Assessment/evaluation in the competency-based social studies program is vital in providing needed information for the overall success of the program. The assessment/evaluation program should not only focus on students but the social studies program should be assessed/evaluated as well. In order to be most effective, the focus needs to be on the stated goals of the social studies program and the educational procedures and objectives as encompassed within this Course of Study.
One of the primary purposes of assessment/evaluation is to gather information for instructional planning. It is directly linked to decisions about the need to remediate, reinforce, or extend student learning. Intervention strategies cannot be planned until judgments have been reached about student performance based upon a range of assessments, both formal and informal. Once information has been obtained, it can be evaluated and used to develop strategies to address perceived student needs.
Student assessment/evaluation, to be effective, must rely on several methods of gathering and measuring student attainment of objectives. The method selected should be that which is most appropriate for evaluation of a specified objective. Some objectives are more readily assessed by particular methods than others. Many of the instructional objectives found in this Social Studies Course of Study do not lend themselves to traditional testing techniques. Using a variety of alternative assessments can help to provide a clearer picture of learning and provide a more solid foundation for intervention.
Assessment of student outcomes may include a variety of methods such as:
As these assessments take place over time a portfolio showcase of student work may be a means of managing and keeping track of selected projects, reports, and writings. The portfolio provides a means in which progress in, attitudes toward, and understanding of social studies can be viewed in a comprehensive way.
District-wide, grade-level assessments are best suited for determining how well a social studies program is enabling students to reach the goals and objectives established as part of that program. Comparing data from different sources can be useful in verifying the accuracy of information, checking for gaps in information, identifying overlooked problem areas, and selecting new objectives for the program to address in the future.
Ohio's proficiency tests will increasingly be useful in evaluating the overall success of a social studies program. As the proficiency outcomes are developed based upon the State Social Studies Model, it will be a natural tendency for districts to review overall proficiency results to gain insight as to how the social studies program is performing.
The locally-developed CBE tests/assessments give very specific information on student/program success and provide very useful diagnostic and predictive data upon which student/program decisions can be made.