Can AI Help Teachers Design Formative Assessments in Science Education? Evaluating the ADAPT-AI Tool
Formative assessments, such as classroom learning tasks, play an important role in K–12 science education by helping teachers gain insight into student learning. When designed to prioritize student needs and experiences, formative assessments can also foster student engagement in science learning.
Teachers, particularly those in elementary school, need support to design formative assessments that fit specific learning needs. Generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) shows promise for supporting this practice. However, the field needs rigorous and actionable evidence to continue its development and adoption.
Examining the ADAPT-AI Tool
AIR has partnered with Washington State University to test the Accessible Development of Assessments Partnering Teachers and Artificial Intelligence (ADAPT-AI) tool. This human-AI collaborative tool is designed to help elementary science teachers create and use adaptive learning tasks in the context of formative assessment. The project will:
- Examine the validity evidence of ADAPT-AI results; and
- Assess the impact of ADAPT-AI combined with teacher support (ADAPT-AI+) on teachers and students.
The project will include two phases of ADAPT-AI rapid-cycle evaluation to provide timely evidence of validity and impact.
- In Phase 1, AIR will work with a small group of disciplinary experts, fourth- and fifth-grade teachers, and their students to collect and examine the quality of the ADAPT-AI learning tasks and validity of the tool's results.
- In Phase 2, we will work with approximately 80 fourth- and fifth-grade teachers and their students to examine the impact of ADAPT-AI+ on teacher confidence, student engagement, and academic achievement.
To estimate the impact, we will randomly assign half of the teachers to use ADAPT-AI+ right away while the other half continue normal practice and access ADAPT-AI+ later. We will use teacher and student surveys and district records to examine the outcomes.
Next Steps
Our experts are finalizing the project’s evaluation plan, developing data collection instruments, and creating recruitment materials. We will share project details with districts, schools, and teachers in Washington soon.
