Susan Polick

Discussion Comment

Determining the effectiveness of testing formats

HI Gary- Thanks for your post to the forum. I agree, it's always good to get as much feedback from our students. They really are our products and quality control is important! Best wishes - Susan

Susan Polick

Discussion Comment

Effective methods of student assessment

Hi Sara- Thanks for your post to the forum! I think students can really get excited about projects. Do you find you have students who do not like group-work? When you assign essays are you grading on grammar and spelling as well? Best wishes - Susan

Susan Polick

Discussion Comment

Getting student participation in questioning sessions

HI Nicole - When we assign homework but give no feedback or other further use of the assignments students can feel that they are doing "busy-work". When they know that will be asked questions about their work it motivates them to do a better job preparing the work. Best wishes- Susan

Susan Polick

Discussion Comment

Selecting testing formats

Hi Hector- Thanks for your post to the forum. That's a very good question and one I had to really think about. I use open book tests when the knowledge I am assessing involves material that realistically is not memorized. The student however, needs to know how to find that material quickly in the manual or text. This also assesses how well the student has read the material to know how/where to find the necessary charts, rules, codes etc. Bottom line is, I think that the open book quiz serves one purpose and the closed book quiz another. Both can… >>>

Susan Polick

Discussion Comment

Assessing general education skills

Hi Nicole- Unless one intends to be a solitary monk in a cave somewhere, a knowledge of psychology will always be valuable! Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career. Susan

Susan Polick

Discussion Comment

Determining the effectiveness of testing formats

Terrific Nicole! Too often instructors use the same test over and over without assessing its effectiveness. Great work! Susan

Susan Polick

Discussion Comment

Instruction approaches for kinesthetic learners

Hi Eric- Thanks for your post to the forum. You have described our kinesthetic learners perfectly! How do you approach the necessity of learning to read manuals etc.? I know that this can be a real problem. Susan

Susan Polick

Discussion Comment

Selecting testing formats

Hi Gary- Thanks for your post to the forum. You seem to have a good handle on how to choose appropriate assessments. Don't we ALL wish we had more time and energy! Best wishes - Susan

Susan Polick

Discussion Comment

Selecting testing formats

Hi Eric- Thanks for your post to the forum. I agree that we need to take as much subjectivity out of grading as possible. I always use a detailed grading rubric that I make sure the students have before the assessment. Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career. Susan

Susan Polick

Discussion Comment

Selecting testing formats

Hi Zee Zee- Thanks for your post to the forum. With adults students especially, I try to draw on all their life experiences. Try to chat individually with your students. Ask questions about their lives, remember what they said (I actually write down some notes after these chats). Then when appropriate draw them into the discussion by mentioning some of the things you know about them ( nothing private of course!) Things like, "John, you worked for IBM, what sort of management structure did they have?" Best wishes - Susan