SERVICE TESTS FOR CHEMISTRY<sup>1</sup>

Hendricks, B. Clifford; Smith, Otto M.

doi:10.1111/j.1949-8594.1935.tb10884.x

Cited by 1 publication

(6 citation statements)

References 0 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…However, the belief that science is defined by a set of practices has been emerging over the past 60 years, 1,47 and the concepts of scientific thinking and skills date back even further. 17,18 Early ACS exam leaders and writers specifically advocated the necessity of curricula and tests that helped students develop essential scientific skills and ways of thinking. 17−22 An investigation of historical ACS exams identified specific item formats that helped accomplish the measurement of practices.…”

Section: ■ Summarymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…9 By the 1930s and 1940s, it was obvious that Smith and his ACS Exams committee colleagues were also interested in the implementation of scientific skills and thinking within both teaching and assessment. 11,17−21 In 1935, Hendricks and Smith 17 (members of the early ACS exam committees) further advocated for the teaching objectives self-reported by 200 instructors, which included understanding the natural world, recognizing cause and effect, drawing generalizations from experimental data, gaining proficiency in the scientific method of thinking, and developing the ability to apply chemical principles. In this article the authors describe:…”

Section: Relevant History Of Science Educationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…As is true for most nationally normed tests, the ACS exams released within the past decade have been composed of MC questions. However, traditional MC formats were not the most commonly used item format for early ACS exams, and these historical tests arose at a time when many of the ACS exam committee members were advocating for the implementation of scientific skills and thinking. ,− …”

Section: Science Practices In Testingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…These efforts included arguments for the adoption of the laboratory as a vital component of the chemistry curriculum . By the 1930s and 1940s, it was obvious that Smith and his ACS Exams committee colleagues were also interested in the implementation of scientific skills and thinking within both teaching and assessment. ,− In 1935, Hendricks and Smith (members of the early ACS exam committees) further advocated for the teaching objectives self-reported by 200 instructors, which included understanding the natural world, recognizing cause and effect, drawing generalizations from experimental data, gaining proficiency in the scientific method of thinking, and developing the ability to apply chemical principles. In this article the authors describe:If these are some of our objectives how well have we succeeded in teaching our students the significance of cause and effect, or the ability to generalize or skills as scientific thinkers ?…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…More recently, the ACS-EI has engaged in survey research of the chemistry education community that has revealed key trends in the interests of chemistry educators. − In particular, this work has found that instruction that goes beyond chemistry content (i.e., noncontent goals) is important to instructors . The combination of current interest of chemistry educators, policy statements such as the NRC Framework, the NGSS, and archival efforts of pioneers in chemistry education − provides an enlightening way to consider how multiple-choice (MC) items might be redefined to be capable of measuring science practices more reliably.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 4 more Smart Citations

A Historical Investigation into Item Formats of ACS Exams and Their Relationships to Science Practices

2015

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The release of the NRC Framework for K-12 Science Education and the Next Generation Science Standards has important implications for classroom teaching and assessment. Of particular interest is the implementation of science practices in the chemistry classroom, and the definitions established by the NRC makes these objectives much more tangible. However, this still may leave some wondering about how to begin making these changes. Mid-twentieth century chemical educators and pioneers of the first ACS exams advocated for testing science thinking and skills as early as the 1930s, and this necessitates a discussion about how early ACS exams measured these attributes. More recent debates have seen arguments that multiple-choice questions cannot measure high levels of cognitive ability in chemistry, which leaves questions about how ACS exams or instructors who write tests for large scale classrooms might try to measure science practices. The possibility that an analysis of the item formats used on ACS exams from 1934 to 1970 would help inform the creation of improved item types in testing today is investigated and presented here. Of particular interest is the implementation of science practices in the chemistry classroom, and the definitions established by the NRC makes these objectives much more tangible. However, this still may leave some wondering about how to begin making these changes. Mid-twentieth century chemical educators and pioneers of the first ACS exams advocated for testing science thinking and skills as early as the 1930s, and this necessitates a discussion about how early ACS exams measured these attributes. More recent debates have seen arguments that multiple-choice questions cannot measure high levels of cognitive ability in chemistry, which leaves questions about how ACS exams or instructors who write tests for large scale classrooms might try to measure science practices. The possibility that an analysis of the item formats used on ACS exams from 1934 to 1970 would help inform the creation of improved item types in testing today is investigated and presented here.

show abstract

Section: ■ Summarymentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Relevant History Of Science Educationmentioning

confidence: 99%