Prepare Tomorrow's Parents - Parenting Education Extended Performance Task

Learning Experience by Laura Dombrowski, Kenmore East High School, Kenmore-Town of Tonawanda NY School District Member of the New York State Academy for Teaching and Learning

LEARNING CONTEXT
The purpose of this extended task Learning Experience is to assist local school districts in developing commencement level exit assessments to reveal a student’s knowledge and skills specific to Parenting Education. The task is used in combination with a written final exam during a 20 week parenting course or could be used as a unit assessment, or modified for intermediate level. A sample parent/guardian letter is included to explain this procedure to parents/guardians.

INSTRUCTIONAL/ENVIRONMENTAL MODIFICATIONS
Cooperative learning accommodations, a library/media center, and computer laboratories would facilitate successful products. Special needs students may require extended time or consultant teacher assistance.

TIME REQUIRED
Planning and preparation for the teacher will vary depending on his/her implementation style and experience with inquiry methodology. The teacher will need to spend some class time: explaining the task, examining exemplars, discussing and editing the rubric with the students, conferencing and mentoring students, and assessing student work. A teacher may also choose to instruct students in the use of specific technology and provide collaboration time for group projects.

Planning and preparation for the student will depend on the magnitude of the task chosen and the student’s background expertise in producing the project format chosen. However, it can be assumed that the student will need to use out-of-class time.

The exemplar used for this learning experience represents one week of class time and a second week of personal time with an option of 3 personal, pre-arranged, conferencing sessions with the teacher the second week.

See “Learning Experience Sequential plan” and student graphic organizers titled “Planning Calendar” and “Progress Check Points”.

RESOURCES
Computers and access to the Internet are a must. Students will also need to explore community resources for information. Other possible resources include:

CLARIFY AND DEFINE YOUR GOAL.
Set parameters for expectations/results/impact.
Write a statement of your goal:

