Practical Ways to Assess and Change Students’ Perceptions of Scientists

Journal Article | June 2010

One exercise that challenges students’ stereotypical perception of scientists is the Scientist Match-Up Activity. In this interactive lesson, students are asked to match a person to a profession based on three sets of…

Formative Assessment Probes: “More A – More B” Rule

Journal Article | September 2010

Early-formed preconceptions can be explained by one of the intuitive rules identified by Stavy and Tirosh (2000) called More A – More B. By starting with students’ preconceptions, revealed through the use of a formative…

Formative Assessment Probes: Food for Plants: A Bridging Concept

Journal Article | March 2012

This column focuses on promoting learning through assessment. This month’s issue discusses whether students think plants need food or not.

Your Syllabus Should Set the Stage for Assessment for Learning

Journal Article | February 2011

In this article, the authors describe how a syllabus can be used to set the stage for effective use of assessment-for-learning principles. Nearly all college instructors use a syllabus, but this document typically…

Probing for Understanding: Measuring scientific achievement with assessment probes

Journal Article | September 2002

Measuring whether students have a deep understanding of scientific concepts is a challenge for educators. Using assessment probes allows inquiry into the meaning of deep understanding. The author shares several probes…

Formative Assessment Probes: Uncovering Students' Ideas in Science

Journal Article | December 2004

Formative assessment probes can help teachers find out what students' ideas are before teaching lessons and use the information to adjust instructional strategies. This article defines formative assessment probes,…