Alternative Mathematics Assessment: A Case Study of the Development of Descriptive Problems for Elementary School in Korea

Min Kyeong Kim; Sunsook Noh

doi:10.12973/ejmste/75238

Full Text (PDF)

Min Kyeong Kim ¹ ^* , Sunsook Noh ¹

More Detail

¹ Ewha Womans University, Seoul, KOREA^* Corresponding Author

Abstract

A focus on mathematical understanding and problem solving in math education has developed a need to implement alternate ways of testing to better assess the students' understanding and problem solving skills. The seventh national school curriculum (MOE, 1997) for mathematics in Korea was revised to the current curriculum (MOEHRD, 2007) to emphasize alternative assessment methods and particularly the descriptive assessment method. However, the implementation process has been slow due to the lack of support to help teachers to prepare, develop and grade the new descriptive problems. In order to help teachers implement the new assessment framework, we carried out a study with students of grade 2, 4 and 6 to test and refine a framework for developing and grading descriptive problems. Analysis and comparison of the data showed that the grading rubric based assessment of the descriptive problems revealed useful information about the quality of problems and the level of understanding of the students. The study showed that a structured approach to descriptive problem assessment can be a powerful tool for improving math education in the elementary school.

Keywords

elementary school mathematics
mathematics assessment
descriptive mathematics problems
scoring rubrics

License

This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Article Type: Research Article

