DiMatteo Mod 4 Application Assignment 1

Module 4 Application Assignment

The Fundamental Principles of Assessment

Samantha DiMatteo

Marygrove College
DiMatteo Mod 4 Application Assignment 2

When developing an assessment there are a number of components that must be considered

to ensure its validity. The central theme of the Three Fundamental Principles for Crafting

Assessments as described by Bookhart and Nitko (2015) is that the assessment must be designed

to support each learning objective. I carefully considered my objectives and learning targets in the

initial development of my assessments, and feel that each category of assessment supports its

corresponding checklist. Bookhart and Nitko (2015) note, Editing assessment tasks is an important

step in the assessment development process (p. 177). Therefore, I made some revisions based on

the suggestions of my peers and after revisiting each appropriate checklist. I feel that each learning

target has been appropriately addressed and each assessment has been constructed in such a way

that it would provide valid data as to my students understanding of each lesson.

When using the checklist to revise my true/false quiz I noticed that my answers had items that

were presented in a repetitive pattern (i.e. TTFFTT). This is a poor way to design a true/false quiz

because, as Bookhart and Nitko (2015) state, Upper-grade students discover these patterns quickly

(p.178); if students are answering questions based off of a pattern it creates invalid assessment

results. I rearranged a few of my questions so that the answers revealed no apparent pattern.

Additionally, there is an even split in both true and false answers in this assessment; Bookhart and

Nitko (2015) explain, You should also avoid a consistent practice of having many more true answers

than false, or many more false answers than true (p.178). One of my peers suggested omitting

true/false questions that were value based, I understand his perspective but decided to keep these

questions because my students ability to answer them correctly supports a solid understanding of my

learning objectives. Carefully developed true/false assessments can help the teacher gain insight as

to the students understanding of desired learning targets. Contrary to my initial beliefs, true/false

exams are not poor assessment tools due to possibility of random guessing, Bookhart and Nitko

(2015) explain, the laws of chance indicate that the probability of getting a good score by random

guessing on a test made up of many true-false items is quite small (p. 176). Its important to assess
DiMatteo Mod 4 Application Assignment 3
students through a variety of avenues; true/false assessments should be included in assessment

tasks because they provide a unique perspective as to the subject matter, additionally they provide

the teacher with valuable feedback as to their students comprehension.

Bookhart and Nitko (2015) state, What is perhaps unique about the essay format is that it

offers students the opportunity to display their abilities to write about, to organize, to express, and to

explain interrelationships among ideas (p. 221). After reviewing the feedback from my classmates

and the checklist on evaluating the quality of essay assessments, I made a few changes to my essay

quiz. Bookhart and Nitko (2015) specify that essay questions must be clear about the time allotted as

well as the length of the required writing. My directions for the essay question lacked both of these

components. I restructured the directions in a way that told students specifically what was expected

of them. Wiggins and McTighe (2011) explain, Good teaching requires good planning, and good

planning requires clarity about purposes and means of achieving them (p. 55). When students have

a concrete example they can more easily understand what is required of them. Wiggins and McTighe

(2011) note, Knowing where the learning is headed enhances focus and engagement (p. 48).

To be clearer to my audience as to what I was expecting, the peer review encouraged me to give an

example as to what I was asking in terms of the design component of the question. Therefore, I

included a sketch of one possible scenario for the dimensions of the table that I had asked my class

to design. There are six possible scenarios in all, so this example should help students begin this

problem with ease. I decided to change my second essay question to an exit ticket that I would

administer at the conclusion of the lesson on fixed area. This would be a partner closure activity that

reiterates the key factors from that lesson. Both activities will be good indicators of student

understanding and provide a good opportunity for me to give them feedback. Bookhart and Nitko

(2015) state, use more detailed feedback and provide an opportunity to use that feedback to revise

the essay or write another (p. 233). Because these tasks require a true understanding of the

learning targets it is important that the students can revisit parts of the problem that they answered

incorrectly and work toward a genuine comprehension of the subject matter. Heacox (2009) notes,
DiMatteo Mod 4 Application Assignment 4
Both the teacher and the student are able to assess learning through the completion of the task (p.