Family and Consumer Sciences
Commencement Extended Task Rubric

Criteria	4 Extended task at this level:	3 Extended task at this level:	2 Extended task at this level:	1 Extended task at this level:	Score
Application of Standards The extent to which extended task demonstrates an understanding of personal health, a safe environment, and resource management. FCS 2A,D,3A H 1A,D,2A,B,C,3B ELA 1.1A,B,D,E	· Demonstrates an in depth understanding of child development, by identifying parenting strategies that establish and maintain the personal health and safety needs of children with concise, accurate, pertinent information concerning the topic. · Demonstrates the ability to access community resources by using an exhaustive investigation to explore a wide variety of helpful resources that lead to thoughtful conclusions in addressing the task.	· Demonstrates a surface understanding of child development by identifying parenting strategies to establish and maintain personal health and safety needs of children with accurate information concerning the topic. · Demonstrates the ability to access community resources by using a variety of helpful resources to fulfill the task	· Demonstrates some confusion in understanding child development and parenting strategies that establish and maintain the personal health and safety needs of children by using some inaccurate information concerning the topic. · And/or demonstrates the ability to access only a limited amount of helpful community resources to fulfill the task.	· Demonstrates a vague understanding in child development and parenting strategies that can establish and maintain the personal health and safety needs of children by continuously using inaccurate information concerning the topic. · And/or uses a single community resource which may or may not be helpful.
Parenting Skills The extent of which the extended task incorporates the skills: Advocacy, Communication, Decision Making, Planning and Goal Setting, Stress Management	· Provides evidence of extensive knowledge of the scope of skills through behaviors that consistently demonstrates understanding, application and the thinking required to utilize them. · Demonstrates seamless integration of skills in the developmental stages of the work.	· Provides evidence of ample knowledge of the scope of skills through behaviors that routinely demonstrates understanding, application and the thinking required to utilize them. · Demonstrates intentional integration of skills in the developmental stages of the work.	· Provides evidence of limited knowledge of the scope of skills through behaviors that occasionally demonstrates understanding, application and the thinking required to utilize them. ·Demonstrates intermittent integration of skills in the developmental stages of the work. May require reminders.	· Provides evidence of minimal knowledge of the scope of skills through behaviors that rarely demonstrates understanding, application and the thinking required to utilize them. · Demonstrates random integration of skills in the developmental stages of the work. Requires assistance.
Product The extent to which the extended task conveys a message of healthy choices matched to the target audience. FCS 2A,D H 1A,D ELA 1.2D,F CDOS 3a.1A SS 5.4C,E,F	· Communicates a strong message to the target audience that encourages healthy choices. · Professional quality is evident.	· Communicates a clear message to the target audience that encourages healthy choices. · Quality meets the standards expected.	· Communicates a weak message to the target audience that may or may not encourage healthy choices. · Quality is inferior making it difficult to understand	· Sends no message that encourages healthy choices. · Poor quality makes the product useless to the target audience.
Task The extent to which components of the task are developed. FCS 2A,D,3A H 1A,D,2A,B,C,3B ELA 1.1B,E SS5.4C,E,F	· All components within the task design are fully developed and recognizable: description of health issues, parenting strategies, and resources.	· All components within task design are present and recognizable: description of health issues, parenting strategies, and resources.	· Some components within the task design are incomplete or are not recognizable.	· Many components within the task are not recognizable.
Process The extent to which procedure is established, developed, and monitored. CDOS 3a.2A,.3A	· Adheres to detailed timeline. · Evaluates own efforts and self-monitors progress	· Adheres to useful timeline · Focuses on task with outside monitoring.	· Makes little attempt to adhere to timeline. · Focuses on task with frequent monitoring.	· Makes no attempt to adhere to timeline. · Focuses on task only with constant monitoring.
Reflection The extent to which personal comments reveal depth of thought. ELA 1.1E,1.2D	· Responds to reflection question(s) clearly with thoughtful general statements which are supported by strong, accurate evidence.	· Responds to reflection question(s) clearly with thoughtful general statements which are supported by accurate evidence.	· Digresses from reflection question(s) which may or may not be supported or which may sometimes contain minor, inaccurate evidence.	· Reflection is vague, unclear, and contains significantly inaccurate evidence.
Mechanics The extent to which the extended task exhibits conventional language. ELA 1.2F	· Consistently demonstrates correct and skillful use of language conventions making response easy to understand by the target audience.	· Demonstrates correct use of language conventions making response understandable by the target audience.	· Use of language conventions are generally correct but interfere with the target audience’s ability to understand response.	· Use of language conventions displays many errors that interfere with the target audience’s ability to understand response.

8. TEACHER REFLECTION
I have been using this final assessment for over one year. Since I teach semester courses rather than a full year course I am able to use this at least twice a year. I also use the general procedure in several other classes (Child Development, Human Development, and Food and the Life Cycle) adapting it to the particular curriculum. Each time I use it I refine the process a little more. Consequently the final products are of higher quality.

I have limited the number of graphic organizers. The first time I presented the project to a class I gave the students all the sheets – it was overwhelming to the students. I have included a copy of all the graphic organizers in the teacher packet, but only those I use in the student packet.

I teach several mini lessons throughout the semester using different aspects of the final project. Those sheets become references for the final assessment. Very little of the procedure is new. I find this produces a better project. For example in the parenting class we just completed a mini-unit on childbirth preparation. Each student made a pamphlet on one area of delivery and care of the newborn and post-partum are of the mother. I incorporated three of what I feel are the more important graphic organizers, in that assignment.

I find the rubric to be extremely helpful in grading the products. The expectations are clearly defined and introduced at the beginning of the assignment. I use several forms of the rubric throughout the semester so the students become very familiar with the system and grading.

New York State Learning Standards and Performance Indicators -
Commencement Level

Note: [ ] section indicates the exclusion of that portion of the performance indicator in the assessment.