Overview

In this performance assessment, students will participate in an online discussion board. Specifically, students will be asked to take a stance, support their stance with evidence, and reflect on how their views changed or were confirmed based on evidence presented by others. 

Students may respond in a digital thread such as a Google Classroom response to a question, via a Google Doc discussion template, or another format as determined by the teacher. Final student work should be saved as an Acrobat PDF for uploading to the virtual scoring software. 

This assessment can be used at any time in grade 8. Students should have had instruction on how to appropriately respond to others, and/or the class should have developed a set of discussion norms appropriate to their topic and class. Students should also have had instruction on claims, evidence, and reasoning. Students will be asked to directly quote evidence from a text, so they will need to know how to cite in a standard format.  

It is recommended that students base their posts and responses off a text that has just been read and discussed as a class. Here are a few example texts, along with a discussion question that can be asked: 

  • Anne Frank’s The Diary of a Young Girl – In what ways did the media play a role in the public’s view of events happening during WWII? Does media play a similar role in our society today? Why or why not? 
  • George Orwell’s Animal Farm – What is the relationship between society and the individual in Animal Farm? Considering our world today, what role should an individual play in their society?  
  • Sherman Alexie’s The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian – How does Junior balance personal identity with the expectations of his society? Similarly, how do our own internal and external expectations impact our lives and the decisions we make? 
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Details

Big Ideas & Competencies

Big Ideas Competencies

D. Speaking and Listening

Students can listen effectively, present information appropriately to a variety of audiences, given the situation, and collaborate with peers.

D2

Students can actively participate in collaborative discussions and modify views based on evidence presented.

NOTE ABOUT ASSESSMENT RUBRICS

Below are analytic teacher rubrics. The column on the left shows the dimension that is being measured in the student’s performance. The levels across the top row indicate the performance level in the dimensions. Occasionally all dimensions and performance levels are exemplified by multiple students in a single recording.

Teacher Rubric

Dimensions Not Yet Meeting Expectations Meeting Expectations Exceeding Expectations

Discussion Post
  • Post responds to the question being asked but may be vague or off-topic. Claims are supported with evidence that is irrelevant, vague, or lacking. Evidence may be paraphrased rather than directly quoted. Post offers a perspective that repeats claim or there is no personal connection to the post. 
No exemplars at this time.
  • Post clearly responds to the question(s) being asked. Response is supported with directly quoted relevant evidence cited properly in a standard format. Claims and evidence are connected through reasoning. Post offers a clear perspective that allows for others to build. Post is appropriate and relevant to task.
No exemplars at this time.
  • Post clearly and succinctly responds to the question(s) being asked. Response is supported with directly quoted relevant evidence that is clearly connected through reasoning. Evidence is properly cited in a standard format. Post offers a unique perspective that allows for others to build. Post is appropriate and relevant to task.
No exemplars at this time.

Response to Peer
  • Response may address how the original post changed their view but may not build off the original post. Response provides additional examples or ideas that only confirm or disagree with the original post rather than building off the post with new ideas. 
No exemplars at this time.
  • Response addresses the ideas of the original poster and acknowledges how their views have been modified. Response builds from the post by offering a new idea that adds or shift the perspective. Response is appropriate and relevant to task. 
No exemplars at this time.
  • Response addresses the ideas of the original poster by acknowledging how their perspective has been impacted. Response builds from the post by offering a new idea that connects with a new perspective. Response is appropriate and relevant to task.
No exemplars at this time.

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