A S S E S S M E N T

Overview:
For the following unit, students are required to design a roller coaster and answer whether their design is safe to a panel of experts using concepts
in physics. To assess student learning, I will utilize formative and summative assessments. The assessment portion of project-based instruction aids
in student learning. Through different types of assessment, students have the opportunity to metacognitively assess their progress with the project and
make any edits necessary. Formative assessments will include bell work, investigations, exit slips, and whiteboard activities. Summative assessments
include quizzes, the final artifact, and end-of-chapter tests. Without the use of assessment, I would be unable to gauge students’ conceptual
understanding and make any changes necessary throughout each day.

USE OF MULTIPLE ASSESSMENTS

Formative Assessment:
Formative assessment is a tool for teachers to use when they want to identify where their students are in their understanding of the concepts. With
formative assessment, teachers get the opportunity to assess what they need to modify and re-explain to the students and solidify what is going well
throughout the lesson. Ongoing formative assessment provides guidance to students and externalizes students’ thinking. In this lesson, I will utilize
three main formal formative assessments: bell work, group investigations, exit slips. For the bell work, students will answer clicker questions at the
beginning of the period. However, instead of being graded, if students were to answer the clicker questions incorrectly, they have the opportunity to
correct their answer using their notes. In addition, they would also have to explain why their original answer was incorrect and then explain the
correct answer on a separate sheet of paper. Once bell work is completed, I will collect it and review their answers. If the majority of the class did not
understand the clicker questions, then I would know what concept I need to re-investigate. Next, a second formative assessment is group
investigations. In one investigation, I have students to develop an experiment to answer the question, “How does the incline of a ramp impact the
speed of a roller coaster car?” Working together, students provide evidence that supports the conclusion they came to. After the exploration, students
would then be able to hash out their conclusions and come to a classroom consensus. Through the process, I will be monitoring their discussions with
a monitoring sheet. In addition, I will collect their final investigations to determine where their understanding lies and what I still need to do to get
my students where they should be. Finally, the last formative assessments are exit slips. Exit slips will ask students what their muddiest points are or
have students provide 3 bullets of what they learned, 2 questions they still have, and 1 idea of how the material answers the driving question. Exit
slips would be used either daily or weekly, depending on if I were able to gather enough evidence to see where my students are at for that day.

Summative Assessment:
Summative assessments are similar to formative assessments in the sense that they are used to gauge student learning. However with summative
assessment, a point value is usually assigned to the task and these assessments are usually conducted at the end of an instructional period. In the
physics unit, I will use benchmarks and the final artifact as summative assessments. The benchmarks are conducted throughout the unit such for
Newton’s laws and circular motion. In particular, for Newton’s 2nd Law, the students are required to derive the F=ma equation using a variety of
different experiments that the students create. Each experiment is designed to determine the relationship between two variables such mass and
acceleration. This is an important benchmark because if they do not understand Newton’s 2nd law, then the students do not understand the basic
physics of a roller coaster and why a roller coaster is safe. Next, the final artifact will be utilized as a summative assessment. To earn credit for their
work, students are expected to create a model roller coaster and explain why their design is the safest and why their design should be used at another
theme park to a panel of experts. In addition to creating a model, students are expected to have included all of their revisions and explanations in a
formal write-up. Through this artifact, I will be able to see whether the students understood introductory physics and if they were able to see physics
concepts in real world applications.

Reflective Assessment:
Part of their final artifact is to be able to showcase all of the revisions that were made. I do this because students are not going to have a perfect
model the first go-around and they need to be active in their learning. By making those revisions and showing them throughout their write or journal
entries, the students are able to assess their own progress and determine whether they have answered the driving question. Also, at the end of each
lesson, I will use a know and needs to know chart. Part of the closure will be to transfer some what we needed to know into the knows section. With
this students will have to answer what part of the driving question they were able to answer with the material covered.

LESSON OBJECTIVES & ASSESSMENTS

Complete the table below indicating the connection between each individual lesson objective and all formative, summative, and reflective
assessments that address it. Indicate whether or not the assessment is a learning milestone for the unit.

Mile
Relevant -
Lesson objectives Formative assessments Summative/alternative assessments
lessons ston
e

Students will be able E.g., 1 & 3 State the specific question that will be used to List the post-test item(s) or tasks that you will be
to… assess your students. (e.g., exit slip, check list, collecting to assess student understanding. (e.g., post-test
activity, seminal problem, etc.) item, presentation, etc.)

 describe the 4&5  Investigation Worksheet

relationship between  Bell Work
displacement and
velocity

 analyze the 6  Lab experiment worksheet

relationship between  Bell Work
velocity and
acceleration in
words and in
equation form

 define the types of 10, 11, &  Exit Slips ✔

 forces 12
 explain Newton’s 1st
Law in their own
words

 analyze the 12 & 13  Investigation Worksheet  Newton’s Law Quiz ✔

relationship between  Bell Work
force, acceleration,
and mass
 develop the equation
of Newton’s 2nd Law

 draw free body 14  Exit Slips ✔

diagrams
representing real
world examples

 explain Newton’s 3rd 15  Exit Slips

Law and how it
applies to designing
a roller coaster

 describe the 16, 17, &  Investigation Worksheet  Circular Motion Quiz ✔
characteristics or 18  Bell Work
variables within  Student Discussions
circular motion
 analyze the forces
within circular
motion relate to the
building of a roller
coaster loop
 calculate the
acceleration of
circular motion
based on the
velocity and radius
 calculate the period
and frequency of an
object in circular
motion
 analyze the forces
within circular
motion relate to the
building of a roller
coaster loop

 Calculate the 19 & 20  Class Discussions  Calculation problems

momentum in a
closed system
 Calculate the
impulse in a closed
system
 Describe how
impulse and
momentum relates to
riding a roller
coaster

 identify the different 21 & 22  Investigation Worksheet  Energy Quiz ✔

types of energy  Bell Work
 explain why energy  Exit Slip
remains the same
throughout a real
world example

Learning Milestones:
1. Forces: At this point in the unit, I expect students to be able to point out the basic forces (i.e. weight, normal force, friction) that are
occurring throughout a roller coaster. In order to be able to draw force diagrams, the students have to be able to recognize forces in everyday
situations. This all relates to the standard that students need to be able to use Newton’s 3rd Law to explain forces as interactions between
bodies. Exit slips are a good way to provide feedback on student achievement because I will have one question that require students to be
able to identify the forces in the scenario and how this example relates to the driving question. If students create the force diagrams and
properly distinguish between forces, I can take that as evidence that the students are where they need to be.
2. Newton’s 2nd Law: This milestone is essential for the unit because Newton’s 2nd Law is part of the reason why roller coasters are safe.
 Students are expected to understand the lesson objectives mentioned above, which goes back to the standard that states that students need to
understand the relationship between force, mass, and acceleration.
3. Circular Motion: For circular motion, students need to grasp the lesson objectives mentioned above because if they do not, then they will
not be able to describe the loop in roller coaster. In the Arizona state science standards, it says that students should be able to analyze the
general relationships among force, acceleration, and motion for an object undergoing uniform circular motion.
4. Energy: The students will be required to understand the different types of energy to describe the types of energy occurring in a roller coaster.