CONCLUSION WRITING Claim, Evidence and Reasoning Students should support their own written claims with appropriate justification. Science education should help prepare students for this complex inquiry practice where students seek and provide evidence and reasons for ideas or claims (Driver, Newton and Osborne, 2000). Engaging students in explanation and argumentation can result in numerous benefits for students. When students develop and provide support for their claims they develop a better and stronger understanding of the content knowledge (Zohar and Nemet, 2002). Research shows when students construct explanations, they actively use the scientific principles to explain different phenomena, developing a deeper understanding of the content. Constructing explanations may also help change views of science (Bell and Linn, 2000). Often students students’ view science as a static set of facts that they need to memorize. They do not understand that scientists socially construct scientific ideas and that this science knowledge can change over time. By engaging in this inquiry practice, students can also improve their ability to justify their own written claims (McNeill et al, 2006). Remember when providing evidence to support a claim, the evidence must always be: Appropriate Accurate Sufficient The rubric below should be used when grading lab reports/conclusions to ensure that students are effectively connecting their claim to their evidence to provide logical reasons for their conclusions. Base Explanation Rubric Component Level 0 1 2 - A conclusion Does not make a Makes an accurate Makes an accurate Claim that answers the original claim, or makes an but incomplete and complete claim. question. inaccurate claim. claim. Scientific Does not provide Provides appropriate Provides Evidence – data that supports the evidence, or only but insufficient appropriate and claim. The data needs to provides evidence to support sufficient evidence be appropriate and inappropriate claim. May include to support claim. sufficient to support the evidence (evidence some inappropriate claim. that does not evidence. support the claim). A Does not provide Provides reasoning Provides reasoning Reasoning – justification that links reasoning, or only that links the claim that links evidence the claim and evidence. provides reasoning and evidence. to claim. Includes It shows why the data that does not link Repeats the appropriate and count as evidence by evidence to claim evidence and/or sufficient scientific using appropriate and includes some but principles. – sufficient scientific not sufficient – principles. scientific principles. Source(s): Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
CONCLUSION WRITING Claim, Evidence and Reasoning Students should support their own written claims with appropriate justification. Science education should help prepare students for this complex inquiry practice where students seek and provide evidence and reasons for ideas or claims (Driver, Newton and Osborne, 2000). Engaging students in explanation and argumentation can result in numerous benefits for students. When students develop and provide support for their claims they develop a better and stronger understanding of the content knowledge (Zohar and Nemet, 2002). Research shows when students construct explanations, they actively use the scientific principles to explain different phenomena, developing a deeper understanding of the content. Constructing explanations may also help change students’ views of science (Bell and Linn, 2000). Often students view science as a static set of facts that they need to memorize. They do not understand that scientists socially construct scientific ideas and that this science knowledge can change over time. By engaging in this inquiry practice, students can also improve their ability to justify their own written claims (McNeill et al, 2006). Remember when providing evidence to support a claim, the evidence must always be: Appropriate Accurate Sufficient The rubric below should be used when grading lab reports/conclusions to ensure that students are effectively connecting their claim to their evidence to provide logical reasons for their conclusions. Base Explanation Rubric Component Level 0 1 2 Claim - A conclusion that answers the original question. Does not make a claim, or makes an inaccurate claim. Makes an accurate but incomplete claim. Makes an accurate and complete claim. Evidence – Scientific data that supports the claim. The data needs to be appropriate and sufficient to support the claim. Does not provide evidence, or only provides inappropriate evidence (evidence that does not support the claim). Provides appropriate but insufficient evidence to support claim. May include some inappropriate evidence. Provides appropriate and sufficient evidence to support claim. Reasoning – A justification that links the claim and evidence. It shows why the data count as evidence by using appropriate and sufficient scientific principles. Does not provide reasoning, or only provides reasoning that does not link evidence to claim Provides reasoning that links the claim and evidence. Repeats the evidence and/or includes some – but not sufficient – scientific principles. Provides reasoning that links evidence to claim. Includes appropriate and sufficient scientific principles. Source(s): Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
Grade_6_Essential%20Labs%202017%20Teacher%20Final.docx