Deck 6: Assessment: Purposes and Strategies

Question 1

When a student asks, "Is this going to be on the test?," what is the student really saying to the teacher?

A)"Will I need to study this material?"
B)"Will we ever have to use this in our lives?"
C)"Should I write this down in my notebook?"
D)"Is this concept important?"
E)"Will I need to know this to succeed in next year's class?"

Answer 1

"Is this concept important?"

Question 2

Which of the following are the most difficult to measure effectively on a written test?

A)Problem-solving skills and fractions.
B)Fractions and communication skills.
C)Metric measurement and problem-solving skills.
D)Fractions and metric measurement.
E)Communication skills and problem-solving skills.

Answer 2

Communication skills and problem-solving skills.

Question 3

Which of these is generally the LEAST likely to be associated with the term "assessment," even by other educators?

A)Gathering information.
B)Passing/failing.
C)Testing.
D)Giving grades.
E)Evaluating.

Answer 3

Gathering information.

Question 4

Which of the following is a type of assessment that is often used to determine the needs of the students?

A)Formative assessment.
B)Summative assessment.
C)Criterion-referenced assessment.
D)Pre-assessment.
E)Norm-referenced assessment.

Question 5

What term is used for assessment procedures that involve the collection of data for the purpose of giving feedback to students throughout the learning cycle?

A)Norm-referenced assessment.
B)Summative assessment.
C)Criterion-referenced assessment.
D)Evaluative assessment.
E)Formative assessment.

Question 6

According to the United Kingdom Assessment Reform Group (2012), which of the following is one of the requirements for formative assessment to be effective?

A)Assessments must be simple enough for all students to succeed.
B)Traditional paper-and-pencil assessments should not be used.
C)Teaching must be adjusted based on the results of the assessment.
D)Students must be informed of the assessments and their purpose in advance.
E)Assessment data must impact final course grades.

Question 7

What term is used for assessment procedures that represent a final evaluation of a student's performance at the end of a course or grading period?

A)Norm-referenced assessment.
B)Summative assessment.
C)Criterion-referenced assessment.
D)Calmative assessment.
E)Formative assessment.

Question 8

In its broadest sense, which of the following best characterizes assessment?

A)The process of assigning grades.
B)The collection of data.
C)The analysis of recorded scores.
D)The final judgment of a student's performance.
E)The process of providing feedback to students.

Question 9

If a teacher is engaging a class in a unit on determining percents and compound interest, which of these would NOT be considered the collection of formative assessment data?

A)Administering a written unit test.
B)Informally interviewing students about their homework.
C)Observing students explaining problems at the chalkboard.
D)Checking homework papers.
E)Reading student journal entries early in the unit.

Question 10

If a special education student is on an IEP, then regular assessments are conducted by the teacher primarily for what purpose?

A)To determine whether the student should stay on the IEP.
B)To determine whether the student's IEP should be updated.
C)To track the progress of the student in meeting goals.
D)To provide data for a grade at the end of the course.
E)To set a standard to be exceeded by the student in the next unit.

Question 11

Which of the following standardized tests was originally established to measure outcomes of the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics?

A)PARCC.
B)ITBS.
C)SAT.
D)PSAT.
E)ACT.

Question 12

Statewide exams are generally aligned with the Common Core State Standards or the state's curriculum Standards and are, therefore, classified as which of the following?

A)Criterion-referenced tests.
B)Formative tests.
C)Competency tests.
D)Norm-referenced tests.
E)Summative tests.

Question 13

The PSAT, SAT, and ACT examinations result in scores that tell students how they compare to the performances of other students across the country.These tests are referred to as which of the following?

A)Proficiency tests.
B)Competency tests.
C)Norm-referenced assessment.
D)Criterion-referenced tests.
E)Summative tests.

Question 14

Generally, standardized tests are administered in a school for which of the following purposes?

A)To assist students in preparing for college.
B)As a motivator to help students see mathematical connections.
C)To identify the best teachers in the district.
D)To satisfy the needs of parents who frequently request standardized tests.
E)To determine the effectiveness of a mathematics program.

Question 15

Arguably the most important use of assessment data is which of the following

A)To determine final grades.
B)To set goals for IEPs for special education students.
C)To report results to a district office and the community.
D)To assist the teacher in making instructional decisions.
E)To determine the need for curricular materials for a district.

Question 16

For some teachers, the majority of assessment data are collected through an end-of- the-unit test.What is the greatest error that the teacher is making in doing this?

A)Students have forgotten many of the important details by the end of the unit.
B)The workload of grading papers is overwhelming when intense unit tests are given.
C)The teacher finds out too late that students need intervention.
D)The final grades are invalid since students are asked to demonstrate too many skills on one exam.
E)Research has shown that several quizzes throughout a unit are more accurate for assessment than one unit test at the end.

