Development and Validation of Technology-Based Assessments for Early Elementary Science Learning

Overview

Assessing young students’ learning is fundamental to CAESART, but few high-quality assessments are available for early elementary students. To that end, we will conduct two measurement studies to research, develop, test, and validate two new technology-based approaches to science learning assessment, one adaptive and one game-based.
The adaptive assessment will measure learning in life science, physical science, earth science, and space science, with additional items on technology and engineering.
The game-based performance assessment will examine learning through tasks that reflect Next Generation Science Standards for physical science and demonstrate how elementary students apply science concepts in real-world scenarios.

Both these assessments will be tested at scale in an impact study that will examine how an integrated science-and-literacy curriculum affects student learning.

Purpose and Research Questions

Purpose:

To develop and validate technology-based assessments that measure young children’s science learning.

Research Questions

RQ1: Are each of the technology-based assessments simple to administer?

RQ2: Do the assessments accurately measure young children’s science learning?

RQ3: Can the assessments be used at scale to measure the effectiveness of a technology-based integrated science-and-literacy curriculum, especially under varying implementation conditions?

Background

Few high-quality assessments exist for measuring young children’s science learning, and even fewer have been validated for technology-based administration. We will research, develop, test, and validate new assessment tools to meet the needs of researchers and educators teaching science to early elementary students.

Study Design and Methods

The first assessment will expand an existing item response theory based preschool science assessment called Lens on Science (Lens). We will expand Lens to assess children’s physical and life science learning in kindergarten, grade 1, and grade 2.

Lens will be a technology-delivered, adaptive assessment with items tailored to each student’s ability level and to young children’s limited attention spans.

The second assessment will use game-based performance to measure children’s science learning through open-ended tasks with multiple solutions. Students’ interactions with the technology and their behaviors in the tasks will be used to evaluate their reasoning behind their solutions.

CAESART will develop and validate two new technology-based assessments of early elementary students’ science learning in a variety of domains. A key priority in development is that the assessments be fair and accessible, providing accurate measurements of science understanding for all students.

Outcomes

The measurements study will result in two validated, technology-based assessments for testing young children’s science learning.

Timeline

We expect the Lens assessment to be developed and tested by May 2027 and the game-based assessment to be completed and validated by September 2028.

Research Team