World War 1

At a Glance

Things You Need

Assessing Projects (CD)

Assessing Projects* (online)

• Essential Question:
  Why is there conflict?
• Focus Questions:
  Could the “war to end all wars” have been prevented?
  Is propaganda necessary? 
• Content Questions:
  What are the four M.A.I.N causes of World War I?
  What is propaganda

Assessment Plan
Assessment Timeline
This timeline shows in chronological order the different types of formal and informal assessments that occur during the project. The table below explains how each assessment is used and who uses it for what purpose.

Assessment Timeline

Before project work begins

Learners work on projects and complete tasks

After project work is completed




Brainstorming Discussion

Journals World Map

Newspaper Checklist and Rubric Map Anecdotal Observations Collaboration Self-Assessment Checklist Collaboration Peer Assessment Rubric Collaboration Reflection

Revised Map Journal Decision-Making Checklist WWI Journal and Letters Rubric Discussion Propaganda Presentation Checklist and Rubric Propaganda Presentation Peer Feedback Informal Interviews

Project Rubrics Final Essay Test Rubric

Final Reflection

Assessment	Process and Purpose of Assessment
Brainstorming	Learners brainstorm reasons why wars occur to demonstrate what they know about the topic and what misconceptions they may have. This information helps the teacher assess learners’ understanding and plan activities that meet learners’ needs.
Discussion	Frequently throughout the project, learners discuss relevant topics to activate background knowledge. Notes on learners’ contributions to the discussion are used to plan teaching and to provide individual and group feedback.
Journals	Learners write in their journals throughout the project to explore their thoughts on a variety of subjects. The information from these journal entries is used to provide individual and group feedback as learners work on their projects.
World Maps	Learners colour-code maps of the world identifying which countries participated in WWI and which side they were on. These maps help the teacher assess what learners know about the countries that participated in the war. Learners assess their own growth later in the project by making new maps and comparing these maps to the original ones.
Newspaper Checklist	Learners use this checklist to monitor their progress while conducting research and creating their newspapers.
Newspaper Rubric	This rubric is used by learners as they work on their newspapers to make sure their work is high quality and by teachers at the end of the project to assign grades to learners’ work.
Anecdotal Notes	The teacher observes learners as they are working on their newspapers and take notes on their understanding of the concepts they are studying and their collaboration skills. This information is used to prepare mini-lessons on collaboration and to organize teaching and learning on World War I.
Collaboration Self-Assessment Checklist	This checklist is used by individual learners throughout the newspaper project to self-assess their collaboration skills.
Collaboration Peer-Assessment Rubric	Learners use this rubric to assess the collaboration skills of their group members.
Collaboration Reflection	After creating the WWI newsletter with their groups, learners use their Collaboration Self-Assessment Checklist to reflect on how well they worked with others.
Group Meetings	The teacher meets briefly with each group to ask questions about their progress and make sure their checklists are accurate and up to date.
WWI Journal and Letters Rubric	Learners use these rubrics as they work on their journal or letters to make sure they are including all the necessary components and doing high-quality work. The rubrics are also used to assess the final product.
Propaganda Presentation Checklist	Learners use this checklist to monitor their progress as they are working on their presentations.
Propaganda Presentation Peer Feedback	This form is filled out by learners in a small group when the learners practice their presentations to give presenters information about how they can improve their presentations.
Propaganda Presentation Rubric	Learners use this rubric as they work on their presentations to make sure they are including all the necessary components and doing high-quality work. The teacher also uses this rubric to assess the final product.
Informal Interviews	As learners are working on their presentations, the teacher meets briefly with each learner to review the learner’s checklist and discuss progress on the project.
Final Essay Rubric	Learners use this rubric to organize their thoughts on the final essay question and to plan what they are going to write. It is also used to assess the final essay.
Reflection	In this end-of-project reflection, learners assess their own learning during the unit and set goals for future learning experiences. The teacher and learners use this information to track learning throughout the year.

Credits
Johanna Van Ness created the idea for this assessment plan. A team of teachers expanded the plan into the example you see here.