2011 Lessons Learned from Scoring Student Work
Rangefinding, scoring and data review of items on the Science Measurements of Student
Progress (MSP) and the Biology End-of-Course (EOC) Exam provide the opportunity to see
hundreds of student responses at each grade and/or course level and to evaluate data
summarizing student performance. The Science Assessment Team would like to share
observations about student responses and areas of science where students appear to be
struggling. Lessons Learned from Scoring Student Work lists actions students could take to
increase their scores on the state assessments. Because new standards are being assessed, we
have also added descriptions of content that was particularly difficult for students. Grades
and/or courses will be listed separately.
In general, students fail to earn points toward a better score because of incomplete responses
or vague responses that cannot be interpreted. Students could improve their scores by:
 answering the question or completing each task in the prompt;
 using bullets as a checklist to make sure the response is complete.
Information from Lessons Learned should be modeled, practiced and used throughout the
school year. Students should be familiar with the format of multiple-choice, completion and
short-answer items. Students should be encouraged to make an attempt at every item on the
assessment. There is no penalty for guessing on multiple-choice items. Partial credit can be
earned on short-answer items.
Access Short-Answer item templates and rubrics at:
http://www.k12.wa.us/Science/ItemTemplates.aspx
Science Assessment Development
Kara Monroe, Grades 5 and 8
[email protected]
Linda Cabe Smith, Grades 8 and Biology EOC
[email protected]
Lessons Learned from Scoring Student Work 2011
Science Assessment Team, OSPI, October 2011
Page 1
Grade 5
Short Answer questions
When answering short answer questions that have two bullets after an “in your description, be
sure to” statement, students sometimes only answer the first bullet. These questions generally
ask students to do the actions in both bullets twice as shown in the following example.

……Describe two ways to solve the problem.
In your description be sure to:
o Identify two solutions to the problem
o Describe how each solution will solve the problem
Students very often identify two solutions to the problem, but do not attempt the second
bullet. They typically must at least attempt to address the second bullet to earn any points.
Conclusions
Students need to write decisive conclusive statements. They should not write vague
statements like “the height of the car does have an effect on the distance.” When making
comparisons, students should write a complete comparison, for example:



Car A went the fastest;
Car A went faster than car B and car C;
The higher up the car started, the faster the car went.
Students need to include supporting data and/or descriptive text from the data table. They
should quote appropriately from the data table just like they quote a text from a passage in
reading. Numbers (data) should not be rounded or qualified with phrases like around or about.
New Procedures
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

Students sometimes write conclusions or predictions instead of the steps for a procedure.
Students should have opportunities to practice with the format of the item. See the item
templates webpage for Word documents that can be adjusted for classroom use:
http://www.k12.wa.us/Science/ItemTemplates.aspx .
The changed and measured variables do not need to be specifically named or listed (e.g.,
Changed variable: Temperature) in order to receive credit for them; the variables just need
to be used correctly in the procedure to be credited. Sometimes students switch the
identities of the changed and measured variables and contradict their procedure.
Students need to be very clear about what they are measuring. Many students write
“record the data,” “measure the data,” or “watch what happens and record the
measurements” without actually stating the measured variable. They should write things
like “record the time for the car to reach the end of the ramp,” “measure the height of the
plant,” or “measure the length of the mudflow” to earn credit for the measured variable.
Lessons Learned from Scoring Student Work 2011
Science Assessment Team, OSPI, October 2011
Page 2

Students need to write procedures that use the changed and measured variables given in
the new experimental or field study question. Many students use the same measured
variable as was used in the original scenario. A procedure that does not use the correct
changed variable cannot answer the experimental question and no points can be earned on
the item.
General content issues:
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When asked how the parts of a model are different from the real system, students struggle
to make complete comparisons and also struggle to explain how those differences cause
the model to behave differently than the real system.
Students often confuse the concepts of energy and force. When asked to identify forms of
energy, students name the forces friction, magnetism and gravity. When asked to identify
forces, students name forms of energy such as electrical forces or kinetic forces.
Students continue to think that heat energy comes directly to Earth from the Sun, instead of
light energy. Heat energy must move through a medium, and space does not have a
medium, so only light energy moves through space. When the light energy hits our
atmosphere, then some of the light energy gets transformed into heat energy.
When asked to identify properties of materials, students name objects (dirt, rocks, sand)
instead of the properties of those objects (hard, shiny, small, curved, sharp).
When asked to describe methods to reduce erosion, students suggest “remove all the dirt”
which is erosion.
The direction of the arrows in a food chain must be in the direction of the flow of energy.
For example, in a simple food web containing a plant and two animals the arrow should
point from the plant to the small animal that eats the plant, and then from the smaller
animal to the larger animal that eats the smaller animal.
When asked about the effects of human activity on an ecosystem, some students say that
“all the animals will die” or “all the animals will go extinct” which are exaggerations and/or
misconceptions and not creditable.
Lessons Learned from Scoring Student Work 2011
Science Assessment Team, OSPI, October 2011
Page 3
Grade 8
Short Answer questions
When answering short answer questions that have two bullets after an “in your description, be
sure to” statement, students sometimes only answer the first bullet. These questions generally
ask students to do the actions in both bullets twice as shown in the following example.

