Evaluation, Option F:
Poster Presentation–Lesson Design

Estimated Time: 4 hours including poster preparation time.

List of Materials

Example of Use: Sample 2.5-Day Workshop Agenda.

This evaluation option is designed specifically for use with a 2-3 day workshop on designing instruction in which participants complete their own lesson designs. (See any option in Exploring the Use of Project 2061 Tools, 5: To Design Instruction.) On the final day of the workshop, participants use posters to present their progress in lesson design. The specific content of the workshop script will depend on which lesson has been analyzed earlier in the workshop. This poster presentation format can be modified for use as an evaluation in other types of workshops, as well.

Note: If you have not distributed Project 2061 information handouts earlier during the workshop, make them available to participants now. HANDOUTS: Benchmarks for Science Literacy, Benchmarks for Science Literacy on Disk, Blueprints for Reform, Resources for Science Literacy, Science Literacy for a Changing Future.

Sample Presentation
Step 1: Prepare posters. (2 hours or as overnight assignment)

TRANSPARENCY: Poster Presentation Homework. thome2ev.eps

Presenter: On the last day of the workshop, each group will share its progress in lesson design by preparing a poster. The poster presentation should do four things:

1. Provide a brief overview of the lesson, including the benchmarks that are addressed.

2. Explain how the instructional activities address the benchmarks.

3. Explain how the lesson design reflects Project 2061 principles of teaching and learning.

4. Describe any issues that arose during the lesson development.

We will supply chart paper, markers, and tape. If there are other materials you want to use in creating your poster, please bring them with you.  

Step 2: Present posters. (90 minutes)

Note: Assign each group a place to hang its poster and a time slot for its presentation. Depending on the number of groups and the size of the room, you can divide the 90 minutes into two or three time slots. For example, if you choose two time slots, during the first time slot, half of the groups remain at their posters to present their work and respond to questions by the other groups. Then the groups change roles and repeat the procedure.

Step 3: Analyze the design procedure. (15-20 minutes)

After all groups have had a chance to present and to examine the other posters, convene the entire group to discuss their use of the procedure.

TRANSPARENCY: Discussion Questions.

Presenter: You have had an opportunity to use this procedure for design of instruction. Based on this limited exposure to the design procedure, how would you answer these questions?

• What are some ways in which this design procedure is similar to your current procedure for designing instruction?

• In what ways is it different?

• What are the strengths and weaknesses of each?

Allow time to think about these questions and discuss them with a partner. Collect some responses and record them on a transparency or chart paper.

Distribute the HANDOUT: CELLS Through the Lens of Benchmarks. Ask participants to read it.

Presenter: How does the author of these reflections respond to these questions? She tells us that she did not begin her planning on cells by going first to her files or current textbooks. Instead, she began by rereading SFAA on cells to discover what knowledge and skills it presents as the goals of K-12 teaching on this topic. She uses the essays in Benchmarks to find out what misconceptions students often have about cells and what concepts they may have difficulty understanding. 

Invite participants to respond to the ideas shared in the essay.

Presenter: Do you believe use of this design procedure would result in improved instruction in your school system? Why or why not?  

Take some responses to these questions from participants. Briefly summarize what has been learned in the lesson design activity.