Think of the many different ways by which teachers have assessed you over the course of your schooling: objective quizzes/tests, open-ended quizzes/tests, essays (in-class and take-home), projects, presentations, etc. What are your thoughts on assessment? What types of assessment do you find most valid and/or valuable? What are least valid/valuable? (I'm not asking what you "like" best, or what's "most fun," though you can certainly mention that. What I'm more interested in is your opinion on what form(s) of assessment is/are the most educationally sound.)
23 comments:
I think that the most sound way to be assessed is with a project. I think this because when you have a project you can tell how much effort was put into the work. By looking at the content it is obvious whether the student read the material and how much they got out of it. I think that overall grading is difficult for teachers because thinking of projects and grading them is difficult. As a student I know that tests and quizzes aren't always the best way to grade a student because I get nervous if I run out of time. Though I know the material questions may be worded weird, and I think that no matter how many tests you take a person really never gets use to them. The thing that doesn't always work with essays is that they are so subjective. When you write an essay you are like a critic. You write what you get out of the story, but then a teacher has to say if they agree or not. It is similar to how people see art, no one person sees it the exact way, so there's a fine line when you grade the content of what makes sense or not.
I think that the most educationally sound way to assess students is through presentations. With presentations you can really tell how well the student is prepared. Usually with presentations you can tell how much that person actually knows about the subject they're talking about. If they're reading straight off the paper and are stumbling over words then you obviously know they pulled it together the night before and don't have any idea what they're saying. I know people get nervous speaking in front of others and sometimes I do too but if you're confident in what you're saying then theres really no need to be nervous. On the other hand tests and quizzes are obviously not fun and I don't think they really represent how much a student knows. Even when i study i still feel worried because i never know exactly what's going to be on it. Sometimes teachers put questions on tests that seem like they came out of nowhere like things that weren't even talked about in class. That's not assessing anything valuable.
I think the most valuable and educationally sound way to assess students is through open ended writing samples. Whether it's an essay or just responses to questions about reading. In order to write, you have to think. I know with multiple choice you have to think too but, you can use process of elimination and all that sort of stuff. Projects are okay. Group projects are, however, NOT okay (unless you're with Mike). I feel that with projects its easy to (excuse the slang/vulgarity) B.S. stuff and a lot of people really don't put that effort in but they still pull off an average, if not better, grade for getting up and doing something. Once again, that's why I feel writing is the best assessment of a student. It's something we have to do on our own and no matter how good of a writer we are, there is always something to improve. Our writing not only shows what we think of the curriculum, but our strengths & weaknesses as a writer and where we need improvement. Its a really raw, I guess, way of testing how we're keeping up. What we write comes from inside us, so it's simply seeing what we know and how well we form it on paper. It's imperative to be able to succinctly organize thought, so not only does writing help the teacher see how we're doing but it exercises our minds.
I think fill in the blank quizzes over the course of reading a novel are good assessments too because then you know who is actually reading (as you've already determined).
I think debates are really neat and give you a chance to view us a little differently. Rarely do we dispute or discuss things in class with one another. We usually just answer your questions or pick on what you say :) In a debate it provides us a chance to refute and defend our opinions and observations against one another.
Writing is just great & I dislike multiple choice & group projects!
AND BLOGS. BLEH BLEH BLEH Blogs are a poor assessment of students because its so informal and casual and weird and you want to write a lot...but you really can't because it's just a blog...where you just splurt out some ideas about a statement...and it's just difficult to find a happy medium when commenting. So i'd say NO to blogs.
I personally don’t like quote quizzes or tests (no offense Mr. Cianflone), but I feel that sometimes some of the quotes are really random and it would be more useful to completely understand the meaning of the work, rather than who said a certain line. Sometimes the quotes are really important to the work, so I think that analyzing those few, specific, ones would give a more accurate assessment. I also don’t like some of the really specific fill in the blank, I feel that they focus too much on really small points, that sometimes even when reading really carefully can be missed.
I like doing essays when you can take them home, I find that I am able to write a better essay when I’m not rushed and can have time to sort out all my thoughts. I also feel that doing projects can be really good in assessing how much students understand. The projects show if the work is understood, as well as showing how much the students care about their grades by how much work they put in.
