Traditional approaches to chemistry education privilege ‘what we know’ over ‘what we can do with what we know’, resulting in students learning facts and algorithmic approaches to solving well-structured chemistry problems. To develop students’ abilities to see chemistry as relevant and apply it to solving real-life problems, it is necessary to change what is emphasized. Formative assessment is a powerful mechanism in shaping students’ thinking. What teachers notice when evaluating their students’ work influences their interpretations and judgments, which form the foundation for teachers’ decisions and actions going forward. A deeper understanding of how teachers evaluate students’ thinking in chemistry is needed so that formative assessment can shift the emphasis of chemistry learning. An investigation is reported on how experienced middle and high school teachers analyze students’ work on open-ended formative assessments. Research questions investigated what teachers noticed in students’ responses, how they interpreted what they noticed, and what actions they recommended to address issues they identified. A focus group methodology was used because the synergy of group dynamics allows for exploring what individuals believe and why they behave as they do. Focus groups of teachers evaluated a variety of students’ responses to problems about controlling chemical reactions. Transcripts and teachers’ written feedback were analyzed for common themes using ‘framework analysis’, and individual teachers’ comments were analyzed to look for patterns of noticing, interpreting, and acting. An evaluative stance was favored on more closed-ended questions, and was characterized by prioritization, e.g., quantitative over conceptual. More interpretive stances were observed with more open-ended problems, e.g., focusing on underlying reasoning. Teachers proposed more laboratory-based and peer-mediated follow-up for extrinsic chemical variables, and more teacher-centered activities (<i>e.g.</i>, worksheets) for intrinsic chemical variables. Implications will be discussed for how formative assessment can be a productive lever in transforming what is emphasized in chemistry.

How experienced chemistry teachers evaluate student thinking in chemistry

251st National Meeting (2016)

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