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Recent Seminars
Summarizing and Using Assessment Results
You put a lot of hard work into creating student assessments. And then what? With all the time spent developing and administering assessments, it’s a shame not to reap the benefits of your efforts. This seminar will teach you how to summarize and use your assessment results.
audio Online Seminar • Recorded on Wednesday, July 13th, 2011
Giving Students Multiple Attempts to Improve Test Scores Provides a Powerful Learning Opportunity
Using multiple test trials was something I had never considered until found myself in a newly assigned course with an old syllabus. The previous course, which consisted of 310 total points, included 140 (45 percent) testing-based points. In addition to a 100-point final exam, there were four 10-point quizzes. I was intrigued by the quiz design format that allowed students to take the quiz up to three times over the course of a week, with the average score added to the grade book.
Online Grade Books Provide Transparency, Accountability
I started using an online grade book as a convenience for myself. Here, finally, was a grade book that couldn’t get lost or stolen, and it would be automatically backed up by the IT department every night. The accumulated scores could also be downloaded directly into a spreadsheet for calculation of grades, a shortcut that reduced the possibility of errors.
Extra Credit Assignments: An Innovative Approach
My students are always asking for opportunities to earn bonus points. I offer a variety of assignments during the semester, but they still want bonus points, which they seem to think are easier to obtain than the required points. Generally, I’m opposed to bonus options because I feel that if students are struggling with the current assignments, they do not need an “extra” assignment for extra credit. In addition, the word “bonus” seems to suggest something for nothing. I want my students to realize that grades are earned, not given. However, I recently tried a bonus activity that benefited my students and also met my expectations for a substantive learning experience.
The Evolution of Accountability: Look Who’s Accountable Now
We hear a great deal these days about “accountability” in the academy. Many states (including South Carolina, where I try my best to be a “responsible” college administrator) have some kind of state law mandating that public schools—and, in some cases, colleges—demonstrate that they are indeed “accountable.”