When it comes to the most educationally sound method in which to assess students, I believe free response essays and "fishbowl-like" activities are best, while tests and quizzes are worst. Open-ended papers allow kids to choose and expand upon an idea, such as a motif or symbol, that is personally intriguing to them. Students are more likely to take pleasure in writing the essay because they select topics that they feel confident in addressing. Then, with the fishbowl or with creative circle discussions, teachers can distinguish those kids who read and those who did not in a neat way. The kids who read will participate in the conversations versus the others who will keep quiet.
Tests and quizzes are the poorest types of evaluations because time constraints, nerves, and a lack of interest may negatively affect a student's performance. Kids are not motivated to spend time studying for a test on "hit or miss" info, like character quotations, that is challenging to master in a 42 minute period. I would much rather prepare an individual thesis or notes for a unique class activity that breaks up the monotony of my day.
Different students have different talents and types of intelligences, so it therefore makes sense to teach them in a variety of different methods. This is AP English, so obviously we are good at writing and analyzing literature. Within that, however, are so many different types of abilities; some of us are good time managers and thus do projects well, some write analytical papers best, some excel at discussion-type activities. Personally I enjoy the more artistic projects to demonstrate my creativity and journal (or in this case blog) assignments to voice my opinions. That's why Winkler's class was so awesome: there was a great variety of creative mini-projects mixed in with the essays, tests, discussions, and journals. Variety is the spice of life after all. So give us more mini-projects! So far all its been is analytical essays, no fun at all!
I agree with Paul that different students have different learning abilities and different types of intelligence. However, in classes like math and science where learning revolves solely on memory, the only way teacher's really assess someone's learning is through tests and quizzes. In classes like English where you can have unique opinions, I think it is better to do things like discussions and papers. Again though, some people aren't as good at speaking in front of others so sometimes their shyness hinders them from doing well in graded discussions.
As for validity, I really feel that tests are invalid, especially when they don't reflect what you learn. They have to reflection on how hard you work and how much you learn, they just show how well you have memorized and regurgitated material. Presentations, projects, and discussions are generally the most valid because you have to do a lot of work in order to do an adequate job. Yet, there are times where these can be frustrating because sometimes you feel like you have to cater to the opinions of teachers and that you can't always predict what teachers want from you. At least with tests and quizzes that have definate right and wrong answers, you do not have to worry about the teachers personal opinions and pet peeves hurting your grade.
I agree with Natalie that the best way to assess a student is through graded writing samples. I think that there are many factors that can cause a negative grade on a reading quiz becasue you don't remember a person's name or you missed a certain sentence. Essays allow a student to show off their writing skill, create an interesting and sometimes controversial thesis, and show their understanding of teh themes and book as a whole. It is thorough and successful assessment which allows the student time to edit and organize their thoughts.
I also think debates and fishbowls, like lauren said, are good at times. However, I think that it is difficult to base a student's whole grade off of this becasue they may be shy and not like arguing, or they may be cut out of the discussion by other people who talk too much. Plus it puts a lot of pressure on the teacher to decide who knows what they're taljking about and who just is saying words to get points. It is more of a participation grade than insight.
I think the WORST assessments are quote quizzes...esopecially when PEOPLE DO NOT HAVE THE SAME TRANSLATIONS! People who remember things easily can tell you who said it, but sometimes you know exactly what theme and symbol was being talked about, who was in the conversation, but you can't remember exactly who said it. I generally do well on them, but I just don't think they prove that I UNDERSTOOD what i read...just that i read it. :)
I like writing so I guess the best way to test someone would be to...give them an open-ended essay. However, AP-like essays are not what I am thinking of(okay, 20 minutes to read and analyze a poem/short story while piecing together a sound essay...). I understand that testers want to see students thinking on their toes, but its too close of a call to give them a piece they've never read before and ask them to speak knowledgeably about it. Reading something once cannot always give you enough information to write on it, especially if it's a tough and enigmatic piece. Personally I think that the essays we do at the CONCLUSION of the study of a work are the best way to test skills..even if they are looong. usually they give us the opportunity to create our own theses...and thus we are using our knowledge of the work to write something we sort of like. I like projects too, but not in excess. Sometimes it seems too easy to pick up a random object at home and say it symbolizes romance or something like that. And sorry to whoever said that classroom discussions are the best way to judge who has done homework and who hasn't...because there's a lot more that goes into public speaking besides knowledge. Some people are incredibly intimidated to reiterate what they know, even if it would generate a brilliant discussion. Um, so I guess it would be pointless to penalize someone just for keeping quiet, eh?
