Jaimee Shearn 1.

Context The school that this class is taught in is part of Buffalo Grove High School in district 214 in the Northwest suburbs of Chicago. The class has approximately 25 students in it, and represents the greater school population which includes about 70% white students, 17% Hispanic, 8% Asian and 1% Black. The students in this classroom are of average academic standing for this high school. There are 2 students with A.D.H.D. and 1 student with moderate dyslexia who will have the test read aloud by a special education aid. The students have had a mixture of Advanced Placement classes and regular credit classes because it is required that each student take at least one A.P. class by this point. The class is a United States history course and follows one year of geography and another year of world history. Students demonstrate knowledge of basic US History and have a 100% passing rate on the first try of their constitution test. 2. Unit of Study The students in this US history course are of Junior standing. The unit that we would be working through for this assessment would be called Triumph and Turbulence: The Roaring 20s. This unit will look into both the victories and the struggles of the 20s and will range from topics of Womans rights to Prohibition and Mob Activity to Economic prosperity. Some enduring questions that will be addressed by this unit include: What changed (or stayed the same) during this period in terms of womans rights and place in society? How did prohibition affect society; what were the positive and negative consequences of prohibition? How did the introduction of credit and luxury goods affect daily life in the 20s? What lasting marks did the 20s make on American society (what do we still see today that may have originated in the 20s?) The following are learning objectives from lessons within this unit; both utilize Blooms Taxonomy and are designed to meet the Illinois Social Studies Standards for this level. 1) Students should be able to watch and analyze a scene from Boardwalk Empire (Edited) and other related movies, and evaluate its significance in representing various aspects of life in the 1920s (Organized Crime, Dancing/Nightlife, Womans rights, Family Life); this includes assessing its historical accuracy as well as possible biases or exaggerations. 2) Students will be able to define prohibition and use a variety of primary/secondary source materials to make inferences as to the cause of Prohibition and its effect on people and society. 3) Students will compare and contrast what they pictured the mafia, or organized crime as prior to this class, to what they now understand these institutions as. Helping my students meet these objectives would require a mixture of teaching approaches. Although lecture may be necessary to get some of the basic and factual information across, it will be laden with discussion and critical thinking questions. For the first objective, students will be required to read The Great Gatsby on their own, but will be engaged in group discussion and reflection during class time. Throughout the unit students will be required to keep a journal each day which will include A) One thing they learned that day, B) The most interesting thing they read or heard about, C) One question they still have about material addressed.

3. Assessment During Instruction (3.A.a; 3.A.c) For the following three multiple-choice questions, choose the best answer. There is only one correct answer for each question. 1. What is the name of the popular dance (we practiced it in class) that youth participated in during this time period? A. The Macarena B. The Madison C. The Waltz C. The Charleston 2. What was the main purpose of the Volstead Act? A. Allows women to vote in national elections B. Ends World War 1 and Assigns Reparations C. Enables the 18th amendment and enacts prohibition D. Ends prohibition and allows alcohol to be sold and consumed 3. Observe the following picture. Then, respond to the picture by A) Providing the nick name for girls dressed in this way in the 1920s B) Describing the significance of this style of dress, and what statement it made to society

A) Flapper B) This style of dress is significant because it is completely unconventional of women compared to recently pass years. Traditionally women were expected to wear modest, non-revealing clothing and do their hair and make up in a way that does not distract others or draw attention to them. This bold style

