1. ED5013 Module Three Application 1
Assessment Strategies for Improving Learner Outcomes
Module Three Application
American College of Education
Stacey Zupko
April 27, 2016

2. ED5013 Module Three Application 2
Writing Classroom Assessment Items
The ability to compose test items that are nonbiased, valid, and reliable is an
integral part of assessment literacy. In this Module Three’s application I will design a
selection of tests that could be used to assess the unit of study that I created in Module
Two. I will develop a ten item multiple-choice test using the curriculum map and the test
specification table from the science unit about living systems from module two. I will
then conduct an item analysis and make any necessary revisions to the summative test.
I will also create a formative assessment that will measure student growth in
achievement on the learning objectives as well as provide feedback to modify my
instruction for the unit. Stiggins (2008) states that two decades of research from around
the world has proven that a steady use of assessment for learning shows significant
improvement in student achievement, particularly for low achievers. Last I will design a
performance task. In module two I describe several activities that are actually
performance task assessments. I will be creating a Holistic rubric to evaluate the
research paper.

3. ED5013 Module Three Application 3
Part 1: Summative, Multiple-Choice Test
1. Animals find water, shelter, air, space,
and food in an area called its-
a. Habitat **
b. House
c. Community
d. School
2. Rain, wind, and waves can wash away
the soil and cause this environmental
change-
e. Fossils
f. Deforestation
g. Erosion **
h. Overpopulation
3. Animals and plants depend on each other
to survive. This is called-
a. Interpersonal
b. Interdependent **
c. Ecosystem
d. Shelter
4. A raccoon living in a tree is an example
of-
e. Food
f. Family
g. Shelter **
h. A Tree house
5. If animals do not adapt to changes in their
habitat-
a. They will die **
b. The seasons will end
c. They will live somewhere else
d. The habitat will stop changing
6. An environment is made up of-
e. Plants and animals
f. Water and shelter
g. Family and love
h. Living and nonliving things **
7.
This habitat change is called:
a. Erosion
b. Forest fire **
c. People building homes
d. People cutting down trees
8.
Hardened remains of an animal or plant is
called a-
e. Fossil **
f. Habitat
g. Rock
h. Bone
9. Which is an example of a living thing?
a. Rocks
b. Dirt
c. Water
d. Trees **
10. Erosion is prevented by grass and plants
because-
e. Their roots take food from the soil
f. They build an underground wall
g. Their roots hold the soil in place **
h. They drink all the water from the soil

4. ED5013 Module Three Application 4
Pre-Administration Item Analysis
After conducting an item analysis using the pre-administration checklist I have
decided that no revision is needed. The task and the language is clear for each item
and written at the appropriate level for the intended grade level. Each item connects to
a key factor important to learning the standard that guided the unit of study being
assessed. There is a single correct answer to each item, however, in certain items
there is an option other than the correct answer that will give the students pause. If
students know the information then they will not have a problem choosing the correct
answer over the similar option. These items provide a fair assessment and together the
items cover the cognitive levels sufficiently.
Part 2: Formative Assessment
1. Match the definition to the correct vocabulary word
____ Living and nonliving things working together to survive. (D) A. Habitat
____ A place where plants and animals naturally live. (A) B. Extinct
____ The source of energy that starts the food chain. (H) C. Interdependent
____ The hardened remains of an animal or plant. (G) D. Ecosystem
____ Animals that no longer exist on earth. (B) E. Erosion
____ Depending on one another. (C) F. Adaptation
____ The washing away of soil. (E) G. Fossils
____ Animals change when their environment changes. (F) H. Sun
2. True or False? Circle T if these statements are true and F if they are false
- All living things need shelter, love, family ( T / F ) false
- Erosion is the process that wears away the Earth’s surface ( T / F ) true
- Plants produce oxygen for humans to breath ( T / F ) true

5. ED5013 Module Three Application 5
- A fossil provides information about living organisms from long ago ( T / F ) true
- An environment is made up of only living things ( T / F ) false
3. Fill in the blank
- A Raccoon living in a tree is an example of ________. shelter
- An animal is ______ when it no longer lives on the Earth. extinct
- The ________ is the source of energy that starts the food chain. Sun
- Animals find food, shelter, air, space, and water in their natural ________.
Habitat
4. There are many environmental factors that occur in a habitat and cause
changes over time. Choose one environmental factor and in complete
sentences describe the changes that it causes in a habitat over time.
One environmental factor that causes change to a habitat over time is
deforestation. Humans cut down trees in the forest for many reasons such as
for timber and for farmland. When trees are cut down the natural forest
habitat changes. Animals lose their homes and can even go extinct. Losing
the trees and taking their roots out of the ground can cause soils erosion.
When trees are cut down there is less rain which can cause droughts.

