assessment development unit health sciences assessment … · 2017-10-17 · assessment development...

Assessment Development Unit

Health Sciences Assessment Guide Academic Year 2017 / 2018 Term 1 Grade 10 [F] Grade 11 [F] Grade 12 [F]

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Contents 1.0 Overview and Rationale

1.1 The two modes of assessment 1.2 Key principles of assessment 1.3 Materials available to support the assessment process

2.0 Group A and Group B subjects 3.0 SIS (Student Information System) 4.0 End of Term Exams

4.1 Exam Format 4.2 Exam responsibility 4.3 Before examination day 4.4 On day examination procedures 4.5 Classroom arrangements 4.6 Role of invigilators 4.7 Examination incidents 4.8 Student absence

5.0 Continuous Assessment Projects 6.0 SEN Policy

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1.0 Overview and Rationale

The Health Sciences curriculum covers a wide range of health-related topics, from

health and well-being, to dealing with accidents and emergencies, including

administering First Aid. Throughout the Health Sciences curriculum, students will learn

to become healthier and happier young women. The content within the curriculum will

equip students with the knowledge and skills to keep themselves, their family and their

community safe whilst leading a healthier lifestyle. Students will learn how to improve

their health and wellbeing through healthy lifestyle changes and the importance of

good nutrition on health.

First Aid and a basic medical knowledge are vital skills to develop. Students will learn

a wide range of First Aid techniques and how to deal with accidents and emergencies

in an effective manner. These skills will make students a valuable member of their

community and may even help them to save a friend or family members life one day.

The curriculum provides a solid base of medical knowledge to support students who

want to progress to a career within the medical field.

The assessment process aligns with the curriculum by allowing students to

demonstrate their knowledge base through projects, demonstration and academic

examinations. The primary objective of the assessment framework is to improve the

standard of teaching, learning and achievement in UAE schools. The means by which

it aims to do this are:

• setting standards and expectations in line with the standards expected in both

other countries and in the modern, globalised knowledge economy.

• motivating students to achieve the learning outcomes of the curriculum in order

to pass exams which help them go further in their studies.

• pushing a culture of assessment-led teaching which is balanced between

standard end-of-learning exams, project-based performance tasks and in-class

continual formative assessment of individual students.

• utilising assessment as a feedback tool – giving honest feedback to

students/parents as to their current level, progress, strengths and weaknesses

as well as giving feedback on the effectiveness of teachers and schools in

achieving the required standard.

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• allowing for positive washback into the lessons such that the nature of

upcoming assessments and the focus on working towards them is compatible

with pedagogically-proven methodologies of teaching and the development of

effective learning strategies.

• providing continual support in training, monitoring, moderating and post-exam

analysis so that all MOE staff are knowledgeable of, supportive of and

supported by the new assessment framework and can be part of the

discussions around its effectiveness and future progression.

1.1 The two modes of assessment Assessment in any system can generally be divided into two main categories – summative and formative. Summative assessment is what we might traditionally think of as ‘tests’ or ‘exams,’ and will typically involve either a paper-based exam or a performance task which results in a mark and/or a grade. They test the product of learning over a specified course of time and so, for this reason, are usually placed at the end of the term (though this framework also includes continuous assessment tasks through the term). Summative assessment is an important tool to assess the degree to which learning has taken place, progress on the part of individual students, and which aspects of learning need extra attention. In this framework, summative assessment is achieved through two branches, which are seen as two separate columns in the Student Information System (SIS): Continuous Assessment – these are tests or tasks which are graded and assessed by the teacher throughout the term; for example pop quizzes, projects, portfolio work, etc. Exam – these are taken on centrally mandated days and times during the end of term exam period, as mandated by the MOE Formative assessment, on the other hand, is the constant assessment and analysis of a student’s strengths, struggles and progress that should occur in every lesson throughout the entire course of learning. As such, formative assessment is not given in the form of tests or by giving scores but largely revolves around the management of feedback to the student so as to best foster success in future learning and evaluation (for which previous summative assessments will be a useful tool in giving such feedback). Whereas summative assessment evaluates the product of learning (what have you learnt?), formative assessment focuses on the process of learning (how are you learning?). Aspects that come under formative assessment may include not just performance in classroom tasks and declaration of knowledge (i.e. answering questions correctly, using taught language in group tasks) but also general classroom participation and attitude to learning, as well as more cognitive aspects such as use of learning

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strategies and techniques. In addition, since learning is a cumulative process, formative assessment should include evaluation of how much a student reapplies concepts taught previously in the class to current classroom tasks (rather than solely focusing on the objective for the current lesson).

