Critical Thinking Assessment Measures Students' Abilities To Problem Solve
Dear Parents,
I wanted to let all of you know about an assessment we gave to the seniors earlier this week during their Senior Seminar blocks. It is called the College and Work Readiness Assessment, and it is a relatively new test that our students have been taking annually in their 9th and 12th grade years. The entire test is done on-line and takes about 100 minutes (including registration).
The purpose of the CWRA is to measure students’ abilities as problem solvers. Developed by the Council for Aid to Education, the CWRA is designed to “help your school learn how well your students are learning how to think critically, reason analytically, solve problems, and write well. You will also be participating in an ongoing national project building a database of information about teaching higher order skills to prepare students for college, and for life.”Every student is given a complex scenario that needs to be solved creatively, accounting for a number of variables as they write their responses."
Below please find a sample question from a previous version of the test.
You are the assistant to Pat Williams, the president of DynaTech, a company that makes precision electronic instruments and navigational equipment. Sally Evans, a member of DynaTech's sales force, recommended that DynaTech buy a small private plane (a SwiftAir 235) that she and other members of the sales force could use to visit customers. Pat was about to approve the purchase when there was an accident involving a SwiftAir 235. You are provided with the following documentation: | |
1: Newspaper articles about the accident 2: Federal Accident Report on in-flight breakups in single engine planes 3: Pat's e-mail to you & Sally's e-mail to Pat 4: Charts on SwiftAir's performance characteristics 5: Amateur Pilot article comparing SwiftAir 235 to similar planes 6: Pictures and description of SwiftAir Models 180 and 235 | |
Please prepare a memo that addresses several questions, including what data support or refute the claim that the type of wing on the SwiftAir 235 leads to more in-flight breakups, what other factors might have contributed to the accident and should be taken into account, and your overall recommendation about whether or not DynaTech should purchase the plane. | |
I came to a senior class meeting last week and appealed to the students’ sense of altruism and honor: I told them we really need you to try to perform your best on this test, as it is extremely helpful in keeping our school at the top of national rankings, supporting us as we seek non-profit grants for scholarships, and allowing us to avoid other state-mandated national testing. I acknowledged that the CWRA doesn’t “count” the way an SAT or ACT does in terms of the college admission process; it is for our internal use as a high school. Because we have been emphasizing problem solving and critical thinking, we have used the CWRA as a measure of our effectiveness in these areas. To their credit, students showed up in the computer labs on Monday and Tuesday and really worked hard on the test. They were typing away for at least 40 minutes, with most spending an hour or more completing the essay portion of the assessment. Many thanks to them for being good sports and having a positive attitude.
The CWRA has been recommended as an important 21st century teaching tool by both Tony Wagner in his book The Global Achievement Gap and by the leadership of the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS). Colorado Academy is one of only four high schools in the state to offer this assessment.
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