Question 17

Pre-Assessments and Formative Assessments are most commonly used for which of the following?

A)Evaluating Achievement.
B)Determining Final Grades.
C)Standardizing Test Results.
D)Making Instructional Decisions.
E)All of these.

Question 18

Which of the following is NOT a question that a teacher will generally ask when preparing to write a test?

A)How long should the test be?
B)How can I ensure that students who have been working hard will pass?
C)How can I ensure that I asked a reasonable number of questions?
D)What types of questions should I ask?
E)How do I keep the test at a length that does not overwhelm my students?

Question 19

What is the primary purpose for giving a test in mathematics?

A)To get students to review notes and make connections with the content.
B)To obtain numerical scores that can be used in determining grades.
C)To put closure to a chapter or unit.
D)To determine whether students have met the objectives for the unit.
E)To meet the expectations of parents and school boards for written tests.

Question 20

What should a teacher keep in mind when writing the items for a test?

A)The test should contain problems that will be in the next unit to see if students are prepared to move on.
B)The items should match the stated objectives for the unit.
C)Each item should allow students to demonstrate a different skill.
D)Several items on a test should be optional to provide flexibility for students.
E)Whenever possible, it is best to use test items taken from the teacher's manual since they are most consistent with homework problems.

Question 21

Items on a test should accurately measure the stated outcomes for the unit.What is a second, important consideration in writing test items?

A)Test items should not ask students to do anything they did not specifically practice on homework assignments.
B)Test items should generally be taken from the teacher's manual so that they are consistent with problems from the book.
C)Test items should be written in a way that minimizes the chances of students correctly guessing answers.
D)Tests should rarely, if ever, contain "straightforward" questions requiring specific skills from the unit or chapter.
E)Test items should be written such that no single problem takes a student more than about five minutes to solve.

Question 22

According to the author in Chapter 6, which of the following factors to consider when deciding on the length of a test is NOT accurate?

A)Most students prefer a test that is shorter, rather than longer, because it creates less anxiety.
B)The test needs to be long enough to convince the teacher that students have met the objectives.
C)The length of the class period needs to be considered when writing a test.
D)A test may include as few as five items but may require 20 items or more.
E)It is sometimes appropriate to spread a test over two class periods.

Question 23

What term refers to the consistency of the type of questions raised on an assessment, as compared to the question formats used in day-to-day instruction?

A)Structure.
B)Validity.
C)Reliability.
D)Formativity.
E)Alignment.

Question 24

For taking the SAT Mathematics exam, which of the following words does the College Board use for the use of calculators?

A)Prohibited.
B)Required.
C)Recommended.
D)Strongly discouraged.
E)Unnecessary.

Question 25

What is the term that refers to the degree to which a test actually measures the content that the teacher intends it to measure?

A)Structure.
B)Validity.
C)Reliability.
D)Formativity.
E)Alignment.

Question 26

When two circles are drawn - one representing what was "taught" in the classroom and one representing what was "tested" on an assessment - an increase in the overlap of the circles implies an increase in which of the following?

A)Structure.
B)Validity.
C)Reliability.
D)Formativity.
E)Alignment.

Question 27

What term refers to the likelihood that a student will obtain roughly the same score if given different versions of the test multiple times?

A)Structure.
B)Validity.
C)Reliability.
D)Formativity.
E)Alignment.

Question 28

Which of the following is most likely to affect a teacher's decision on how to award points for a problem that a student answered incorrectly but showed some proper insights or steps?

A)The values held by the teacher.
B)The length of the test.
C)The difficulty of the item.
D)The amount of time the student had to answer the question.
E)The wording of the objective the item measures.

Question 29

Which of the following statements about scoring items on a test is most accurate?

A)Ordinarily, students should either receive all of the credit or none of the credit on a problem.
B)Standards mandate the manner in which to score test items.only.
C)There is no such thing as a test item that has only one acceptable answer.
D)Students should receive credit for demonstrating mathematical thinking on a test.
E)Partial credit is subjective on the part of the teacher and should be avoided.

Question 30

The inclusion of review items on a test is most likely to promote which of the following?

A)Problem solving.
B)Mathematical thinking.
C)Communication.
D)Connections.
E)Flexibility.

Question 31

Written tests have a number of limitations.Which of these is NOT listed as a limitation in Chapter 6?

A)Scores on written tests often have little meaning.
B)Different teachers often award a different number of points on a test for exactly the same student performance.
C)Written tests provide little, if any, evidence of what a student actually knows.
D)A test is a "snapshot" of student performance on a particular day.
E)Some students are not good test-takers.

Question 32

Which of the following is an assessment tool that includes writing which reflects daily student thinking, problem-solving approaches, and opinions?