61).

Bookhart and Nitko (2015) define a performance task as an assessment activity that requires

students to demonstrate their achievement by producing an extended written or spoken answer, by

engaging in group or individual activities, or by creating a specific product (p. 261). The performance

task I developed encompasses each of these components by requiring students to define vocabulary,

use manipulatives, derive formulas, solve a real-life application problem, create a poster to support

their findings, and present their discoveries to the class. There were two main critiques that I

received from my peers to help me improve my performance assessment. The first was in reference

to the clarification of what was being asked of the students in part two of the assessment. Wiggins

and McTighe (2011) state, a key aspect of good design is to be clear about priorities and what

meeting them looks like (p. 55). In order to address this I provided an example of the first step; this

should help the students progress more easily through the other steps. Secondly, I needed to

appropriately label each section of the rubric with the section of the assessment that it corresponded

to. In doing this, students could clearly identify what was required of them for each part of the

performance assessment. Bookhart and Nitko (2015) explains, A well designed performance task

gives students the opportunity to apply their learning to a new situation, not just repeated information

from class or from a text (p. 270), and I feel that this assessment does exactly that.

Assessments help to ensure that our students grasp the main objectives of each lesson. We

should not only take the time to carefully design our assessments, but to reflect upon their

effectiveness and edit them accordingly. Appropriately developed assessments can provide useful

feedback to both the teacher and the students. The best way to do this is to develop assessments

that utilize a number of different categories (i.e. true/false, multiple choice, short answer, and essay)

to best address the needs of out students as well as our learning objectives.
DiMatteo Mod 4 Application Assignment 5

References

Wiggins, G., & McTighe, J. (2011). The understanding by design guide to creating high-quality
units. Alexandria, Va.: ASCD.

Heacox, D. (2009). Making differentiation a habit: How to ensure success in academically

diverse classrooms. Minneapolis, MN: Free Spirit Publishing.

Brookhart, S. M., & Nitko, A. J. (2015). Educational Assesssment of Students. Boston, MA:
Pearson Education, Inc.
DiMatteo Mod 4 Application Assignment 6
Geometry: T/F Quiz Name
_____________________________
The Pythagorean Theorem Date________________
Period _______

Directions:
Circle T if the statement is true or F if the statement is false. Show your work to justify
your answer.

T F The Babylonians knew the Pythagorean Theorem more than a thousand

years before
Pythagoras.

T F The Pythagorean Theorem can be used to identify the missing side of any
triangle.

T F 6 3 , 72 , and 8.485 have identical values.

T F The hypotenuse is the longest side on a right triangle.

T F 42 6 is the reduced radical form of 10584 .

T F The diagonal of a square forms two 45-45-90 isosceles triangles

DiMatteo Mod 4 Application Assignment 7

T F An umbrella that is 44 inches long can be packed lying flat into a suitcase
that measures
2 feet by 3 feet.

T F 8:15:17 is an example of a Pythagorean Triple

T F The area of the shaded region is 80 feet.

64ft

48ft

T F A baseball diamond is a square with 90-foot sides. The catcher has a

shoulder injury and
can only throw the ball 132 feet. He will be able to throw the ball and
reach all three bases.

T F A 22 foot ladder that sits 7 feet from the base of a building will be able to
reach a window
That is 21 feet above the ground.

T F Three right triangles surround a shaded triangle; together they form a

rectangle measuring
12 unit by 14 units. The figure below identifies some of the dimensions. The
shaded region is a right triangle.
DiMatteo Mod 4 Application Assignment 8

9
.

5
St
12

14

Notes:
(4) T F 6 3 , 72 , and 8.485 have identical values.

(5) T F 42 6 is the reduced radical form of 10584 .

