| Questions Students Have (On-the-Spot Assessment Strategy) | |
OVERVIEWThis is a non-threatening way to learn about the needs and expectations of students. It utilizes a technique that elicits participation through written rather than speaking. |
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PROCEDURE |
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| 1. | Hand out a blank index card to each student |
| 2. | Ask each student to write down any question they have about the subject matter or the nature of the present class (names should be withheld). For example, a student might ask: “How is Algebra II different from Algebra I?” or “Will there be a term paper in this class?” |
| 3. | Have the cards passed around the group in a clockwise direction. As each card is passes to the next person, he or she should read it and place a check mark on the card if it contains a question for the reader as well. |
| 4. | When a student’s card comes back to him or her, each person will have reviewed all of the “questions” of the group. At this point, identify the question that received the most votes (check marks). |
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Respond
to each of these questions by: (a)
giving an immediate but brief answer (b)
postponing the question to a later, more appropriate time in the course (c) noting that the course will not be able to address the question (promise a personal response, if possible) |
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| 5. | Invite some students to share voluntarily their questions, even if they did not receive the most votes. |
| 6. | Collect all the cards. They must contain questions to which you might respond at a future class |
| VARIATIONS | |
| 1. | If the class is too large to take the time to pass all the cards around the group, break the class into subgroups and follow the same instructions. Or simply collect the cards without having them passed around and respond to a sample of them. |
| 2. | Instead of asking for questions on the index cards, ask students to write down their hopes and/or concerns about the class, the topics they would like you to cover, or the ground rules for class participation they would like to see observed. |