A criteria-and-descriptor-based worksheet model for organizing and assessing grade 8 physics laboratory work

Abstract

The article is devoted to the theoretical justification and description of the structure of a criteria-and-descriptor-based worksheet as a methodological tool for organizing laboratory work in physics in Grade 8. The relevance of the study is determined by the fact that, in traditional organization, laboratory work is often reduced to the mechanical following of instructions without students’ awareness of the purpose of the experiment, the logic of measurements, and the physical meaning of the obtained results. The study has a methodological and design-oriented character and includes an analysis of regulatory requirements, a theoretical analysis of scientific literature on criterion-based and formative assessment, a structural and functional analysis of laboratory work, and methodological modeling of the worksheet. Five laboratory works from the section “Direct Electric Current” were selected as the subject context: assembling an electric circuit, investigating the dependence of current on voltage, studying series and parallel connections of conductors, and measuring the work and power of electric current. As a result, a worksheet model was developed that integrates three methodological lines: subject-content, activity-based, and assessment-reflective. The model includes six components of students’ experimental competence, five assessment criteria with three-level descriptors, and an element of self-assessment. The proposed structure makes the requirements for performing laboratory work transparent, links students’ experimental actions with assessment criteria, and creates conditions for formative feedback. The practical significance lies in the possibility of using the model by physics teachers when preparing laboratory work.