Trust Projects

Developing the ‘e-scape’ system for assessment of children’s scientific and technological understanding at the end of Key Stage 2

This project is funded in the innovative category.

There is evidence that KS2 Science SATs, whilst they fulfill the function of keeping science ‘on the agenda’ for many primary schools, have a detrimental ‘backwash’ into the science curriculum in Y6, reducing active enquiry at the expense of revision and reducing pupils’ enthusiasm for and enjoyment of science 

The ‘e-scape’ project (2003-present) has developed an innovative controlled alternative to GCSE design & technology assessment using e-portfolios generated by pupils using hand-held devices (PDAs), which afford multi-modal responses (text, drawing, photo, audio, video, spreadsheet) whilst leaving space on pupils’ tables for practical investigations. The resulting e-portfolios are capable of being assessed by independent ‘judges’ with a high degree of validity and reliability. E-scape has transferred this concept to science and geography assessment (2007-8) in a phase funded by BECTA, demonstrating the value of real-time assessment of investigative work.
 

The next phase of e-scape is to develop the D&T model into a real GCSE examination run by an exam board, but currently there are no plans to develop the science strand of the project further at secondary level.
Both current reviews of primary education have proposed a future learning ‘domain’ or ‘area’ of science and technology/scientific and technological understanding. Whilst this proposal will necessitate teachers developing a clear understanding of the distinct scientific elements of this area and the ways in which these relate to the technological it does offer new opportunities for cross-curricular planning and assessment. 

Because the e-scape project has developed science and D&T assessment tasks in the same format it is uniquely positioned to offer a model for the assessment of scientific and technological enquiry. Although the current assessment tasks have been developed for secondary pupils, a number of primary teachers attached to the project have used the e-scape authoring tool to generate both science and D&T activities for younger children. The element common to all these tasks is that they engage children in enquiry and are capable of assessing procedural understanding rather than declarative knowledge as currently assessed through SATs. Conceptual knowledge is also assessed, but always in the context of hands-on enquiry. Therefore any future end-of-Key Stage assessment using the e-scape approach would have the positive ‘backwash’ of more enquiry-based learning at upper Key Stage 2.

Aims

• To explore valid classroom-based models for assessing children’s scientific and technological understanding in relation to the new primary curriculum model currently proposed;
• To engage primary teachers in debating and refining their understanding of the relationship between science and technology, both in the ‘real world’ and in the primary curriculum

• To explore valid classroom-based models for assessing children’s scientific and technological understanding in relation to the new primary curriculum model currently proposed;
• To engage primary teachers in debating and refining their understanding of the relationship between science and technology, both in the ‘real world’ and in the primary curriculum
• To develop tasks for Y6 pupils which engage them in stimulating scientific enquiry and the generation of design ideas, using the e-scape system of hand-held computers controlled by a laptop server and wireless network.
• To examine the cost of the hand-held devices for recording pupils’ responses to enquiry tasks, comparing these with laptop and paper-based alternatives.
• To develop protocols for assessing the resulting e-portfolios by teachers, the pupils themselves and independent ‘judges’, with accompanying measures of validity and reliability.
• To present the resulting assessment tasks and judging process to QCA for their consideration as a potential future model for assessing this proposed new area of the primary curriculum.
The intended outcomes are as follows:
• A set of fully trialled enquiry-based tasks to assess children’s scientific and technological understanding at the end of Key Stage 2, based on the e-scape e-portfolio system.
• A proposal to QCA for the development of summative assessment of scientific and technological enquiry at the end of Key Stage 2, based on the above tasks, with associated proposals for hardware purchase and training provision.
• A group of teachers from 10 primary schools with a well-developed understanding of the relationship between science and technology in the curriculum, and the capability of developing classroom tasks to assess pupils’ scientific and technological understanding.
• Insights into the issues surrounding moderated teacher summative assessment of scientific and technological enquiry and lessons learned in how to support teachers in coming to grips with this process.

Evaluation

The e-scape team from Goldsmiths College, University of London will act as internal evaluators to the project as they have the existing experience and expertise in this form of portfolio assessment of enquiry.
Members of the Goldsmiths team will be present at each cluster CPD day, monitoring:
- participant teachers’ changing beliefs concerning the nature of science and its relationship to technology
- participants’ responses to input on assessment and the e-scape system
- the quality of assessment tasks developed by the project team and participant teachers
- the rigour of the assessment process and its claims for validity and reliability
They will also moderate the online judging process, monitoring the quality of pupils’ work and the reliability of judgements made.
They will  make half-day visits to 5 project schools to observe assessment tasks being trialled, to interview pupils concerning their experience of the tasks and assessment process.
 

Additional

Outline dissemination plan:

• Project report to AZSTT and subsequent CPD materials on AZSTT website
• Report and recommendations to QCA concerning the development of end of Key Stage assessment materials for scientific and technological understanding
• Promoted via the Centre for Research in Early Scientific Learning website http://www.bathspa.ac.uk/schools/education/cresl-default.asp
• Conference papers and articles in academic journals (e.g. International Journal of Science Education) and professional journals (e.g. Primary Science).

Contact

Dan Davies - Contact e-mail d.davies@bathspa.ac.uk