Success on questions 4 and 5 are essential in order for my students to demonstrate a thorough understanding of the Pythagorean Theorem.
When solving for the missing side of a right triangle students must take the square root in order to get a final answer. Reducing radical
expressions (square roots) is a pre-requisite skill that is utilized when solving these geometrical problems. One thing I stress on a daily basis it
the difference between an exact answer and a rounded answer. When you type a square root into the calculator you often get a decimal that is
rounded, it is more accurate to reduce the radical and leave it in exact terms. Therefore, the answer to number 4 is false because 8.485 is
rounded and 63 is exact. In math it is always better to express solutions in exact terms. An everyday example could be as follows: if
you asked how tall I was and I said about 6 feet or if I said I was exactly 5 feet and 11 inches. The first response is approximate, while the
second is in exact terms (Im actually 5ft 6in, but that number doesnt help my point as much). Question number five requires students to re-
write 10584 in exact terms, thus practicing the skill of reducing radical expressions. Consider the following example:

3 a2+b2=c2 a2+b2=c2
32+62=c2 32+62=c2
6 9+36=c2 9+36=c2
45=c2 or 45=c2
45 =c 45 =c
6.708 3 5 =c

The second answer is more accurate because it is not rounded. This is the answer I am looking for because when we are measuring it is always
better to measure exactly rather than to round.
DiMatteo Mod 4 Application Assignment 9

Geometry: Short Answer Quiz Name

__________________________
Area of triangles, parallelograms, & trapezoids
Date____________ Period ______

Directions: Identify the area, perimeter, height, or base of each polygon. Show your
work.

(1) 2
Perimeter = ________
14 3
10 5

16

(2)
24
8 Area = ________
17

(3) 14
8
Area = ________
12.8 10
DiMatteo Mod 4 Application Assignment 10

(4) Find the area of a parallelogram with vertices at the given points. (5,2), (-1,2), (-3,-
5), (3,-5)

Area = ________

(5) Find the height of the trapezoid if the area is equal to 88 square feet.
8
Height = ________
x 7

x+6

(6) The height of a parallelogram is 2 feet more than its base. The parallelogram has an
area of 48
square feet find the height.

Height = __________

(7) The height of a triangle is 4 times the base. The area of the triangle is 512 square
inches find the
base and height.

Base = __________
 DiMatteo Mod 4 Application Assignment 11

(8) A Trapezoid has base lengths 8 and 14 centimeters, with an area of 165 square
centimeters. What is
the height of the trapezoid?

Height = ________

(9) Is it possible for two triangles to have the same area and not be congruent?
_________________
If so, give an example.

Geometry: Essay Quiz Name _____________________________

Maximizing Area / Minimizing Perimeter Date________________ Period
_______
(1)Your family is planning a large Thanksgiving dinner and wants to purchase a new
rectangular dining room table for the holiday. Twenty-six people will be attending,
and therefore the table will have a fixed perimeter that can accommodate for
twenty-six chairs to fit perfectly side by side. Each chair will be two-feet in width.
There will be a lot of food so your family will need to choose a table that not only
has enough room for everyone to sit, but plenty of room for the food on top of the
table. Opposite sides of the table must have the same number of chairs.

(a) Sketch all the possible scenarios for seating and choose which table would be the best
choice
for your Thanksgiving dinner. Explain why you chose this particular table
opposed to the
other options.
(b)Determine the area and perimeter of the table you wish to purchase and explain how you
arrived at your solution.

- You will have 25 minutes to individually complete this task.

- Your explanation should be in complete sentences and fill the lines provided at the
bottom of the page.
-One possible scenario for the size of the table is provided for you.
DiMatteo Mod 4 Application Assignment 12

____________________________________________________________________________________
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____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________

EXIT TICKET

You want to lay 1000 square feet of sod in your brand new back yard and then
build a fence
around it. You already bought the sod, but you want to use the least amount of
fencing possible to surround the sod. What should the dimensions of the yard be?
Show your work and explain how you made your decision.
DiMatteo Mod 4 Application Assignment 13

____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________
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DiMatteo Mod 4 Application Assignment 14
DiMatteo Mod 4 Application Assignment 15
DiMatteo Mod 4 Application Assignment 16

Geometry: Circles Name

_____________________________
Performance Assessment Date________________
Period _______

Objective: Derive the various formulas for circumference, diameter, pi, and area of a
circle.