A)Checklist.
B)Journal.
C)Portfolio.
D)Math binder.
E)None of these.

Question 33

Screencasts are often used in a mathematics classroom as which of the following assessment strategies?

A)Checklist.
B)Observation.
C)Portfolio.
D)Journal.
E)Interview.

Question 34

When a student expresses his/her thinking in a journal, that student becomes more likely to contribute answers in class.Consequently, journal writing often enhances which of the following?

A)Learning environment.
B)Discourse.
C)Use of tools.
D)Procedural knowledge.
E)Validity.

Question 35

Which of the following are the primary reasons why a teacher might implement journal writing in the mathematics classroom?

A)To collect data for calculating grades and to determine class progress.
B)To make instructional decisions and to promote skill building.
C)To promote skill building and to collect data for calculating grades.
D)To make instructional decisions and to collect data for calculating grades.
E)To determine class progress and to make instructional decisions.

Question 36

What term is used to represent a question raised for students to address in their journals, as, "How do you predict that you performed on today's test?"

A)Problem.
B)Query.
C)Prompt.
D)Inquiry.
E)Statement.

Question 37

What is suggested as a way to make journals manageable for a secondary or middle school teacher who might teach 150 students?

A)Only have students write in their journals on a monthly basis.
B)Have students assess one another's journals.
C)Require students to write in journals but do not collect them.
D)Rotate classes so that all journals are not read on the same day.
E)Restrict students to providing short, concise responses.

Question 38

What term refers to a question in mathematics that has either multiple acceptable answers or multiple means of arriving at a solution?

A)An open-ended question.
B)A performance task.
C)A valid question.
D)A prompt.
E)A complex task.

Question 39

Which of the following is NOT ordinarily a feature of a performance task?

A)A student is expected to make something.nstructor use only.
B)A student is expected to display something.
C)A student is expected to create something.
D)A student is expected to explain something.
E)All of these are features of a performance task.

Question 40

Which of the following is LEAST likely to be explored through the use of a geoboard?

A)Volume.
B)Pythagorean Theorem.
C)Angle measurement.
D)Properties of triangles.
E)Perimeter.

Question 41

What is another word that is often used to denote an open-ended question in mathematics?

A)A formative question.
B)A free-response question.
C)A valid question.
D)A prompt.
E)A complex task.

Question 42

Which statement most accurately describes a "rubric" in mathematics?

A)A method of assigning partial credit.
B)A generalized scoring standard.
C)A statement of beliefs.
D)A problem-solving task.
E)A record of student responses.

Question 43

Why is it desirable to score a student's response by indicating that the student received a "4" on a 5-point rubric?

A)The student knows that he/she earned 80% of the points on the question.
B)The student has been given partial credit for the answer.
C)The student is aware of the category into which the response falls.
D)The student knows that he/she scored as well as at least half of the rest of the class.
E)The student has earned a "C" for that particular response.

Question 44

A multiple-choice question that requires a brief explanation of the solution is referred to as which of the following?

A)Open-ended.
B)Formative.
C)Normative.
D)Constructed response.
E)Valid.

Question 45

Placing a student's response to a question into a rubric category is sometimes referred to as which of the following?

A)Analytic scoring.
B)Assigning partial credit.
C)Categorical sorting.ahier 2020.For instructor use only.
D)Holistic grading.
E)Norm-referenced grading.

Question 46

Which of the following is NOT an advantage to scoring the responses to open-ended questions on a rubric?

A)In the long run, the process is a time-saver.
B)The score has meaning to the student.
C)Responses can be graded according to established criteria.
D)Rubrics make students aware of the teacher's expectations.
E)Student responses can be scored by comparing them to others.

Question 47

If a 4-point rubric is used to score a free-response question, which of the following most accurately describes a paper scoring a "2" on the rubric?

A)The student has earned half credit on the item.
B)The student probably does not understand the problem.
C)The student has answered 50% of the question correctly.
D)The student has displayed a partial answer but has major gaps in the explanation.
E)The student has failed the item.

Question 48

A mathematics class conducted a project by collecting information on the size and costs of 20 types of food in the grocery store.At the end of the project, students wrote papers and made presentations.Which of the following criteria is LEAST likely to be included the grading rubric?

A)Accuracy of calculations.
B)Clarity of writing.
C)Enthusiasm in conducting the project.
D)Depth of the data analysis.
E)Organization of the presentation.

Question 49

When students are involved in developing their own scoring rubric for a project, which of the following is most likely to result?

A)Control is transferred from the teacher to the student.
B)Students create a rubric on which it is much easier to obtain a high grade than if the teacher had developed it.
C)Students take ownership in the project.
D)Students are less likely to cheat on the assignment.
E)Performances of students are weaker, but they will enjoy the assignment more.