definitely agree with paul on the fact that everyone has different talents and its hard to pick an assessment for everyone. also agree with toni that projects do usually show off a lot of understanding. however, personally i dont think that there is a good assessment of what you learn, but debates usually work the best. in debates, you can have a variety of different topics that can range from botany to russian history and if you know something about anything, you can participate in it, speak your mind in an intelligent manner and get your thoughts across. debates make it easy to make connections between science and history.
I can see three ways that are the best ways to assess students. They are projects, open ended questions like Natalie said, and Miss Winkler's fish bowl discussions (not to be confused with socratic seminars). The projects show you just how much the student understood the material he or she researched. It will show if they know what they are talking about or if they are just trying to get one by the teacher. Open ended questions also show a lot. It shows how the student understands the material for what it is, without any external support. This will show the student's ideas and thoughts, and in turn will show the stengths and weaknesses of the student. It will give the teacher what he or she needs to know to tell the student what to work on and what to keep on doing. And then of course there is the fish bowls. Not only are those fun, but it's a way to bring the class together and to get all of their thoughts out there. No matter if they are the quiet shy kids or the ones that like to say whatever is on their mind, pretty much the whole class participates. But doing this in the format of a socratic seminar does not bring out as much creativity to the students as the actual fish bowl discussions. With the fish bowl discussions, there is a way for each and every student to particiapte by jotting down their idea(s). And in these discussions, there are ways of people discussing different topics relevant to the material and the students can decide for themselves what should be discussed or what should be tossed aside. This is a different method of learning a text, rather than listening to lectures which we all love :-D.
A really bad way to assess students is BLOGS. Sometimes the teacher can't view them all and can't critque them. Also, sometimes students just don't have the time for it so they bs their way through it. And there are cases I'm sure where a teacher might not be able to tell whether the student knows what they are talking about or whether they are just putting down whatever.
Why you guys gotta hate on blogs? Being students of the technology age we should revel the fact that good ole Jeff offers this medium of assessment. I mean, think about it. It's highly informal, short, not time consuming, and pretty much an easy "A." However, when it comes to assessing the educational value and purity of Blogs, the jury is still out. Maybe because blogs are so informal that they do not engage worthy scholarly debate or maybe not. Anyway, the best form of assessment is without a doubt oral-based assessments. Oral assessments are a direct exposure of what a students knows or doesn't know. The teacher can see what the student really knows and there is no "middle-man" (i.e. written quizzes) between the student's knowledge and the teacher. Nevertheless, oral assessments are outdated and impractical,yet directly tell what a student has learned and how he or she can convey it.
I think multiple choice questions are one of the worst ways teachers can evaluate what students actually know. I learned in psychology that it is much easier to answer a question, recognition, rather than to actually have to recall it from your memory. Multiple choice are also the easiest questions to guess on if you have no idea, with open ended or short answer you have to have some idea of what the answer would be. Also with math, if you run short on time for multiple choice you can just randomly pick answers, unlike free response where you need to show work. The AP board and SAT like testers have realized this and take off a quarter point for wrong answers, to try to prevent random guessing. I don’t really like the idea, but it does help make the results more creditable.