displayed by young women demonstrated a new sense of individuality and freedom, which empowered women to demand more equity in social situations and in the workplace. For this section of the test you will be asked to write a short answer in response to the follow two prompts. Each includes a number of questions, all of which need to be addressed in your answer. You will be graded on historical accuracy as well as grammar and punctuation. Each answer should be 5-10 sentences. 4. Please define prohibition in your own words. Why was this legislation so important in shaping the 1920s? Why do you think prohibition only last for four years? Prohibition began in 1919 when the national government put a ban on the selling, making, transporting and consumption of alcohol. This was a response to a number of factors including pressure from women temperance movements and the AntiSaloon League. This legislation was important because it led to changes in many parts of society such as the insurgence of organized crime and corrupt government, as well as a counter-culture of rebellion and immorality. Prohibition led to the creation of speak-easies which were underground (sometimes literally) saloons in which alcohol was manufactured and enjoyed by powerful, or just brave Americans. One reason I believe prohibition only lasted four years because of the danger that it created. I also think that because of the Great Depression, the government would want to make alcohol legal again in order to make more money off of taxes and tariffs. 5. In what ways has this class confirmed or challenged your perceptions of the Mafia and organized crime? Give at least one example of a misconception you had, and explain how it is actually different. This class revealed that I had a very incorrect idea of what organized crime is and what impact it has on society. I did not realize how closely tied the government and the criminals could be. For example in the scene of Boardwalk Empire when Al Capone is involved with the Treasurer of Atlantic City it is obvious that these two entities worked in cohesion sometimes, instead of just competition like it is usually made out to seem. Additionally, I always thought of mobsters as having no heart and just killing people for money and power, although they are brutally violent at times, this class allowed me to see the other side of them-the family-man side, that also has interest in protecting their wife and kids. Another thing that I used to think is that all mobsters were Italian or Sicilian, but I now know that organized crime can come from people of any ethnicity, such as the Irish, Russians, Jewish and Polish (to name a few).

Analysis of Items (3.A.b) Item 1: This item is associated with the first objective listed above which states: students will use scenes from Boardwalk Empire and other movies to understand life in the 1920s. This item only specifically addresses the students knowledge of the name of the popular dance, the Charleston, but would be valuable following a greater lesson plan that addresses the dance more specifically (and probably allows the students to try it themselves!) Item 2: This item is related to the second objective because it asks students to recall an important aspect of prohibition, the Volstead Act. This question would use knowledgebased thinking because it is mostly a matter of them remembering that it was the Volstead Act that enacted Prohibition. Item 3: This item is also related to the first objective, but would also be linked to the lecture/discussion that would be held in addition to these films. This item requires that students recall images of flappers as well as their significance in 1920s society. This item would fall under Comprehension because it asks them to recognize an example of something they learned about, as well as explain their place in society. Item 4: This item is linked to the second learning objective, which states that students should be able to define prohibition and make inferences about the cause/effect it had on society. While the first part falls under comprehension because it asks them to utilize information that they should have learned in class, the final part would be synthesis because it asks them to use their knowledge about the time period in addition to their outside knowledge and opinions to predict why prohibition ended when it did. Item 5: This item is directly linked to the third learning objective because it asks students to compare their previous perceptions of the mafia and organized crime to what they now understand about it. This would fall under evaluation under Blooms Taxonomy because it is asking students to critique as well as revise (or validate) their previous knowledge of the Mafia in comparison to what they learned in this class.

