Tier 1 Instructional Strategies To Improve K-4 Reading Comprehension
Category: Student Learning
Instrument Overview
Expert Notes AvailableView expert commentary on strengths and cautions for this instrument
Strengths
Uses both argument construction and argument evaluation tasks, allowing it to measure not only students’ ability to generate scientific arguments but also their ability to critically analyze and apply epistemic criteria to others’ arguments
Cautions
Relies on tasks and rubrics (e.g., scoring causal claims, evidence use, and justification), which may introduce subjectivity in scoring and limit comparability across studies or contexts.
This assessment consists of two complementary tasks designed to measure elementary students’ ability to construct and evaluate scientific arguments based on key epistemic criteria. The instrument targets four core components of argumentation: causal claims, coherence of explanations, use of evidence, and justification of how evidence supports claims.
The first task is an argument construction activity in which students analyze a scientific scenario and develop a written explanation. Students are provided with multiple sources of information and are asked to make claims, cite relevant evidence, and explain how that evidence supports their claims. Responses are scored using a rubric that evaluates the presence and quality of each component.
The second task is an argument evaluation activity in which students compare pairs of arguments that differ in specific features. Students select the stronger argument, identify the criterion that makes it better, and explain their reasoning.
Together, the assessment is designed to examine how students apply criteria for scientific argumentation in both generating and evaluating explanations.
Organization
Topic
Collection Category(ies)
Content
Grades
3rd Grade,
4th Grade
Languages
English
Respondent
Student
Administration Information
Length
20 mins; Argument construction task- 1 task (with 4 dimensions); Argument evaluation task- 8 items
Access and Use
Price
No fee
Psychometrics (additional guidance)
Item Type
Open response
