Research On Application Of Performance Assessment In Geographic Instruction In High School

The key competencies of geography are an important topic in the current high school geography instruction and assessment reform.The traditional written examination as the main method of geography assessment has a series of negative effects on geography instruction and learning.Performance assessment is closely related to instruction and learning that can evaluate high-level thinking,cooperative communication,and other aspects of competencies.Since its rise in the 1980 s,it has been given an important mission to address the negative impact of written examination.However,in China,the application of performance assessment in geography instruction still faces many challenges.The application of performance assessment in geography instruction is a problem that integrates theory and practice.It requires reliable knowledge,effective technology and empirical research to solve it.Therefore,this study attempts to solve a core issue: how to effectively design and implement performance assessment that point to key competencies of geography.And the core issues can be broken down as follows:1.How to design a performance assessment program that points to key competencies of geography?2.How to implement performance assessment in classroom instruction?3.Is the performance assessment of key competencies really effective through case studies?The literature research finds that the construct-centered,learning-based performance assessment design model can be used as the basis for the performance assessment design of key competencies.Based on key competencies and content standard,the performance goals with advanced learning characteristics,the performance tasks and scoring rules of different performance levels are so designed that could be used in teaching to stimulate students’ performance,while the teacher systematically collects and analyzes students’ performance information,which forms high-quality assessment evidence and provides explanations and feedback to facilitate the assessment and achievement of performance goals.There are two ways in which performance assessment can be applied to instruction: The first one is to embed the assessment task as a means of detecting the teaching effect into the instruction process,that is,"embedded" performance assessment;The second one is to use the assessment task as an instructional task,so that the instruction process and the assessment process are integrated,that is,the " integrated " performance assessment.These two ways can meet different application conditions.Through qualitative case studies of geography teaching in high schools,“embedded” performance assessment can be used to evaluate a single geographic key competency and apply flexibly at the class level.The “integrated” performance assessment is more suitable in large-scale concepts and assessing students’ use of multiple key competencies to solve geographic problems in real situations.The former provides more opportunities for teachers and students to interact and feedback,and promotes the display and development of students’ key competencies.The latter is more dependent on the students’ own thinking and exploration,cooperation and communication,as well as planning and responsibility for their own learning.The study also shows that the performance assessment of geographic key competencies can be used to evaluate the level of single key competency and its changing process,and to promote inquiry learning and self-learning.The application of“integrated” performance assessment,with more complex and real performance tasks,evaluates the advantages and disadvantages of multiple geographic key competencies,and promotes cooperative learning,inquiry learning and independent learning.Both ways have inspired students to reflect on their own learning.