……Describe two ways to solve the problem.
In your description be sure to:
o Identify two solutions to the problem
o Describe how each solution will solve the problem
Students very often identify two solutions to the problem, but do not attempt the second
bullet. They typically must at least attempt to address the second bullet to earn any points.
Conclusions
Students need to write decisive conclusive statements. They should not write vague
statements like, “the height of the car does have an effect on the distance.” Students should
write a complete comparison, for example:



Car A went the fastest;
Car A went faster than car B and car C;
The higher up the car started, the faster the car went.
Students need to include supporting data and/or descriptive text from the data table. They
should quote appropriately from the data table just like they quote a text from a passage in
reading. Numbers (data) should not be rounded or qualified with phrases like around or about.
New Procedures



Students sometimes write conclusions or predictions instead of the steps for a procedure.
Students should have opportunities to practice with the format of the item. See the item
templates webpage for word documents that can be adjusted for classroom use:
http://www.k12.wa.us/Science/ItemTemplates.aspx .
The manipulated and responding variables do not need to be specifically named or listed
(e.g., Manipulated variable: water temperature) in order to receive credit for them; the
variables just need to be used correctly in the procedure to be credited. Sometimes
students switch the identities of the manipulated and responding variables and contradict
their procedure.
Students need to be very clear about what they are measuring. Many students write
“record the data,” “measure the data,” or “watch what happens and record the
measurements” without actually stating the responding variable. They should write things
like “record the time for the car to reach the end of the ramp,” “measure the height of the
plant,” or “measure the length of the mudflow” to earn credit for the responding variable.
Lessons Learned from Scoring Student Work 2011
Science Assessment Team, OSPI, October 2011
Page 4

Students need to write procedures that use the manipulated and responding variables given
in the new experimental or field study question. Many students use the same responding
variable as was used in the original scenario. A procedure that does not use the correct
manipulated variable cannot answer the investigative question and no points can be earned
on the item.
General content issues:
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
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Students show a lack of understanding when asked to apply the definitions of open and
closed systems to specific systems. As per the K-12 Science Learning Standards, open
systems allow matter and energy to flow in and out of the system. Closed systems do not
allow matter to flow, but energy can still enter and leave the system.
When asked how the parts of a model are different from the real system, students struggle
to make complete comparisons and also struggle to explain how those differences cause
the model to behave differently than the real system.
Students have difficulty identifying the forces acting on objects in motion versus forces
acting on objects at rest.
When given the distance and the time and object traveled, many students are unable to
calculate the average speed of the object.
When asked to identify the motion of particles in a solid, students are drawn to the
misconception that particles in a solid do not move.
Many students fail to identify the Sun as the source of energy for winds on Earth.
Students struggle with describing physical properties as they apply to the behavior earth
materials (e.g., density).
Lessons Learned from Scoring Student Work 2011
Science Assessment Team, OSPI, October 2011
Page 5
Biology
Short Answer questions
When answering short answer questions that have two bullets after an “in your description, be
sure to” statement, students sometimes only answer the first bullet. These questions generally
ask students to do the actions in both bullets twice as shown in the following example.

……Describe two ways to solve the problem.
In your description be sure to:
o Identify two solutions to the problem
o Describe how each solution will solve the problem
Students very often identify two solutions to the problem, but do not attempt the second
bullet. They generally must at least attempt to address the second bullet to earn any points.
Conclusions
Students need to write more decisive conclusive statements. They should not write, “the
amount of water does have an effect on the plant height.” Students should write a complete
comparison, for example:



Plant A grew the tallest;
Plant A grew taller than plant B and plant C;
The more water the plant had, the taller the plant grew.
Students need to include supporting data and/or descriptive text from the data table. They
should quote appropriately from the data table just like they quote a text from a passage in
reading. Numbers (data) should not be rounded or qualified with phrases like around or about.
New Procedures



Students sometimes write conclusions or predictions instead of the steps for a procedure.
Students should have opportunities to practice with the format of the item. See the item
templates webpage for word documents that can be adjusted for classroom use:
http://www.k12.wa.us/Science/ItemTemplates.aspx .
The manipulated (independent) and responding (dependent) variables do not need to be
specifically named or listed (e.g., Manipulated variable is water temperature) in order to
receive credit for them; the variables just need to be used correctly in the procedure to be
credited. Sometimes students switch the identities of the manipulated and responding
variables and contradict their procedure.
Students need to be very clear about what they are measuring. Many students write
“record the data,” “measure the data,” or “watch what happens and record the
measurements” without actually stating the responding variable. They should write things
like “record the number of organisms in the sample area,” “measure the height of the
plant,” or “measure the time for seeds to germinate” to earn credit for the responding
variable.
Lessons Learned from Scoring Student Work 2011
Science Assessment Team, OSPI, October 2011
Page 6

Students need to write procedures that use the manipulated (independent) and responding
(dependent) variables given in the new experimental or field study question. Many
students use the same responding variable as was used in the original scenario. A
procedure that does not use the correct manipulated variable cannot answer the
investigative question and no points can be earned on the item.
General content issues:
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


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
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When given a model of a complex system lacking sufficient detail to make reliable
predictions about that system, students are unable to describe the inadequacies of the
model.
Students have difficulty identifying positive and/or negative feedback systems.
Students have difficulty distinguishing between steps in an investigation that increased
reliability and steps that increased validity.
Many students are unable to identify roles and relationships among DNA, chromosomes,
genes, ribosomes and proteins.
Students demonstrate misconceptions about cellular respiration, especially in the context of
plants.
Students often are unable to identify the number of chromosomes in sex cells versus body
cells or after the processes of mitosis, meiosis or fertilization.
Students struggle to identify the processes that regulate the flow of substances into and out
of the cell (e.g., active transport, osmosis).
Students struggle with identifying the path of a carbon atom during photosynthesis and/or
cellular respiration.
Students showed little understanding of the nitrogen cycle.
Students demonstrate misconceptions about the mechanisms of evolution (e.g., genetic
variability due to sexual reproduction, effect of natural selection on populations).
Lessons Learned from Scoring Student Work 2011
Science Assessment Team, OSPI, October 2011
Page 7