6. ED5013 Module Three Application 6
5. Animals depend on the habitat for shelter, food, water, air, and space. Under
each habitat write the names of three animals that are interdependent with
that habitat. Choose from the word bank.
American Southwest The Plains Eastern Woodlands
1. _______________
2. _______________
3. _______________
1. _______________
2. _______________
3. _______________
1. _______________
2. _______________
3. _______________
Porcupine Monarch Butterfly Blue Spiny Lizard Bison Ocelot
Turkey Vulture Raccoon Black-footed Ferret Mountain Lion
Answers:
American Southwest = Blue Spiny Lizard, Ocelot, Black-footed Ferret
The Plains = Mountain Lion, Bison, Turkey Vulture
Eastern Woodlands = Porcupine, Monarch Butterfly, Raccoon

7. ED5013 Module Three Application 7
Part 3: Performance Task
Description of Performance Task
State one performance outcome and the
indicators for the performance (specific
descriptors that clarify the outcome).
Students will learn to research a subject using
books, magazines, encyclopedias, and online
reference resources; and they will learn how to
site their references. Students will write an
informational report using content vocabulary and
grammatically correct sentences in paragraph
form. Students will learn to create three-
dimensional works of art.
Describe the performance task. Students will be assessed on the research, the
writing, and the diorama using a kid-friendly
rubric, which will be developed by the classroom
teacher, the librarian, and the art teacher.
Who will view the product or performance? The informational paper will be viewed by the
students through self and partner reflections. The
teacher will assess using a rubric. The diorama
will be viewed by the students during a gallery
walk and again assessed by the teacher with a
rubric.
What is the real-world context for the task? Research and gathering information are both
valuable skills to acquire for future higher
education as well as in the work place.
List the step-by-step process for task
completion.
- Review nonfiction text features,
alphabetizing, and general research
methods.
- Students select a habitat (eastern
woodlands, plains, or American
southwest) and an animal (from a list).
- Divide students into small groups
- In the library groups rotate between three
stations: technology, book, and periodical.
- Groups spend 25 minutes at each station
researching and gathering notes on a
graphic organizer.
- Use class time to write and reflect on
writing. Students are to complete a two
paragraph informational report with
reference citations.
- Work with the art teacher and use art time
to create a 3-D work of art in the form of a
diorama of their animal in its habitat.
List process criteria.
Research:
- References are cited properly
- The graphic organizer is complete:

8. ED5013 Module Three Application 8
Writing:
- Each paragraph is written on one topic
- Report is grammatically correct
- Report contains descriptive elements
Dioramas:
- Depiction of the habitat is factually correct
- Depiction of the animal is accurate
-
List product criteria. Research:
- A range of resources used for research
Diorama:
- Uses a variety of materials
Holistic Rubric
Product Product Criteria Score
Research
All areas of the organizer are completed:
habitat characteristics, animal
description, food sources, life cycle,
interesting facts
3 2 1 0
Variety of materials used for research:
books, magazines, encyclopedias,
online resources
3 2 1 0
Works are cited correctly 3 2 1 0
Writing
Writing is grammatically correct 3 2 1 0
Writing includes descriptive detail 3 2 1 0
Students have written each paragraph
on one topic
3 2 1 0
Diorama
Include an accurate representation of
the habitat, including plants
3 2 1 0
Includes a representation of the animal 3 2 1 0
Uses a variety of materials
3 2 1 0
3 = Amazing, 2 = Good work, 1 = Needs work, 0 = didn’t do it

9. ED5013 Module Three Application 9

10. ED5013 Module Three Application 10
Conclusion
Formative and summative assessments both play important roles in the learning
and teaching process. In this module three application I designed a variety of
assessments that would be used to evaluate the curriculum map created in module two.
Using a second grade science standard on life systems to guide my unpacking the
standard process I came up with learning objectives and used those outcomes to focus
the test items on what was important for the students to learn. I used a test specification
table to ensure that multiple cognitive levels were covered in my summative multiple
choice exam. “A main focus in teacher made assessments concerns students’ cognitive
abilities to understand and apply the concepts they have learned” (Notar, Wilson,
Yunker, & Zuelke, 2004, p. 117).

11. ED5013 Module Three Application 11
References
Notar, C. E., Wilson, J. D., Yunker, B. D., & Zuelke, D. C., (2004). The table of
specifications: Insuring accountability in teacher-made tests. Journal of
Instructional Psychology, 31(2), 115-129.
Stiggins, R. (2008). Assessment manifesto: A call for the development of balanced
assessment systems. Portland, OR: ETS Training Institute.