Pre and Post-Assessment Instruments:
(The same rubric was used for both pre and post assessments)
Pre and Post-Assessment Results:
Discussion of Pre and Post-Assessment Results:
Student 1: This student began the year enthusiastically and ended the same way. She was constantly exploring materials and taking her ideas further. Initially she rarely reflected upon her ideas/processes, but as her conformability with the teachers increased, she regularly talked about her artwork. She would also talk about how to improve it and what materials she would like to have next class. Her confidence in her art making ability was another strong strength of hers and will be important for her to maintain, as she gets older.
Student 2: This student began slowly but progressed with each lesson. Initially he would not plan (sketch) any of his ideas and when it came to creating he would throw it all together with little thought. Much of these problems dealt with the idea that he thought he was bad at art. However as time progressed he started to realize that much of art making was “going with it” and not giving up. The more he engaged and persisted, the stronger his confidence became. In the end he was one of our most improved students.
Student 3: This student began the semester very optimistic and ready to learn. She used the materials in a traditional way but due to a few absences she was forced to problem solve and figure out methods of finishing her project. This allowed for her creativity to come forth and use materials in a non-traditional way (this was represented by how she created her creature). Her ability to reflect upon her artwork and think about how to solve a problem was strengths of hers. This ideation and open-mindedness were some of the key factors in why her post-assessment was so strong.
Student 4: Initially this student struggled with planning and making connections. He chose to do a real life creature (instead of imaginary/mystical) and he assumed he knew everything about it. His lack of planning created struggles for him when the creation took place. However as the semester progressed he began to realize the importance in planning and this allowed for him to implement all he knew about his animal/environment into his work. At the end, he was able to explain why he made decisions and how those decisions expressed his artistic intent.
Student 5: This student started off strong and ended strong. Towards the end, he wanted to remove a piece of his artwork because he did not think it fit in. By talking with the teachers and mainly his peers, he kept the work of art. His skill level and ability to explore ideas/materials are very strong skills of his. However as time progresses, in order to keep him engaged, one must challenge him. He is very skilled and loves to make art, but sometimes his frustrations get in the way. As a teacher, it would be important to constantly introducing new ideas/methods for him to explore.
Student 6: Initially this student just wanted to create and did not see the importance of planning and coming up with ideas. However as time progressed he realized the importance of a good plan. This is represented when he drew a detailed version of an airplane in his sketchbook, then he applied those learned ideas (layout of a plane and the angle in which it’s drawn) into his actual environment (painting on top of box). He has a vivid imagination and is able to express his ideas into his work. His use of artist statements and ability to talk about his work improved greatly over the semester.
Student 7: This student was one of the better planners of her class. She would draw elaborate pictures/diagrams then use those sketches to help her formulate ideas when it came to creating. Her ability to follow her plan and execute her planned ideas is why she scored so hi. However, one thing she could work on would be to explore with the materials/processes more and not be afraid to take risks. Her planning allowed her to be able to easily reflect upon her ideas and make connections from plans to creation.
Student 8: This student started off slow but gained momentum throughout the year. Her ability to keep an open mind and adjust her plans as time progressed is why her post assessment scores improved greatly. She initially struggled with putting her planned ideas into a work of art. However, when she started to “let go” and just have fun and explore she flourished (this is why her creation and exploration scores greatly increased). When reflecting, she could go into more detail and explain her actions better.
Student 9: This student showed the most growth compared to her peers. She started off rather slowly then picked up her pace as time progressed. Her greatest strength was her ability to reflect and talk about her artwork as it relates to her ideas. She explored materials and used them in away that created an interesting environment and creature. She was absent a few days during the clay building, so she had to problem solve and create a creature that still expressed her planned ideas. Overall she never gave up an consistently was engaged and persisting with her ideation, creation and reflection.
Student 10: This student was always focused and determined. There was never an issue of her being off track and her work ethic exceeded expectations (thus the highest scores in the class). She problem solved and used her creativity to formulate interesting ideas (some of which her classmates borrowed). Every aspect (planning, creation and reflection) of the unit was greatly considered in her artistic process.
