Authentic Assessment

@zachherrmann
The Typical Problem with Assessments

Well intentioned assessments too often turn

into silly guessing games that teachers play
with students. The teacher knows what he or
she wants, but wont tell his or her students.
Students are therefore charged with the task
of guessing what the teacher wants. Students
are then rewarded with grades based on how
accurately they are able to guess whats in the
teachers head, instead of sharing whats in
theirs.
-Zachary Herrmann
 Who is Michael Flynn?
Was he fired or did he resign?

Group 1: Work independently with no resources.

Group 2: Work independently, feel free to use resources.
Group 3: Work as a group with no resources.
Group 4: Work as a group, feel free to use resources.
 Am I sick?

WHAT?
What do I want to
know?

Go to Doctor?
WHAT NOW? HOW?
How will I change What is my tool for
Stay home?
my practice? knowing?

Take Medicine?
WAIT. WHAT?
How do I interpret?

Quality?
 Assessment:
A tool to gather evidence

The Evidence GAP What you

the Assessment really want
Gives You to know
 ASSESSMENT WHAT YOU REALLY
WANT TO KNOW
M.C. / S.A. assessment
that requires students to
GAP
recall key plot points from
a story Develop claims and
counterclaims fairly
M.C. / S.A. assessment that
and thoroughly,
requires students to select GAP
between more and less supplying the most
plausible inferences regarding
character intentions
relevant data and
evidence for each
Free response assessment that GAP while pointing out the
requires students to select a strengths and
claim and provide a justification
limitations of both.
A mock trial where students are GAP
required to develop and defend
claims, and respond to arguments
made against their claims
 ASSESSMENT WHAT YOU REALLY
WANT TO KNOW
Given a defined function,
students are asked to
GAP
determine the outputs
given several inputs Students grasp the
concept of a function
Given a table, a graph, or a as a rule that assigns
written description, students GAP
write a function
to each input exactly
one output. They
understand that
Given a situation, students are
asked to determine and explain GAP functions describe
whether or not a relationship situations where one
can be describe as a function
quantity determines
Students find examples and GAP
another.
counterexamples of functions,
provide justification, and write the
function
ASSESSMENT WHAT YOU REALLY
WANT TO KNOW
Use the rules of probability to
Word problems that GAP compute probabilities of compound
require students to events in a uniform probability model
calculate probabilities and
expected values. Calculate expected values and use
them to solve problems

Use probability to evaluate outcomes

of decisions

Make sense of problems and

persevere in solving them.

Construct viable arguments and

critique the reasoning of others.

Model with mathematics.

Word
require
problems
students
that
to GAP Use appropriate tools
calculate probabilities and strategically.
expected values.
ASSESSMENT WHAT YOU REALLY
WANT TO KNOW
Use the rules of probability to
compute probabilities of compound
events in a uniform probability model

Calculate expected values and use

them to solve problems

Use probability to evaluate outcomes

of decisions

?
GAP

Make sense of problems and

persevere in solving them.

Construct viable arguments and

critique the reasoning of others.

Model with mathematics.

Use appropriate tools

strategically.
 WE VALUE

Standards-Based
WHAT?
What do I want to
Measurable
know?
Reliable
WHAT NOW?
How will I change
HOW?
What is my tool for
Valid
my practice? knowing?

WAIT. WHAT? WE
How do I
interpret?
ASSESS
 WHAT?
What do I want to
know?

WHAT NOW? HOW?

How will I change What is my tool for
my practice? knowing?

WAIT. WHAT?
How do I
interpret?
 WHAT?
What do I want to
know?

WHAT NOW? HOW?

How will I change What is my tool
my practice? for knowing?

WAIT. WHAT?
How do I
interpret?
How do you
make your tool
reliable, valid,
Developing
standard, etc.?
an Authentic
What situation
could you Assessment
design to gather
that evidence?

What evidence
would you need
to know it?

What do you
really want to
know?
Collaboration

@zachherrmann
THE PROBLEM WITH COLLABORATION
Meeting Everyones Needs in the Classroom

Create the right classroom culture

Utilize the right participation structures
Give the right tasks
 There are only group questions

CREATE POSITIVE
INTERDEPENDENCE

Host huddles

Ask random students to justify groups work

Participation Structures
that support Students

Perfect Schedule
Group Challenge
Perfect Schedule

Assessment on 3-4 concepts

In the moment evaluation
E - Extension / S - Support
Mini Lectures at the front of the room
Group Challenge
Groupworthy
Tasks

When working on a problem

that does not have a clear
answer or standard way to
come to a solution, a group can
be smarter than any single
individual member.

-Elizabeth Cohen and Rachel Lotan

Students have to be given
tasks that require
interpretation and involve
uncertainty, the kind where
you cant always specify
how to do something and
you dont always end up
with a tidy solution.