1.2 Key principles of assessment There are four key elements to assessment which should inform any design of both summative assessment programmes and a complementary formative assessment programme. These are:

Reliability A good way to sum up reliability in a test is ‘if two or more markers mark the same exam, their scores will be the same or, at least, very similar.’ In other words, it is about trying to remove subjective feeling in marking as much as possible from assessment and using objective criteria. This is achieved through assessments that clearly only have one objectively correct answer or, in freer practice, very specific and measurable rubrics; teachers should not be judging or using marking rubrics subjectively since there should be clear enough descriptors in the rubric that they can be factually matched with the student’s performance. Subjective variance in how markers and marking schemes treat different students creates institutional unfairness when applied on a national scale.

Validity

This is the concept that assessments should truly be assessing the authentic, real-world skills that students will need; and that exams should be assessing what they purport to assess. Assessment needs to be matched to the learning outcomes; and the most effective assessment tools need to be chosen to truly ascertain whether students can demonstrate those skills and outcomes (without unknowably crossing over into other learning outcomes).

Practicality As assessment designers work to create highly valid and reliable assessments, they must also think through the practical implications and how realistic they are to achieve for schools and institutions in terms of ability to mark the papers, number of students, time constraints on marking, etc. – and thus adjust or offer training as necessary and viable.

Backwash/ Washback Whatever the nature of the assessment framework, it is also essential to think what impact it will have on the classroom teaching both preceding and following it. An assessment framework should motivate students to participate well in class, self-evaluate, and push for best performance. Conversely, a poorly designed and

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unrealistic assessment framework can have devastating effects on student motivation and confidence and thus erode the whole purpose of learning. In addition, it should be considered whether practising and training for the tests still allows classroom practice which focuses on good pedagogical principles.

1.3 Materials available to support the assessment process As assessment is an extremely high-stakes aspect of the educational model, with huge amounts riding on its smooth implementation and integrity, it is essential that teachers feel fully supported with information and materials. To this end, the ADU will provide the field with the following supporting materials. Please note that all of the below will be available on the Health Sciences SharePoint. If you have any issues accessing SharePoint, please contact the Service Desk at [email protected]. Once fully updated, the following will be available:

• this assessment guide which provides an overview of all aspects of the new

assessment system; both summative and formative. Included in the guide are

the test specifications for all tests, to indicate the type of questions, topics and

tasks covered to help prepare for exams

• timetables and timings for all scheduled exams

• rubrics to be used in marking projects and constructed response assessments

[Release TBD]

• guides and materials for the assessed projects [Release TBD]

mailto:[email protected]

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2.0 Group A and Group B Subjects

Subjects in the UAE’s national curriculum are divided into Group A and Group B subjects. Group A subjects are core subjects which students need to pass to move onto the next Grade (except for in Grades 1-3 when students automatically move on). Group A subjects have a pass rate of 50% (for the year mark) for Grades 4-9 and 60% for Grades 10-12. Students are given an opportunity to take resit exams at the end of the year for Group A subjects that they have failed. The Group A subjects which fall under the EMI department’s responsibility for assessment are:

• English (Grades 1-12)

• ASP Maths (Grades 6-9)

• ASP Science (Grades 6-8)

• ASP Physics/Chemistry/Biology (Grade 9)

• Health Science (Girls) (Grades 10-12) Group B subjects are subjects which have no minimum pass mark (i.e. you can be awarded an ‘F’ grade but you do not need to take a resit exam nor does your score prevent you moving on to the next Grade); though these subjects do count towards a student’s grade point average. The Group B subjects which fall under the EMI department’s responsibility for assessment are:

• Physical and Health Education (Grades 1-12)

• Design and Technology (Grades 4-9)

• Creative Design and Innovation (Grades 10-12)

• Computer Sciences (Grades 10-12)

• Business Management (Grades 10-12)

• Life Skills (Boys) (Grades 10-11) As a Group A subject, the weighting of continuous assessment and the exams for Health Science, in terms of the overall year’s grade, are 30% Continuous Assessment and 70% Exams. Across the three terms this works out as:

