Assessments
Ongoing
At a Glance PhD Science includes four assessment types: Checks for Understanding, Conceptual Checkpoints, Engineering/Science Challenges, and End-of-Module Assessments. All are phenomenon-driven—never rote recall.
Every PhD Science assessment asks students to explain a phenomenon or solve a problem—not recall isolated facts. This means formative and summative data tells you not just what students know but also how well they apply it.
- Checks for Understanding: Appear in every lesson (at least one per lesson without another assessment type). Include evaluation guidance and next-step suggestions—read these as you plan so you know what evidence to look for during the lesson.
- Conceptual Checkpoints: Assess mastery of one concept’s standards. One per concept, always in an unfamiliar context. Use the evaluation guidance to determine next instructional steps before moving to the next concept.
- Engineering Challenges / Science Challenges: Apply conceptual knowledge to solve a real-world problem. One per module, with a rubric. A natural extension of the Content Learning Cycle’s Know stage; encourages collaboration and productive struggle as students engage in the task.
- End-of-Module Assessments: Summative. Students apply module knowledge to one or more new phenomena. Rubrics provided.