Student 11: This student showed average growth throughout the semester. She was enthusiastic and always able to explore new ideas. She worked well with others and was definitely a collaborative thinker. As time progressed she reflected upon her artwork more and also her peers (especially her partners). In order to take her ideas further, she needs to plan and reflect more.
Student 12: This student started off the strongest of all his peers in the pre-assessment. There was growth over the semester but not as much as some of his peers. Towards the end, his learning plateau-ed and he did not plan as much. This could have been a result in letting him work with another individual. He worked great by himself, and was a great collaborative learner as well. However a few times, his growth was stunted because he was helping his partner come up with ideas for his project.
Student 13: This student started off strong and ended strong. She initially had problems turning her ideas into artwork. This frustration was apart of her learning process. It showed that she cared and that she wanted it to look like how she planned/envisioned. As time went by, she began to develop processes/methods that would alleviate her frustrations. This “problem solving” is why she ended up scoring better on creation then planning at the end (post–assessment).
Student 14: This student scored lower than his peers in both the pre and post assessment. Much of this is due to his attention skills. He would get sidetracked and focus on other students, rather than his work. He had great rendering/copying skills of other artwork, but when it came to formulating his own ideas he struggled. His actions are most likely a result of the amount of freedom the unit had and the students’ ability to take their work many different ways.
Student 15: This student scored low in pre and post assessments mainly because of his attitude. He had behavioral issues and at times did not care. He worked fast and did not develop ideas as well as he could. Compared to his peers, his lack of engaging and persisting is why he scored lower on his post assessment scores. There was growth throughout the year, but not as much as there could have been.
Student 16: The assessment data we have collected from this student is insufficient due to absences. All we were able to see were her planning skills, after that she was no longer in class. She earned zero credit for the pre-assessment and zero credit for the post- assessment due to the fact that we did not have any work of hers to assess.
Student 17: This student started off slow, and due to absences fell behind early. However her ability to keep an open mind and adjust her plans as time progressed is why her post assessment scores improved. She is also a great planner and has a gift when using words to describe her artistic actions. Due to absences though, she had to take risks and decide how to create a creature. By having an open mind and ability to adjust plans, she received good post assessment scores in creating. She has great literacy skills and this was present in her sketchbook, reflections and her museum label.
Student 18: The assessment data we have collected from this student is insufficient due to absences. All we were able to see were her planning skills, after that she was no longer in class. She earned zero credit for the pre-assessment and zero credit for the post- assessment due to the fact that we did not have any work of hers to assess.
Student 2: This student began slowly but progressed with each lesson. Initially he would not plan (sketch) any of his ideas and when it came to creating he would throw it all together with little thought. Much of these problems dealt with the idea that he thought he was bad at art. However as time progressed he started to realize that much of art making was “going with it” and not giving up. The more he engaged and persisted, the stronger his confidence became. In the end he was one of our most improved students.
Student 3: This student began the semester very optimistic and ready to learn. She used the materials in a traditional way but due to a few absences she was forced to problem solve and figure out methods of finishing her project. This allowed for her creativity to come forth and use materials in a non-traditional way (this was represented by how she created her creature). Her ability to reflect upon her artwork and think about how to solve a problem was strengths of hers. This ideation and open-mindedness were some of the key factors in why her post-assessment was so strong.
Student 4: Initially this student struggled with planning and making connections. He chose to do a real life creature (instead of imaginary/mystical) and he assumed he knew everything about it. His lack of planning created struggles for him when the creation took place. However as the semester progressed he began to realize the importance in planning and this allowed for him to implement all he knew about his animal/environment into his work. At the end, he was able to explain why he made decisions and how those decisions expressed his artistic intent.
