
also
provide
evidence
that
can
be
used
for
summative
purposes.
It
is
also
possible
to
design
summative
tests
to
assess
inquiry
skills.
Thus,
the
main
difference
between
formative
and
summative
assessment
is
not
in
what
information
is
gathered,
nor
in
how
it
is
gathered,
but
in
how
it
is
used.
Formative
assessment
is
used
for
immediate
feedback
into
teaching
and
learning,
while
summative
assessment
is
used
to
give
others
information
about
the
students'
progress.
Another
difference
between
assessment
for
formative
and
summative
purposes
lies
in
the
involvement
of
students
in
the
assessment
process.
If
assessment
is
used
to
help
learning,
it
follows
that
the
students
should
have
a
central
role
in
it.
Since
no
learning
can
take
place
without
the
active
participation
of
the
students,
it
follows
that
they
should
share
the
teachers'
aims
and
understand
what
is
expected
of
them
(Sadler,
1989).
Feedback,
of
the
positive
kind
suggested
above,
is
an
integral
part
of
formative
assessment.
Sometimes
gathering
information
informally,
as
in
the
classroom
described
at
the
beginning
of
this
chapter,
is
not
sufficient
to
assess
all
of
the
students'
skills.
In
that
case,
a
teacher
may
introduce
special
tasks
in
order
to
focus
on
specific
aspects
of
learning
that
may
not
have
been
observed
in
the
regular
work.
The
process
might
then
seem
more
like
assessment
for
summative
purposes.
Indeed
there
is
a
continuum,
rather
than
a
dichotomy,
between
formative
and
summative
assessment.
Summative
assessment
summarizes
where
students
have
reached
in
their
development
at
the
end
of
a
topic,
or
at
the
end
of
a
year.
This
forms
part
of
the
report
that
ultimately
goes
out
to
parents
and
to
other
teachers.
It
also
becomes
a
piece
of
the
ongoing
record
of
each
student's
progress.
Summative
assessment
often
depends
on
the
administration
of
tests,
but
this
is
not
always
necessary.
If
ongoing
work
has
been
retained
in
a
portfolio,
it
can
be
reviewed
and
a
judgment
made
in
relation
to
criteria
or
standards.
This
will
reflect
a
greater
range
of
skills
and
understanding
than
can
be
covered
in
a
short
test.
Assessment
for
both
formative
and
summative
purposes
is
important
in
education.
But
too
much
emphasis
on
grades,
marks,
and
levels
can
obscure
assessment
for
formative
purposes,
which
is
integral
to
effective
teaching
and
learning.
References
Black,
P.,
and
Wiliam,
D.
(1998).
Inside
the
black
box:
Raising
standards
through
classroom
assessment.
London:
School
of
Education,
King's
College.
Harlen,
W.,
and
Elstgeest,
J.
(1992).
UNESCO
sourcebook
for
science
in
the
primary
school.
Paris:
UNESCO.
Harlen,
W.,
and
Jelly,
S.
(1997).
Developing
primary
science
(second
revised
ed.).
London:
Longman.
James,
M.
(1998).
Using
assessment
for
school
improvement.
Oxford:
Heinemann.
Sadler,
R.
(1989).
Formative
assessment
and
the
design
of
instructional
systems.
Instructional
Science,
18,
11944.
Illustrations
taken
from
Assessment
in
the
Primary
Classroom:
Written
Tasks,
by
Schilling,
Hargreaves,
Harlen,
and
Russell
(1990)
in
a
book
to
be
published
by
the
National
Science
Foundation
(NSF).
Reproduced
by
permission
of
Paul
Chapman
Publishing,
Ltd.,
London.
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