Tim Allison:  A Virtual Portfolio

Letters as Tools for Assessment

Below is an assignment which I assigned to my grade nine applied class on placement.  The concept was for them to write a letter to an expectant mother, to tell her what she should and shouldn't do, and what she should expect over the course of her pregnancy.  My ulterior motive, of course, was to see what they had learned over the course of our unit on pregnancy and embryonic development.

I was initially somewhat uncertain about how well this activity would serve it purpose.  The students, however, got right into the activity, and this class, which was usually somewhat lethargic -- most students weren't particularly interested in science or in 'doing work' -- was busily working on their letters.  I was extremely pleased with their level of engagement to the activity.  This was a part of making the scientific view of pregnancy "logical, coherent, useful, and versatile" (Gilbert et al., p. 631) to the students, which will help the students to understand the issues involved in pregnancies, and options available to an expectant mother, "from a scientific and social perspective" (Volkmann, p. 105).  The process through which the students proceeded was one of active learning, in a somewhat different way.  They conducted research from their class work, and on the internet, and put the scientific knowledge which they had acquired into a 'real-world' context by writing a letter.  Students were encouraged to share their ideas, as real scientists do, and as was encouraged by Yager (p. 2).

Using letters as assessment tools in science provides a more relaxed form of assessment than a test, and gives them the opportunity to learn through their assessment.  It gives them a 'real-world' context in which to apply their knowledge of science, and motivates students who are typically poorly motivated.  For these reasons, letters as tools of assessment are an activity which I will likely use again, particularly with an applied-level (or grade 7 or 8) class.
 

You are to write a letter to an (imaginary) expecting mother.  She has never had a baby before, and she doesn't know what to do, what she shouldn't do, or what she should expect.  Since you are now an expert on pregnancy, she needs you to write her a letter to explain some things.  Your letter should have 5 parts to it:

i) Introduction: introduce yourself to her, and explain why you are writing the letter.

ii) What to do: explain to the expecting mother that there are some things which she should do while she’s pregnant to make sure that she and her baby stay healthy.  For example, you might want to talk about nutrition, diet, or exercise.

iii) What not to do: you should also explain that there are some things that might cause damage to her or to her baby, and that these are things she shouldn’t do while she’s pregnant.  For example, you could talk about alcohol, drugs, smoking, or work.

iv) What to expect: a lot of things happen to a pregnant woman’s body.  This paragraph should include some details of what will happen to both her and her baby during each month of her pregnancy.

v) Conclusion: your conclusion should sum up your letter (just the major points), and should probably end with wishing her well as she prepares to have her baby.

Your letter will be 3-5 pages long.  It must be typed, in WordPerfect or MS Word, using size 12 or 14 font, and 2.5 cm margins.

You can choose the information that you want to put in your letter.  Some of it should come from our class work, but some of it should come from the internet.  The following sites might be helpful to you:

Don’t forget to include your name!