(3.A.d) I think that because this assessment is a mixture of both interpretive questions as well as knowledge-based questions it would allow all students a fair chance at success, and would evaluate the degree to which each objective is met for each individual student. Because the items are so directly related to objectives it is pretty obvious that the objectives will be met if students succeed on this test. I would have to make sure as a teacher that I did not spend all my time in class lecturing because a lot of these questions require higher order thinking, and reflection which cannot be taught just by listening to lecture. My class would have to represent the same mixture of knowledge and interpretation that is exemplified in my objectives and items. Because there are basic expectations for each question, it is assured that there will be a somewhat objective way to even the playing field, but the fact that students are able to add their own analysis and predictions makes the assessment more individualized which will be good for those students with special needs. (3.B) This activity will be given as a test at the end of a week spent on prohibition and its affects on society. Students would have approximately 30 minutes to complete this assessment, but would be allowed more time if needed in order to assure quality answers on the final two questions. The students would need to work independently because the activity will measure their comprehension of terms and ideas addressed In class, as well as address their own personal assumptions and predictions which would be hard to do in a group setting, and less affective. Students will be aware of the test as well as its value and the format of the questions at the beginning of the week. To study for the test the students will get a larger list of possible terms or topics that could be addressed by the activity so that they are encouraged to review most of the information covered that week. Student work would be evaluated outside of the classroom and returned and reviewed prior to moving on to the next topic to clear up any confusion or misunderstandings. For my student with dyslexia an aid will read the test after school, and the students with A.D.H.D. will be treated according to their 504 plans, which would presumably demand longer testing time, and a non-distracting seating arrangement. I would grade this assignment because it will allow me to keep track of whether my students are grasping the most important terms and themes. The grade will also be important in showing me what things I should be focusing more, or less on and will reward students for putting effort and thought into their responses. (3.C) My performance criteria are pretty obvious in the test because it gives specific requirements for each item. As far as the multiple choice questions go, it will demonstrate how well the students understand the definitions and names of various aspects of this time period. Although these questions may not directly address the learning objectives, they go deeper by using examples of important parts of prohibition and daily life which does prevent students from just memorizing definitions and allows me to see if they are applying the fact-based information to real life. The short answer questions that ask them to respond to a picture/question will more directly respond to the learning objectives, but

may create a little more grey-area in terms of whether a student truly grasps the concepts or not. BY requiring them to be at least 5 sentences I feel that students who are just making things up will have a harder time and it will be more obvious that they are just trying to fill space and do not actually have any original ideas to discuss. For the class my performance criteria would be a combination of these types of assessments (which would probably be used at the end of each week/topic), as well as in class discussion and activities. Participation would be a factor in students grades but will also allow me to see which of the students are understanding and applying the information and which need more work in this area.

(3.D) One thing that would make me reevaluate my assessment or teaching would be if a majority or large number of students got the multiple-choice questions wrong. Because these questions are fairly objective I would feel most students would be able to get them right, but if they dont there has to be a reason for this, which is probably my approach to instruction. My guess would be that I would have to make this more factual information more relevant to my students and find a more interesting way to get the point to them then just lecturing. Additionally if the students do not put much time or effort into the second two questions and are finished way before the allotted half hour time frame, I would try to spend more time with them on practicing the skills necessary to analyze and synthesize information in class so that they are able to form their own thoughts and relay them onto paper. 4. Self Reflection Probably the most important thing that I learned from making this assessment is how important yet difficult it is to create items that are truly representative of your learning objectives. As I was creating these assignments I often found myself reflecting on tests and activities I have had to do in the past for history classes, and how most of the multiple choice questions seem so random or unrelated. I do think that multiple-choice can easily be abused because it has a very limited amount of knowledge it can address and it does not invite students to use higher order thinking or evaluation. I do think that providing students with a bigger list of terms, people and themes to study off of is a very important way to get students to learn a lot of information but not necessarily have to be tested on it. Although some may argue that this just encourages students to use rote memorization to store all of the information in their brain for a short period of time, I think that combined with questions that allow them to use this information in a more practical way it will actually stick with them even after the complete the test. I would still say that the multiple choice questions are probably the hardest for me to create because it is so hard to make sure that they are relevant and not just testing for random knowledge. On the other hand I feel that I have had a lot of practice in creating and asking questions that allows students to use their personal experiences and interpretations

to analyze history so I think that the short answer questions in my assessment definitely were stronger than the others. I think when I was completing this I was mostly trying to avoid the things that my past teachers did that disengaged students in learning such as asking random questions that had never been talked about in class. I tried to keep the questions as closely related to learning objectives and enduring understandings as possible because I know that these would also direct my instruction so I would have a greater chance of having an assessment that is appropriate and fair for my students. Probably one of the hardest parts for me was making an assessment that was detailed enough to address a lot of information yet is only 5 items. If I was making an actual assessment I would probably need to include more than five items, or at least one or two extra multiple-choice items so that my students did not feel like they were studying SO much material only to use it for two questions.