Friday, March 6, 2015

Math problems of the week: Common Core inspired test question

From the sample 8th grade math test from Smarter Balanced Assessments, which is developing Common Core tests for 31 states:

Extra Credit:

The aim of the Common Core Standards is to prepare students for "college and career." How does assessing a student's ability to perform reflections and translations of the sort of shape seen above contribute towards this goal?


GoogleMaster said...

This exercise would be much easier with transparencies and markers.

Auntie Ann said...

When did this enter the curriculum? I don't remember doing any or much of this. A bit on lines of symmetry, perhaps, but not all of this translation and rotation and reflection stuff.

What is the point? What are you supposed to learn by doing this?

Barry Garelick said...

Geometric transformations (reflections, rotations, translations) have been around in one form or another for the past two decades or so. It came about with NCTM's standards and is erroneously (in my opinion) thought to provide students a better grounding in "understanding" what congruence and similarity are. As if this wasn't enough, Common Core then took up the flag and required a transformational approach in high school geometry--a move that Jim Milgram objected to. Milgram was on one of the CC committees and was one of two people who refused to sign off on the CC standards. (Sandra Stotsky was the other, based on her view of the ELA standards).

lgm said...

It shows whether the student can follow a two step direction.That is challenging for many in the fully included classroom.