-Alfie Kohn
CREATIVITY &
CURIOSITY

@zachherrmann
 Critical Thinking and Problem Solving
Collaboration Across Networks and
Leading by Influence
Agility and Adaptability
Initiative and Entrepreneurship
Effective Oral and Written
Communication
Assessing and Analyzing Information
Curiosity and Imagination
Where we often fall short

PLAN ASSESS

TEACH
 MATHEMATICS

MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY

 ED
ECT
N N
CO
DIS

PLAN ASSESS

TEACH
We give students Puzzles
NOT Problems
LEARNING PROBLEMS
 ED
ECT
N N
CO
DIS

PLAN ASSESS

TEACH
UN
NA
TUR
AL
WE VALUE

Standards-Based
Measurable
Reliable
Valid
WE
ASSESS
 T ED FIL
?
C
NE TE
RE
CON D
DIS

ASSESS
?
PLAN

TEACH ?
UN
NA
TUR
AL
GOOD STORIES HAVE
Drama
Foreshadowing
Action
Climax
Resolution
SO SHOULD YOUR LESSON!
 FIND THE STORY IN
WHAT YOU TEACH
ED
CT FIL
NE TE
RE
CON D
DIS

ASSESS
?
PLAN

TEACH ?
UN
NA
TUR
AL
LEARNING PROBLEMS
 FIND THE STORY IN
WHAT YOU TEACH
ED
CT FIL
NE TE
RE
CON D
DIS

ASSESS
?
PLAN

LET PROBLEMS DRIVE

TEACH THE LEARNING
UN
NA
TUR
AL
 FIND THE STORY IN
WHAT YOU TEACH
ED
CT FIL
NE TE
RE
CON D
IS CREATE TOOLS
D
POWERFUL ENOUGH TO
PLAN ASSESS CAPTURE YOUR VALUES

LET PROBLEMS DRIVE

TEACH THE LEARNING
UN
NA
TUR
AL
Moving from Improvement to Innovation
- The Future of Education

@zachherrmann
Innovation
 1000-2000
hours 50,000 hours

N T
1200 hours ME
V E
R O
M P
I
IMPROVEMENT INNOVATION
Are you in continuous
improvement mode?
 CAPABILITIES Processes

Resources

Priorities
 Why Innovating is Difficult

Capabilities
= Disabilities

? =
New
Capabilities
Disabilities
 Why Innovating is Difficult

Improvement Innovation

Utilize Best Practices Discover New Practices

Refine Existing Knowledge
Short Term Results
Data from the Past
Master Techniques
Low Risk
Create New Knowledge
Long Term Growth
Hypothesis about Future
Experiment New Techniques
High Risk
How Can a classroom Become Ambidextrous?

Define your mission broadly

Use different metrics to measure
progress and define success
Diversify your source for insight and
expertise
 Define your mission broadly
 Use different metrics to measure
progress and define success
 Diversify your source for insight and
expertise
 How Teachers can Innovate -
Two Personal Examples
How did I change the resources,
processes, and priorities to create new
capabilities?

How did I define my mission broadly,

use different metrics for success, and
draw from other sources for ideas?
Public Health Strategy
Rural city of 1000 people. Any given individual
has a .001 chance of contracting a disease in any
given month. If gone untreated, an infected
person will typically only live for 3 months.
Public Health Strategy
Test A: Detects disease 99% of the time. Falsely gives positive
reading 2% of the time. Costs $50.
Test B: Detects disease 93% of the time. Falsely gives positive
reading 30% of the time. Costs $15.
Treatment: If disease is caught within first month treatment is $500
and is 90% effective. But, if caught in the second month, treatment
is only 85% effective and costs $1000.

You have $240,000 to implement a testing and treatment strategy.

include relevant probability calculations and expected
valuesmathematical justification for your procedures.
How much is your plan expected to cost? How many
lives is your plan expected to save? Sacrifice? Make
your mathematical and ethical assumptions clear and
explicit.
 What Changed to Create New Capabilities?

Resources Creativity, judgement, Gymnasium, materials

time
Processes Unstructured work time, Unstructured work time,
peer-reviewed pitch authority delegated to
assessment students

Priorities Shift from content on Shift from straightedge

common assessment to and compass
project that was constructions to
untested but promising constructing inflatables
My Attempts at Creating an Ambidextrous Classroom
Define mission broadly
Teaching Standard Curriculum
Teaching Math and Developing 21st Century Skills

Use Different Metrics for Success

Common Assessments
Self-created rubrics for 21st Century Skills

Diversify your Source for Insight and Expertise

Best Practices as defined by Teacher Evaluation System
Practices such as pitches and development teams