M.T302

Representing Form: An Interdisciplinary Approach

This assessment task has three parts each lasting approximately 50 minutes each.

In Part 1, the teacher will conduct a group assessment on form and connect with dance education. As a group, students will listen to a recording of a piece of music in ABA form that has been selected and provided by the teacher. The listening example must be in ABA form and could be a piece of music that students are working on in class or a new listening example. If a piece of music from class is used, the teacher must not have labeled or discussed the form of the piece in class prior to the assessment.

In small groups, students will analyze the form of the piece of music and then physically demonstrate the form. Everyone in the group must participate in the activity. Students should come up with their own movements without teacher assistance; movements must represent ABA form. Student groups will be video recorded. The teacher will later evaluate the students’ work using the Teacher Scoring Checklist.

In Part 2, the students will listen to a new piece of music that is in ABA form and individually analyze it in writing. Students will describe select musical elements (characteristic materials) represented in each section, using appropriate terminology. The teacher will later evaluate the students’ work using the Teacher Scoring Rubric for Part 2.

At the end of Part 2, each student will be given a copy of a piece of sheet music in ABA form (to be supplied by the teacher). Students will be asked to choose or create a visual representation of the form of that piece outside of class for use in Part 3 of the assessment. The visual representation could be a photograph, an image from the Internet, a drawing, a painting, or another piece of artwork that represents the form of the piece the student has been assigned.

During Part 3, students will write an essay that describes how the visual they provided meets the criteria for the form of their song. They will use both the sheet music provided in Part 2 and the visual representation chosen or created outside of class. The teacher will later score the students’ work using the Teacher Scoring Rubric for Part 3.

This item has been voluntarily field-tested by Michigan teachers with a non-representative sample of students.


These are analytic rubrics. The column on the left shows the dimension that is being measured in the student’s performance. The levels across the top row indicate the performance level in the dimensions. Occasionally all dimensions and performance levels are exemplified by multiple students in a single recording.

TEACHER SCORING RUBRIC FOR PART 2

  • Dimension
  • Music is analyzed with use of the brainstorming notes.

  • Appropriate music vocabulary is used.

  • Thoughts are expressed in an organized fashion using complete sentences.

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • The response shows little or no evidence of analytical thought.

    N/A at this time.
  • The response shows some evidence of analytical thought.

    N/A at this time.
  • The response shows good evidence of analytical thought.

    View Exemplar
  • The response shows outstanding evidence of analytical thought.

    N/A at this time.
  • The response does not use appropriate musical terminology.

    N/A at this time.
  • The response rarely uses appropriate musical terminology.

    N/A at this time.
  • The response uses appropriate musical terminology.

    View Exemplar
  • The response uses an impressive amount of appropriate musical terminology.

    N/A at this time.
  • The response shows little or no evidence of organizational structure.

    N/A at this time.
  • The response uses a limited organizational plan, sequence, and structure of ideas.

    N/A at this time.
  • The response uses a good organizational plan. It has a generally unified and coherent sequence and structure of ideas.

    View Exemplar
  • The response uses a clearly evident organizational plan. It actively engages the reader with a unified and coherent sequence and structure of ideas.

    N/A at this time.

TEACHER SCORING RUBRIC FOR PART 3

  • Dimension
  • Visual Representation

  • Written Description

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • Visual representation is illogical or does not display elements of the musical form.

    N/A at this time.
  • Visual representation is vague and provides minimal representation of the musical form.

    N/A at this time.
  • Visual representation competently represents the musical form.

    N/A at this time.
  • Visual representation represents the musical form in a unique and insightful way.

    View Exemplar
  • Written description is illogical and does not compare the characteristic connections between the visual and musical form.

    N/A at this time.
  • Written description is vague and provides a minimal comparison of the characteristic connections between the visual and musical form.

    N/A at this time.
  • Written description is reasonable and provides a competent comparison of the connections between the visual and musical form.

    N/A at this time.
  • Written representation is logical and creatively provides an excellent comparison of the salient characteristics of the visual and musical form.

    N/A at this time.
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