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9-12 Grade Level Illinois Alternative Assessment Program Scoring Rubric ITEM: County Differences in Illinois This item uses a choropleth map of Illinois that shows the percentage distribution of persons in poverty by county. Students are asked to analyze the map to identify which of five variables is represented --persons in poverty, African-American population, Asian-American population, college graduates, or foreign born population, and to provide reasons for their selection. Also, they must give reasons for rejecting each of the other variables. They are expected to use their knowledge of human geography to answer the question. Level Four Performance At Level Four, the student correctly identifies persons in poverty as the distribution shown on the map and provides two or three valid reasons for their choice, i.e., rural character of the high percentage areas, economic decline of river communities, poorer agricultural base, relatively static culture, isolation. In addition, for each of the other variables, the student lists one valid reason that explains why it was rejected, e.g., not African-American population because they are concentrated in larger urban areas, such as Chicago. Responses are organized according to the order specified in the question, i.e., choose a variable, give reasons, explain why it is not any of the other variables. Level Three Performance At this level, the student correctly identifies persons in poverty as the mapped variable and provides one valid reason for their choice, i.e., rural areas, river communities, poorer agricultural area, static culture, isolation. Also, for each of the other variables, the student lists a reason for rejecting it, but at least one reason is erroneous. As with Level Four, responses are organized according to the order specified in the question. Level Two Performance At this level, the student correctly identifies persons in poverty as the mapped variable and provides a reason, but the reason tends to be vague, e.g., "...because more toward the south there seems to be more poverty. Sometimes the student may arrive at a selection through the process of elimination. If reasons are provided for rejecting the other variables at all, the student addresses only one or two variables. Often these reasons are marginal. Responses are organized according to the order called for in the question, but they tend to be brief. Level One Performance At Level One, the student identifies a variable other than persons in poverty as the subject of the map. Their conclusion is usually reached by the process of elimination or guessing, and the reasons provided represent misperceptions, e.g., "...African Americans, because the numbers are greater in the southern part of the state." In some cases responses indicate that students do not know how to read a choropleth map, e.g., thinking that each of the percentage categories on the map represents one of the variables. Responses tend to be poorly organized and abbreviated.