First Ten Washington Edition Assessment Folios Now Available

For the past two plus years, staff members from LHS/FOSS have been working with teachers in Washington State to create a Washington edition of the assessment folios for each of the elementary FOSS modules. Anne Kennedy at ESD 112 in Vancouver, Washington, initiated this project with the idea that, if elementary teachers wanted to make sure that their students would be ready to take the fifth-grade state test, teachers needed assessments in all grades that correlated to the state standards known as EALRs (Essential Academic Learning Requirements).

At first, project staff thought perhaps a “mini-WASL” would be appropriate (the WASL is the state science test), but, as discussion continued, it was decided that formative assessment should be the focus. Formative assessment is defined as any assessment that is used for diagnostic purposes to make instructional decisions. It was felt that this was the right place to focus because teachers need to have a clear view into student learning as it is developing. Science learning generally builds from simpler ideas to more complex. Students will surely stumble on the more complex ideas if they have not grasped the simpler ones. If teachers wait until all the investigations in a module have been taught, give a test, and then find out there are concepts that the students are still confused about, it’s too late because it’s time to move on to the next module.

The project began three summers ago when a group of about 40 FOSS-experienced teachers met at PacForest Conference Center for a three-day retreat. In those three days, teachers went through each 2000 Edition teacher guide to identify which EALRs were being taught in each module. Because the focus was on formative assessment, they then went through each module investigation by investigation and noted which EALRs were assessed in each investigation. In most modules there was high correlation between EALRs taught in the module and items that already existed in the FOSS assessment program. But in some cases new assessments were needed. Teachers created these assessments based on their expert knowledge of students and how they deal with the various FOSS investigations.

Of course, you never know how an assessment is really going to work until you try it out with your students! Teachers were able to do that when they went back to school in the fall. They then met in December with the project staff to share the results of all the assessments. In some cases the assessments worked exactly as planned; in other cases revisions needed to be made. A second trial took place in the spring when another group of teachers tested the revised assessments. Following that final trial, the assessments went through one more revision and are now published as the Washington editions of the assessment folios.

The good news is that the first ten modules are complete and available on CD-ROM. The modules available include:

Grades 1 and 2

• Balance and Motion
• New Plants
• Solids and Liquids

Grades 3 and 4

• Earth Materials
• Human Body
• Magnetism and Electricity
• Physics of Sound
• Water

Grades 5 and 6

• Food and Nutrition
• Models and Designs

All ten of the modules are published on one CD-ROM. Each assessment folio is basically set up the same way as the FOSS ©2000 Edition assessment folios, with a few exceptions. One of the exceptions is that the blackline masters needed for the assessments are included in the folio. Some of the masters used for assessment sheets are the same as the 2000 Edition, some of them have been modified, and others are brand new. Teachers thought it would be easier if the blackline masters were included in the folio, so they would not have to flip back and forth to figure out when to use original FOSS sheets, modified sheets, or new sheets. There is a scoring guide for each assessment suggested as well. The scoring guides always describe the EALR being assessed at the top of the guide.

Another feature in the Washington edition assessment folio is the inquiry project. The purpose of the inquiry project is to help students learn the processes for conducting science. At the end of each module, students complete an inquiry project. They ask a question about something they have been studying, plan and conduct an investigation, collect and organize data, and draw conclusions. These are then presented to the class for scrutiny. Scoring guides and suggestions for how to develop the projects throughout the grades are provided in the assessment folio.

You can get the CD-ROM with the first ten modules by contacting

Gloria Ferguson at
360-750-7500 x 301 or
e-mail Gloria at gloria.ferguson@esd112.org.

The only requirement for receiving the CD-ROM is that the district or school needs to have purchased the ©2000 Edition FOSS modules.

Special thanks to all the teachers and other folks who helped make this project possible.

Mary Beth Anderson, Olympia
Tom Archer, Evergreen
Laura Barber, Olympia
Kathy Beach, North Thurston
Jeffrey Boland-Prom, Evergreen
Peggy Cameron, North Thurston
Ann Chenhall, North Thurston
Gail Condrey, Battle Ground
Peggy Crow, Bellevue
Lynda Davis, Evergreen
Peggy Degg, Battle Ground
Jo Edwards, Olympia
Ron Elliff, Bethel
Ken Goree, Shoreline
Larry Gursky, Bethel
Martha Hurlburt, Evergreen
Laurie Krone, Auburn
Tracy Livingston, White River
Mary Magill, Edmonds
Rosie McNutt, Evergreen
Marlex Memmel, Edmonds
Carrie Misener, Shoreline
Steve Rees, North Thurston
Arlene Reynolds, Olympia
Kris Rouleau, Bellevue
Carolyn Schilter, Olympia
Patricia Shirley, Shoreline
Connie Siepman, Wenatchee
Dori Sipe, Olympia
Marsha Stead, Olympia
Patty Theis, North Thurston
Joseph Thompson, Seattle
Tami Thompson, Edmonds
Awnie Turrell, Seattle
Lynn Welter, Olympia

The project leaders were

Anne Kennedy, SMERC @ ESD 112
Gloria Ferguson, SMERC @ ESD 112
Lean Gaik LaRowe, SMERC @ ESD 112
Kathy Long, Lawrence Hall of Science

The Washington edition was made possible by the generous support of the following organizations: Delta Education; Educational Service District 112; Eisenhower Funding; Hewlett-Packard; Intel; Lawrence Hall of Science at the University of California, Berkeley; Washington State School Districts; and Washington State University, Vancouver.