Science Explorer Genetics Assessment Plan
In this unit, students will be assessed based on their lab work, homework sheets, a unit test, and a unit project. This is a journal-based science class, so all of the assignments will be completed as part of their science journal. Every lab in the unit, along with the reading worksheets, will be taped into their journal and counted as daily work. Each assignment will have a due date, and on that date each journal entry will be individually reviewed. Students will receive immediate feedback about any misconceptions they have, and given the opportunity to correct any answers that are not correct. When completed (has to be done on the day due), the student will receive a stamp in their journal. After every 11 assignments, journals will be collected and work reviewed. During this process, each journal will be double checked for accuracy on stamping sign-offs, and any work the students completed that was not stamped will be reviewed for completion and accuracy. The journal will be worth 4 points, but will be entered into the gradebook 3 times, so will carry much of the weight of the students’ scores. All of the daily work is based off of the objectives, so by providing the instant feedback, I will also be able to determine if the students are meeting the learning objectives of the individual lessons, and the unit.
In addition to the daily stamped labs and assignments, there will be a long-term project called All In The Family, which is also known as the Paper Pet Project. This project allows the students to use the information learned through activities and readings and apply it to a more in-depth project. The students will begin by creating a paper pet that has 5 different trait options. They will identify the phenotype of the different traits. After learning about genotypes, the students will then identify the genotype of their pets. As the unit moves on and discusses Punnett squares and heredity, the students will pair up and mate their paper pets, creating 6 offspring based on the principle that the offspring inherit one allele from each parent. After creating the offspring, students will create either a poster or a mobile to display their Paper Pet families. Students will be graded on a rubric in four categories: Parent genotypes, Offspring genotypes, neatness/effort, and Punnett squares. The project will be work 4 points and entered into the gradebook one time.
At the end of the unit, the students will take a unit test, which will be put together using the examview software provided by the Explorer pilot. The test will be a combination of multiple choice, fill-in, true/false, short answer, and essay questions. The test will cover the standards explained in the lesson introductions, as well as key vocabulary. The test will be worth 4 points, and entered into the gradebook two times. The combination of the final project and final exam will provide me with the opportunity to assess students on understandings of the major concepts covered in this unit, and address any last misunderstandings that present themselves.