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Growth in the use of text evidence propels MVA students to be critical thinkers about complex issues.
Story Behind the Evidence:
Students at MVA are able to express their ideas because they are given the opportunity to be critical thinkers about compelling topics. Students participate in inquiry-based activities and learn the importance of credibility so they are able to make sense of the world around them. These opportunities encourage kids to express the design principle, The Having of Wonderful Ideas.
Text Evidence Assessment
Using text evidence is an essential skill in order for students to become knowledgeable, critical thinkers while studying complex topics in expeditions. Students are provided with reading and writing structures in all core classes which are embedded into compelling and engaging expedition topics. Students at MVA take writing assessments to track progress in identifying and using text evidence. In a baseline writing assessment given to the class of 2021 the fall of their 6th grade year, MVA students showed a weakness in the use and citation of text evidence. By the end of 8th grade, students in the class of 2021 increased their skills in using and citing text evidence.
6th grade student data for this group showed that 46% of students scored proficient (3) or advanced (4) in using text evidence, skill 2. For skill 4, citing text evidence, no students were above not yet (1). Following the baseline test, staff in core subject areas used common language and rubrics in teaching text evidence skills. Now, looking at the same group of students at the end of their 8th grade year, we can see that students have shown tremendous growth. For skill 2, using text evidence, 73% of students scored proficient or higher, and for skill 4, citing text evidence, 60% of students scored proficient or higher. By using text evidence in all content areas, MVA students have learned to think critically about their work prior to making a claim.
Using Text Evidence in Core Classes
Social Studies:
Students practiced using text evidence and paraphrasing primary source documents in Social Studies class in numerous expeditions. One example from the expedition, “The River Within Us”, required students to read two different primary source journals. One was a passage from a 1930s teenage boy who worked in a logging camp, while another was from a different teenage boy working in a late 19th century sawmill. After reading, students had to gather evidence and think critically about their choice of which job they would have rather had as a teenager over 100 years ago. Examples directly from the primary sources had to support why they chose one job over the other. Another example of text evidence practice is in the expedition “Becoming American.” Students read short paragraphs from the U.S. Constitution in order to gain a better understanding of how a bill becomes a law. Paraphrasing the original text into words that can be read more easily was the challenge for students. Converting late 18th century text from our Founding Fathers, to modern middle level language was a difficult task in analyzing primary source text.
Reading
During our River Within Us expedition students analyzed the current world water crisis. They also focused on complex questions related to water rights. Students agreed with one another that access to safe water should be a human right, but they had to critically decipher what criteria determined if water was safe, acceptable (color, odor, taste), affordable, and sufficient. As they examined water rights here in the United States, the students examined a Wisconsin Supreme Court Case. While examining various laws governing groundwater rights, they determined the winner of the case and supported their thinking with the use of text evidence from the case and from a particular law. Then they would determine the winner of the same case if a different law was in place. This led into critical thinking related to factors that would influence which laws a state would use.
Writing
MVA students are introduced to the Text Evidence Tracking My Progress Rubric during writing class when they receive feedback on their initial sixth grade text evidence assessment. Students, with the support of MVA staff, unpack the learning targets from the rubric and set goals on how they can improve at using and citing text evidence. Students glue their rubric into their notebook or planner so, throughout the year, they can refer to it as they complete tasks that require them to use text evidence. The formative and summative assessments from writing class demonstrate some of the many opportunities students have to think critically as they develop their skills at using and citing text evidence. Specifically, the “Should Bottled Water Use in the United States be Limited to Emergency Situations?” piece, demonstrates the growth MVA staff witness in many students. This particular piece of writing was completed by a student who began with scores of 1 for both using and citing text evidence on her sixth grade assessment. On this writing assessment from the end of her eighth grade year, she earned a 4 in using text evidence and a 3 in citing text evidence.
Science
Students learn that as a scientist you need to be critical thinkers about what you are studying and use evidence to support your findings. Students at MVA are given the opportunities to practice this in each expedition. The artifacts showcased here are examples of assessments for learning where students were asked to use evidence about invasives species to prove how they know that invasives impact patterns in ecosystems. On the second page of this assessment, students use both mathematical evidence and text evidence to prove that population could explain an invasives species ability to adapt to an environment. In each of these examples, the language from the text evidence rubric is used together with science standards.
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