What High-Achieving Nations are Doing

Putting the World into World Class Education What we Can Learn from Nations Around the Globe

Expectations for Learning are Changing

The new context means new expectations. Most studies include:

Ability to communicate

Adaptability to change

Ability to work in teams

Preparedness to solve problems

Ability to analyse and conceptualise

Ability to reflect on and improve performance

Ability to manage oneself

Ability to create, innovate and criticise

Ability to engage in learning new things at all times

Ability to cross specialist borders

…Plus a moral commitment

“ The hope of a secure and livable world lies with disciplined nonconformists who are dedicated to justice, peace and brotherhood.”

- Martin Luther King Jr.,

"Strength to Love", 1963

The Need for More Powerful Teaching

U.S. Outcomes in International Perspective (8 th Grade PISA Results in OECD Nations, 2006)

Science

Finland

Canada

Japan

New Zealand

Australia

Netherlands

Korea

Germany

United Kingdom

U.S. is # 21 / 30 OECD nations

#31 / 40 top nations

Math

Finland

Korea

Netherlands

Switzerland

Canada

Japan

New Zealand

Belgium

Australia

U.S. is #25 / 30 OECD nations

#35 / 40 top nations

The U.S. is Falling Behind in Educational Attainment Approximated by percentage of persons with ISCED3 qualfications in age groups 55-64, 45-55, 45-44 und 25-34 years % 1. Excluding ISCED 3C short programmes 2. Year of reference 2004 3. Including some ISCED 3C short programmes 3. Year of reference 2003. 13 1 1 27

What are High-Achieving Nations Doing?

Access to health care and preschool

Equitable funding of schools

Massive investments in initial teacher education and school-level teacher support

(15 to 25 hrs/wk for joint planning & learning)

Elimination of tracking

Investments in high-need schools and students

A lean curriculum focused on higher order skills, supported with technology

Performance assessments to guide & gauge progress

What We Can Learn

Developing Teaching

-- Preparing Teachers who can teach all students

-- Learning from the study of teaching and learning

Developing standards for students

-- Learning progressions that guide teaching

-- Focusing on generative learning

Developing Curriculum and Assessment

-- Creating opportunities for inquiry, reflection, and invention

Expectations for Learning are Changing

The new context means new expectations. Most studies include:

Ability to communicate

Adaptability to change

Ability to work in teams

Preparedness to solve problems

Ability to analyse and conceptualise

Ability to reflect on and improve performance

Ability to manage oneself

Ability to create, innovate and criticise

Ability to engage in learning new things at all times

Ability to cross specialist borders

NAEP, 8 th and 12 th Grade Science

1. What two gases make up most of the Earth's atmosphere?

A) Hydrogen and oxygen

B) Hydrogen and nitrogen

C) Oxygen and carbon dioxide

D) Oxygen and nitrogen

2. Is a hamburger an example of stored energy? Explain why or why not. ____________________________________ ____________________________________

A Rich Task: Science and Ethics Confer

Students must identify, explore and make judgments on a biotechnological process to which there are ethical dimensions . Students identify scientific techniques used as well as significant recent contributions to the field. They will also research frameworks of ethical principles for coming to terms with an identified ethical issue or question. Using this information they prepare pre-conference materials for an international conference that will feature selected speakers who are leading lights in their respective fields .

In order to do this students must choose and explore an area of biotechnology where there are ethical issues under consideration and undertake laboratory activities that help them understand some of the laboratory practices . This enables them to:

a) Provide a written explanation of the fundamental technological differences in some of the techniques used, or of potential use, in this area (included in the pre-conference package for delegates who are not necessarily experts in this area).

b) Consider the range of ethical issues raised in regard to this area’s purposes and actions, and scientific techniques and principles and present a deep analysis of an ethical issue about which there is a debate in terms of an ethical framework.

c) Select six real-life people who have made relevant contributions to this area and write a 150-200 word précis about each one indicating his/her contribution, as well as a letter of invitation to one of them.

Applications of knowledge and skills assessed in Science and Ethics Confer

This assessment measures:

research and analytic skills;

laboratory practices;

understanding biological and chemical structures and systems, nomenclature and notations;

organizing, arranging, sifting through, and making sense of ideas;

communicating using formal correspondence;

précis writing with a purpose;

understanding ethical issues and principles;

time management

Performance Assessments Can Help Measure 21 st Century Skills in Disciplinary and Interdisciplinary Contexts:

Performance tasks that ask students to do or demonstrate something specific (e.g. design and conduct a science inquiry; research a social science problem; write a persuasive essay; develop an engineering design)

Student work samples that are scored

based on common standards – e.g. math

solutions, genres of writing, art work

Portfolios that collect & evaluate work over time

Exhibitions evaluated by outside jurors

Assessment in High-Achieving Systems

Finland – Local performance assessments with a national sample assessment in 2 nd & 9 th grade. A college matriculation test is developed by teachers and professors and scored locally. Emphasis is on open-ended tasks that require reasoning, production, and reflection.

Sweden – Teachers design local performance assessments to evaluate syllabus goals each year. At 9 th grade and above, they develop and score national exams in selected subjects with professors, and incorporate scores into their grades. Items are open-ended essays and problems, much like Finland, that emphasize reasoning and real-world problems.

