Science and engineering practices in secondary science

Abstract

This study investigated the effect of developing and using rubrics to assess students' abilities to plan and carry out investigations and engage in argument from evidence as defined by the Next Generation Science Standards. The intervention was carried out with a group of eighth-grade students in science and a high school physics class. A control group of similar eighth-grade students was also established in another class. Modest gains were seen with the eighth-grade intervention subgroup in a test of scientific reasoning skills, but the real value in the intervention was the ability for the assessment tools to communicate expectations for these practices.