Part 1: Deriving formulas for Circumference, Diameter, Radius, & Pi

(a) Define in your own words each of the following vocabulary terms:

Circumference: __________________________________________________________________

Diameter: _________________________________________________________________________

Radius: ____________________________________________________________________________

Pi ( ): ______________________________________________________________________________

(b)
Materials:
5 Cylindrical Objects
Tape Measure
Ruler
Calculator

Directions:
- Consider the five cylindrical objects you brought in from home.
- Use the tape measure to measure the circumference of each cylinder.
- Use the ruler to identify the diameter of each object.
- Divide the circumference of each object by its diameter.
- Record the results of each measurement on the table provided.

Object Circumference Diameter Circumference

C D Diameter
C

D

What can you

conclude about the
relationship between a circles circumference and its diameter?

__________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________
DiMatteo Mod 4 Application Assignment 17

__________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________

(c) Use the data from the table to derive formulas for:

Circumference ____________________ Diameter _________________________

Radius ____________________________
__________________________________

Part 2: Deriving the formula for the Area of a Circle

(a)
Materials:
Poster Board
Compass
Ruler
Scissors
Glue

Directions:

(1) Using a compass create a circle on your poster board and cut it out.

(2) Trace this circle three times, cut each of those circles out.

(3) Draw a diameter across the first circle and cut the circle in half along the diameter.
Then cut each of
the resulting semi-circles in half again.

(4) Arrange the four pieces, alternating in such a way that they mimic a parallelogram.
DiMatteo Mod 4 Application Assignment 18
(5) Draw a diameter across the second circle and cut the circle in half along the
diameter. Then cut each
of the resulting semi-circles in half again and then each of those pieces in half once
more. This will
result in 8 sectors. Arrange them in an alternating fashion just as you did with the
first circle.

(6) Repeat step 5 with the third circle except cut each sector in half one additional time.
This will result
in 16 sectors. Arrange them in an alternating fashion just as you did with the first
circle.

What would the figure look like if we continued this process?

__________________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________

(b) Recall the formula for the area of a parallelogram. Area=(base)(height)

(i) Consider the formula that you developed for the circumference of a circle.
How long is the base of the parallelogram we created from the circle parts?
_____________________

(ii) What is the height of this parallelogram? ______________________________________

(Hint: reassembling your pieces into the original circle can help you determine these
measurements)

(iii) Substitute your results from questions a & b into the original formula for a
parallelogram (A=bh) and
simplify.

(c) Area of a circle: ______________________

Part 3: Application Problem

Directions: Use the formulas that you derived to solve the following application
problem.

You have a new puppy, Charlie. You want him to play in your yard but there is currently
no fence installed, therefore you would like to keep him on a leash while he plays
outside. You decide you put a peg in the ground and tie a leash to the peg and to
Charlies collar so he can run around.
DiMatteo Mod 4 Application Assignment 19
(1) Choose the length of Charlies leash. What part of the circle does the leash
represent? ________________

(2) Determine how far he would run if he ran eight full laps with the leash fully
extended. _________________

(3) If he starts with his leash fully extended and walks straight across to his water bowl
on the other side
of the yard, how far would he have traveled? _____________________

(4) You want to lay sod in the area that he will be playing.
How many square feet of sod will you need? __________

Part 4: Final Project

Directions:
- Create a poster to showcase your discoveries from the previous activities.
- Be sure to include key components from parts 1, 2, and 3, including the vocabulary,
table, and the
formulas for the circumference, radius, diameter, pi, and the area of a circle.
- Glue your sectors from part two onto your poster in sequential order.
- Be prepared to give a brief presentation of each of your findings.

