problem solving

In this article, David Conley focuses on how to assess meaningful learning in ways that promote student achievement while simultaneously meeting system accountability needs.  This article presents a vision for a new system of assessments, one designed to support the kinds of ambitious teaching...

In this paper, David T. Conley, well-known for his influential research on college readiness, draws on a wealth of recent research to argue that the time is ripe for a major shift in educational assessment, from an over reliance on standardized tests of math and reading, which tell us little...

This common analytic rubric assesses problem solving and critical thinking skills. It can be used across disciplines in combination with another rubric or on its own.

This CCSS-aligned common analytic rubric can be used across performance assessments. The rubric assesses a student's ability to reason, problem-solve, develop sound arguments or decisions, and create new ideas by using appropriate sources and applying the knowledge and skills of the discipline...

In this task, students are given a simulation about a family concerned with saving money and energy by better insulating their house. Students are given a set of information regarding heating bill costs over time, costs of insulation investments, and additional constraints, and are asked to...

This task uses a new product, Joulies, which claims to help keep hot drinks hot longer. Students will study the change in temperature of an object as it cools and model its temperature as a function of time and use their knowledge of Algebra 2 in order to build a mathematical model of a cooling...

In this task students will design and analyze an object made of regular shapes of their choosing. They will specifically analyze how changing the object's dimensions based on a set of self-created equations affects the properties of that object. They will then produce a poster to display their...

This task begins with an animated video clip showing a cat jumping into the road, and a car nearly hitting it, which motivates a framing question: Can the driver stop in time? This sets the context for a whole-class brainstorm about what quantities might need to be considered in order to answer...

In this task, students respond to a geometry problem in which a girl is attempting to find the optimal location to tether her dog so that the dog doesn't dig in the garden, but without reducing the play area for the animal.

Students are given a number of measurements and constraints and...

In this task, students are given a problem about maximizing volume. Students are given a set of construction paper squares with predetermined side lengths. They are asked to determine the length of the side of the square that they must cut out from the corners in order to maximize the volume of...