PRE-ASSESSMENT

GOAL:
The goal of this pre-assessment was to find out our student’s individual knowledge regarding
classifying triangles, angles, and lines of symmetry. We gave an informal assessment that
included a worksheet and whiteboards. As my co-teacher and I gave the assessment orally the
students were able to write their answers down on their whiteboards. We also conducted
individual interviews with each child. The goal was to get to know each child on a more personal
level and find out their individual feelings about math.

Skills/Topics/Concepts:
The students will be able to identify equilateral, isosceles, and scalene triangles by their sides
and identify right, acute, and obtuse triangles by their angles. They will also be able to identify
shapes that have no lines of symmetry, shapes with one line of symmetry, and shapes with
multiple lines of symmetry. Students will also have the opportunity to learn how to draw figures
with lines of symmetry.

Reliability, Validity, and Bias:

My co-teacher and I concluded that the pre-assessment we had given to the students was
primarily valid and un-bias. Each student was given the same questions and the same amount
of time to complete each of the questions. Factors that had led us to believe that our pre-
assessment may have been unreliable were levels of noise inside the classroom and two other
groups were giving pre-assessments as the time. It was also easy for those sitting next to each
other to share their answers. There was not one student who did not miss at least one question
due to the interviews taking place at the same time.

Administration Conditions:
The pre-assessment was administered on March 19th between 9 and 9:45 am at Lincoln
Elementary. My co-teacher and I had the children sit on the KEVA inside their classroom with
their white boards and markers. I began the oral given assessment by telling them the
question and then having them write their answers on their whiteboards. During this time, my
co-teacher took children out one by one into the hallway to interview them. She asked them 7
questions and gave them smiley face props to use to answer how they felt about math. After 5
assessment questions were asked, my partner and I switched roles. My co-teacher finished the
pre- assessment as I continued to conduct the interviews. Our content on the pre-assessment
ranged from easy to difficult. The assessment took the entire 45 minutes we had with our
group and we were not able to finish four of the interviews.
 Pre-Assessment Table
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Total
per
student
Emma 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 4
Rylie 0 1 1 1 * 0 1 0 1 6
Clay 1 1 .5 1 0 0 1 1 0 6’
.5
Max 1 * .5 1 0 0 0 1 0 4.5
Jack 0 1 1 1 0 * 1 1 0 6
Grace * * 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 3
Ace 1 1 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 7
Dallin 1 1 * * 0 0 0 1 * 4
Casey 0 1 1 0 1 0 1 1 0 4.5
Hailee 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 * 1 5
Claire 1 1 .5 1 0 0 * 0 0 4.5
Total Per 5 9 8.5 6 1 0 7 8 2
Item

*Students where in the interview portion and not present for question
 Pre-Assessment Graphs
*Graph removed to uphold confidentially

Item Analysis
10
How many students get the item correct

9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Item by number
 Interview Questions

1. What are your interests? What do you like to do?

2. How do you feel about math? No? Why?

3. What parts of math do you like? Ex. Subtraction,

multiplication? What parts do you not like?

4. How do you feel when you do not understand how to

do a math problem?

5. How do you feel if you do get the problem wrong?

6. Do you prefer completing math problems with partners

or in groups? Do that make you feel more confident?

7. Would you feel differently about math if it was taught

using your interests?

 Student Answers

Emma
1. Interests: Dancing, singing, sewing, playing with little sister, loves coloring, rollerblading, hiking and
playing with cousins.
2. I feel happy about math. Hard math challenges me. Easy math I get through it. (Used the smiley faces)
3. I like to do addition and time. I dislike doing division.
4. I feel in between when I do not understand a math problem. (Used smiley faces)
5. I feel in between when I get a problem wrong. (Used smiley faces)
6. I would like to learn math through music.

Grace
1. Interest: reading, writing, dancing, and horseback writing
2. I feel in between about math because the questions are sometimes easy to get and sometimes I am totally
blank.
3. I like to do addition. I dislike doing division.
4. I feel in between about problems I do not understand.
5. I feel in between when I get a problem wrong because I know I can learn it, but I feel bad that I got it
wrong.
6. 6. I prefer to work with a partner because they may know something you do not understand. Yes, I feel
more confident.
7. I would like to learn math through writing.

