School Improvement in Maryland

Using the State Curriculum: Science, Grade 8

Skills and Processes | Earth/Space | Life | Chemistry | Physics | Environmental

Public Release Items: Public release items have appeared on MSA forms and then are released for public viewing and use. Releasing items is one step to ensuring that schools, districts, and other stakeholders understand how the content standards are assessed on the MSA.

Standard 1.0 Skills and Processes

Topic C. Communicating Scientific Information

Indicator 1. Develop explanations that explicitly link data from investigations conducted, selected readings and, when appropriate, contributions from historical discoveries.

Objective e. Explain how different models can be used to represent the same thing. What kind of a model to use and how complex it should be depend on its purpose. Choosing a useful model is one of the instances in which intuition and creativity come into play in science, mathematics, and engineering

Selected Response Item

Scientists use models that show the features of an atom.

A scientist should use a model that

  1. was the first to be developed
  2. was most recently developed
  3. shows the arrangement most clearly
  4. shows the details needed for a specific purpose
/toolkit/vsc/assessment_items/msa_science_8_019.xml

Correct Answer:
D

Selected Response Item

Kidneys are bean-shaped organs that filter waste from the bloodstream.

Which model best demonstrates how a kidney functions?





/toolkit/vsc/assessment_items/msa_science_8_041.xml

Correct Answer:
C

Selected Response Item

Science students investigated the cause of the different phases of the moon.

The model that would best demonstrate the cause of the phases of the moon would include representations of

  1. the moon and Earth
  2. the moon and the sun
  3. the moon, the sun, and Earth
  4. the moon, the sun, and Venus
/toolkit/vsc/assessment_items/msa_science_8_068.xml

Correct Answer:
C