written assignments can be used to assess students’ ability to listen to, analyze, and respond to music, as well as their ability to compose, arrange, and notate music. Worksheets typically are formative in nature, although they could be used to provide summative data. Written assignments may be either formative or summative.
Measuring Knowledge Most of what we want our choir
students to know can be categorized as either factual knowledge or procedural “how to” knowledge. Knowledge of musical terms, symbols, forms, genres, and certain compositional techniques such as text painting or points of imitation are examples of factual knowledge. Typically procedural knowledge requires students to follow an ordered sequence of steps to achieve a specific task. Knowing how to warm-up one’s voice, enter and exit the stage, build a major scale or find ‘do’ from the key signature are examples of procedural knowledge. Knowledge, either factual or
procedural, can be easily measured using pencil and paper quizzes, worksheets or tests. In general, measuring this type of knowledge requires students to name, list, identify, define, or describe targeted terms or procedures. Written work that asks students to label musical symbols, match definitions to musical terms or list steps sequentially for a specific task can be easily incorporated into weekly assessments that are easy to grade and provide an objective measure of students’ factual or procedural knowledge. As with any assessment it is
important to be clear about what it is that is actually being measured. The assessments mentioned in the previous paragraph represent lower level thinking skills. Tasks requiring students to name, list, categorize, define, or order information fall within the first two tiers of Bloom’s taxonomy of cognition: basic knowledge and comprehension where students are expected to recall information and explain it in their own words (Ormrod, 1999). This knowledge is a prerequisite for developing higher order thinking skills, which in turn can lead to deep, mindful understanding of a particular subject or topic.
Measuring Understanding Measuring students’ understanding
is a more complex endeavor. Concepts, principles, and big picture ideas develop over time and as a result of multiple interactions with the information to be understood while connections among or between concepts often require repeated iterations in order to strengthen underlying principles. Examples of big picture ideas might include things like understanding how melodies and rhythms contribute to aesthetic response or understanding how the elements of time, space and energy comprise fundamental principles of music and dance. Understanding, like thinking, is a
covert phenomenon unlike skills, which are overt, observable behaviors or actions. Teachers must work harder to tease out students’ understanding. Asking questions, engaging students in problem-solving activities and meaningful, long-term projects are strategies teachers may use to assess students’ perceptions. Of these strategies, asking questions
is probably the easiest to use. However, it is important to ask the right questions. Divergent questions provide teachers with opportunities to explore the depth and breadth of students’ knowledge and understanding. For example, “What do you think would happen if we performed this part as a round?” or “What are some different ways of interpreting this passage?” allow for multiple responses. Most teachers use some form of questioning as part of their instructional strategies during rehearsal. However, demonstrating students’
growth in understanding requires some type of documentation. Written responses asking students to interpret or explain big picture ideas drawn from the choir’s repertoire, especially if collected over time, can provide an important measure of their understanding. To quantify this information, teachers can use a rubric to evaluate the quality and depth of students’ written responses to guided questions, then compare rubric scores to show improvement over time. Other written assignments that can be used to illustrate students’ higher order thinking skills or aesthetic responses include journaling, free writing,
performance evaluations or directed short essay questions. Choir teachers with large numbers of
students in each ensemble may find it difficult to monitor and provide meaningful feedback for individual assignments. Rotating assignments amongst choirs or choosing a smaller sample for in depth feedback and analysis offer alternatives to assessing all students at once. Another option is to assign students to small groups and assign each group a project for which they will be evaluated collectively. A number of years ago I attended a
workshop by Patricia O’Toole where she discussed how to use special projects to engage singers in exploring deeper aspects of the music. The focus of the presentation was on student directed learning, but some of the projects she discussed can be adapted to demonstrate student’s understanding, especially of the aesthetic experience. For example, singers could be asked to write a letter to a loved one who had gone to fight in a war, create Haikus interpreting the text, or teach the choir how to dance the minuet. Special projects such as these can be
assessed using rubrics or other pre- determined criteria. Live student presentations can be videotaped for assessment at a later time. Furthermore, this is a wonderful way to encourage collaboration and shared responsibility for bringing more to a performance than just singing the right notes. Such projects can also spark both your own and your students’ creativity and imagination, factors that contribute in no small way to aesthetic enjoyment.
Portfolios Portfolios are a unique type of
assessment tool originating from the art world, where artists would compile completed artwork into a collection or portfolio which would demonstrate their skill, style, and potential as an artist. Typically portfolios would be used during job interviews or for admission into graduate school. In education the use of portfolios became popular during the 1990’s. Students, either by themselves or in consultation with their teacher, choose specific items from various assignments, projects and assessments to include in their portfolio.
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