Introduction​​​​

This guide for teachers explains how to assess and mark (grade) a design project for children in school years 4, 5, 6; that is 9 to 11-year-old children. Level II design tasks are intended to nurture the creativity in the children-designers and encourage experimentation by teaching the four steps to designing for this level: LEARN, DRAW, MAKE, and TEST. The work done by the children for the four steps of the design process can all be assessed. The curiosity shown in the LEARN step; the creativity and experimentation shown in the DRAW step; the experimentation and quality of work shown in the MAKE step; and the diligence shown in the TEST step, can be marked.

 

Assessing and Marking​​​​​​​

Learning outcomes
The learning outcomes should follow your national, state, district and school guidelines. The following example of learning outcomes is provided for your information. The generic knowledge, skills, and competence categories and descriptors are derived from “Level 2” of the European Qualifications Framework (EQF).
Knowledge

• “Basic factual knowledge of a field of work or study,” for example:
  • enhanced vocabulary on specialised subjects;
  • and gaining knowledge specific to the design topics.

Skills

• “Basic cognitive and practical skills required to use relevant information in order to carry out tasks and to solve routine problems using simple rules and tools,” for example:
  • skill in using instruments and hand tools, such as in measuring, making and assembling models;
  • and using methods for creativity and to analyse and solve design problems.

Competence

• “Work or study under supervision with some autonomy,” for example:
  • working individually or in groups to follow the steps to complete design tasks under the guidance of teachers;
  • autonomously searching for information to solve design problems;
  • working in groups, communicating, and collaborating on design tasks;  
  • taking on challenges and persevering until a task is complete.

A scheme for assessing and marking
Where marks (grades) are required, you may use the following assessing and marking scheme. The basic principle is to give a fair reflection of the quantity and quality of the submitted work. It is good practice for student projects to be marked by more than one teacher.

FIGURE: Example of a marking sheet for a Level II design task.

Criteria
For the LEARN step, consider the following:

• Learning
  • The relevance, breadth and depth of the search for information. (More and greater is good.)
  • How well were design methods employed, such as Mind Map (II)? (Better is good.)

For the DRAW step, consider the following:

• Designing
  • The quantity and quality of design ideas. (More and better is good.)
  • Is there evidence of trial-and-error? (Yes is good.)
  • When children worked in groups: did they work well together? (Yes is good.)
  • How well were design methods employed, such as Idea Storm (II)? (Better is good.)
• Drawing
  • How detailed are the drawings, for example in the use of dimensions? (Detailed is good.)
  • How well do the drawings depict the thing being designed? (Better is good.)

For the MAKE step, consider the following:

• Designing
  • Is there evidence of trial-and-error? (Yes is good.)
  • Does the design idea work? (Yes is good.)
• Making
  • How much effort to make the physical model? (More is good.)
  • How well does the model simulate the thing being designed? (Better is good.)
  • Note: where a drawing or artwork has been made in place of a model, mark that instead.

For the TRY step, consider the following:

• Trying
  • Was a useful trial conducted? (Yes is good.)
  • Did they learn from the trial? (Yes is good.)

Scoring
Each category is graded out of five points. You may apply the rubric below (based on 60% for pass). You see (above) that the LEARN step has one category — learning; the DRAW step has two — designing and drawing; the MAKE step has two — designing and making; and the TRY step has one — trying. Thus, 5 × (1 + 2 + 2 + 1) = 30 points in total for the design task.​​​​​​​

Rubric
5 ~ Excellent. Correct work; with extra diligence and effort; exemplary for this level.
4 ~ Good. Correct work; with enough diligence and effort; above average for this level.
3 ~ Pass. Mostly correct work; with some diligence and effort; average for this level.
2 ~ Inadequate. Mix of correct and incorrect work; with little diligence and effort; below average for this level.
1 ~ Poor. Mostly incorrect work; with almost no diligence and effort; bad for this level.
0 ~ No submission. Or completely incorrect work; or work that is submitted after the submission date.


​​​​​​​Copying, plagiarism, and assistance
Observant teachers will notice some copying when children of Level II engage in design. Children learn and develop skills through instruction and by copying others. However, cheating by copying is a desperate act. Learning how to design is the best antidote to cheating. Students, who have done design, will have learnt the basics of the subject and the ‘design thinking steps,’ improved their making skills, and their creative confidence. Teachers who are engaged with the children’s projects and follow their work closely become a significant impediment to cheating.

• Sharing ideas when designing
  • Sharing information and ideas is a normal part of designing. Children-designers might gain the same insights out of the LEARN step, identifying the same problems. Or, they might Idea Storm (II) together and pursue the same ideas.
  • Ideas are merely the starting points for design solutions. By following the design steps, the children will tend to start the design task at the same place, but end up with very different solutions.
• Copying each other
  • Where one child excessively copies another — they can be remedied through gentle encouragement: “Interesting! Why don’t you try something different?”
  • Plagiarism that involves cheating by blatant copying, for example by tracing another’s drawings, must be dealt with using your discretion or according to your school’s regulations.
• Copying existing objects
  • Children will see things in the world that they wish to imitate. After all, many manufactured objects are ingenious and well-designed. Children-designers can become too attached to something they have seen and will tend to copy it.
  • A teacher can try to break the spell that a manufactured object has on a student by pointing out its shortcomings. Still, any attempt by the children-designers to copy manufactured objects will inevitably fall short because they won’t be able to attain the same qualities of the real thing. Instead, the children will be forced to modify and improvise their design ideas — all of which are designing and involve learning.
• Assistance from adults
  • Children might get excessive assistance from adults in their design project, for example, an adult might build their model.
  • The key question is whether your school is able to support all the activities necessary to complete a design task. For example, your school may not have the facilities for a model that the children need to build.
  • Use your judgement as to whether adult assistance will be permitted or not. Consider the design topic, your school’s facilities, health and safety, and other pertinent factors.
  • Ensure that the children-designers get their teacher’s permission for any work to be done by adults.
• Penalties for excessive copying
  • There are many good reasons not to penalise copying. However, if children copy excessively, or if they benefit too much from adult help on a design task, you may deduct a point or two for the affected criterion. This is not done for punishment, rather it is about being fair to the other students who worked unaided. After all, a mark is meant to be a fair reflection of the achievement of the student.