Assessment Plan

This assessment plan was completed during a series of lessons on energy, in a

high school accelerated physics class. The purpose of this unit was to meet the
following Georgia Performance Standards for physics:
SP3. Students will evaluate the forms and transformations of energy. a. Analyze,
evaluate, and apply the principle of conservation of energy and measure the
components of work-energy theorem by describing total energy in a closed
system. identifying different types of potential energy. calculating kinetic
energy given mass and velocity. relating transformations between potential and
kinetic energy. g. Analyze and measure power. (citation).
The series of lessons took place inside of the context of a project based learning unit
(PBL). The PBL consists of this series of lessons and another series that follows on
momentum. I opted to do a PBL as I am struggling with engagement and getting my
students to think critically.
The class contains 6 students who are gifted and the rest of the students are
considered accelerated. There are no students in the class with a 504 plan or an IEP. All
modifications are made for gifted students, however, although the class has students
who are designated gifted, these students still struggle with physics.
Table 1: Objectives
# Objective
1 Students will be able to describe the types of energy in a system, including
distinguishing between types of potential energy.
2 Students will be able to calculate the amount of work a system does or is done
on a system.
3 Students will be able to calculate the amount of kinetic energy an object has.
4 Students will be able to evaluate the principle of conservation of energy and
apply that principle to situations by analyzing transformations of energy.
5 Students will be able to measure and analyze the amount of power done by a
system.
6 Students will be able to make arguments from evidence during a lab
experiment.
7 Students will be able to collect, organize, and record appropriate data.
8 Students will be able to write a lab report to communicate their findings.
9 Students will be able to discuss how concepts they have learn apply to the world
around them.
 Table 1: Assessment Alignment
Assessment Objective Materials Instructional Assessment Adaptations/
Strategy Formats/ Modification
Instruments
Gizmo Prior Pretest Gizmo Pretest Free None
Assessment Worksheet Response -
Conceptual
Energy Pretest Pretest Pretest Multiple None
Probe Style Choice -
Pretest Conceptual
Potential 1,2,6 Laptop, Inquiry Guided None
Gizmo
Energy based lab inquiry
worksheet,
Gizmo Post using
calculator
Assessment computer
and simulation
Worksheet
Exit Ticket - 2 Physics Tutorial from Free None
Work Classroom the Physics Response -
Tutorial, Classroom Computatio
laptop on Work nal
Its All Uphill 2,7 The Physics Tutorial from Lab None
Interactive Classroom the Physics
Worksheet, Classroom
laptop on Work
Crash 1,3,4,6,7, Textbooks, Group None
ruler with a
Barriers 9 Discussion -
groove down
POE Informal
the middle,
(Predict,
ruler, 2
Observe,
marbles,
Explain)
cardboard
Class
barrier,
Discussion
POE guide
and Group
Write ups
Probe 2,9 Worksheet Multiple None
Lifting a Choice -
Rock Bell Conceptual
Ringer
Energy 1,4,9 Laptop, Inquiry lab Free None
Inquiry Lab worksheet using Response-
computer Conceptual
simulation.
Frayer 2 Printer paper Drawing Students who
Diagram are more easily
Conservatio able to
n of Energy communicate
through artwork
can do so. The
Frayer Diagram
helps students
to classify what
does and does
not fit into a
concept and
make links
between
concepts.
Power of a 5,7,8,9 Ruler, Power of a Lab Report None
Student Lab stopwatch Student Lab
Report and explanation
discussion s, data
tables and
data
analysis
Sled Wars 1,3,4 Laptop, Inquiry Lab Guided The Gizmo is a
Gizmo Gizmo using a Inquiry review activity
Worksheet worksheet computer for those who
simulation. are still
Added as a struggling to
remedial connect motion
activity. to energy.
Bell Ringer 1,2,4 Textbook, Energy Free None.
Energy calculator, review Response -
Unit Review answer form lessons and Conceptual
Questions energy unit
review.
Energy 1,2,3,4,5 Test, All chapter Mixed free None.
Posttest calculator, activities response
equations and multiple
choice
Computatio
nal and
Conceptual