Term 1

Term 2

Term 3

10% Continuous Assessment 35% Exam

10% Continuous Assessment

10% Continuous Assessment 35% Exam

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3.0 SIS (Student Information System) This is the student gradebook where you will enter the grades for your students. The gradebook has been programmed in line with the assessment weightings for each grade’s subjects. Each class has its own homeroom, in which you will see the students and columns in which to enter their scores. These columns will fall under the two main parent categories of ‘Continuous Assessment’ and ‘Exam’. Typically, teachers will be responsible for entering the marks into the Continuous Assessment category. This will need to be completed at least two working days before the start of the end-of-term exam period. This is because the Continuous Assessment sections for all subjects need to be filled and subsequently approved/closed by school administration before the exam columns can be opened for mark entry. The columns under the Exam category are typically filled in by school administration. It is the responsibility of Lead Teachers to ensure that all marks which are entered and approved into the SIS are an accurate reflection of the marks awarded by teachers for assessment. If any errors have been made in entering marks, teachers should liaise with the assessment directorate to request a score change. If lead teachers have any concerns that marks are being systematically entered incorrectly, they should immediately contact an ADU member to report it.

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4.0 End-of-Term Exams The final exams will be held during the end-of-term exam period. The ADU will provide schools with an exam timetable.

4.1 Exam Format The exam for all Health Science students at G10, G11 and G12 will consist of a series of multiple choice questions and constructed response questions. The coverage of the exam will be all taught content from the term. The test specifications below provide further detail regarding the construction of the exam. To prepare for the exam please ensure your students are familiar with answering questions in 1-3 sentences for the constructed response question type. Multiply the exam grade by 2 [x2] for the grade to enter into SIS.

Question Type

Structure Content coverage Timing Marking

Multiple

Choice (MCQ)

20 questions

4 options for

each

1 correct option

Questions can test knowledge by recall, or by application using

texts, tables, charts or diagrams.

The questions assess the student’s

understanding of the term content coverage.

There will be 5 questions per unit covered in the book totalling 20 questions. Please refer to the learning outcomes in your book which are listed at the start of each unit.

40 minutes 20 marks [1 mark

each]

Constructed

Response (CRQ)

5 questions

no options

written responses

Questions can test knowledge by recall, or by application using texts, tables, charts or

diagrams.

The questions assess the student’s

understanding of the term content coverage.

There will be 5 questions that can come from any

of the 4 units covered in the book.

Please refer to the learning outcomes in your

book which are listed at the start of each unit.

20 minutes

30 marks [marks per question

varies based on question]

4.2 Exam responsibility

All of the following information as relating to exam day procedures is the responsibility of school principals and administration to facilitate. The principal will establish an exam committee within the school to manage the invigilation and running of exams. In addition, each school will have an all-subject meeting prior to the exam period to disseminate the following information and go through each staff member’s roles and responsibilities during exams. The following is simply provided for your information and so that you can check procedures are being followed as instructed.

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4.3 Before examination day Prior to the examination period the following items should be in place to ensure the smooth running of all examinations:

1. Student/Parent awareness: Please ensure that students and parents are aware of the date, time and venue of relevant examinations to ensure attendance.

2. Invigilation schedule: Ensure that all invigilators are aware of the date, time and venue of relevant examinations. Invigilators must also be briefed on examination day procedures. This briefing should include knowledge of the relevant documents provided by the ADU that must be completed for each examination. Any queries regarding documentation should be directed to the ADU. Contact details are provided at the end of this document.

3. Classroom availability: The school timetable should ensure that classrooms

which are required on examination days are available.

4. Exam related resources: ADU School Documentation Pack needs to be printed and accessible.

5. Extra rooms: Pre-designate a room for any students who have been caught cheating (this is only in cases of gross misconduct).

4.4 On-day examination procedures

There are two methods of distribution for exams – they are either to be downloaded from SIS or are delivered by courier from the publishing company (MASAR). Each school is responsible for ensuring that they download and print off exams, or else pick up their examination papers, in a timely manner on the day of an examination. In the case of courier delivered exams, ensure you know the location of the distribution centre prior to the examination period. If you are unsure where the distribution centre is located, please contact your Cluster Manager. Once the papers have been collected and arrive at your school, the Principal and Lead Teacher should check, in a secure location (examination storage room), that the papers have arrived on time and there are a sufficient number of papers for all examinees. Examination paper integrity is paramount and students should have no access to the examination papers or designated operational rooms where examination papers are held.

