USING CONCEPT MAPS TO ASSESS STUDENT LEARNING IN THE SCIENCE CLASSROOM - MUST DIFFERENT METHODS COMPETE

This yearlong study was implemented in seventh-grade life science clas ses with the students' regular teacher serving as teacher/researcher. In the study, a method of scoring concept maps was developed to assess knowledge and comprehension levels of science achievement. By linking scoring of concept maps to instructional objectives, scores were base d upon the correctness of propositions. High correlations between the concept map scores and unit multiple choice tests provided strong evid ence of the content validity of the map scores. Similarly, correlation s between map scores and state criterion-referenced and national norm- referenced standardized tests were indicators of high concurrent valid ity. The approach to concept map scoring in the study represents a dis tinct departure from traditional methods that focus on characteristics such as hierarchy and branching. A large body of research has demonst rated the utility of such methods in the assessment of higher-level le arning outcomes. The results of the study suggest that a concept map m ight be used in assessing declarative and procedural knowledge, both o f which have a place in the science classroom. One important implicati on of these results is that science curriculum and its corresponding a ssessment need not be dichotomized into knowledge/comprehension versus higher-order outcomes. (C) 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.