Blurring the Lines: Learning and Assessing in Quadrant D

Abstract

This design paper describes some of the main characteristics of four successive iterations of an embedded assessment activity used in our annual "Sustainable Earth" project. The details shared here come mainly from a comparative analysis of our last two assessment design cycles, highlighting differences between two common activity structures: a culminating student presentation and a global summit debate. We found that reframing the task and attending to a few specific elements of the teachers' and students' roles both before and during the activity resulted in two significant impacts. First, the debate activity transformed the student learning that took place in terms of its rigor and relevance, making it more characteristic of what we describe as "Quadrant D learning." Second, the debate greatly increased our teachers' ability to assess their students' learning of desired content and skills, making it an even more effective embedded assessment activity than the final presentation alone.