Individual
Product Ideas
Individual
products for assessment may include the following:
Concept
Maps
A good way for a student to organize information is to construct
a "concept map." The process of constructing a concept
map forces students to pull together what they already know with
new information they have learned in the module. Concept maps made
at the completion of a module can reveal how well students retained
concepts from the module and how they organized what they retained.
Concept
Mapping Homepage
Using
Concept Mapping
Walker
TRC - Concept Mapping and Curriculum Design
Concept
Mapping
SCORE
Graphic Organizers
Mind
Mapping FAQ
ETE Student Concept
Mapping
Audio-tapes
(songs / raps / self-interviews)
Most students have access to audio-tape recorders. Their recorded
answers to a list of interview questions can be used for assessment.
Questions might include:
Did you get any
new ideas from this activity?
Did you change your
mind about something because of this activity?
What did you conclude
was the best solution to the problem presented in this activity?
Did the activity
suggest steps you might take when you face a similar problem at
some other time in your life?
Knowledge
Charts (Murphy, 1994)
Knowledge charts combine what the students already knew about
a topic, with what they learned from an activity, with what they
still need to know. Key questions would include:
What do I already
know?
What have I learned so far?
What do I still want to find out?
Response
Worksheets (Murphy, 1994)
Response Worksheets can guide students through group activities
as individuals rather than as group members. A student can use the
worksheets to record their individual thoughts and results. Some
worksheet items would include:
In your own words,
write a brief description of the module problem.
List at least two
resources you personally have found useful about the topic.
List a least five
observations you have made during this module.
List measurements
you have made, if any.
Display any data
(evidence / graphs / tables).
State your conclusions,
supported by the evidence.
Individual
Portfolios (Murphy, 1994)
An individual portfolio is a purposeful collection of student
work that exhibits the student's efforts and conveys his or her
learning within a given module. The portfolio should include the
rationale for a particular selection. Key questions students should
ask themselves include:
Why did I select
this item for my portfolio?
What have I learned
from my work on this item?
If I could go on
working on this item, what would I do?
What particular
area of interest would I like to try out in the future that stems
from my work on this item?
What problems did
I encounter while creating this item, and how did I solve them?
Special
Writing Assignments
Below are some variations on the traditional essay.
Assuming
a Persona
A student might assume the identity of a well-known scientist and
write an essay on an assigned topic.
Authoring
a Newspaper Article
A student could write an article for a newspaper the class
is compiling.
Keeping
a Journal
Scientists and professionals use journals to record their thoughts,
feelings, reactions, and opinions. Individual students might enjoy
doing the same.