Diagnostic information from the science assessment resource banks can provide valuable national information about what students know about a particular subject. This information can help teachers sharpen their classroom planning.
As NZCER trials its Assessment Resource Banks for science, the patterns of student answers can help teachers to understand and address student errors and areas of difficulty. This article focuses on the ARBs for science achievement objective 3, Planet Earth and Beyond.
A survey of the science interests of Year 5 students was attached to Assessment Resource Bank material sent out to schools for trialling in terms 1 and 2, 2001. Overall the results show that there are clear preferences for particular topics/areas of study, though these preferences may vary by gender.
This is the second of two articles in this issue of set based on some of the major findings from the survey of classroom assessment practices in English and mathematics at Years 5, 7, and 9 carried out by NZCER in November 2001. The first article briefly described the methodology and outlined the assessment tools and strategies commonly used by teachers. This article examines the section of the survey which asked how useful teachers found the tools and strategies for providing information for teaching and learning, for students, and for school management.
In November 2001, NZCER conducted a survey of the English and mathematics assessment practices of teachers at Years 5, 7, and 9.
