Will This Be on the Test? Documentary Analysis of Assessment in Advanced Algebra

• In Event: Poster Session 13
  In Poster Session: Research in Mathematics Education SIG Poster Session

Abstract

Unlike the first-year Algebra course and the high school Geometry course, we know very little about what is taught in advanced algebra (“Algebra 2”) or how it is assessed. Although policy documents and textbooks articulate what is supposed to be taught, little is known about what teachers hold their students responsible for learning. At a basic level, we do not even know if “advanced algebra” means as the same thing to teachers and students in different classrooms, schools and districts. We study the assessed curriculum of Algebra 2 via a documentary analysis of 243 distinct assessments, comprising more than 4700 items, collected from seven teachers in different schools, and analyze their alignment with one another and with the intended curriculum.

Authors

• Michael Kevin Weiss, Michigan State University

• Michael Morissette, Michigan State University