The pretest was a combination of 2 different assessments. One assessment was

a 3 question multiple choice probe, See Appendix. The probe looked to isolate prior
conceptions in three different scenarios. Question 1 is about kinetic energy. Answer A is
meant to see if the students have the common prior conception that faster objects
always have more kinetic energy than slower objects. Answers B and D would indicate
the student does not recognize that kinetic energy is associated with motion or speed.
Answer C is the correct answer that the kinetic energy depends on the weight of the car
as well as speed. Question 2 is about conservation of energy. Answer A could indicate
that the students have a prior conception that kinetic energy is given off or used up by
objects in motion. Answer B is the correct answer, it indicates that students recognize
that energy can be transferred from the ball to the ground. Answer C indicates the prior
conception that falling objects gain energy, and not that energy is transformed from
potential energy to kinetic. Answer D is meant to indicate if the students have difficulty
distinguishing between the object and the system. Question 3 is about elastic potential
energy. Answer A indicates that the student recognizes that elastic potential energy
exists. Answer B is meant to isolate the prior conception that kinetic energy is always
given to objects by a force and that forces are required for an object to be in motion.
Answer C is again meant to indicate if the students have difficulty distinguishing
between the object and the system. Answer D is an answer choice for those who hold
none of the misconceptions or the accepted conception. The probe was meant to take
students between 5 and 10 minutes. It was given as bell ringer. The probe was scored
based off of a multiple choice answer key. Table 2 indicates the results of the pretest.
The accepted answer is highlighted in green. For question 1, the most popular answer
was A. Answer A indicated that many of my students carried the very common prior
conception that that faster objects always have more kinetic energy than slower objects.
Students did not recognize that mass was related to kinetic energy. I targeted this
misconception with the Crash Barriers POE. For question 2, on conservation of energy,
the most common answer was C. This indicated that many students may think that
falling objects gain energy, and not that energy is transformed from potential energy to
kinetic. This prior conception was also targeted with the POE. During the POE, we
mapped out how the energy was transformed and then transferred throughout the
activity. For question 3, most students answered A, the accepted answer. Therefore, we
spent very little time on elastic potential energy. I did a demo with the rubber band and
the students worked problems about springs. The main emphasis of these activities was
that the elastic force is a restoring force and that the energy can be transformed and/or
transferred.
Table 2: Number of Students with Selected Answer from Probe Pretest.
Questio
n A B C D Total
1 16 0 5 2 23
2 7 3 11 2 23
3 20 1 1 1 23

The other assessment was a set of prior knowledge questions from a Gizmo, as
shown in the Appendix. Gizmos are inquiry based labs that use computer simulations.
The prior knowledge questions were free response and were meant to isolate students
prior knowledge on potential energy. Most students were able to correctly identify which
diver had more energy and that the diver with the most energy would have the biggest
splash. All the students correctly selected the right diver for both questions. 87% of the
students had an accepted explanation for the first question. One misconception in the
first question was that effort to climb the diving board has to do with time and not how
far the diver climbed. Another was that effort had to do with the number of stairs.
Although normally number of stairs does mean height, it is the height change and not
how many steps the diver has to take that affects energy. 83% of the students had an
accepted explanation for the second question. In the second question, one student
answered that the splash had to do with the diver having more force and another
answered that one diver fell with a faster acceleration so he made a bigger splash. Both
of these misconceptions allude to misunderstandings of free fall. Two divers of the same
mass experience the same force, no matter how high they start at and the acceleration
due to free fall is always the approximately same on Earth. During the lessons, I made
sure to reemphasize weight and mass.
The posttest was a full length test, it was intended to be taken within an hour, but
students were allowed 80 minutes. It included all the questions from the pretest as well
as some other computational and conceptual questions. The probe questions were
scored in the same way as the pretest. The class results are shown in Table 3. Four
more students than before got question 1 correct. One less student got question 2
correct and 2 less students got question 3 correct.
Table 3: Number of Students with Selected Answer from Probe Posttest
Questio
n A B C D Total
1 13 1 9 0 23
2 2 2 15 4 23
3 18 0 4 1 23