4.5 Classroom arrangements The seating arrangements should be set up in a way that will help prevent students from cheating. This is something that will be dependent on the differing facilities within schools but requires attention and imagination and can be done in collaboration between principals and Lead Teachers. Ideas for this include, but are not limited to, turning tables outwards towards the wall so that students are not facing each other or

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mixing different grades in one room and alternating the columns (so that no two students of the same grade are sat next to each other). Ideally, large halls or auditoriums should be used in which multiple invigilators should be present.

4.6 Role of invigilators The role of examination invigilators is an extremely important one. Examination invigilators are responsible for the following:

1. Invigilators must report to the examination room that they are invigilating in 5 minutes before the exam time.

2. Students’ belongings must be placed away from the students. Mobile phones must be switched off and put in the students’ bags or held securely by the invigilator according to school policy. Check that students are not using ‘cheat sheets’ and are bringing no further communication devices or other items commonly associated with cheating, such as dictionaries, non-transparent pencil cases etc., to their desks. Also, please ensure that no students are wearing Apple watches or other watch devices which can connect to the internet.

3. Ensure examination papers are collected in a sealed envelope with a register of students expected to be in attendance. 3-4 copies of the ADU Exam Incident Report Form should also be supplied to invigilators.

4. A register of students expected to be in attendance must be completed before

an examination begins. Students who are absent should be noted and an ADU Student Exam Absentee Record must be completed for each absent student.

5. Ensure actual start and end times of the examination are written clearly on the

board. A working clock should be clearly visible for students.

6. Students must use blue ink pens for paper examinations.

7. Invigilators are not allowed to give students any assistance whatsoever other than ensuring the necessary personal details (SID number, name etc…) on the cover page are completed accurately. Explaining any part of the examination to students is considered as facilitating cheating and invigilators must not do it for this reason. This includes reading out questions and/or translating text / words / questions from English into Arabic. If any of the above incidents should occur, an ADU Exam Incident Report Form should be completed. Principals / Lead Teachers must be vigilant in this regard.

8. During the examination, the two invigilators should stand one at the front and one at the back – only moving around the room to deal with incidents. Invigilators must not sit down and engage in other activities that will divert their attention away from the students such as using a computer / laptop or mobile phone. These activities may also distract students from their examinations. Principals / Lead Teachers should monitor and be vigilant in this regard.

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9. Notify students when 15 minutes remain in an examination, and again when 5 minutes remain in an examination. However, limit yourself to these notifications.

10. Please note that no student may leave the exam room within the first hour of the exam. The only exception to this is in lower grades, when all students have finished their exam before the first hour and the exam papers have thus all been collected; then they may leave early

11. At the end of an examination, ensure that all student examination papers have been collected and placed back in the exam envelope. This includes any examination papers that may have been unused. Do not allow any student to leave the examination room prior to all examination papers being collected. Once all examination papers have been collected, promptly return them to the secure examination storage room.…………………………………………

12. If students wish to go to the bathroom during the exam (after the first one hour period), they must hand all examination materials to the invigilators who will return them to the student when the student returns. A designated hall monitor must accompany the student to the bathroom. Only one student is allowed to go to the bathroom at a time. No extra time to complete an examination is to be given. Please take note of the time the student leaves and returns to the examination room. If you suspect that the student has left the examination room for the purpose of cheating, please ensure the matter is addressed by filling out an ADU Exam Incident Report Form. DO NOT prevent the student from resuming their exam.

13. Note that – ideally – Lead Teachers would act as lead invigilators during EMI department exams; with responsibility for monitoring all rooms in which these exams are taking place and ensuring that no cheating is taking place and that invigilators are following correct procedures.

4.7 Examination incidents

1. Complete an ADU Exam Incident Report Form for any incidents that occur during the examination. Each incident should have a separate form. An ADU Exam Incident Report Form must be filled out for incidents such as, when a student persistently looks over at another student’s paper (2 to 3 times even after a verbal warning has been given), a student takes an excessive bathroom break (please verify with the student why it took so long), a student is ill and is unable to finish their examination, a student chooses not to complete the examination or any other incident which is out of the ordinary in your professional opinion and would require an ADU Exam Incident Report Form to be completed.

2. Students who an invigilator suspects of cheating should be allowed to finish the

examination. The examination paper should be highlighted and ADU Exam Incident Report Form should be completed. Students suspected of cheating should remain in the room and complete their examination, apart from serious

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misconduct is witnessed, such as consistent talking or giving answers to other students. In this case students, should be moved to a separate pre-arranged room to complete the examination away from the other students.

