(Vol. 1, No. 2 - Spring/Summer 1997)
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"The Flood of '97"
Jefferson County middle school reformers are urging teachers to design more
lessons around
district and state academic standards -- and to use "authentic"
or real-life assessments to help students connect what they are learning
to the world outside of school.
Curt Matter, an 8th grade social studies teacher at Highland Middle School,
seized upon a "teachable moment" in March 1997 when he developed
geographic, political, and economic lessons and assessments around the devastating
Flood of '97 which affected Louisville and other cities along the Ohio River.
Matter, a member of the JCPS middle school "teacher leader cadre,"
believes attention to standards and the use of authentic assessments can
help teachers move beyond predictable "cookie-cutter" work to
assignments that both engage students and teach important knowledge and
skills.
As a culmination activity for his unit on "The Flood of '97,"
Matter created an authentic assessment that required students to demonstrate
their grasp of of the flood-related geography, politics, and economics they'd
just finished studying.
CURT MATTER'S FLOOD PROJECT
The writing assignments
The standards underlying the assignment
Student guidelines
Scoring guide for "Letter from a Flood Victim"
Sample of student work
If you'd like to find out more about Curt Matter's project, including guidelines
and scoring criteria for each of his writing assignments, you can contact
him by postal mail at Highland Middle School, 1700 Norris Place, Louisville,
KY 40205.
FOR THE LIGHTER SIDE of authentic assessment . .
.