Dallin
1. Interest: video games, activities with friend.
2. I feel happy about math. It makes me feel smarter unless it is confusing.
3. I like to do addition. I dislike doing shapes and line plots
4. I feel in between when I don’t understand math and when I get an answer wrong.
5. I feel happy when I get question correct.
6. I prefer sometimes individually or in a group because when I don’t get it they do not help me. I do not
know about confidence.
7. I feel in between about learning math with my interest.

Rylie

1. Interest: Dogs, play outside, and play the game truth or dare.
2. I feel happy about math and like it. You will need to know math for jobs when you are older.
3. I like addition, multiplying, and division.
4. I feel confused but try to figure the problem out on my own. If I can’t than I will ask the teacher.
5. I feel happy when I understand a math problem.
6. I like doing math problems alone but if it’s a hard topic than in a group.
7. Yes, it would help a little but not really.

Jack
1. Interests: football, basketball, soccer, reading, and playing on the computer and Xbox.
2. I feel happy and I love math. My older sister taught me math.
3. I like multiplying and adding.
4. If I get a problem wrong, it’s okay because you have to learn from your mistakes.
5. When I get a problem right I feel happy.
6. I like working in partners and it makes me feel confident.
7. No
Claire
1. Interests: Reading and playing with siblings.
2. I feel happy about math and it helps you when you get older. I want to be a teacher because you can stay
inside for recess and help others.
3. I like all math because I can do hard things.
4. If I get a problem wrong than I try to understand more.
5. When I get a problem right I feel happy.
6. I like doing math in groups because they have the same feelings as you and can help them if they need
help.
7. I would be happy if you use my interests.

Hailee
1. Interests: Reading, playing outside, friends, and being with my family.
2. I feel in-between about math. Math is easy sometimes and sometimes hard and I don’t want to do it.
3. I like multiplication because it is easy and some fractions.
4. I feel fine and I will so better next time.
5. I feel good and happy if I get a math problem right.
6. I prefer partners or alone. A group has too many people.
7. Maybe

Ace
1. Interest: Building, eating, wrestling, and playing sports such as baseball and football.
2. I like math (visual examples)
3. I like to do time and fraction. I dislike nothing.
4. I feel good when I get answers wrong. I feel like I need to go back and figure out what I did wrong.
5. It depends on the math subject. If I do not have a good partner, I will do it alone.
6. Yes, it would be more exciting.

Max
1. Interest: sleeping, playing on the computer, playing video games, peace and quiet, and comics.
2. Math is easy.
3. I like to do every part of math. I dislike doing algebra.
4. I feel nothing when I do not understand math or get an answer wrong.
5. I would like to do math through coding.

Casey
1. Interest: Drawing, playing basketball, kicking soccer balls.
2. I love math.
3. I like to do every part of math.
4. I honestly do not know how I feel.
5. Depends on the people. If the people are not good, then I will do it myself.
6. I would like to do math on the computer or through painting.
 Pre-Assessment Reflection:
My co- teacher and I prepared our Pre-assessment according to standards in geometry and to the
curriculum given to us by the 4th grade teacher. We started our assessment with easier types of questions and
ended with more challenging ones. I began the assessment while my co-teacher took students individually out to
complete an interview. The students took their pre-assessment while sitting on a KEVA in their classroom. I
read the questions orally as the children answered them on their individual white boards. This became an issue
because they started to look at each other’s white boards as I was recording the answers. No matter how many
times I would remind them not to share answers with one another they still did. The students shouted out the
answers to the questions when they were finished with them. A few of the students even waited for others to
answer the question first. The students also talked to those sitting around them in between the problems being
given. It was difficult to get them to stop talking between the questions. When they were done answering a
certain question they would begin to draw pictures with their markers. This wouldn’t have been a problem if
they erased the pictures they had drawn the first time they were asked too. My partner and I thought giving a
test on white boards would be more fun than on a piece of paper. We did not think beforehand if we should
have spread them out or sat them in desks instead. A benefit of giving the pre-assessment on white boards is the
students didn’t feel as if they were taking a test. After I had administered the first five questions of the post-
assessment my partner and I switched and I conducted a few interviews. We both wanted experience in both
areas so we decided to take turns. I interviewed four of the students during the remainder of the time we had left
at the school. Completing interviews allowed for me to get to know a few of the students one and one and to
understand their feelings about math. My partner and I gained insights that we would have never known if we
had just given a pre-assessment to teach of the fourth graders.