1. Describe four appropriate strategies teachers can use to monitor student understanding of lesson material for your selected grade level or content area.
There are several areas that teachers use to monitor student understanding of lesson material. They range from direct individual questioning to the step-by-step procedures needed in order to assign grades. Teaching is almost always a work in progress so teachers are checking for understanding to not only monitor the progress of their students, but to monitor their own clarity and effectiveness in presenting information and guiding the students in their pursuit of knowledge. Monitoring student understanding not only helps the teacher to know how effective their lesson has been, but also helps them to know if they should slow down or pick up the pace.
Questioning
When non-professionals think about a teacher questioning students to check for understanding, they may think that the teacher asks a yes/no question, and the dutiful students raise their hands and give either yes or no as their answer. It is rare that an experienced teacher would conduct such an activity, much less hope to gain information from it. Gaining information is the prime reason for asking questions, so a teacher wants to be certain that the questions they ask are not simply information regurgitation, but rather a deeper probe into connections.
Meanwhile, the teacher does not want the students to think that this is a “pop quiz” type of approach. The teacher wants to use what is known as a “learning probe” (Cotton, n.d.) which gives the teacher information while, at the same time, using probing questions that will result in a high success rate for the students. These questions are designed at a specific level of difficulty (not too hard … not too easy). Best practice methodology drives a teacher to mentally note who is answering questions and also to call on non-hand raisers. Wait time is crucial during a questioning session for understanding, giving all students a chance to think before replying.
Informal Discussion
As a natural following step to questioning for understanding would be allowing the students to comment on not only the questions (How did this question help you clarify our lesson?) but on each other’s answers. There are very few teaching methods better than students teaching each other under teacher supervision. Informal discussion allows both the students and the teacher to know if they are on track. Students should be encouraged to elaborate on each other answers to the questions posed by the teacher and to ask some of their own.
Formative Assessment (individual lessons)
Formative assessment has many shapes, but one method for formative assessment which helps the teacher to more deeply develop her understand of student understanding is to circulate about the classroom asking questions in a one-on-one format as students do their seat work. This also serves the purpose of allowing a voice for students who are insecure in presenting their ideas in a public forum. If done in specifics and not generalities, a teacher can learn just where the lesson came off the rails or if the less is going full steam ahead.
Formative Assessment (general overview)
Meeting with small groups or individuals can make it clear as to whether students are lost within a total concept, or if they are simply “stuck” on a small idea. This type of approach needs to model the “what did you learn in school today” approach with much larger ideas. Teachers need to know that there are not always right or wrong answers to a student’s explanation of a topic, but again, a trained teacher can discern students that are in need of additional assistance.
Exit Tickets
Teachers have found success in preparing a closing of a single question or open ended response what students can complete with regard to the day’s lesson. A math teacher could ask the students to make up a problem similar to the problems that they were working on in class. A social studies teacher can provide a copy of a world map and have the students find the geographic area that they are studying and add a factoid to the paper. Lower elementary teachers can use colors and shapes, letters and numbers to have the student illustrate understanding of a lesson such as having the picture of a cat and the alphabet to have the students circle the beginning or ending sounds they hear. Exit tickets serve the purpose of signaling to the students that it is time to move on. Teachers can quickly review the exit tickets when planning for the opening of the next day’s lesson in terms of revision or moving on.
2. Describe an effective monitoring system that you could use regularly in your classroom for students who are more likely to have difficulties with classroom assignments (e.g., special education students; ELL; or students who struggle with organization, responsibility, or paying attention).
There are a myriad of variables inside any classroom which guide teachers as they monitor student understanding. One overarching grouping of variables are the monitoring of students who have difficulties with classroom assignments. Further investigation of these difficulties many times points to proper presentation on an almost individual basis, depending on the mix of students in a class. Unfortunately, there is no one “fix for all” needs, but there are general approaches which have enjoyed success in our diverse classrooms. Special needs students don’t always need special methods when checking for understanding, but the seasoned professional knows how to watch for and identify cases which might need an individual or less generic approach. The teacher’s goal is the best education for each student. “To each according to their needs and from each according to their abilities” is a mantra teachers may aspire to.
Systems for monitoring the progress and comprehension of students with difficulties completing classroom assignments are similar to assessing students who do not have difficulties with some “tweaking”. One poignant difference is that special ed students, ELL students or other students who struggle with organization, responsibility or paying attention should be checked more often than students who do not have these difficulties.
Questioning
Whole class questioning techniques may differ as teachers check for understanding of instructions in addition to retention, content and connections of the information. Other types of questions will more than likely begin with “what” or “where” for specific, concrete answers rather than abstract ones. Vocabulary should be adjusted when speaking one-on-one according to the needs of the specific student.
Scaffolding
Scaffolding assessments is important with any level student, but can be extremely valuable with special students with difficulties in a classroom. Essentially, scaffolding takes a student step by step from prior knowledge to new knowledge to diffused knowledge. Small activities using scaffolding can point out where a student is losing focus or comprehension. It can keep a difficult student on track if they can see where they are headed.
Self-assessment
KWL (what do I know, what do I want to know and what have I learned) papers are sometimes very helpful in anchoring a student in their own educational needs. Practice in following these papers should be established at the beginning of the year as a group so that individuals can utilize the graphic organizer by themselves.
Check Lists
At times a teacher may feel a little lost with so many different diverse learners in the classroom. It is worthwhile to set up a general checklist that can be used for all subjects at the beginning of the year. Using the checklist is a quick method of individualizing a monitoring system for anecdotal assessment useful for IEP meetings.
Checklists are easy, quick, and efficient. Using one doesn’t take a lot of training so teachers can share checklist forms. The creation of a good checklist takes an experienced teacher. The list can be used with or without the child in attendance. Several education professionals who are involved with the child can use the same form for behavioral reliability as well as educational progress. They are most useful in planning a curriculum for individual students.
Reference
Cotton, Kathleen, Monitoring Student Learning in the Classroom, School Improvement Research Series, (n.d.). Retrieved August 2012 from http://educationnorthwest.org/webfm_send/541