Teachers determine a student's understanding multiple times throughout the learning process, including pre-assessments that happen before instruction to better prepare thoughtful instruction, during instruction to identify misconceptions in new material, after instruction to determine understanding, and even again after the formative assessment to ensure ongoing understanding. Continual assessment provides many opportunities to hone their craft and improve student learning.
Goal:
I will provide students with feedback on their assessments when I see they aren't understanding a concept correctly and allow them a chance to correct their work and improve their learning.
Goal Reflection:
At the end of last year, the math teachers had a great discussion about testing, particularly limiting or eliminating the opportunity for retakes. The general consensus among the math department was that students would procrastinate their learning because there were so many retake opportunities. It seemed the student motto was "Why learn today when I can retake tomorrow?" As a math department, we agreed to a no-retake policy. It was a flexible policy, with re-takes given on a case by case basis, but it was a department wide decision. As I started to think about it more, I began to worry about the students who just take a little bit longer to learn. I'm not talking about the students who don't even attempt to learn and never do homework and fail tests and retake tests just to fail them again. I'm talking about the student who consistently turns in homework, asks questions in class, attends after school tutoring, and still barely passes tests. Sometimes these students need a little bit more time, and a little bit more practice before it really clicks. I didn't want these students to be frustrated with their low test scores and inability to improve them. So I created a request to retest form. Students who wished to retake a test could do so as long as they did test corrections on the original test, and one other activity to improve their understanding of the material.
To reward students who attempted to improve their understanding with test corrections, I would give back half of the points missed for correct answers, as long as the work to get the correct answer was shown. Oftentimes, earning back half of the missed points improved the grade enough that students no longer needed to retake tests. Another great benefit is that students would come in on their own time to work on test corrections, so I was able to individualize my instruction to those who need it most. It is a lot of work to grade a test, work with students in small groups after contract hours, and then regrade tests. The rewards for both parties are worth the effort though. I am happy because I can see their understanding improve, and they are happy because they see their grade improve.
To reward students who attempted to improve their understanding with test corrections, I would give back half of the points missed for correct answers, as long as the work to get the correct answer was shown. Oftentimes, earning back half of the missed points improved the grade enough that students no longer needed to retake tests. Another great benefit is that students would come in on their own time to work on test corrections, so I was able to individualize my instruction to those who need it most. It is a lot of work to grade a test, work with students in small groups after contract hours, and then regrade tests. The rewards for both parties are worth the effort though. I am happy because I can see their understanding improve, and they are happy because they see their grade improve.
Evidence:
These documents show a student's original answers on the test, the feedback I provided, and how she used the feedback to improve her score on test corrections. She went from a 60% to an 84% on the first attempt at corrections and even further to a 90% on her second attempt. This student usually takes a little bit longer to understand and is grateful for the opportunity to improve her grade. I am grateful for her desire to continue to learn and improve her understanding.
These images show how I use the feedback from common formative assessments to reteach the material. On the Spring Benchmark, only 15% of my students were proficient on standard F.BF.A.1. After reviewing the material, 73% of my students were proficient with 57% highly proficient.
Reflection:
It is very easy to create and grade multiple-choice tests that assess a students luck and ability to weed out the detractors to find the correct answers. It is more difficult to create, and even more difficult to grade, tests that really assess a student's understanding of the material. My tests are a combination of matching and multiple-guess that are instantly graded, short-answer that are quickly graded with the TI Nspire calculator response system, and free response questions that challenge a student's depth of knowledge and complete understanding of the material. I try to provide feedback any time I deduct points on a test. Right or wrong doesn't improve a student's understanding, but highlighting mistakes, providing hints on better methods or next steps, will really help students identify their areas of weakness and, consequently, improve their learning. After grading a test, students have an opportunity to read my feedback and rework missed problems to earn back partial credit. Oftentimes, this means students visit me after school to get extra help in fixing their mistakes, and we really get a chance to identify areas of weakness and improve understanding. Although the grading of these assessments is much more tedious than multiple-choice exams, I understand my student's weaknesses better than if I were to do multiple choice-tests. This sort of information is very valuable to me and well worth the effort.
My goal was to offer students feedback to help them understand their shortcomings, but this year I have found that I receive feedback in the form of data from common formative assessments. Just as I expect my students to use the feedback to work on test corrections and relearn the material, I use the feedback from these assessments to find areas of weakness in my teaching. I have planned re-teach opportunities in the form of quizettes (self starters) and even sprinkled into lessons with new material as a way to re-cover common misunderstandings. The quizette process is a very effective way to reteach material as it provides students with three to four days of practicing a familiar concept before being re-assessed. Quizettes do not interfere with lecture time, so the reteach and practice is built into the self starter of each day. I love quizettes, and I am nervous about how to continue using them in the shortened class periods we will see in next year's 5x5 block schedules.
My goal was to offer students feedback to help them understand their shortcomings, but this year I have found that I receive feedback in the form of data from common formative assessments. Just as I expect my students to use the feedback to work on test corrections and relearn the material, I use the feedback from these assessments to find areas of weakness in my teaching. I have planned re-teach opportunities in the form of quizettes (self starters) and even sprinkled into lessons with new material as a way to re-cover common misunderstandings. The quizette process is a very effective way to reteach material as it provides students with three to four days of practicing a familiar concept before being re-assessed. Quizettes do not interfere with lecture time, so the reteach and practice is built into the self starter of each day. I love quizettes, and I am nervous about how to continue using them in the shortened class periods we will see in next year's 5x5 block schedules.