The prior knowledge free response questions from the Gizmo were also included
in the pos test. In the free response, the common misconception for question 1 was
that the more stairs the diver had to climb, the more energy he expended. The number
of stairs is not a factor to energy, rather the height is. Again, 87% of students wrote an
accepted explanation for question 1 and 100% of students selected the correct diver.
For question 2, the common mistake was again a misunderstanding of how free fall
works. One student did put for question 2 that energy was gained during the fall to
create a splash. One student did not select the correct diver in question 2, so only 96%
of students selected the correct diver. The number of unaccepted explanations in
question 2 increased; only 65% of students wrote an accepted explanation.
Multiple formative assessments were given throughout the series of lessons.
These assessments are listed in Table 2, with the exclusion of the pretests and the unit
test. The students worked practice problems for homework over every topic we covered.
While problem solving can serve as a formative assessment, I have found that my
students share answers and look up answers on the internet so therefore I do not
consider the data valid. The problems serve as practice for the students and the
opportunity to self-assess.
The students started with a Gizmo on potential energy. This inquiry based activity
was the opportunity for the students to explore the material. Although the scores on this
assessment were lower, I assumed they would be since after the exploration, I had
already planned to move into explanations. The Crash Barriers POE gave students
hands on experience and was meant to reveal the misconception that only height
affects potential energy. The POE was also used as a starting point for discussing
kinetic energy and energy transformations and transfers. The students had already
completed the Gizmo on potential energy and therefore should know that it is affected
by mass and height. In the predict phase, 7 out of 8 groups predicted that doubling the
incline would have the greatest effect on potential energy. One group predicted that
doubling the mass would have the greatest effect. No groups put that doubling the mass
and doubling the height would cause an equal change in potential energy. After
observing what happened, in the explain section, 4 groups indicated that doubling the
mass would have the greatest effect, one group indicated that both would be equal, 2
groups still said the height had the greatest effect and one group did not name a setup.
Two of the groups discussed energy transformations in their explanations. During the
class discussion however, most students seemed to understand that both mass and
height are equally weighted factors of potential energy. As a remedial help, I did a
review lesson on all the concepts. I went back to the POE in order to emphasize
conservation of energy and factors of kinetic and potential energy. During the review
lesson, I also used a money analogy to emphasis energy transformations. To help with
the misconceptions with potential energy, I had students complete the Sled Wars Gizmo
as well. The Sled Wars Gizmo is inquiry based and links motion to energy. I selected an
inquiry based activity since I observed that although practice problems were being
completed correctly, students did not have a conceptual understanding of energy.
The Exit Ticket- Work is a mini quiz of one computational problem on work. The
mini quiz assessed whether or not the Physics Classroom Tutorial on work had helped
students to understand what work is and how to calculate it. The Tutorial gave students
immediate feedback on the problems they worked and was meant to encourage self-
reflection. In my classroom, I am currently combating copying. By having the quiz at the
end of the class, I encouraged students to learn the material and was able to assess if
they did. Its All Uphill Interactive was done immediately after the Physics Classroom.
The lab was meant to assess if students could utilize their knowledge of work. Many of
my students struggle with algebra, graphing and data analysis. The Its All Uphill
Interactive emphasized these skills. I used the Exit Ticket and Its All Uphill Interactive
as indicators that students computationally understood work and we could move on to
new material. I used the Lifting a Rock probe to check for conceptual understanding.
Nineteen out of twenty-one students did not recognize that the energy needed to lift the
rock was the same for any length of board. However, only eleven out of twenty-one
students did not recognize that more force was required to lift the rock with the shorter
board. I immediately had a class discussion about the probe and demonstrated the
concept.
The Energy Inquiry Lab was used as an exploration activity on conservation of
energy. The results indicated that many of the students had copied the lab and most did
not understand the concept of conservation of energy. I did a demo with a dollar and
coins to reemphasize that energy just changes forms, similarly to money cycling through
the economy (if it is ignored that the Fed prints more money). The students also did a
Frayer Diagram on conservation of energy. The Frayer Diagram was meant to
differentiate for students can more easily draw their thoughts. I encouraged the students
to put pictures and colors in their work. While students could give a definition, they
struggled to give examples and facts. No students included a non-example that
differentiated between universal conservation of energy and that systems do not
necessarily conserve energy. In the review lesson, I emphasized the meaning of system
by defining myself as the system and giving students money. Although I had lost money,
the amount of money in the world did not decrease.
The students completed the lab, The Power of a Student. This lab had students
calculate their own power demands and figure out how much energy they needed. The
lab related energy and power to food, something very relevant to teenagers. The lab
reports indicated an understanding of what power is, but not an understanding of how to
calculate it. I went over the lab results with the class and had the students work practice
problems on power.
After the review lesson, the students completed a unit review as a study guide for
their test. Only one student completed it. I gave a Bell Ringer with one of the conceptual
questions about the Work- Kinetic Energy Theorem. Only one student correctly
answered the question. This assessment revealed that practice problems are not being
completed by my students and not thoughtfully when they are completed. I have begun
to emphasize problem solving methods in order to teach my students the skills they
need to work through the problems. In my own teaching, I am working to engage
students and encourage authentic learning over copying.
Student A scored the highest on the posttest. Possible feedback I would provide
to Student A is that he missed the majority of his points on a question about power.
Although he recognized that he needed to find the amount of work done in order to
calculate power, he was unable to identify how work was done walking upstairs, and
specifically what distance the work was done over. That question was an identical to
the Power of a Student Lab. He made a 9/15 on that lab, so I would encourage him to
go back to the lab report, try to correct it and collaborate with his group about how the
lab worked. Student A needs gain mastery of objectives 5, 7 and 8. I would have student
A complete another activity on power, such as an online lab. Student A did more
successfully on concepts that were applied during online labs than the physical lab. One
possible reason for this is that Student A allowed his group members to do the lab for
him. I often observe that Student A struggles to stay on task during collaborative work.
Therefore, I would make modifications in the next unit to have Student A do more work
independently and with different groups who may push him to participate. He missed
the same one question on the pre and posttests, question 2 from the ball. He never
answered that the ball could transfer energy when it hits the ground. However, in other
conceptual questions on the post test, he was able to answer that energy is transferred.
In another assessment, I would use a practicum format to assess Student A. Although
he understands isolated concepts, I would push him to apply those concepts.
Student B scored one of the lowest scores on the posttest. He answered no
questions from the probe pretest correctly but did correctly answer the Gizmo prior
knowledge questions. On the posttest, he answered question 3 from the probe correctly.
However, on the posttest he changed one of his explanations for the free response
questions to an incorrect one. He wrote that the higher diver would have a higher
acceleration. Based off all of Student Bs work, I believe he did not master any of the
objectives. From a review of all Student Bs work, he does not have an understanding of
previous physics concepts, which is affecting his ability to apply current concepts. For
example, his free response answer about acceleration indicates that he does not
understand free fall motion. To assist Student B, I would create an entire semester
review. We would restart with motion and build from there. The review would be done
using conceptual change activities. I would identify where Student B has a
misconception and then present him with an activity that would help him come to a
better understanding. I would assess Student B using interviews, as he seems to
struggle with math and writing down his ideas.