Although this post is more about students thinking (or not thinking) about their evaluations!
Some thoughts on Angie's comment about study guides etc. On our first big food chemistry assessment the students reviewed their notes in small groups and wrote example questions using Bloom's taxonomy, and from those questions I typed up a study guide...rather simple, grouping similar questions. The test was OK for some, but I'm concerned about the students we are always concerned about...Do they make no effort to prepare other than sitting in class? Do they not process anything that goes on in class? This was also the time of kids being out for 3-4 days at a stretch. Do I need to teach the class to them after school? Maybe that's what I should have done. Classmates shared notes with them and helped them with the study guide, but I had two students tell me they just couldn't do the test; they had been out sick, but they also did not seriously use the extra time they received or fully complete the study guide. After the first round with the test, I redid the study guide giving more space, making more diagrams etc. and students who wanted to complete the new guide could retake the test. There was only one student who really made an effort to do it well and retake the test. He did much better. It seems like a lot of work on my part for not much return. I would be interested to hear more about the assessment group Angie works with to get some ideas. DC
I hear what you're saying. It makes me think of one of my favorite Wongisms: The students should always be working harder than the teacher. At 3:00pm, the kids should be dragging themselves out of the building, but it's often the teachers doing that! I don't have the silver bullet, but I do know that it's really disheartening when you put in time to create these review materials/retake exams and the students don't take full advantage of them. After conferencing with several parents, I realized there's confusion about quiz and test dates. I think we can do a better job communicating to parents when we're having assessments and maybe they will push studying at home more. If you let me know when a science assessment is coming up, I will email all of our parents and students. I can also post an announcement on the webpage. It's just a little idea, but it might help for a few kids.
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