3. In a case where a student falls ill and renders themselves incapable of

continuing to complete an examination, the invigilator should remove the student from the examination room as discretely as possible and the student should be escorted by the designated hall monitor to a place where the student can receive assistance.

4.8 Student Absence For all students absent from an exam, documentation must be completed. The school administration will have official documentation to complete for absent students; however, we also ask EMI department members to fill out the ADU documentation on SharePoint. ……………………………………………………………... The next step is to ascertain whether the absence is excused or not-excused. According to the MOE student assessment policy 559 (of which your principal should have a copy), an excused absence may be classified as one of the following:

Excused absence (entered as “EA” or “ م غ “ in SIS)

1. Illness justified by a medical report attested by a governmental sector

(Ministry of Health).

2. Forbidden from sitting examination for exceeding the period of allowed

absence in school attendance

3. Death of relatives (son, daughter, father, mother, sister, brother, nephews,

husband, wife)

4. Call by an official party (e.g military / court) with evidence of a letter from that

party

5. Travel for a sudden emergency

6. Military training courses and other similar with evidence of a certificate from

the employer

However, note that principals at their discretion may allow other reasons for an excused absence if they feel it is a valid reason. In the special case of a student who has an officially excused absence, the principal will fill out the official MOE excused absence form and along with any supporting documentation upload them through the SIS. In the case of a student being absent without a valid reason, a 0 mark should be awarded. However, note that you will liaise with your school administration to enter a 0 mark for the reason of non-excused absence. Please note that, due to the mechanics of the SIS, a student cannot be marked as absent in one column of a parent category and then have a score in the other. Students

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should not normally be counted as absent for Continuous Assessment – except in cases where they have been absent for the entirety of the period in which continuous assessment was taking place.

5.0 Continuous Assessment - Projects G10 Students in G10 will complete 1 project over the course of the term. The project will be graded out of 100 and this mark is the one that should be entered onto the SIS system. The project will be done in alignment with Unit 3: Introduction to nutrition. G11 Students in G11 will complete 1 project over the course of the term. The project will be graded out of 100 and this mark is the one that should be entered onto the SIS system. The project will be done in alignment with Unit 3: The respiratory system & pulmonary resuscitation. G12 Students in G12 will complete 1 project over the course of the term. The project will be graded out of 100 and this mark is the one that should be entered onto the SIS system. The project will be done in alignment with Unit 3: Trauma – muscles and bones. Please note the project guides will be made available separately on SharePoint from the 19th of October

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6.0 SEN Policy In cases where you believe that the student has special educational needs, and this may impact on their assessment and require concessions to be made, then teachers should ensure this is done in line with MOE SEN policy. The first thing to ascertain is whether the student is registered as SEN by the MOE. Teachers will need to liaise with their school administration, social worker and local SEN coordinator in order to do this; or, additionally, in order to get students identified as SEN students who previously have not been. The MOE also has policies as to which concessions can be made for which educational needs. Teachers should work with the LDU and ADU SEN teams, their school administration and local SEN coordinator to fairly and effectively implement these.

In cases where the SEN student is not MOE identified, the following adjustments to the exam conditions can be granted (based on school practice):

• Student can write the exam in a separate room.

• Exam questions can be read out by the subject teacher.

• Student can be given extra time.

In cases where the SEN student is MOE identified:

• They should have an IEP (Individual Educational Plan); although it will likely be

in Arabic.

• In the SIS system, next to the student’s name, the SEN status should appear

with a drop-down menu (in Arabic) where all provisions and accommodations

the student can be provided with are ticked.

• Curriculum adjustments and intervention should have already taken place.

• The IEP and the SIS system records should clearly state what kind of

adjustments and modifications the student is entitled to.

• If the IEP/SIS states that the student should receive modified assessment, it is

the subject teacher’s responsibility to prepare it.

It is important to note that, in many cases, the IEP and SIS system only allows modifications to certain question types (MCQs, guided gap-fill, open-ended questions, possibility to give verbal answers which should be recorded, etc.) rather than a completely different level and format of assessment. In this case, the official ADU exam should be modified. If the curriculum content is not fully accessible to the SEN student and a separate test is required to be prepared, the subject teachers is responsible for creating it in alignment with the IEP. Ideally, the modified test should follow the ADU format (have the same number of available marks, be skill-based, etc.). Please ensure that any modified paper is approved by an ADU/LDU member or cluster SEN coordinator.

assessment development unit health sciences assessment … · 2017-10-17 · assessment development...

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