Swedish Assessment Item, Year 5

Carl bikes home from school at four o’clock. It takes about a quarter of an hour. In the evening, he’s going back to school because the class is having a party. The party starts at 6 o’clock. Before the class party starts, Carl has to eat dinner. When he comes home, his grandmother calls, who is also his neighbor. She wants him to bring in her post before he bikes over to the class party. She also wants him to take her dog for a walk, then to come in and have a chat. What does Carl have time to do before the party begins?

Write and describe below how you have

reasoned.

Australia, Hong Kong

Queensland – Local performance assessments are developed and scored by teachers with approval by a regional panel and moderation of scores. Centrally-developed “rich tasks” can be used by schools.

Victoria – State tests at 3, 5, 7, 9 , and 11-12 th grades feature mostly essays and open-ended items, augmented by local classroom tasks that = 50% of score. All are developed and scored by teachers (with professors at upper grades).

Hong Kong’s new Territory-wide System Assessment (TSA) is developing an online bank of assessment tasks to enable schools to assess students and receive feedback on their performance on their own timeframes. The formal TSA assessments, which include both written and oral components, are given in grades 3, 6, and 9 and scored by teachers.

High School Biology Exam, Victoria, Australia

3. When scientists design drugs against infectious agents, the term “designed drug” is often used.

A. Explain what is meant by this term. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Scientists aim to develop a drug against a particular virus that infects humans. The virus has a protein coat and different parts of the coat play different roles in the infective cycle. Some sites assist in the attachment of the virus to a host cell; others are important in the release from a host cell. The structure is represented in the following diagram:

The virus reproduces by attaching itself to the

surface of a host cell and injecting its DNA into the host

cell. The viral DNA then uses the components of host cell

to reproduce its parts and hundreds of new viruses bud off

from the host cell. Ultimately the host cell dies.

Analysis and Application of Knowledge

B. Design a drug that will be effective against this virus. In your answer outline the important aspects you would need to consider. Outline how your drug would prevent continuation of the cycle of reproduction of the virus particle. Use diagrams in your answer. Space for diagrams is provided on the next page. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Design and Scientific Inquiry

Before a drug is used on humans, it is usually tested on animals. In this case, the virus under investigation also infects mice.

C. Design an experiment, using mice, to test the effectiveness of the drug you have designed. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

School-Based “Coursework” Assessment Victoria, Australia

In Unit 3 Biology, students are assessed on 6 pieces of work related the 3 outcomes specified in the syllabus.

Outcome 1 – 3 practical tasks, one on plant & animal cells, another on enzymes, and a third on membranes.

Outcome 2 – 2 practical activities related to maintaining a stable internal environment, one for animals, one for plants

Outcome 3 – A research report / presentation on characteristics of pathogenic organisms and mechanisms by which organisms can defend against disease.

The Graduation Portfolio System (GPS) in Asia Society Schools

Tasks evaluating

Scientific investigation

Mathematical problem solving

Literary analysis

Historical understanding

World language proficiency

Artistic performance

Always incorporating

Global understanding and perspectives

-- Investigate the world

-- Recognize perspectives: Apply cross-cultural understanding

-- Communicate, connect & collaborate across boundaries

-- Take action: Enact global solutions

Student, Teacher, and System Learning from High-Quality Assessment Systems

Centrally-developed tasks that are rich, generative, and evaluate application of knowledge improve learning expectations for students

Curriculum-embedded tasks requiring reasoning and performance create curriculum equity, ensuring that higher-order skills are taught and practiced by all

Teacher engagement in developing, scoring, and moderating tasks supports teacher learning

Connection of tasks to standards, curriculum frameworks, and syllabi supports curriculum clarity

Sharing of practice across sites (electronically as well as face-to-face), along with aggregation of results and student work exemplars, supports system learning.

Learning to Create More Equal Schools: OECD’s Ten Steps to Equity

Design

1. Limit tracking.

2. Manage school choice so as to contain the risks to equity.

3. Provide attractive alternatives, remove dead ends & prevent dropout.

4. Offer second chances to gain from education.

Practices

5. Provide systematic help to those who fall behind at school.

6. Strengthen the links between school and home to help disadvantaged parents help their children to learn.

7. Respond to diversity and provide for the successful inclusion of migrants and minorities within mainstream education.

Resourcing

8. Provide strong education for all, including early childhood learning.

9. Direct resources to the students with the greatest needs.

10. Set concrete targets for more equity, particularly related to low school attainment and dropouts.

What We Can Do With What We Learn

Close the Opportunity Gap

-- Preschool and health care

-- Equitable resources & access to high-quality curriculum and teaching

Create a Strong Profession of Teaching

-- Strong preparation and professional development

-- Meaningful evaluation, feedback, and recognition

-- Time for shared planning and learning

Focus Schools on Meaningful Learning

-- Redesign standards, curriculum, and assessments

-- Create a teaching and learning system

A Global Perspective on our Educational Mission

I said to my children, "I'm going to work and do everything that I can do to see that you get a good education. I don't ever want you to forget that there are millions of God's children who will not and cannot get a good education, and I don't want you feeling that you are better than they are. For you will never be what you ought to be until they are what they ought to be.'