The Science Symposium: A Substantive Alternative Assessment

In today's science classes, where standards are shifting toward engaging in scientific practices, a shift in science assessments to better reflect the skills and knowledge achieved in modern science classrooms is needed. If science is a discipline to be practiced rather than memorized, then science assessments should be designed to gauge a student's progress toward employing better science practices. A substantive alternative assessment in science--one that provides authentic and meaningful feedback to students as they do science--is the science symposium. The University of Montana's Research Education on Air and Cardiovascular Health (REACH) program provides opportunities for high school students to conduct student-designed science research projects (Delaloye et al. 2016; Delaloye et al. 2018; Ward et al. 2016). The culminating event of this yearlong REACH program is the Environmental Health Science Symposium. This year's 18th annual symposium will bring together high school students from Montana, Idaho, and Alaska to present their research findings and engage with their peers, University faculty and staff, and a panel of judges--just as research scientists would do. The science symposium provides students with experience in science communication and an alternative assessment providing meaningful, timely, and relevant feedback to students and their teachers. In this article, the authors present findings from student survey data and teacher interviews regarding their experiences with the REACH symposia.