Assessment Critique of Summative Nutrition Assessment

Key 1: Assessment serves a clear and appropriate purpose. Did the author specify users and uses,
and are these appropriate?
The Summative Nutrition Assessment (Nutrition Test) itself does not list users or use with the
exception of the title Summative Nutrition Assessment. It is therefore, not clear if the
assessment would be used to inform future instruction or if it merely an assessment of learning
over a unit at a given point in time. That being said, how the assessment fits into a
comprehensive plan may be implied given the name summative. According to the
Assessment Critique Rubric, this assessment would fall between a rating of one and three. (See
Appendix C).
Rating: As written, I would therefore give this assessment a 2 on the trait of purposes, where 1
is low and 5 is high.

Key 2: Assessment reflects valued achievement targets. Has the developer clearly specified the
achievement targets to be reflected in the exercises? Do these represent important learning
outcomes?
I know this particular Nutrition Test is used in conjunction with an Animal Nutrition Skills Sheet
(Skills Sheet), shown in Appendix B, given at the start of the Nutrition Unit and used again at the
conclusion of the Unit. In looking at the assessment itself, however, it is not apparent how each
question, or sets of questions, are connected to district or state standards. Being familiar with
our Connecticut Career and Technical Education (CTE) standards and our Connecticut
Agriculture Food and Natural Resource (AFNR) standards, I can see sections of the Nutrition
Test reflect these standards; the first two pages, for example, support CTE standard CTAS.04.01.01.a. Compare and contrast common types of feedstuffs and the roles they play in the
diets of animals. Without knowing the categories of nutrients, students would be unable to
compare and contrast the feedstuffs used in balancing animal diets and analyzing different brands
of dog and cat food. This is important for the teacher to know moving forward to the second half
of the Nutrition Unit as students will be completing higher order thinking projects. But, looking
strictly at the Nutrition Test, the viewer cannot see or know these connections.
Additionally, it is unclear, or little evidence of, how the targets in the current assessment fit into
the overall plan for assessing all important targets over the year. Again, without the Skills Sheet
being incorporated into the Nutrition Test, the big picture is not easily seen by the viewer.
Rating: Although targets may be clear to those familiar with the standards, there is little
apparent connection to district or state standards and a bigger picture of how targets fit in over
the year or unit is not easily seen. I would therefore give it a 1 on a scale of 15, where 1 is
low and 5 is high.

Key 3: Design. Does the selection of the method make sense given the goals and purposes? Is
sampling appropriate to get a good estimate of student learning? Is there anything in the
assessment that might lead to misleading results?
Choosing the Best Method. There is variety of questions throughout the Nutrition Test.
Selected Response questions are utilized not only as knowledge targets, indicate the proper
names for each type of teeth, but also for reasoning, The ruminant differs from the monogastric
most because:. Written Response is also utilized asking students to reason, Why (are VFAs)
important to ruminants and modified monogastrics? and What are the differences between a
modified monogastric and a ruminant? Please be specific and include specific details to support
the differences you list.
Sampling. There may be too many tasks to get an efficient estimate of student learning. As
mentioned previously in Key 2, the assessment may reflect learning of some targets not stated.
This is because the learning targets are not presented anywhere on the Nutrition Test.
Writing Questions. Generally speaking the questions as written are sound. For example, short
answer Written Response number 26, What are the differences between a modified
monogastric and a ruminant? Please be specific and include specific details to support the
differences you list. That being said, some of the Written Responses could be more clearly
written to avoid vagueness or confusion to the viewer/ taker. Take Written Response number 27
Full Essay Response: Discuss, in detail, the differences and/ or similarities between a
monogastric and ruminant digestive tract. What does each part of the digestive tract do:
mastication? Digestion? Absorption? Be specific. Be sure to describe the route food takes from
the mouth through the anus for BOTH systems. You may draw pictures (if you label them) or
make flow charts, venn diagrams, etc. Remember to be thorough and complete to earn full
points. Use extra paper if needed. The fact it is called a Full Essay Response implies that it
must be written in an essay format, but as you read through the instructions, the taker may be
confused as to if they are to draw a picture or Venn diagram. This would be an easy change to
add clarity and help prevent bias as well.
Sources of Bias. The Nutrition Test is not designed to accommodate all student learners. That
being said, it is possible, based on the tests design, to alter or simplify wording so that
accommodations for diverse learners could be met.
Rating: I give this assessment a 3 on the trait of design. The overall quality of the test
questions is solid and with slight modifications to the question writing, the assessment may be
improved.

Key 4: Communication. Is it clear how this assessment helps communication with others about
student achievement?

The author has not clarified specified plans for communication however, it can be implied that,
as a summative assessment, the teacher would merely [go] over the assignment with students in
the whole group with no targeted reteaching. Communication to parents would be limited to
parent ability to get online at any point in time to review the teachers gradebook. Students and
parents would have access to the results posted in the gradebook. Because I use this Nutrition
Test in my class, I know that students are given feedback throughout the document, especially
the Written Response questions, however that information would not be known to the test taker
unless mentioned before taking the test.
Rating: As presented, I would rate this assessment a 3 on the trait of communication.

Key 5: Student Involvement. Is it clear how students are involved in the assessment as a way to
help them understand achievement targets, practice hitting those targets, see themselves growing
in their achievement, and communicate with others about their success as learners?
The Nutrition Test does not mention using the assessment materials or results in a way that
promotes student self-assessment. Again, when used with the Skills Sheet, students would be
able to reflect upon the skills their Nutrition Test showed they completed, however, the Nutrition
Test as a stand-alone document does not do this. Furthermore, there is no stated connection to
promoting learning and it is not clear how this assessment is part of a student-involvement
plan that unfolds over time. If a student does not perform well, for any number of reasons, it is
also possible that The assessment might have negative effects on student learning or end up
judging oneself a failure. For this reason, I cannot score this Nutrition Test above a 1 on the
Assessment Quality Rubric.
Rating: I give this assessment a 1 on the trait of student involvement.

Overall Judgment:
Although not quite a full balance of strengths and weaknesses, there are definite points of
promise and room for improvements. Keys 3 and 4 support a middle of the road rating for design
and communication. With minor adjustments the Nutrition Test could be 5s for both of these
keys. If the author included the targets and/or referenced the Skills Sheet in some capacity, Keys
1, 2, and 5 would rate much higher. That would give better insight into how this assessment fits
into the big picture, and how students are involved or invested in what they are being assessed.
Overall this assessment recieves a 2 on a scale of 1-5, where 1 is weak and 5 is strong.

Appendix A: Summative Nutrition Assessment

Appendix B: Skills and Standards Sheet

Appendix C: Completed Assessment Quality Rubric