Diagnostic Question Clusters: Development and Testing in Introductory Geology and Biology

Michigan State University, East Lansing MI

Investigators

Abstract

Diagnostic assessment is the foundation for instructional improvement. It alerts instructors to student difficulties in learning particular concepts. In addition, truly diagnostic assessment yields information as to why students have difficulties, identifying common conceptual barriers students encounter. This information can be used to guide instructors in making changes to their teaching. This project is working to achieve two major goals. One is the development of a generalized system for creating and using diagnostic assessment in an undergraduate discipline. The other is to implement this system in geology and biology. Towards the first goal we are piloting a procedure for developing diagnostic questions that can be used in any field, developing protocols for online peer review and publication of diagnostic questions. Further, we are programming the LON CAPA network to support the online peer review and publication of diagnostic questions and the export of data on students' responses to questions. (LON CAPA is the Learning Online Network with Computer Assisted Personalized Assistance. It is a system developed at Michigan State University for delivery of on-line instructional materials that is freely available to other institutions.) Finally, we are engaging faculty in other institutions in development work that will make them aware of the diagnostic question clusters and help them learn how to integrate diagnostic questions into their teaching. This project is responding to the dearth of diagnostic questions in geology and biology by producing clusters of diagnostic questions addressing topics in geology and biology. These clusters cover three topics in geology: systems, the global carbon cycle, and the water cycle. In biology they cover two large topics, nitrogen cycling and carbon cycling. Each of these two are being covered at three different levels: global, macro, and micro. We are working with biology and geology faculty, teaching them to use the diagnostic questions as part of their instruction in order to learn about the conceptual barriers encountered by their students and modify their instruction in light of this information. Our ultimate goal is to have faculty in all fields using this procedure for developing diagnostic questions and adding to the pool. Those who use LON-CAPA will be aided by the new data export features. The LON-CAPA library of diagnostic questions is a permanent place for storing peer-reviewed questions available to STEM teaching faculty.