Question 50

According to the author in Chapter 6, what is the greatest potential drawback of using short- and long-term projects in a mathematics class?

A)Students will still need plenty of drill to develop concepts adequately.
B)Projects are very difficult to grade.
C)Students do not gain the experience of "doing" the mathematics.
D)Identifying worthwhile projects can be time-consuming for teachers.
E)Written tests are more valid indicators of student learning than projects.

Question 51

For more than 70 years, writers of mathematics publications have consistently stated that which of the following assessment strategies is the most accurate way to monitor student progress?

A)Observations.
B)Portfolios.
C)Journals.
D)Self-assessments.
E)Open-ended questions.

Question 52

Mailing labels or sticky notes are very helpful tools when implementing which of the following assessment strategies?

A)Observations.
B)Portfolios.
C)Journals.
D)Interviews.
E)Open-ended questions.

Question 53

If a teacher intends to use observation and checklists as part of the assessment of a unit in a class, what "rule of thumb" should be followed?

A)Students should not be given a test on the unit, since observation makes this unnecessary.
B)Scores on checklists should be included in the calculation of the students' unit grade.
C)Students should be provided with the criteria that will be used when observing them.
D)Since the checklist is based on values of the teacher, students should not be involved in developing checklists.
E)Checklists should be used only when students work in cooperative groups during the unit.

Question 54

According to the author in Chapter 6, what is the greatest advantage to using interviews as part of the assessment process?

A)Students generally prefer explaining their thinking in an interview to writing it on paper.
B)The teacher has the flexibility to ask follow-up questions.
C)Interview records are more reliable than observation notes.
D)Interviews are more valid than written tests.
E)The student has the option to "pass" in an interview, without penalty.

Question 55

Which of the following is NOT usually characteristic of interviews in the mathematics classroom?

A)Interviews are helpful when assessing students with learning disabilities.
B)Interviews are useful follow-ups to written journal entries.
C)Interviews can help to see if a student has overcome a misconception.
D)Interviews provide the most valid method of determining student grades.
E)Interviews can be conducted informally at any time.

Question 56

Research suggests which of the following results when students regularly conduct self-assessments?

A)Better attitudes towards mathematics.
B)Improvement of communication skills.
C)Enhanced ability to raise important questions.
D)Higher academic achievement.20.For instructor use only.
E)Increased attention given to homework assignments.

Question 57

Which of the following best describes the reasons why a teacher might use student self-assessments in mathematics?

A)Students tend to score highly on these assessments, building self-confidence.
B)Self-assessments require writing, which is desirable to most students.
C)Students can get in touch with how they learn and identify their weaknesses.
D)Teachers can couple self-assessments with interview notes to determine grades.
E)Administrators expect to see self-assessments in student portfolios.

Question 58

What is a purposeful collection of work, assembled by a student, to show what that student knows and is able to do?

A)Journal.
B)Performance task.
C)Videotape.
D)Rubric.
E)Portfolio.

Question 59

Which of the following would one expect to see in a student's portfolio?

A)Sample journal entries.
B)Audio files of teamwork.
C)An observation checklist, filled out by the teacher.
D)A written test, with errors corrected.
E)All of these.

Question 60

Which of these is NOT an accurate statement about the use of portfolios as an assessment strategy in mathematics?

A)Portfolios represent growth over time.
B)Parent-teacher conferences involving portfolios feature sample work, rather than just scores.
C)Portfolio assessment has a long history in mathematics education, so many models are available to teachers.
D)Portfolios illustrate the ways that students solve problems.
E)Portfolios show what a student believes about mathematics.

Question 61

It has been said that which of the following is the ultimate goal of the.assessment process?

A)To make students accountable for their own learning.
B)To provide data on which to judge the effectiveness of a course of study.
C)To collect information on which to base final grades.
D)To help students recognize quality work when they produce it.
E)To impress upon students the value of education.

Question 62

Provide a definition of assessment and discuss the various uses for assessment..

Question 63

Compare and contrast the following: (a)formative assessments versus summative
assessments and (b)criterion-referenced tests versus norm-referenced tests.Provide an example of each in your explanation.

Question 64

Discuss the key issues that a teacher needs to consider when preparing a written test in a
mathematics class.In your answer, include a discussion of how to write the items, how to
determine the length of the test, and how to ensure alignment.

Question 65

Describe the options that teachers have for scoring a student response on a particular
item.Discuss how the values of the teacher are reflected in the way that the teacher
grades a response.

Question 66

Provide three examples of journal prompts.Then, discuss the use of journals in
mathematics and include at least one major advantage to journal writing and one potential drawback to their use.

Question 67

Discuss how the process of scoring open-ended (free-response)questions or student
projects on a rubric is different from assigning "partial credit." What are the advantages to using a rubric, and what are the possible disadvantages?