I also think that the best way to be assessed is through a presentation. You can present information in so many ways as well. It allows students to express themselves in different manners, you can use a powerpoint a power or even start a class discussion. Normally presentations make the student brush up on his or material so that he/she is prepared. My personal favorite is discussions. I like to get involved, especially if it has a great deal of interest to me. It's nice to discuss different opinions, however, not everyone gets involved with that. I don't think that quizes are always the best way to go. Some people are just really bad at taking tests and it's not their fault either. You can't always cram material into a test either, it's tough to try and study absolutley everything when everything won't necessarily be on there, it's a little frustrating. Even the smallest events can effect the outcome of a test or quiz.
my favorite type of assesment is probably with a paper, or a project of some sort. i hate tests and quizes since if you dont know one piece of information out of a whole section, and it is on the test then you are not going to get a good grade. I love writing papers personally since I normally do pretty well on them, but i do understand a lot of people hate them very very much, so i think the best way to test students is with a project of some sort. i think a project gives students a lot of creative freedom unlike a test or a quiz and yet you can still see if the students understand the information or not. sometimes i think quizes and tests are so focused on one right answer it is impossible to get it correct if your not the one who created the test. a project or a paper on the other hand gives the student space to show their own thought process and what they think is the most important information in the section.
see, someone else likes projects too! haha. Besides projects, I do like open-ended writing, just not the kind that requires you to write three pages in 45 minutes. Thats too stressful. I like being given enough time to put down your thoughts on paper. That way you're not just circling an answer someone gave you.. its your own thoughts, never before written down. And when it comes to open-ended writing, its best if its judged by the ideas and the support given. Although testing, like taking multiple choice exams are easy, and give a break to the students, I don't think its the best educational assessment out there. Additionally, there are many more engaging and interesting options out there, besides a test. However, since you can't make students write essays every week to check on how they're doing, its better to find a medium between all of the options of assessment. OH and a final thought: I loved Mrs. Winkler's fishbowl discussions hahaha. I like that as a form of assessment.
I can understand how giving assessments are difficult for teachers because every student is different in the way they learn and remember information. Some people are really good at memorizing information for tests, others like to be more free and write what they have learned. Personally, I find that writing assessments are the best way to gather how much a student has learned. Writing is very subjective in the sense that there is not really a right or wrong answer. Some answers are better than others, but I like the idea of never being completely wrong. I think that is why I enjoy english better that math and science, because in those classes there is a definite right and wrong answer, and the only way we are assessed is through tests and quizzes. In english, we can share our thoughts and interpretations of books and poems without ever being completely wrong.
i feel that anything other than a test or quizz is extreamly effective. Tests dont really show what we know or if we read or not. all they show is if we happen to remember the exact question your asking. essays, projects, speeches, ect. show if we understand if we can take what we know and use it. they are also more fun since we can facous in on our favorite aspect of what we're learning. it also results in better work and a happier class.
I believe that the best way to assess students varies from class to class, as other have mentioned. For an AP English class, I think it would be best to give a quote or passage and have the students explain what it means/what's going on in the passage, and how it relates to another part of the novel or the novel as a whole. this way, you'd see if the student understands the passage, and understands what purpose the passage serves. Projects are funner, though.
I definitely think that for English classes essays are the best assessments because all too often even when you read the chapters, or the novel, or the play that you were instructed to read, sometimes you miss the nit picky points that show up on a quiz or multiple choice question tests. Projects and presentations can be fun but you can get by with not understanding the book if you pick one topic that you understand, or in a group you happen to get the easy part. However, I would say that in things like science or math, quizzes and tests are really the best assessments because the material is more concrete.
I think projects are good, because you do your own research and tend to remember them longer, especially since we present them to the rest of the class. Even though many people dislike public speaking, i think that it really helps us to rememeber what we we researching and learning better. However, group projects are bad assessment because everyone splits up the work, and at the end you only understand the part that you did.
Also, tests and quizzes are pointless. Usually, everyone just cramms as much information as they can into their heads, and after their done, they forget it. i know i usually do. It's just short term memory. Many people are nervous, and that can reflect on their test.. so it wouldnt accuartly show how much the student really knows.
Take home essays are my favorite assessments. I feel that they are the least flawed. Tests, specifically objective (multiple choice, true false, etc) are incredibly impersonal. I feel that one of a student's greatest asset to offer is his or her personality, but in tests that personality is missing. Essay tests are often rushed, and thus lesser qualities of work are produced. It could be argued that projects or presentations are helpful, but I personally am not a fan of them. Some students have issues talking in front of a class, and they aren't truly seen through a presentation. Essays offer a way of seeing both a student's personality and intellect within an assignment.
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