Category 4 3 2 1
Vocabulary Vocabulary words are Vocabulary words are Vocabulary words are Vocabulary words are
[PART I-a] defined and show defined and show defined and show defined and show
complete understanding substantial some understanding of limited
of the meaning of each understanding of the each word. understanding of each
word. meaning of each word. word.

Table & Data Data on table shows Data on table shows Data on table shows Data on table shows
Analysis complete understanding substantial some understanding of limited understanding
[PART I-b] of the measurement understanding of the the measurement of the measurement
procedures and measurement procedures and procedures and
relationship between procedures and relationship between relationship between
circumference and relationship between circumference and circumference and
diameter. circumference and diameter. diameter.
diameter.
Derivation of Uses an efficient and Uses an effective Sometimes uses an Rarely uses an
formulas for effective strategy to strategy to identify effective strategy to effective strategy to
circumference identify each formula. each formula. identify each formula. identify each formula.
, radius, Shows complete Shows substantial Shows some Shows limited
diameter, & understanding of solving understanding of understanding of understanding of
pi. an equation for a given solving an equation for solving an equation for solving an equation for
[PART I-c] variable. a given variable. a given variable. a given variable.
Use of Uses manipulatives as Uses manipulatives as Sometimes uses Does not use
manipulatives instructed. Assembly of instructed. Assembly manipulatives as manipulatives as
[PART II-a] paper cut outs closely of paper cut outs instructed. Some instructed. Assembly
mimics the shape of a mimics the shape of a assembly of paper cut of paper cut outs does
DiMatteo Mod 4 Application Assignment 20
parallelogram. parallelogram. outs mimic the shape not represent a
of a parallelogram. parallelogram.
Relationship Correctly identifies the Correctly identifies the Does not identify the Does not identify the
between base relationship between the relationship between relationship between relationship between
of a base of a parallelogram the base of a the base of a the base of a
parallelogram &
and the circumference of parallelogram and the parallelogram and the parallelogram and the
circumference
of a circle / a circle. & Correctly circumference of a circumference of a circumference of a
relationship identifies the relationship circle. & Identifies the circle or does not circle and does not
between the between the height of a relationship between identify the identify the
height of a parallelogram and the the height of a relationship between relationship between
parallelogram radius of a circle. parallelogram and the the height of a the height of a
and the radius radius of a circle. parallelogram and the parallelogram and the
of a circle. radius of a circle. radius of a circle.
[PART II-b]
Derivation of Uses an efficient and Uses an effective Partial identifies the Does not identify the
the formula effective strategy to strategy to identify the formula for the area of formula for the area of
for the area of identify the formula for formula for the area of a circle. a circle.
a circle. the area of a circle. a circle. All work is shown. No work is shown.
[PART II-c] All work is shown. All work is shown.
Application All four questions are Three of the four Two of the four None of the four
Problem correctly answered and questions are correctly questions are correctly questions are correctly
[PART III] show complete answered and all answered and all answered and shows
understanding of how to answers show answers show some minimal understanding
identify the substantial understanding of how of how to identify the
circumference, diameter, understanding of how to identify the circumference,
radius, and area of a to identify the circumference, diameter, radius, and
circle. circumference, diameter, radius, and area of a circle.
diameter, radius, and area of a circle.
area of a circle.
Poster The work is presented in The work is presented The work is presented The work appears
(neatness & a neat, clear, organized in a neat and in an organized fashion sloppy and
organization) fashion that is easy to organized fashion that but may be hard to unorganized. It is hard
[PART IV] read. is usually easy to read at times. to know what
read. information goes
together.
Poster Diagrams and/or Diagrams and/or Diagrams and/or Diagrams and/or
(diagrams & sketches are clear and sketches are clear and sketches are sketches are difficult to
sketches) greatly add to the easy to understand. somewhat difficult to understand or are not
[PART IV] reader's understanding understand. used.
of the procedures.
Presentation Explanation is detailed Explanation is clear. Explanation is a little Explanation is difficult
[PART IV] and clear. difficult to understand, to understand and is
but includes critical missing several
components. components OR was
not included.