Barry Westling

Discussion Comment

Hi Luequiten: Pretests are great for the instructor to gauge what information the students already have in their brains on any particular topic. Depending on how the instructor (you) uses these tools, you might also get a good look at how your students learn which can help you create more effective lesson plans. Regards, Barry

Barry Westling

Discussion Comment

Being a student-centered instructor

Karen, Right! It's sometimes difficult to employ the student-centered principle as learning outcomes, time, or access to needed resources are not always available or convenient. But anything good is going to require effort, and the payoff for us is to the great benefit to the students. Barry Westling

Barry Westling

Discussion Comment

Using pretests as planning tools

Crissia, Great! I use pretesting intermittently, usually for a new cohort of students (when I'm unsure at what level students are performing at). Like you, I find the biggest value is planning on where more (or less) emphasis may be needed in a course. A couple of times, I've had students redo the same pretest at the end of a course to show how far they have come. But as a practice I don't simply because it's somewhat redundant. Barry Westling

Barry Westling

Discussion Comment

Awarding extra credit

Eddie, I teach medical classes and our program policy is all classes have to be passed with a 70% ("C") or better. For a medical procedure, or a grade in a medical course, would you want a student who only barely passed due to giving EC performing a procedure on you? But I understand these decisions about EC vary and each institution and teacher needs to sort it out for what's right for them. This is just my opinion, I don't give EC (and have learned over many years the act of doing so doesn't ever really help, but great… >>>

Barry Westling

Discussion Comment

Awarding extra credit

Crissia, Well, as I have commented frequently, policies and opinions vary by institution and teacher. That said, your situtation might be a bit different due to the competitive nature of the class (and profession). So perhaps allowing for EC may be applicable. In fact, I have no bones about EC as I agree, it does demonstrate drive, effort, or expemplary performance. The issue has to do with awarding credit for it. For instance, on a test, an optional essay question to demonstrate original thought would be terrific. The bonus point(s) from this is not significant and would seem like an… >>>

Barry Westling

Discussion Comment

Informing students of status in course

Regina, You've made some good points. I think students are rarely surprised by their performance, especially when poorer status is present. Nonetheless, frequent and early intervention to get students back on track is important, and whenever we can add our support, encouragement and honest advice, students will feel like we have their interests in mind. Barry Westling

Barry Westling

Discussion Comment

Using pretests as planning tools

Lori, Great! You've mentioned a specific activity that works for you. This is an excellent application of the benefits pretesting can accomplish. Good job. Barry Westling

Barry Westling

Discussion Comment

Using pretests as planning tools

Regina, I like your idea that stronger students can help weaker students, although I think we can do that absent a pretest. Nonetheless, pretesting help assess where students may need more emphasis in the course or, perhaps less. It's a great tool, although it doesn't have to be done all the time. For me, I use them when I am unsure at level students are performing. Barry Westling

Barry Westling

Discussion Comment

Setting up a grading system

Makila, You're right - finding that balance takes careful thought, effort, planning, and consideration of how best to measure learning. The students knowledge of the subject and perhaps their readiness for work in their career area is not an easy task. I think if we keep "Job Readiness" as the focus (along with student and course learning objectives), this will help direct where and how much weight the different categories should carry. Another help is using a grading rubric to help determine what is most important to measure learning. Barry Westling

Barry Westling

Discussion Comment

Informing students of status in course

Charlotte, Keeping students informed is very inportant to creating a good rapprt anhd relationship with students too. When we take time to gently and with thoughtful care explain where a student is in their studies and how they can improve, that demonstrates to the students the teacher does care about their success. Barry Westling