EURASIA J Math Sci Tech Ed, 2010, Volume 6, Issue 3, 173-186

https://doi.org/10.12973/ejmste/75238

Publication date: 21 Dec 2010

Article Views: 1524

Article Downloads: 696

Open Access References How to cite this article

References

Alberta Education of Canada (2006). Effective student assessment and evaluation in the classroom: Knowledge and skills and attributes. Edmonton, Alberta, Canada: Author. Availablefrom.
Bell, M., & Isaacs, A. (2007). The case of Every Mathematics. In C. R. Hirsch (Ed.), Perspectives on the design and development of school mathematics curricula (pp.9-22). Reston, VA: NCTM.
Cai, J., & Moyer, J. (2008). Developing algebraic thinking in earlier grades: Some insights from international comparative studies. In C. E. Greenes & R. Rubenstein (Eds.), Algebra and algebraic thinking in school mathematics: Seventieth yearbook (pp.169-180). Reston, VA: NCTM.
Cho, M. K., Kim, M. K., Kwon, J. R., & Noh, S. S. (2008). A study on the development of descriptive problems in grade 2 mathematics. The Journal of Elementary Education, 21(3), 437-466.
Gearhart, M., & Saxe, G. B. (2004). When teachers know what students know: Integrating mathematics assessment. Theory into Practice, 43(4), 304-313.
Herman, J. L., Aschbacher, P. R., & Winters, L. (1992). A practical guide to alternative assessment. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.
Hong, J. Y., Kim, M. K., Noh, S. S., & Kwon, J. R. (2008). A case study on the development of descriptive problems in grade 4 mathematics. Journal of Educational Research in Mathematics, 18(3), 335-352.
Hur, K., Baek, S., Park, K., Choi, M., Yang, G., & Kim, K. (1999). Status and recommendations for performance assessment policy (Research Report CRE-99-2). Seoul: Korea Institute of Curriculum & Evaluation.
Jeon, S. C. (2006). Comparison study between descriptive and multiple-choice problems in performance assessment: Focused on the results of the national standardized test in middle school mathematics. Unpublished master's thesis, Graduate School of Education, SungKyunKwan University, Seoul, Korea.
Kim, M. K., Kwon, J., R., Noh, S. S., Joo, Y. R., & You, H. J. (2008). A survey of the Teachers’ perception and the status about the descriptive evaluation in elementary school mathematics. School Mathematics (A Journal of Korea Society of Educational Studies in Mathematics), 10(3), 401- 422.
Kim, M. K., Noh, S. S., Kwon, J., R., Kim, E., & Joo, Y. R. (2008). Development of teachers’ resource for descriptive evaluation in grade 6 mathematics. Journal of the Korean School Mathematics Society, 11(4), 543-567.
Leatham, K. R., Lawrence, K., & Mewborne, D. S. (2005). Getting started with open-ended assessment. Teaching Children Mathematics, April, 413-419.
Lee, M., Sohn, W., & No, U. (2007). The results from PISA2006 (Research Report RRE 2007-1). Seoul: Korea Institute of Curriculum & Evaluation.
Martin, M. O., Mullis, I. V. S., & Chrostowski, S. J. (Eds.). (2004). TIMSS 2003 technical report. Chestnut Hill, MA: TIMSS & PIRLS International Study Center.
Ministry of Education of Korea (1997). The 7th national school curriculum for mathematics. Seoul: Author.
Ministry of Education and Human Resources Development of Korea (2007). The national school curriculum for mathematics. Seoul: Korea Institute of Curriculum and Evaluation.
Mullis, I. V. S., Martin, M. O., Smith, T. A., Garden, R. A., Gregory, K. D., Gonzalez, R. J., Chrostowski, S. J., & O'Connor, K. M. (2003). TIMSS assessment frameworks and specifications 2003. Chestnut Hill, MA: TIMSS & PIRLS International Study Center.
National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (1989). Curriculum and evaluation standards for school mathematics. Reston, VA: Author.
National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (1995). Assessment standards for school mathematics. Reston, VA: Author.
National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (2000). Principles and standards for school mathematics. Reston, VA: Author.
Noh, S., Kim, M. K., Cho, S., Jeong, Y., & Jeong, Y. (2008). A study of teachers’ perception and status about descriptive evaluation in secondary school mathematics. Journal of the Korean School Mathematics Society, 11(3), 377- 397.
Noh, S., Kim, Y. S., & Kim, M. K. (Eds.). (2003). Curriculum development for mathematics and information science in a knowledge based society. Seoul: Ewha Womans University Press.
Noh, Y. S., & Ryu, C. S. (2001). The effect of descriptive assessment as a performance assessment method: Focused on the grade 10 mathematics in high school. Journal of the Korean School Mathematics Society, 4(1), 125- 136.
O'Neil, H. F. Jr., & Brown, R. S. (1998). Differential effects of question formats in math assessment on metacognition and affect. Applied Measurement in Education, 11(4), 331-351.
Saul, M. (2008). Algebra: The mathematics and the pedagogy. In C. E. Greenes & R. Rubenstein (Eds.), Algebra and algebraic thinking in school mathematics: Seventieth yearbook (pp.63-79). Reston, VA: NCTM.
Seong, T. J. (2000). Challenges and recommendations for performance assessment in elementary school. The Journal of Educational Research, 38(1), 153-184.
Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education (2007). Development of elementary standardized test problems to improve learning quality (A text for the elementary teachers training program 2007). Seoul: Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education.
Stenmark, J. K. (1991). Mathematics assessment: myths, models, good questions, and practical suggestions. Reston, VA: NCTM.
Torrance, H. (2007). Assessment as learning? How the use of explicit learning objectives, assessment criteria and feedback in post-secondary education and training can come to dominate learning. Policy & Practice, 14(3), 281- 294.
Webb, M. & Jones, J. (2009). Exploring tensions in developing assessment for learning. Assessment in Education, 16(2), 165-184.
Whang, W. H. (2004). Mathematics assessment in Korea. Paper presented (by the Korean Presentation Team) at the Tenth International Congress on Mathematical Education, July 4-11, 2004, Copenhagen, Denmark. Available from <http://www.mathlove.com/new3/>.

How to cite this article

APA

Kim, M. K., & Noh, S. (2010). Alternative Mathematics Assessment: A Case Study of the Development of Descriptive Problems for Elementary School in Korea. Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 6(3), 173-186. https://doi.org/10.12973/ejmste/75238

Vancouver

Kim MK, Noh S. Alternative Mathematics Assessment: A Case Study of the Development of Descriptive Problems for Elementary School in Korea. EURASIA J Math Sci Tech Ed. 2010;6(3):173-86. https://doi.org/10.12973/ejmste/75238

AMA

Kim MK, Noh S. Alternative Mathematics Assessment: A Case Study of the Development of Descriptive Problems for Elementary School in Korea. EURASIA J Math Sci Tech Ed. 2010;6(3), 173-186. https://doi.org/10.12973/ejmste/75238

Chicago

Kim, Min Kyeong, and Sunsook Noh. "Alternative Mathematics Assessment: A Case Study of the Development of Descriptive Problems for Elementary School in Korea". Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education 2010 6 no. 3 (2010): 173-186. https://doi.org/10.12973/ejmste/75238

Harvard

Kim, M. K., and Noh, S. (2010). Alternative Mathematics Assessment: A Case Study of the Development of Descriptive Problems for Elementary School in Korea. Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 6(3), pp. 173-186. https://doi.org/10.12973/ejmste/75238

MLA

Kim, Min Kyeong et al. "Alternative Mathematics Assessment: A Case Study of the Development of Descriptive Problems for Elementary School in Korea". Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, vol. 6, no. 3, 2010, pp. 173-186. https://doi.org/10.12973/ejmste/75238