Student 5: This student started off strong and ended strong. Towards the end, he wanted to remove a piece of his artwork because he did not think it fit in. By talking with the teachers and mainly his peers, he kept the work of art. His skill level and ability to explore ideas/materials are very strong skills of his. However as time progresses, in order to keep him engaged, one must challenge him. He is very skilled and loves to make art, but sometimes his frustrations get in the way. As a teacher, it would be important to constantly introducing new ideas/methods for him to explore.
Student 6: Initially this student just wanted to create and did not see the importance of planning and coming up with ideas. However as time progressed he realized the importance of a good plan. This is represented when he drew a detailed version of an airplane in his sketchbook, then he applied those learned ideas (layout of a plane and the angle in which it’s drawn) into his actual environment (painting on top of box). He has a vivid imagination and is able to express his ideas into his work. His use of artist statements and ability to talk about his work improved greatly over the semester.
Student 7: This student was one of the better planners of her class. She would draw elaborate pictures/diagrams then use those sketches to help her formulate ideas when it came to creating. Her ability to follow her plan and execute her planned ideas is why she scored so hi. However, one thing she could work on would be to explore with the materials/processes more and not be afraid to take risks. Her planning allowed her to be able to easily reflect upon her ideas and make connections from plans to creation.
Student 8: This student started off slow but gained momentum throughout the year. Her ability to keep an open mind and adjust her plans as time progressed is why her post assessment scores improved greatly. She initially struggled with putting her planned ideas into a work of art. However, when she started to “let go” and just have fun and explore she flourished (this is why her creation and exploration scores greatly increased). When reflecting, she could go into more detail and explain her actions better.
Student 9: This student showed the most growth compared to her peers. She started off rather slowly then picked up her pace as time progressed. Her greatest strength was her ability to reflect and talk about her artwork as it relates to her ideas. She explored materials and used them in away that created an interesting environment and creature. She was absent a few days during the clay building, so she had to problem solve and create a creature that still expressed her planned ideas. Overall she never gave up an consistently was engaged and persisting with her ideation, creation and reflection.
Student 10: This student was always focused and determined. There was never an issue of her being off track and her work ethic exceeded expectations (thus the highest scores in the class). She problem solved and used her creativity to formulate interesting ideas (some of which her classmates borrowed). Every aspect (planning, creation and reflection) of the unit was greatly considered in her artistic process.
Student 11: This student showed average growth throughout the semester. She was enthusiastic and always able to explore new ideas. She worked well with others and was definitely a collaborative thinker. As time progressed she reflected upon her artwork more and also her peers (especially her partners). In order to take her ideas further, she needs to plan and reflect more.
Student 12: This student started off the strongest of all his peers in the pre-assessment. There was growth over the semester but not as much as some of his peers. Towards the end, his learning plateau-ed and he did not plan as much. This could have been a result in letting him work with another individual. He worked great by himself, and was a great collaborative learner as well. However a few times, his growth was stunted because he was helping his partner come up with ideas for his project.
Student 13: This student started off strong and ended strong. She initially had problems turning her ideas into artwork. This frustration was apart of her learning process. It showed that she cared and that she wanted it to look like how she planned/envisioned. As time went by, she began to develop processes/methods that would alleviate her frustrations. This “problem solving” is why she ended up scoring better on creation then planning at the end (post–assessment).
Student 14: This student scored lower than his peers in both the pre and post assessment. Much of this is due to his attention skills. He would get sidetracked and focus on other students, rather than his work. He had great rendering/copying skills of other artwork, but when it came to formulating his own ideas he struggled. His actions are most likely a result of the amount of freedom the unit had and the students’ ability to take their work many different ways.
Student 15: This student scored low in pre and post assessments mainly because of his attitude. He had behavioral issues and at times did not care. He worked fast and did not develop ideas as well as he could. Compared to his peers, his lack of engaging and persisting is why he scored lower on his post assessment scores. There was growth throughout the year, but not as much as there could have been.
Student 16: The assessment data we have collected from this student is insufficient due to absences. All we were able to see were her planning skills, after that she was no longer in class. She earned zero credit for the pre-assessment and zero credit for the post- assessment due to the fact that we did not have any work of hers to assess.
