Supporting student collaboration within performance assessments
Driving Question
“How can teachers support deeper learning by making opportunities to collaborate on performance-based assessments more meaningful for students?”
Overall Learning Goal
For candidates to identify ways to support students in becoming effective collaborators as they work together on performance-based assessments to solve problems and deepen their content understanding.
Collaboration and Assessments Module Overview
This module primarily focuses on the "work collaboratively" competency, although communicating is a related deeper learning skill.
It helps candidates build their capacity to support students as they develop persistence, perseverance, and problem-solving skills as part of their mindset towards learning.
Faculty/instructors who are integrating this module into their courses can have students access the materials directly here on this website, or view it within the Canvas Free for Teachers course platform.
This site contains all of the core module material, but the Canvas version provides more directions, sequencing, and additional resources like supplemental classroom video examples and transcript files. Note that when students are watching the included videos, they can also use built-in transcript/closed captioning features.
Note that we've also included a faculty guide to support your planning. We welcome you to access this free, open-source module to enrich your teaching and address this important aspect of deeper learning!
Section 1
Opportunities for Collaboration During Performance-Based Assessments
Candidates explore how performance-based assessments (PBAs) can integrate meaningful opportunities for collaboration through sample PBA plans & classroom videos.
Candidates engage in a team activity to determine what effective collaboration looks like.
Section 2
Strategies for Supporting Students in Becoming More Effective Collaborators
Candidates identify ways teachers can support students in working together to demonstrate and deepen their content understanding, and draw from strategies/resources from the field to build a Collaboration Support Toolkit.
Section 3
Planning to Deepen Learning by Supporting Collaboration on Performance-Based Assessments
CORE ACTIVITY
Candidates use their Toolkit to create and share an implementation plan for strategically supporting collaboration on a PBA within their content area.
Resources
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3.1 Planning to Support Collaboration – Part 1 – Sample Biosphere Task
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3.2b Planning to Support Collaboration Part 3 - Peer Feedback & Reflection
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3.3 Extension Option #3 - Exploring Additional PA Design Resources
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3.3 Extension Option #3 – Part 1 Escape Room Toolkit - Introduction to the Process
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3.3 Extension Option #3 – Part 2 - Escape Room Toolkit - Planning Your Puzzles
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3.3 Extension Option #3 - Part 3 – Escape Room Toolkit - Implementation & Reflection
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3.3 Extension Option #3 – Student Tools - Understanding & Reflecting on Collaboration
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3.3 Extension Option #3 - Teacher Tool - Observing Collaboration
Task Examples
Student Directions Samples