Working with Linear Equations

Strand: Patterns and Relations (Variables and Equations)
Outcome: 3

Step 4: Assess Student Learning

Guiding Questions

Look back at what you determined as acceptable evidence in Step 2.
What are the most appropriate methods and activities for assessing student learning?
How will I align my assessment strategies with my teaching strategies?

Sample Assessment Tasks

In addition to ongoing assessment throughout the lessons, consider the following sample activities to evaluate students' learning at key milestones. Suggestions are given for assessing all students as a class or in groups, individual students in need of further evaluation, and individual or groups of students in a variety of contexts.

A. Whole Class/Group Assessment

Examples of Whole Class/Group Assessment Word Document

B. One-on-one Assessment

When students appear to be having difficulty with concepts or outcomes, providing specific questions through a structured interview may help assess the source of difficulties. These one‑on‑one assessments should help the teacher gain insight into the student's thinking as well as provide the opportunity to clear up misunderstandings.

C. Applied Learning

Provide opportunities for students to create and solve linear equation problems that involve travel, money, age or number. Some ideas that may help students get started in the creation of questions is to have them investigate:

the impact that increasing mass has on the length of an elastic. Using the same elastic, students should measure its original length and then hang increasing masses on the elastic and measure the changes
how increasing the length and width of a square or rectangle by two or four units changes the value of the unknowns in the equation
fuel consumption on a family trip by comparing a small and large vehicle
earnings for different jobs; e.g., a bus person or server in a restaurant makes a base salary plus tips (students could look at the relationship between hours worked and total earnings based on anticipated tips)
data from cafeteria or snack machines where students might set up proportional situations based on beverage consumption (in litres) for the cafeteria or school population and extrapolate this information to a larger context.