Designing and Validating a Qualitative Evaluation Model for Assessing Student's Science Achievement in the First Grade of Junior High School

The present study was carried out to design a qualitative evaluation model for assessing students’ science achievement in the first grade of junior high school. To this end, philosophical principles of education, national policy documents as well as experiences of successful countries were examined. In this survey, comparative methods were implemented and the theoretical validation of the model was achieved through the approval of 15 education experts. Next, science teachers and senior science teachers (189 individuals from 32 provinces) examined the practicality of the model. The instrumentation comprised semi-structured interview forms for education experts and a self-devised questionnaire for the teachers and senior teachers. For the purpose of data analysis, qualitative methods and one variable t-test were used. The proposed model underwent required revisions and was approved by most experts. The components of the model included evaluation methods, principles, objectives, approaches, feedback types (process, cumulative) and the main audience (students, parents, teachers, learning process). In addition, science teachers and senior science teachers believed that this model could provide constructive feedback to parents, students, teachers, and the teaching-learning process to a great extent.