Mathematics Dynamic Assessment

Abstract

Ms. Carlisi teaches middle school mathematics for students who were retained at least 1 year and who were identified as at risk of failure in mathematics. About half of her class of 14 students has identified learning disabilities and/or emotional and behavioral difficulties. Ms. Carlisi worries constantly that she is not going to be able to help them “catch up” by the time they take the mandated state high-stakes standardized assessment. Ms. Carlisi knows her students need to build proficiency in fractions. Her students continue to demonstrate difficulties despite previous instruction. She decides to use Mathematics Dynamic Assessment (MDA) to help her students. MDA is an informal mathematics assessment process that integrates four research-supported assessment practices for struggling learners: Assessment of students' interests and experiences. Concrete-representational-abstract assessment within authentic contexts. Error pattern analyses. Flexible interviews. The MDA process provides teachers with important information about what students do and do not understand about foundational mathematics concepts, students' levels of understanding and abilities to express their understandings, and where students are in the learning sequence (frustration, instructional, mastery). The data collected through the MDA process provide teachers with an in-depth evaluation of their students' mathematical understandings and thinking that allows teachers to plan their instruction to address students' specific mathematical learning needs. Ms. Carlisi structures an MDA in the area of fractions with an emphasis on comparing fractions, an area in which her students demonstrate difficulty.

Students’ perceptions of STEM learning after participating in a summer informal learning experience

“…Informal STEM learning environments are naturally composed in a way to promote learning through real-world modeling and examples (Martin 2004; Meredith 2010; Popovic and Lederman 2015). Informal STEM learning environments also help students understand concepts and their ability to recall information (Allsopp et al 2007; Popovic and Lederman 2015). Participation in short-term STEM summer experiences (Bell et al 2009; Kitchen et al 2018; King 2017; Mohr-Schroeder et al 2014) or other long-term informal STEM programs (After-School Alliance 2011; Baran et al 2016; Barker et al 2014; Klanderman et al 2013; Massey and Lewis 2011) have been shown to increase students’ interest in STEM.…”

Prime Online: Exploring Teacher Professional Development for Creating Inclusive Elementary Mathematics Classrooms

“…Foundations of curriculum-based measurement, instructional decision making, and other assessment practices (e.g., Allsopp et al, 2008; Fuchs, Hamlett, & Fuchs, 1999)…”

Dynamic maths interviews to identify educational needs of students showing low math achievement

“…To successfully understand the educational needs of low maths achievers, teachers need insight into their mathematical performance, thinking, understanding, and beliefs (Deunk et al 2018). However, current maths assessment is dominated by standardised, norm-referenced testing with its focus on the products of student learning as opposed to requisite maths solving strategies, underlying thought processes, learning potential, and maths-related beliefs and emotions (Allsopp et al 2008). A promising alternative is the use of the dynamic maths interview (hereafter, DMI): a flexible, process-oriented, semi-structured assessment approach that can help identify the specific educational needs of students and particularly those with low maths achievement (Wright, Martland, and Stafford 2006;Van Luit 2019).…”

“…In the present study, we implemented a DMI within the context of inclusive maths learning in order to better identify students' maths needs (Allsopp et al 2008;Ginsberg 1997;Ginsburg 2009).…”