Much of the work we do as educators we do formatively. That is, we are informed by information we receive about our impact on student learning and use it to make decisions.
We have access to oodles of rich evidence from various sources. The challenge is putting these varied and multiple sources together in manageable ways to make moment by moment and lesson by lesson decisions.
Let’s go back to varied and multiple sources. Why is it important to analyse multiple sources? Let’s list some reasons (Gan, 2022, Vukovic, 2021)
Decreases bias
Greater ability to find patterns
Greater accuracy in learning design
Increased student success
Anything else?
Varied and multiple sources can include student information from previous years, assessment test results, large data sets (think NAPLAN, PAT), focus groups, interviews, observation notes and student recording. Sometimes when we use the word evidence or data we immediately think of tests, time and information in addition to what we already do.
What about within a lesson? How might that look?
Back to the ‘manageable’ ways. Below are two examples showing how teachers made varied and multiple sources of evidence more manageable. As you look at them, consider what they have in common.
Idea 1: Primary Mathematics
Before planning evidence gathering the teachers in this team ensured they had a shared understanding of the success criteria for the unit (Figure1). The team looked at previous years evidence From this they created a short series of pre-assessments in multiple forms which formed the first lesson in the sequence. At all times adults in the room were armed with these criteria for anecdotal note taking and observation (Figure 2).
Figure 1
Figure 2
The short pre-assessments included
Observations during a number talk that deliberately involved students recording their thinking with a partner on a whiteboard or using MAB. The focus of the number talk was ‘Order these numbers’.
Quick Quiz - 10 questions asking students to record the number before and after a given number, including 2 blank questions for them to add their own challenging given number.
Deep Task - A task which generated evidence in written and visual form that was open ended.
Exit Slip - Write a number that is just-a-bit too hard for you at the moment.
How do these varied and multiple sources of information
inform teacher practice
align with the unit success criteria
help students and teachers have a clearer idea about what students do and do not yet understand?
Idea 2: Middle School Social Studies
Teachers showed a series of short videos about reasons people migrate. After watching them, students were asked to discuss in groups of three, ‘Why did these people move or migrate?’ and ‘Do you know anyone who has moved or migrated for similar reasons?’.
Teachers took notes as they listened in on discussions about three of the unit success criteria:
Describe types of migration
Describe reasons for internal migration
Attach examples to types of migration
To close out the lesson they gave students a three question assessment (see Figure 1). Teachers analysed this, alongside their observations, to make decisions about what to focus on in the next lesson.
Figure 3
The next lesson teachers continued to implement evidence generating tasks. These included
An individual multiple choice check in using an online tool
A partner discussion about the multiple choice, using the Double Circle technique, with the teacher listening in
Group task - create 3-5 scenarios we can use for future multiple choice check ins (see Figure 4 and Figure 5).
Figure 4
Figure 5
How do these varied and multiple sources of information
inform teacher practice,
align with the unit success criteria, and
help students and teachers have a clearer idea about what students do and do not yet understand?
Another idea!
You might also be interested in the Edutopia 60-Second Strategy: Participation Card https://www.edutopia.org/video/60-second-strategy-participation-cards
And there are plenty of ideas when you start googling… like
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