Test Information Guide

Field 74: Earth and Space Science
Sample Open-Response Item

The following materials contain:

Sample Test Directions for Open-Response Items

This section of the test consists of two open-response item assignments. You will be asked to prepare a written response of approximately 150–300 words, or 1–2 pages, for each assignment.

Read the assignments carefully before you begin your responses. Think about how you will organize your responses. You may use the erasable sheet(s) to make notes, write an outline, or otherwise prepare your responses. However, your final response to each assignment must be either:

  1. typed into the on-screen response box,
  2. written on a response sheet and scanned using the scanner provided at your workstation, or
  3. provided using both the on-screen response box (for typed text) and a response sheet (for calculations or drawings) that you will scan using the scanner provided at your workstation.

Instructions for scanning your response sheet(s) are available by clicking the "Scanning Help" button at the top of the screen.

As a whole, your response to each assignment must demonstrate an understanding of the knowledge of the field. In your response to each assignment, you are expected to demonstrate the depth of your understanding of the subject area by applying your knowledge rather than by merely reciting factual information.

Your response to each assignment will be evaluated based on the following criteria.

The open-response item assignments are intended to assess subject knowledge. Your responses must be communicated clearly enough to permit valid judgment of the evaluation criteria by scorers. Your responses should be written for an audience of educators in this field. The final version of each response should conform to the conventions of edited American English. Your responses should be your original work, written in your own words, and not copied or paraphrased from some other work.

Be sure to write about the assigned topics. Remember to review your work and make any changes you think will improve your responses.

Any time spent responding to an assignment, including scanning the response sheet(s), is part of your testing time. Monitor your time carefully. When your testing time expires, a pop-up message will appear on-screen indicating the conclusion of your test session. Only response sheets that are scanned before you end your test or before time has expired will be scored. Any response sheet that is not scanned before testing ends will NOT be scored.

Sample Open-Response Item

Objective 0012
Prepare an organized, developed analysis of a key topic in Earth science related to Earth's Place in the Universe or Earth's Systems: Geosphere.

Use the information below to complete the assignment that follows.

Phenomenon

Changes in Earth's climate result from variations in energy flow into and out of Earth's systems.

Student Standard

HS-ESS2-411: Use a model to describe how variations in the flow of energy into and out of Earth's systems over different time scales result in changes in climate. Analyze and interpret data to explain that long-term changes in Earth's tilt and orbit result in cycles of climate change such as Ice Ages.

Use your knowledge of Earth science and the changes that have occurred on Earth since its origin to write a response of approximately 150–300 words, or 1–2 pages, in which you:

Sample Strong Response to the Open-Response Item

The sample response below reflects a strong knowledge and understanding of the subject matter.

Key concepts: The idea that variations in the Earth's axial tilt and orbit are drivers of climate fluctuations was first proposed based upon observations of three phenomena: the shape of the orbit, known as eccentricity, the angle of the axis with respect to the horizontal (orbital) plane, known as obliquity, and the direction the axis is pointed, known as precession. (See diagram.)

Working in concert, these phenomena can effect the position of the earth in space with respect to the sun and its warmth. They can put the earth at a great enough distance away from the sun to lower the average global temperature slightly. It has been determined that a modest lowering of the global average can have significant effects, particularly on land surfaces in the Earth's higher latitudes. The result can be that the accumulation of snow grows to the point that more is retained from one winter than melts over the course of the following summer. This is how glaciers form and are maintained.

It was theorized that the advance and retreat of continental ice sheets, in the periods called "ice ages," coincided with these fluctuations in tilt and orbit. Predictions of the periods for formation were made and those predictions have since been confirmed by accumulating geologic evidence.

As an exercise in guiding student analysis and interpretation of data one might look at simplified versions of these predictions and compare those with the data gathered by various methods, such as ocean floor sediment cores, that have served as scientific confirmations of the theory.

SHORT ALT TEXT

There are three diagrams shown. There is a diagram that shows that Earth’s orbit around the sun is elliptical, not circular. This diagram is labeled “eccentricity”. The Earth is shown at its closest point to the sun at the perihelion and furthest from the sun at the aphelion. Another diagram is labeled “obliquity”. There are three lines going straight through the Earth, showing alternation between 21.8 and 24.4 degrees off of zero. The last diagram is labeled “precession” and defined as “the wobble of the axis, like a spinning top gets a wobble as it begins to slow down”. Two arrows coming off the Earth indicate a periodic shift in the orientation of Earth’s axis from pointing at Vega to the North Star.

Scoring Rubric

Performance Characteristics

The following characteristics guide the scoring of responses to the open-response item(s).

Performance Characteristics
Purpose The extent to which the response achieves the purpose of the assignment.
Subject Matter Knowledge Accuracy and appropriateness in the application of subject matter knowledge.
Support Quality and relevance of supporting details.
Rationale Soundness of argument and degree of understanding of the subject matter.

Scoring Scale

The scoring scale below, which is related to the performance characteristics for the tests, is used by scorers in assigning scores to responses to the open-response item(s).

Score Scale with description for each score point.
Score Point Score Point Description
4 The "4" response reflects a thorough knowledge and understanding of the subject matter.
  • The purpose of the assignment is fully achieved.
  • There is substantial, accurate, and appropriate application of subject matter knowledge.
  • The supporting evidence is sound; there are high-quality, relevant examples.
  • The response reflects an ably reasoned, comprehensive understanding of the topic.
3 The "3" response reflects an adequate knowledge and understanding of the subject matter.
  • The purpose of the assignment is largely achieved.
  • There is a generally accurate and appropriate application of subject matter knowledge.
  • The supporting evidence is adequate; there are some acceptable, relevant examples.
  • The response reflects an adequately reasoned understanding of the topic.
2 The "2" response reflects a limited knowledge and understanding of the subject matter.
  • The purpose of the assignment is partially achieved.
  • There is a limited, possibly inaccurate or inappropriate, application of subject matter knowledge.
  • The supporting evidence is limited; there are few relevant examples.
  • The response reflects a limited, poorly reasoned understanding of the topic.
1 The "1" response reflects a weak knowledge and understanding of the subject matter.
  • The purpose of the assignment is not achieved.
  • There is little or no appropriate or accurate application of subject matter knowledge.
  • The supporting evidence, if present, is weak; there are few or no relevant examples.
  • The response reflects little or no reasoning about or understanding of the topic.
U The response is unrelated to the assigned topic, illegible, primarily in a language other than English, not of sufficient length to score, or merely a repetition of the assignment.
B There is no response to the assignment.

Acknowledgments

12016 Massachusetts Science and Technology/Engineering Curriculum Framework. Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.