Assessing STE(A)M Learning

In Learning in the Making, I discuss assessment as follows:

Educators should be clear about how and why they include assessment in their instruction. They need to be strategic and intentional in its use. Assessment should be about informing learners about their performance so increased learning and future improvements can result. “Assessment is the process of gathering and discussing information from multiple and diverse sources in order to develop a deep understanding of what students know, understand, and can do with their knowledge as a result of their educational experiences; the process culminates when assessment results are used to improve subsequent learning” (Huba & Freed, 2000, p. 8).

During Fall, 2019, I taught a graduate level STE(A)M [Science, Technology, Engineering, (Arts), Math] course for Antioch University. Their last major assignment was to create methods for assessing STE(AM) learning. My goal was for the students, who are classroom teachers, to develop assessment strategies based on above. The description of the assignment follows:

Create a list possible strategies to assess students STEM/STEAM projects. It should be tailored to the (expected) age level of your learners, the focus of your learning activities (STEM, STEAM, or STREAM). Discuss several forms of formative and summative assessments that you can draw upon when you teach STEAM-based lessons. Review the following:

Documenting Learning: http://www.documenting4learning.com/
Teaching Tools or STEM Education – Assessment: http://stemteachingtools.org/tgs/Assessment
Assessing Maker Education Projects – https://usergeneratededucation.wordpress.com/2018/05/05/assessing-maker-education-projects/
Beyond the Rubric – https://makered.org/beyondrubrics/toolkit/
Pinterest Aggregate – Assessment Resources https://www.pinterest.com/criticalskills1/assessment/
75 Digital Tools and Apps Teachers Can Use to Support Formative Assessment in the Classroom https://www.nwea.org/blog/2019/75-digital-tools-apps-teachers-use-to-support-classroom-formative-assessment/

In developing your strategies and ideas include at least one strategy from each of the following:

Documenting Learning Strategies (formative)
Reflecting on Learning (formative)
Strategies that Leverage Technology, e.g., blogs, podcasts, videos, online tools (formative and summative)
Assessing the Cross-Curricular Standards and Goals Associated with STEAM Education (formative and summative)
Going Beyond the Rubric (formative and summative)

You can share it in written form or create your version of assessment ideas using one of the following EdTech tools (they have free versions):

Book Creator ebook – https://bookcreator.com/
Piktochart Infographic (one of my favorites) – https://piktochart.com/
Storyboard That Comic – https://www.storyboardthat.com/
Google Site website – https://sites.google.com/
A Podcast or Video

Student Examples

Two example student projects follow. One chose to use Book Creator while the other selected Piktochart. What was impressive to me was the professionalism of their work – both in their content and presentation, and that they created work that has the potential to be beneficial and useful for a wide audience of educators.