PLI #5

About the Session

Are you looking for better ways to design meaningful, standards-aligned assessments that reflect your students’ thinking? In this full-day workshop, we’ll work together to design three-dimensional (3D) science assessments—supported by a powerful generative AI tool and guided by your teacher expertise. Using the Next Generation Science Assessment (NGSA) Design Framework and real classroom examples, we’ll walk through how to unpack performance expectations, craft learning performances and evidence statements, and co-create tasks responsive to your students’ diverse backgrounds and learning needs. You’ll learn how to write effective prompts for AI, evaluate and adapt AI-generated content, and ensure that what you create is instructionally useful and meaningful. Along the way, we’ll also engage in honest, practical conversations about the ethical use of AI in education. This session is designed specifically for upper elementary and middle school teachers—and you’ll leave with ready-to-use assessment tasks, access to customizable prompts and design templates, and new strategies you can apply immediately in your classroom.

Takeaways

• Learn how to design NGSS-aligned 3D assessment tasks with the support of a GPT-empowered AI system.
• Gain practical experience writing prompts, generating and refining tasks, and applying a clear design framework.
• Explore ways to responsibly integrate AI into your work that honors student voice, local context, and teacher judgment.
• Walk away with a complete prototype assessment, classroom-ready resources, and a deeper confidence in your assessment design.
  
  
   

Presenters

Tingting Li

Assistant Professor of Science Education, Washington State University

Tingting Li (she/her/她) is an Assistant Professor of Science Education at Washington State University. She holds two Ph.D. degrees from Michigan State University—one in Curriculum and Instruction (2022) and the other in Educational Psychology and Educational Technology (2024). Dr. Li’s research focuses on leveraging innovative technologies (e.g., AI, XR, etc.) to foster equitable, innovative teaching and learning practices that enhance students’ problem-solving abilities, such as knowledge-in-use and cognitive flexibility, while also supporting student engagement and social-emotional learning. She collaborates closely with K–12 teachers, students, and school districts across diverse states and communities. Additionally, she works with pre-service and in-service science teachers to promote meaningful, engaging, and culturally responsive science learning experiences in real-world classrooms.

Joseph Krajcik

Professor of Science Education and Director, CREATE for STEM Institute, Michigan State University

Joseph Krajcik directs the CREATE for STEM Institute and is a University Distinguished Professor at Michigan State University. Throughout his career, Joe has focused on working with colleagues and science teachers to design and test project-based learning environments to reform science teaching practices and to research student learning and engagement. Joe served as president of the National Association for Research in Science Teaching (NARST), from which he received the Distinguished Contributions to Science Education Through Research Award in 2010. He served as the lead writer for developing Physical Science Standards for the NGSS and for the Physical Science Disciplinary Core Ideas for the Framework for K – 12 Science Education. In 2020, Joe was elected to the National Academy of Education and received the prestigious McGraw Prize for Innovation in Pre-K-12 Education. He has published over 100 peer-reviewed manuscripts, and his book on Project-based Learning is in its fifth edition.

Selin Akgun

Assistant Professor of Science Education, University of Minnesota

Selin Akgun is an Assistant Professor of Science Education. She holds a B.S. and M.A. in Primary Science Education from Boğaziçi University, Istanbul, and a Ph.D. in Curriculum, Instruction, and Teacher Education from Michigan State University. Her research centers on creating equity- and justice-oriented elementary science classrooms that support student sensemaking and critical consciousness. She also investigates teacher identity development in science education through longitudinal qualitative research, focusing on individual, collective, and practice-level experiences. Additionally, her work explores ways to teach the core concepts, ethical implications, and community aspects of artificial intelligence (AI) to cultivate elementary students’ critical AI literacy in both formal and informal STEM learning environments.