Here, Let Me Show You: The Use of Senior Exhibitions in Conjunction with Traditional Assessments

This case study examined how senior exhibitions function in a progressive
educational environment that employs traditional assessments. The researcher
interviewed 18 students and three faculty members of The Crefeld School about the
Creative Expression, one of the 14 exhibitions that students are required to complete for
graduation. The researcher conducted a document analysis and content analysis of rubrics
for two essays and the Creative Expression. The researcher conducted a survey of student
participants and a questionnaire to assess students’ perceptions of authenticity. The
researcher observed three students present their Creative Expression in front of faculty,
students, and family. The researcher conducted a survey analysis based on Cooper’s
(1976) and Whitney’s (1978) tests for polarity of sentiment and Hsu’s (1979) test for
disagreement. The researcher used a program designed by Morris (1979) and transposed
to Microsoft Excel by Liebermann and Morris (2015) in order to calculate p values and to
determine the ES value based on the standard deviation. The researcher also attempted to conduct a point biserial Pearson Product
Moment to determine if a relationship existed between results on a mathematics exam
and results on the Creative Expression.
The findings of the study revealed that students at The Crefeld School had a
positive experience working on the Creative Expression; many of them identified how the
project reflected their interests, prepared them for college and careers, and was a good
representation of authentic assessment. Tests for polarity were used to measure
participants’ perceptions of authenticity. The category of task had the least amount of
disagreement, while the category of overall authenticity had the most disagreement.
Document analysis and content analysis of rubrics showed how thorough the rubric
descriptions were so students knew how they were being assessed; interviews with
students and faculty revealed that the rubrics, while used as guidelines, were not followed
strictly in any of the major assessments. Survey data revealed any disagreements in
responses to survey questions, based on Cooper’s (1976) and Whitney’s (1978) tests for
polarity. As no dichotomous variable existed, a point biserial test was unwarranted
regarding results on a traditional assessments and on the Creative Expression.