ASSESSING AFFECTIVE OUTCOMES IN ADVENTURE PROGRAMMING

Matthew CummiskeyJohn G. HelionWest Chester University of PA

Q&A Why is assessing these important in both

school and community based adventure programs?

What are you doing presently to assess?

Rationale PE National Standards

Standard 5: Exhibits responsible personal and social behavior that respects self and others in physical activity settings.

Standard 6: Values physical activity for health, enjoyment, challenge, self-expression, and/or social interaction.

“Titanic Thinking”

Identifying the Soft Skills

What are some “soft skills” that can be assessed? Teamwork Cooperation Communication Problem Solving Conflict Resolution Responsibility Trust Others

Types of Assessments

Checklists

Use Checklists When: There is only one

correct method, little or no shades of gray.

Usually more simplistic items being measured (brake hand never leaves rope)

Rating Scales Used when the product can be broken

into discreet process parts that affect product

Qualitative, Always, Sometimes, Never Rating between scorers can be

inconsistent/unreliable Example – correctly reading compass

bearings Quantitative

4 times, 3 times etc. Example – correctly tie a retraced figure 8

all the time v. one error v. two errors etc.

Analytic Rubrics A rubric is a scale of

criteria that indicates and identifies levels of performance belay technique

What most people think of

Difficult to create but once in “can” yours forever

Improved validity/reliability issues when used to grade

Analytic Rubric Basics Shared with Ss as the unit or project is

explained Encourage Ss to read prior to the assessment so

they know how they will be evaluated There are millions of rubrics on the internet Easier to find one and modify it than write your

own Different aspects of a rubric can be “weighted”

to reflect importance of the various

Reliability of Analytic Rubrics

Reliability: Will the assessment measure learning consistently regardless of who is doing the assessing?

Avoid use of “qualifier” words

Steps in writing a rubric1. Envision the desired student performance

Setting up an adventure activity (spider web, wild woozy etc.)

2. Determine the number of scoring columns Proficient, developing, basic & below basic 5, 4, 3 or 2 – why is the # of columns important? Assign “weights” to each row (criteria)3. Complete the cells Describe performance in detail, focus on quality and not quantity Limit # of threads to 2 or 3 per row4. Use with students and revise Multi-trait rubric Character development rubric (elem PE)

Selecting Rubric Items/Criteria If you were developing a rubric for 12th

graders or a community group climbing on the rock wall, what items would you select? (aka...what goes in the left column)

1. Teamwork2. Group Focus3. Support4. Perseverance5. Prep Work

Group Work Develop a rubric

for climbing a rock wall Example

Scoring Avoid having a rubric printed for every

participant, instead develop a scoring grid for everyone and refer to one printed rubric. Data table for rubric shown earlier Assume everyone gets full credit unless

indicated Vary the number of skills assessed based upon

the activity, number of students and complexity of the assessment The data table above would take multiple days to

complete

Finding Assessments Computer Searches

Google.com Ask.com Yahoo.com

Descriptors General

Rubrics – Thousands of hits Specific

Teamwork Rubrics Cooperation Rubrics

Be selective – There are many options

Individual Affective Rubrics Level of involvement 1, 2 Oral communication

When developing individual affective rubrics, often best to consider its definition and work backwards from there.

Teamwork

Joint action by a group of people, in which individual interests are subordinated to group unity and efficiency; coordinated effort From teacher glossary

Cooperation Co-operation refers to the practice of

people or greater entities working in common with commonly agreed-upon goals and possibly methods, instead of working separately in competition. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cooperation

Communication The transmission of information so that

the recipient understands what the sender intends.www.welcom.com/content.cfm

The successful transmission of information through a common system of symbols, signs, behavior, speech, writing, or signals.www.doe.mass.edu/frameworks/scitech/2001/resources/glossary.html

Problem Solving A systematic approach utilizing multiple

perspectives to uncover the issues related to a particular problem, design an intervention plan, and evaluate the outcome.rrtcpbs.fmhi.usf.edu/rrtcpbsweb/glossary.htm

The act of defining a problem; determining the cause of the problem; identifying, prioritizing and selecting alternatives for a solution; and implementing a solution.www.onesixsigma.com/tools_resources/glossary/glossary_p.php

Conflict Resolution Conflict resolution is the process of

resolving a dispute or a conflict, by providing each side's needs, and adequately addressing their interests so that they are satisfied with the outcome. Conflict resolution aims to end conflicts before they start or lead to physical fighting. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conflict_resolution

Trust

Firm reliance on the integrity, ability, or character of a person or thing. Custody; care.www.answers.com/topic/trust

Qualitative Analysis Ask students an open-ended question

that requires a written response. For example, “What did you learn today that helped you grow as a person.” Or use several open-ended question relating to different topics: “How did you improve your teamwork from today’s activities.” “Describe what may have changed about the group as a result of today’s activities.”

Qualitative Group all of the responses from each open-ended questions

together but separate by question. Next read all the responses and look for themes (ideas that reoccur), write down the themes separately. You may have subthemes under the major themes. Next, re-read all the responses and tally each time a theme (or subtheme if you have them) is present. You will begin to notice patterns in the data which can be represented numerically. For example, you may find that “building rapport” is the most common theme mentioned 126 times, next is “communicating ones ideas” mentioned 89 times and so. Create an exhaustive list (you may have 10, 20, 30 themes) along with a tally number for each. Finally, discuss what the data means and use quotations to underscore the points you are making. For more information look online, this method is called the “constant comparison method.”

Parting Thoughts Time is a commodity

Assessment doesn’t have to be cumbersome Put in the time to improve your

instruction/program Millions of words are put in the internet

every day, don’t need to reinvented the wheel

Start small and ramp up over time

E-mail Address Matthew Cummiskey

mcummiskey@wcupa.edu John Helion

jhelion@wcupa.edu

Materials available at: http://thenewPE.com (click conference presentations link)

Thanks for coming. Enjoy the rest of the conference!