Written Curriculum Step 6: Planning Summative Assessments

This post will look at the process of planning a summative assessment which reflects the statement of inquiry (step 4), the objectives (step 5) and assesses relevant content (step 2) from the unit. We will do this by looking at some of our work in progress MYP1 units.

As there has already been a whole series on assessments, please refer to previous posts to read more about:

- The fundamentals of summative assessment

- Writing criteria A assessments

- Writing criteria B assessments

- Writing criteria C assessments

- Writing criteria D assessments

- Websites to inspire assessment ideas

For criterion A (knowing and understanding), start thinking about what content will be assessed at each level (simple and familiar, more complex and familiar, challenging and familiar, challenging and unfamiliar).

For criterion B (investigating patterns), note what relationship(s) they will be investigating. For the younger years, you will need to scaffold this investigation. In the older years, ensure you choose a relationship that can be justified or proven.

For criterion C (communicating), ensure the task allows student to use key vocabulary, different forms of representation and the opportunity for students to structure their work in their own way.

For criterion D (applying mathematics to real life contexts), provide an authentic scenario where students need to identify relevant information to solve a given problem, and ensure that it results in a solution which can be critiqued and reflected upon.

Unit 1

SOI: Individuals can present information about themselves in a logical way.

Content: factors, multiple, prime, powers, roots, negative numbers, order of operations, divisibility rules, flowcharts

Objectives: A, C

Summative:

Criteria A (unit test) - (1-2) identifying factors, multiples, primes, (3-4) finding HCF and LCM with prime factor decomposition (5-6) negative numbers and BIDMAS using powers and roots (7-8) HCF and LCM of 3 numbers, identifying where the brackets should go to make a calculation true…

Criteria C (instructional diagram) - watch a muted video of a mathematical algorithm or trick taking place (e.g. https://nrich.maths.org/11014). Then communicate the method using a correct flowchart (symbols, and order). Check their flowchart works by inputting their own starting value.

Unit 2

SOI: Equivalent tools can be used to show the relationship between different areas within a business.

Content: fractions, decimals, percentages

Objectives: D

Summative:

Criteria D (calculate a financial quote) - students read an email between a supplier and a business. They then solve a problem involving fractions (proportion of business) decimals (money and exchange rates) and percentages (discount, tax) to provide a quote.

Unit 3 -

SOI: The forms found in man-made landscapes can be observed and generalized.

Content: angle facts (interior and exterior of a polygon, parallel lines and transversal).

Objectives: B, Ci

Summative:

B, C (investigation) - students identify missing angles stating reasons (Ci - key vocabulary) using knowledge of angles in a straight line, around a point, vertically opposite, alternate, corresponding etc. These angles are used to investigate the sum of exterior angles for any polygon (5-6) and the exterior angle theorem for a triangle (7-8).

Unit 4 -

SOI: Modelling plans for the sustainable development goals can enable us to make logical changes.

Content: simplifying terms, forming expressions, solving equations, substitution into formulae

Objectives: A

Summative:

Criteria A (end of unit test) - (1-2) matching worded statements to expressions, substitution (3-4) simplifying expressions with the four operations, one step equations (5-6) forming and solving equations (7-8) finding the value of the variable when the output is given, inputting that variable into a different formulae.

Unit 5 -

SOI: Sustainable designs which optimise space can be formed using approximations.

Content: perimeter, area, volume, circles

Objectives: B, C, D

Summative:

Criteria B - (investigation) explore how the perimeter of a pattern develops depending on which regular polygon started it.

Criteria C and D - (designing a product) students have to measure dimensions of a chocolate box (cuboid) and asked to redesign a cylindrical container with the same volume but smaller surface area.

A possible planning timeline would be:

- Start of the year: decide which objectives will be assessed for each unit (ensure that each one is addressed at least twice).

- Start of the unit: have an idea of the summative assessment to the level shown in this post.

- Throughout the unit: draft and refine the summative. Respond to the direction the unit's inquiry takes you and make tweaks. Ask for feedback from your department colleagues and MYP coordinator.