Transcript Chapter 6: Checklists, Rating Scales & Rubrics

Lecture by: Chris Ross
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Purposes of Checklists
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Made from collection of learning objectives or
indicators of development
Give an overview of their sequence and how they
relate to one another
Become a framework for:
 Assessment and evaluation
 Instructional planning
 Record keeping
 Communicaton
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Using Checklists with Younger Children
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Developmental checklists => a checklist that
emphasizes areas and levels of development in early
childhood
 Usually organized in categories of development
(physical, cognitive and social)
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Preschool teachers use these to assess progress with
class materials
Sometimes used to start assessing if a child may
need additional needs
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School-Age Children
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Similarly used like those for younger children.
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Fewer developmental characteristics are recorded.
Academic and cognitive objectives are more
important.
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Checklists become more differentiated in areas of
learning.
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Diagnosis of learning strengths and weakness
become important
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Example, pg 153. Figure 6-1
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Checklists as a Guide to Understand
Development
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Checklist items should indicate how the child is
progressing through areas
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Those reviewing the checklist should be able to see
the sequence of development
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Checklist as a Guide to Develop Curriculum
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Curriculum follows the experience and
opportunities that young children should have
Checklist for the younger child can serve as a guide
for sequence learning
Developmental checklists can help plan for a balance
of activities
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Checklists as a guide to Assess Learning and
Development.
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A checklist is not enough, teachers need to be able to
discuss the information with parents and others
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Keeping consistent records help parents understand
the progress
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Evaluating Checklist Objectives by Observation
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Some items you can observe for a check list. (Eg.
Language development; watch the child talk to
others. Are they using correct language or
developing vocabulary)
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Evaluating Checklist Objective with Learning
Activities
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Sometimes you cannot just observe. A child must
perform a task or demonstrate understanding. (Eg.
Math Skills)
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There are four basic steps in designing a
checklist.
Identification of the skills to be included
 Separate listing of target behaviors
 Sequential organization of the checklist
 Record Keeping
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Identification of the Skills to Be Included
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A teacher determines the specific objectives or skills
to be included
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Using established developmental norms/learning
objectives the teacher adapts to their needs.
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Separate Listing of Target Behaviors
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If behaviors or items are needed in an objective, they
should be recorded separately.
 Coin example in the book. 162-163
 Can they identify: pennies, nickels, dimes, quarters
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Sequential Organization of Checklist
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Checklist should be arranged in order of difficulty or
complexity
 Example from book (pg 163). Counting. The higher
numbers the higher the level.
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Record Keeping
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Two of the easiest ways to identify mastered skill
behavior: Yes/No; Mastery/Nonmastery
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May want to record dates. When was the concept
introduced and the date of mastery
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Checklists can be used to also record group and
individual progress
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Advantages
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Easy to use
Teachers learn to use
quickly
Flexible in use
Easy to record more
frequently
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Disadvantages
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Time-consuming (esp
to new users)
Difficult to get started
(no baseline)
Not all view as a
valid measure
Do not indicate how
well of a performance
Not an assessment
instrument
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Numerical Rating Scales
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Easy to use. Rater marks a number to show degree
to which a characteristic is present
 1 Poor
 2 Fair
 3 Average
 4 Above Average
 5 Exceptional
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Graphic Rating Scales
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Rater can mark their judgment at a location on a line
of frequency.
 Never
 Seldom
 Occasionally
 Frequently
 Always
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Most familiar tends to be report cards.
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Advantages
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Used for behaviors
not easily measured
by other means
Quick and easy to use
Min training needed
Easy to develop and
use
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Disadvantages
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Highly subjective
(rater error and bias
are common)
Ambiguous terms can
cause issues
Tell little about the
causes of behavior
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Types
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Holistic => a rubric with competency levels that
indicate levels of performance. It assigns a single
score to a student’s performance.
 Example on pg 176
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Analytic => a rubric that provides diagnostic
feedback and is more specific than a holistic rubric
 Example on pg 177
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Developmental => a rubric that is organized using
domains of development.
 Example on pg 178
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How Rubrics are Designed and Used
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Selecting the type.
 Decide what type is to be used and then design the
selected form.
 Three tasks to be assessed in that rubric are:
 Understanding the problem
 Solving the problem
 Answering the problem
 Each category has different dimensions.
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Developing Scoring Criteria
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Newer teachers find a generalized rubric useful to
start their own.
Herman, Aschbacher and Winters (1992) four
common elements that characterize rubric scoring
criteria:
 One or more traits/dimensions that serve as the basis
for the student’s response.
 Definitions and examples to clarify the meaning of each
trait or dimension
 A scale of vales on which to rate a dimension
 Standards of excellence for specified performance levels
accompanied by models or examples of each level.
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Advantages
Provide guidelines
for quality
performance
 Flexible
 Adaptable
 Used by students and
teachers before and
after completing tasks
 Can be translated into
grades
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Disadvantages
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Can be difficult to
design (determining
scores)
Focus can be on
general or
inappropriate criteria
Should not focus on
the quantity of a
characteristic
Lack validity and
reliability
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Checklists
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Rating Scales
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List by Linn & Miller (2005), page 180
List on page 180
Rubrics
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McMillan (2007), page 181
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Consistency in Conducting and Scoring
Assessments
Review the items and indicators and agree on what
each is intended to measure
 Instrument should be piloted by individual teacher
to determine if any items are unclear or difficult to
assess
 Scoring instructions should be reviewed before the
assessment
 Scoring instructions should be made according to the
purposes of the assessment
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