Student 17: This student started off slow, and due to absences fell behind early. However her ability to keep an open mind and adjust her plans as time progressed is why her post assessment scores improved. She is also a great planner and has a gift when using words to describe her artistic actions. Due to absences though, she had to take risks and decide how to create a creature. By having an open mind and ability to adjust plans, she received good post assessment scores in creating. She has great literacy skills and this was present in her sketchbook, reflections and her museum label.
Student 18: The assessment data we have collected from this student is insufficient due to absences. All we were able to see were her planning skills, after that she was no longer in class. She earned zero credit for the pre-assessment and zero credit for the post- assessment due to the fact that we did not have any work of hers to assess.
Strengths and Weaknesses of Assessment Plan:
Overall I feel our assessments were successful and showed an overall level of student growth. Every single student (besides students 16 and 18) showed growth. There were no students who did not improve in at least one area. In the future, to assess students more, I would have a discovery board that allowed students to show what they learned each class. This would indicate the learning not only to the teachers, but would allow the students to learn as well. It would also be important to have a method that was recording information when it needed to be. For instance, the last ten minutes of class the students would walk around and ask questions to their peers. They would record this information with a video camera. This would get students to think about how to ask questions as they relate to artwork. My beginning idea was to have a go-pro and have a student each class wear it and show the world through their eyes (did not happen due to lack of funds).
I would also structure the unit that captured each part of the assessment instead of at the beginning then at the end. For the lesson on planning a zoo, this would be a perfect time to assess student plans. We would show examples of what a good plan looks like and what a “not-so-good” plan looks like to give students a visual rubric. Having copies to hand out and show them examples would show students what they needed to do to achieve a score of 4.
For the lessons of building a creature out of clay and constructing an environment out of mixed media, I would assess students on their ability to perform certain processes like (slipping and scoring, armature, coil and slab building, experimentation with materials, etc.). During this time it would be important to observe students processes and see if they problem solve, experiment and/or build off of their prior knowledge. A discovery board present would allow students the opportunity to share their knowledge and pick up new knowledge that would enhance learning. Also, it is easy to see the students who are participating more than others and this would be a time to take note and assess those issues. For example, students who finish early with their creature would be urged to make another creature and or a part of their environment if they wanted to receive a 4 in the “creation and exploration” part.
After each lesson, there would be a ten-minute period of reflection and listening to ideas and problems students face and how they did or didn’t solve those problems. The museum label activity was a great way we implemented reflection and connection into the unit. If we were to do this every class, students would continually be building upon their prior knowledge and connections would be made easier and more frequently. Students would be told participation and active involvement each class would determine if they received a score of 4.
I would also structure the unit that captured each part of the assessment instead of at the beginning then at the end. For the lesson on planning a zoo, this would be a perfect time to assess student plans. We would show examples of what a good plan looks like and what a “not-so-good” plan looks like to give students a visual rubric. Having copies to hand out and show them examples would show students what they needed to do to achieve a score of 4.
For the lessons of building a creature out of clay and constructing an environment out of mixed media, I would assess students on their ability to perform certain processes like (slipping and scoring, armature, coil and slab building, experimentation with materials, etc.). During this time it would be important to observe students processes and see if they problem solve, experiment and/or build off of their prior knowledge. A discovery board present would allow students the opportunity to share their knowledge and pick up new knowledge that would enhance learning. Also, it is easy to see the students who are participating more than others and this would be a time to take note and assess those issues. For example, students who finish early with their creature would be urged to make another creature and or a part of their environment if they wanted to receive a 4 in the “creation and exploration” part.
After each lesson, there would be a ten-minute period of reflection and listening to ideas and problems students face and how they did or didn’t solve those problems. The museum label activity was a great way we implemented reflection and connection into the unit. If we were to do this every class, students would continually be building upon their prior knowledge and connections would be made easier and more frequently. Students would be told participation and active involvement each class would determine if they received a score of 4.