In this post, I share some guiding assessment questions and provocations about the value system that education is built on.
There is also a 10-page workbook to download to support your reflection and action planning on assessment and the impact you have on students.
The Most Complicated Object in the Universe
My teaching journey started when I was studying psychology. I chose teaching because of formative experiences in 1995 when studying how we think, develop and learn. Learning elements of developmental psychology was a catalyst to my career.
[sharable-quote tweet=”The human brain has 100 billion neurons, each neuron connected to 10,000 other neurons. Sitting on your shoulders is the most complicated object in the known universe. ~ Michio Kaku “]
The brain seemed an incredible mystery we were all attempting to unravel. As you reflect on your assessment practices, keep that complexity in your mind.
The Draw-a-person Assessment
The drawing test was devised in 1926 by Florence Goodenough, a psychologist from the University of Minnesota. It was developed as “a new approach to measuring young children’s intelligence, ” as her paper is titled.
Children have ten minutes to draw a person, and the results are scored according to strict guidelines. Goodenough argued the drawings were a proxy for intellectual development.
I recall conducting the Draw-a-person test with children at a local primary school or nursery. Deciphering the mark-making and the developmental cues was fascinating.
[sharable-quote tweet=”Teaching is at the intersection between an enduring mystery and a social imperative.” template=”dark”]
Stay Curious About Assessment and Learning
My interest in developmental psychology waned after years in the teaching profession. That is strange to write, as you might expect one to multiply the other.
Perhaps the mystery was overwhelming. Or the distractions incumbent to the teaching profession got in the way. Maybe it was the shiny gloss of technology?
Looking back on my teaching, I wish I had stayed curious for longer about the mysteries of how we learn and assessment questions.
First Principles Questions
Nowadays, I am motivated by the provocation and utility of first principles thinking. A mental model I would take back to 1998 and offer to myself.
We can all find great clarity from the fundamental truths and principles of what we might be exploring. To use first principles, ask questions like these:
- What are the enduring truths about building positive relationships?
- What are the first principles of a community?
And the central question:
- What are the fundamental truths about learning?
Making Sense of What Works
The Draw-a-person test is an interesting exhibit in the story of how teaching is changing. Although widely used, it was also critiqued and fell out of favour as a measure of intellectual development.
I put this down to the scale of the mystery of our brain.
It may have fallen out of favour due to what I call the solution shard effect. This effect occurs when we explain part of a grand mystery.
To begin with, we present a possible truth – a solution shard (fragment). It is not the complete answer, and questions may remain. A part of the truth is presented and explored, and challenged.
However, when this fragment is refuted, it impacts the established elements of truth around it. The second-order effect is a ripple of doubt.
How does this relate to education?
The complexity of how we learn and what teaching should look like can be overwhelming. What we thought worked is no longer valid. Practices that were in favour and widely adopted now languish on the pseudo-science scrap heap.
You might reflect on some of these assessment questions
- How do I distinguish what works for my students?
- How can I possibly control so many different aspects of the learning experience?
- The experience with my students is contrary to the research I have read; what does that mean?
[sharable-quote tweet=”If we solve in silos, there is the potential of adding more fragments to decipher, more heuristics to navigate and more contradictory options of what works.” template=”quote”]
In a way, the confusion, uncertainty and part-truths are not surprising. Teaching is at the intersection between an enduring mystery and a social imperative.
Better Assessment and Measures of Success
A further aspect of Florence Goodenough’s work that is relevant today is the need for broader measures of success and better assessment questions. She asked children to draw as a way of expressing their intelligence and development. It wasn’t just a number.
Jonah Lehrer explains in his article about Goodenough’s test:
there are countless ways to measure human intelligence, whatever that is. We’ve settled on a particular concept of intelligence defined by a short list of measurable mental talents. (Modern IQ tests tend to focus on abilities such as mental control, processing speed and quantitative reasoning.) But Goodenough’s tool is proof that the mystery of smarts has no single solution. The IQ test could have been a drawing test.
The Draw-A-Person Test – Jonah Lehrer
What do we value in schools?
Even in the 1920s, Goodenough attempted to develop better assessment questions and methods for understanding young children’s growth and development. Although an enduring mystery, a century later, a growing number of educators, schools and systems are asking, “is there a better way to measure success?”
The challenge of figuring this out at a student and system level is significant. Again, if we solve in silos, there is the potential of adding more fragments to decipher, more heuristics to navigate and more contradictory options of what works.
Trainee Teachers
Imagine for a moment the experience of new trainee teachers. Do we want that experience to be coherent and clear of the swirling mix of ideas? Or is better teaching practice forged from seeking a pathway through the mire?
We need leadership from research organisations, schools and education systems. An example of this is the New Metrics for Success project from Melbourne University.
a collaborative research venture between The University of Melbourne and selected forward-thinking schools to work in partnership to address the meta-problems faced by Australian schools today and in the future.
I wonder what peer projects link to this work from Melbourne University that exists worldwide?
Your Assessment Questions and Talking Points
To support your thinking and dialogue, return to the question of “What are the fundamental truths about learning?”.
Five guiding assessment questions and provocations
Here are five key guiding questions and provocations to frame your next step:
- What are the fundamental truths about learning that we know work here (in your context)?
- For this student, what am I doing that is making the biggest difference to their learning growth?
- What is one truth about learning that I don’t currently do frequently enough?
- From the strategies I have tried, what are the patterns of impact and change?
- How can I collaborate on “the truth for us”, the fundamental components of learning design?
Download my 10-page workbook to reflect on these assessment questions, plus 30 more provocations about assessment and new measures of success. Explore the provocations and consider some action planning to improve your teaching.
