Assessment of Module Goals

Below, you will find a list of assessments for each unit of the module, as well the summative assessments for the entire module. Each unit has associated with it formative and/or summative assessments to measure student progress toward individual unit learning goals.

Pre-Instruction Formative Assessment

To assess module-relevant student knowledge and preconceptions, have them produce a short reflective essay in response to the prompt shared below. Administer this assessment immediately prior to the first day of the module, either as an in class assignment for 20 minutes or as a homework assignment.

[Optional] To get more out of this assessment, you can take 20 minutes on the first day of the module fostering discussions of what the students wrote for their essay. You can have the students share their responses in small groups for 10 minutes, then have an entire class discussion where a sub-sample of student notions are shared. The class will get a better sense of the collective knowledge base upon which they will build deeper understanding.

The prompt for the pre-instruction formative assessment essay is as follows:

Before we dive into this course, the instructor wants to get an idea of what you already know about the interrelationships between water, agriculture, and sustainability. To help with this, please write 4-6 paragraphs in response to the following questions.

• In what ways do problems in water availability or quality vary from region to region?
• What are the objectives when striving for sustainability?
• How can we improve water sustainability for domestic and agricultural uses?
• How does any of this relate to you?

Please incorporate local or specific examples to support your points.

If you don't have much to share and don't know much about a topic, please reflect on why you think that is the case.

Responding to all four questions to the best of your ability. Your essay will be evaluated for legibility, clarity, organization, and college level grammar.

Post-Module Summative Assessment

The following Summative Assessment assignment has been designed to help instructors assess student achievement of the Module Learning Goals. It is recommended that the assessment be assigned as homework, though it could be completed in class. Below the Summative Assessment assignment is a document that will help instructors evaluate student submissions. It includes answer keys and rubrics for specific questions of the assignment and relates questions to the module learning goals.

Module Summative Assessment (Microsoft Word 2007 (.docx) 3.8MB Mar1 17)

Evaluating the Submissions for the Module Summative Assessment -- private instructor-only file

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These documents display an example scoring system for the assessment. Instructors can change the scoring as they see fit.

Unit Assessments

Unit 1

Online Discussion 1 - Are We Sliding Into a Water Crisis?

Instructors can assess formative student learning gains from doing the Activity 1.1a reading assignment by reviewing their responses to the online discussion prompts. Specifically, the readings and the online discussion should highlight any advancement by students in achieving Module Learning Goal 1 and Unit Learning Objectives 1, 2 & 3. Here are the suggested discussion prompts:

Respond to one or more of the following prompts related to the set of readings.

• To what extent do the readings, taken collectively, support the notion that the world is facing a water crisis? Do they seem like good sources of information?
• What constitutes a crisis?
• Which problems are most surprising or alarming to you?
• Why have more than one reading? How do the readings differ?

Receive 4 points for posting a thoughtful response to one of these prompts. Receive 5 points for doing that and responding to another student's post. Let's make a discussion out of this.

Online Discussion 2 - What is Sustainability in the Context of Water?

Instructors can assess formative student learning gains from doing the Activity 1.2a reading assignment by reviewing their responses to the online discussion prompts. Specifically, the readings and the online discussion should highlight any advancement by students in achieving Module Learning Goal 1 and Unit Learning Objectives 2 & 4. Here are the suggested discussion prompts:

After completing the readings, respond to one of the first 3 questions, then questions 4 and 5.

1. How does a concern for sustainability reflect a concern for ethics?
2. In what ways is sustainability a contestable concept?
3. Dresner writes: "The idea that we can achieve sustainability implies that we will this time be able to consciously take control of our destiny." What does he mean by this? Are we not in control of our destiny? What does our destiny look like in a more sustainable future?
4. What does the article Sacred Water have to do with sustainability?
5. What constitutes water sustainability?

You can receive 4 points for posting thoughtful responses to these questions. You can receive 5 points for doing that and responding to someone else's post.

Homework Assignment 1 - Case Studies in Unsustainable Water Use in Agriculture

This assignment has each student read a case study, consider a series of questions, and generate a conceptual diagram of an impaired system detailed in their case study. This assignment prepares them to engage in Activity 1.3b - Group Analysis of Case Studies in Unsustainable Water Use in Agriculture.

