ATC21S and OECD PISA. Comparative approaches to the assessment of collaborative problem solving in Germany and Australia

Scientific Conference (2015, September)

Moving towards the assessment of collaborative problem solving skills with a tangible user interface

in Turkish Online Journal of Educational Technology (2014), 13(4), 95-104

The research on the assessment of collaborative problem solving (ColPS), as one crucial 21st Century Skill, is still in its beginnings. Using Tangible User Interfaces (TUI) for this purpose has only been ... [more ▼]

The research on the assessment of collaborative problem solving (ColPS), as one crucial 21st Century Skill, is still in its beginnings. Using Tangible User Interfaces (TUI) for this purpose has only been marginally investigated in technology-based assessment. Our first empirical studies focused on light-weight performance measurements, usability, user experience, and gesture analysis to increase our understanding of how people interact with TUI in an assessment context. In this paper we propose a research agenda for assessing ColPS of individuals using the Microworlds methodology implemented on TUIs. In a first example item, we use so-called Micro- DYN items, which are independent microworld scenarios that rely on structural linear equations as underlying model. As the MicroDYN approach has been thoroughly empirically investigated for the assessment of complex problem solving of individuals, it offers a good basis for a reliable and valid assessment. We describe how this approach was applied to create an assessment item for a collaborative setting. This item described in this paper implements a simplified model of a MicroDYN item related to climate change using knowledge of previous studies. Therefore, the focus of the item’s construction lies on meeting the requirements for a standardised high quality assessment. Finally, a research agenda is proposed to sketch the main research issues. [less ▲]

Collaborative problem solving. Concept, assessment, and first results.

Scientific Conference (2014, April 30)

Teacher evaluation of student ability: what roles do teacher gender, student gender, and their interaction play?

in Educational Research (2014)

Background: Recent decades have been marked by an extensive movement to analyze bias in people’s thinking, especially in gender-related issues. Studies have addressed the question of gender bias in ... [more ▼]

Background: Recent decades have been marked by an extensive movement to analyze bias in people’s thinking, especially in gender-related issues. Studies have addressed the question of gender bias in classrooms on different levels—the use of gender in books, learning opportunities determined by students’ gender, or teachers’ gender preferences. Purpose: In this study, we aim to answer the question of whether and under which circumstances the interaction between teacher gender and student gender positively or negatively influences teachers’ evaluations of students’ performance, while controlling for objective measures of students’ performance. For instance, it could be possible that a teacher with the same gender as a student evaluates the student as better than opposite-gender students, independent of their objective performance. Sample: The sample consisted of n > 1,500 Finnish 6th grade students (Mage= 12.67) and their respective class teachers. Design and methods: Students completed several academic skills tests, including a mathematical thinking test, reading comprehension test, and scientific reasoning test. Furthermore, teachers provided their evaluation of each student, evaluating students’ performance in different school subjects and answering questions regarding their probability of academic success. To test whether the teacher-student gender interaction had an effect on the criterion variable, i.e. teachers’ evaluation of the students’ performance, multilevel analyses accounting for between- and within-class effects were applied. Thereby, the effect of students’ objective performance on teachers’ evaluation of the students and main effects of gender were controlled for as covariates. Results: The main results indicated that the interaction between student and teacher gender did not influence teachers’ evaluation of the students. However, regardless of their gender, teachers tended to evaluate girls as better than boys in first language performance (i.e. Finnish language) and potential for success in school. Teacher gender did not influence the evaluation. Conclusions: The results of the study suggest that the interaction between teacher and student gender is unlikely to be a source of possible bias in the evaluations of students in the Finnish educational system. [less ▲]

Komplexe Problemlösekompetenz. Einfluss von Alter und Schulform

Scientific Conference (2013, September)

Geschlechterbias in der Bildung. Die Interaktion der Geschlechter als Ursache

Scientific Conference (2013, September)

Domain-Specific Problem Solving. Bringing Complex Problem Solving research to school.

Scientific Conference (2013, April 16)