Assessing MBI

Formative assessment in an MBI unit involves using various techniques to evaluate student understanding and progress during the learning process. This type of assessment helps teachers to understand what students know and can do, identify gaps in their understanding, and provide feedback to guide students in their learning. Formative assessment in an MBI unit can take the form of verbal or written questions, observation of student work or participation in discussions, informal assessments such as exit slips or thumbs-up/thumbs-down, and informal assessments of student models and explanations. The goal of formative assessment is to support student learning and improve the effectiveness of instruction.

Summative assessment in an MBI unit is the final evaluation of student learning at the end of the unit. This type of assessment provides a comprehensive evaluation of student knowledge, skills, and understanding of the science ideas covered in the unit. While it is possible to evaluate the group generated models, we consider the final evidence-based explanation the summative assessment of the unit. This is because:

1. unlike the models, the explanation is completed individually and provides an individual assessment; and

2. the explanation provides the more comprehensive and complete picture of a students' understanding of the science ideas in the unit. 

We consider the models as tools to help groups of students negotiate meaning throughout the unit as they move toward the final summative assessment.

We have developed a final written explanation rubric for your use.