Date:      

C-8 Summative Assessment (Part 1) 

District student assessment data may be substituted for C-8 – Part 1

DIRECTIONS: Complete the instructional unit and give the summative assessment to your students. Collect the student responses and
analyze the results. Attach a copy of the assessment and scoring guide for the summative assessment.

1. Review the summative assessment directions and questions (items) and the scoring guide.
2. Read each student response and sort responses into two levels of performance.
student responses basic or proficient or advanced
student responses below basic or far below basic
3. Sort student responses at or above grade level into two levels of performance.
student responses basic
student responses proficient or advanced
4. Sort student responses below grade level into two levels of performance.
student responses below basic
student responses far below basic

DIRECTIONS: Record students’ names in the respective performance level column.

Far Below Basic Below Basic Basic Proficient or Advanced

      Anais Kyle Raquel

            Kacey Matt

            Natalie Aralyn

            Kara Kehlet

            Breanna Andrew

            Sean Alex

            Adriana Christina

                  Sloan

                  Laura

                  Stephanie

                  Jillian

                  Doug

                  Kristen

                  Andrew

                  Adam

                       

                       

                       

Copyright © Commission on Teacher Credentialing and the California Department of Education July 1, 2008
Formative Assessment for California Teachers (FACT) – Pilot Documents / 2008-09
Inquiry: C-8 Summative Assessment Page 1 of 3
 Date:      

C-8 Summative Assessment Reflection (Part 2)

How do I know that they learned?; What will I do if they didn’t?; What will I do if they already know?
DIRECTIONS:
1. Review stated learning goals on Essential Components for Instruction (C-2, Box 2) and describe the learning
outcomes.
Students are expected to be familiar with the organization and powers, both formal and informal, of the Executive
branch and the bureaucracy. Students will analyze the expansion of presidential power over time and the President's
role as a policy maker. Students must understand that the balances and power arrangements may evolve gradually or
change dramatically as a result of crises. Students must also understand ties between the executive branch and political
parties, interest groups, the media, and state and local governments.
Although all of the students showed some degree of improvement, some students improved much more than others. If
these scores are any indication of the AP exam scores I may see a nearly 100% pass rate ( the "basic" category would
be the equivalent of a 3 on the AP exam).

2. Reflect on the Essential Component for instruction, C-2, Boxes 6, 9, and 10. For students scoring below basic
and/or far below basic describe how the following may or may not have had an impact on their learning?

a. Modifications/Accommodations: (Box 9)

All of the accomodations listed were implemented. I think that these accomodations positively impacted those
students in question. Preferrential seating for some helped to encourage engagement and participation. Extended
time on assignments allowed for others to do a more thorough job on homework. Interestingly, the student that
scored "below basic" was not technically receiving formal modifications. I think that her low score was somewhat
of an anomoly -probably due to her involvement in the school play. I expect her to bring her score back up in the
future.

b. Prior Knowledge: (Box 6)

Students need to have an understanding of basic terms such bureaucracy, hierarchy, job specialization. Students
must have a basic understanding of the role of the executive branch and why that role requires such a large
bureaucratic structure. Students must also have a solid understanding of the budget process and how Congress
seeks to use the power of the purse to check the executive branch. The student that scored below basic has rather
good grasp of thes concepts as indicated by previous assessments. I think the reason her score was so low was
because this was all that she new and she did not invest the time in this unit that she had in past units. The
questions on the summative assessment required much more analysis and the ability to synthesize various topics.
     
c. Instructional Strategies: (Box 10)

I implimented all of the instructional strategies listed in the essential components chart. However, not all of the
strategies were necessarily effective for all students. For example, due to the amount of information that has to be
covered, I sometimes resort to direct instruction/lecture. Some students immediately "tune out." Also, may effort to
condect verbal learning probes was not always successful. My support provider pointed out to me that several
students were able to get by without answering questions. At one point I constructed heterogenous groups for a
cooperative learning activity and found that many of the students were not comfortable working with each other
and therefore less productive.
d. Other:

     

Copyright © Commission on Teacher Credentialing and the California Department of Education July 1, 2008
Formative Assessment for California Teachers (FACT) – Pilot Documents / 2008-09
Inquiry: C-8 Summative Assessment Page 2 of 3
3. Based on the summative assessment results, complete the following questions and attach copies of the summative
assessment responses for your three focus students.
a. What do you observe in this student’s work?
b. What does the student work sample tell you about the effect of the instructional strategies you used?
c. What is the next step for this student and why?
Focus student 1: English learner

Adriana improved considerably on the summative assessment. Whereas she simply could not respond to the
questions on the formative asessment she was able to score a 3 (AP grading) on the summative assessment. She
could identify the main issues highlighted in the unit but still had difficulty identifying the details and analyzing
the subject matter. For example, she could not answer the question in which she was expected to identify a
limitation on the president's control of the bureacracy. This required analysis and the ability to evaluate the
material the she had learned. Instructional strategies such as incorporating rich visuals into the powerpoint helped
this student develop an understanding of the material. The next step is to continue refining instructional strategies
so as to improve scores to the level of "proficient."

Focus student 2: Special needs

Kyle also improved on the summative assessment. He received an AP score of 3 (basic) on the exam. He displayed
a basic understanding of the role of the executive branch and why that role requires such a large bureaucratic
structure. He also displayed a solid understanding of the budget process and how Congress seeks to use the power
of the purse to check the executive branch. However, he was still have difficulty remembering some of the finer
details such as names of key departments and agencies. Seating this student in the front of the room helped to
encourage his participation and engagement. In-class assignments that incorporated hands on or group activities
also helped to promote this student's comprehension. I will continue to work with student to promote higher order
thinking, i.e. analysis and synthesis.
Focus student 3: Choice

Stephanie received one of the highest scores in the class on both the formative and summative assessments. This
was not a surprise. Through class discussion and various formative assessments it was apparent that her level of
comprehension was thorough. My only frustration was that she did not improve as much as she could. She tested
high on the entry level assessment but because she often does not invest the extra time studying she did not quite
obtain a 5 (a score that is well within her
4. What appropriate interventions will you provide for students who did not meet the learning goal?
I will continue to work on creating PowerPoint presentations that incorporate rich visuals, primary sources, video clips, and
critical thinking activities. I have found that this makes it much easier to keep students engaged during periods of direct
instruction. Pictures, quotes, video clips, etc. help to stimulate questions and student participation.
I will implement a variety of primary source analysis activities. I have found that these activities help the students put a
“human face” on the events / themes being addressed in class. As a result, students display a heightened degree of critical
thinking and analysis during class discussion and other formative assessments such as the daily “quick write” activity.

5. What will you do for the students who exceeded the learning goal?
I will incorporate activities that enable these students to go above and beyond. One such activity is the daily quick write.
Students have the opportunity to respond to a variety of writing prompts. This is an opportunity for students to express their
views and/or explore historical events/themes in a more creative manner (e.g. creating a diary entry from the perspective of
some historical figure being studied). Another important activity is cooperative learning groups. This enables more
advanced students to take on leadership roles and contribute their knowledge to their peers. Research projects that give the
student some degree of independence and encourage self-directed learning are also very important. AP students often thrive
with assignments such as this. They are usually very good at deciphering between good and bad sources and they often
come to the table with      

Copyright © Commission on Teacher Credentialing and the California Department of Education July 1, 2008
Formative Assessment for California Teachers (FACT) – Pilot Documents / 2008-09
Inquiry: C-8 Summative Assessment Page 3 of 3