Instructors can assess formative student learning gains from doing the Activity 1.3a reading and homework assignment by observing how they interact in the Activity 1.3b group work. Specifically, the readings and homework assignment should help students advance in achieving Module Learning Goal 1 and Unit Learning Objective 5. The assignment can be seen in the attachment below.

Student_Handout_Activity_1.3a._Homework_and_Reading_Assignment - Case_Studies_in_Water_Unsustainability (Microsoft Word 2007 (.docx) 109kB Aug21 23)

Summative Assessment

Summative Assessment for all units takes place at the end of the module. See the Post-Module Summative Assessment above.

Instructors can also do summative assessment of student learning gains from participation in Unit 1 by having students submit an essay that responds to the following prompt. Sustainability in the Context of Water Essay Assignment (Microsoft Word 2007 (.docx) 15kB Jul27 15)

This is an optional assignment and it could be assigned after completion of Unit 2 as student learning in that unit will enhance their ability to respond well to the essay assignment.

Unit 2

Online Discussion 3 - Virtual Water

Instructors can assess formative student learning gains from doing the Activity 2.1a reading assignment by reviewing their responses to the online discussion prompts. Specifically, the online discussion should highlight any advancement by students in achieving Module Learning Goal 2 and Unit 2 Learning Objectives 1 & 2. Here are the suggested discussion prompts:

First, let us know which one of the 4 optional articles you read. Next, make a call - Should more of the world rely on virtual water? Support your position then answer one of the following questions:

1. What was most illuminating about the article you read?
2. What goods require the most water to produce? How variable is it from country to country? What are reasonable amounts to use for these commodities? How do you judge?
3. What else could we/should we do with the water that is embedded in commodities traded on the international market?

How you will be evaluated: You can earn up to two points for convincingly supporting your position on whether or not more people should be meeting their needs via virtual water, and another two points for a thoughtful response to one of the follow-up questions. You can earn 5 points for doing both of those things and responding to someone else's post in a constructive manner. Let's make this a discussion, not just a series of unengaged posts.

Homework Assignment 2 - Your Individual Water Footprint

This homework assignment has students calculate their individual water footprint in three ways, then respond to three questions where they evaluate the value and limitations of water footprint analyses. It also prepares them to engage in Activity 2.2b - Group Work: Analysis of Individual Water Footprints.

Instructors can assess formative student learning gains from doing the reading and homework assignment by reviewing their homework submissions and by how they interact in the Activity 2.2b group work. Specifically, the readings and homework assignment should help students advance in achieving Module Learning Goals 1 and 2 and Unit 2 Learning Objectives 3 and 7.

The assignment can be seen in the attachment below.

Student Handout for Activity 2.2a: Reading and Homework Assignment on Water Footprints (Microsoft Word 2007 (.docx) 23kB Feb25 17)

Analysis of Individual Water Footprints and Footprints of Nations

Students working in small groups are asked to respond to a series of questions in the worksheet for Activity 2.2b - Group Work: Analysis of Individual Water Footprints and Footprints of Nations. Each group can submit their collective answers to the questions and instructors can evaluate those submissions for formative assessment of achievement of Unit 2 Learning Objectives 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7.

Instructor Guidance for Activity 2.2b: Analysis of Water Footprints (Microsoft Word 2007 (.docx) 308kB Feb25 17)

Summative Assessment for Unit 2

Summative Assessment for all units takes place at the end of the module. See the Post-Module Summative Assessment above.

Instructors can also do summative assessment of student learning gains from participation in Unit 2 by having students submit an essay that responds to the following prompt. This is an optional assignment

Sustainability in the Context of Water Essay Assignment (Microsoft Word 2007 (.docx) 15kB Jul27 15)

Unit 3

The unit exercise Unit 3 Student Worksheet (Microsoft Word 2007 (.docx) 1.4MB Jan23 17) can be used as a formative assessment with the attached grading rubric: Unit 3 grading rubric (Microsoft Word 2007 (.docx) 18kB Nov3 15)

Unit 4

A formative assessment of the unit 4 goals can be done using these

exam/quiz questions -- private instructor-only file

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Use the

answer key -- private instructor-only file

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Unit 5

A formative assessment of the unit 5 goals can be completed using the attached exam/quiz questions and associated rubric.

Unit 5 Formative Assessment -- private instructor-only file

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Unit 5 Assessment Answer Key -- private instructor-only file

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Summative Assessment for all units takes place at the end of the module. See the Post-Module Summative Assessment above.