Students Educational Levels
Many students have been out of school for many years that is way I feel the need to pre-test my students so it will give me a better idea, of what direction I might have to take with some of my slower based students.
Sean,
Good strategy to follow. This way everyone had a role to play in the learning and instructional process. Also, you are helping your students to acquire some soft skills as they learn to work with and cooperate with classmates.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I like the idea of the pre-test though I have never personally used it for my classes. For the subjects that I teach, I find proper structuring of the class to be the most important for dealing with different educational levels. A relatively short lecture followed by a content review. Then an exercise done either individually or in small groups while I wander the room and see how everyone is doing. This allows an opportunity for those who know and understand the content to practice applying it in an exercise and it allows the one on one time with me for those who need additional guidance or having the teaching tailored to their learning style. This allows you to cater to those who need the extra help and address their needs while not boring the other students who picked up the content quickly.
Very true,the diverse education levels in each class makes the course much more of a challenge.It can't be too simple,can't be too in depth until everyone is on the same page.
I agree with Carolyn and Gary.. I also wanted to add that it is important to take into consideration the nature and type of the program the students are in since it is an important fulcrum to balance diverse educational backgrounds to a common point. For example, in allied health programs as different from business office or fashion programs, the former focuses on clinical and administrative skills and totally different scope of practice once they complete their program. These factors can guide us in creating pretest questions to serve the right purpose.
I agree with you, I teach in a program that there are student for all different ages and from different places. I do a pretest to see what they know and what I need to do to makes sure they understand the material that is presented.
Jackie,
Like your mini-assessment process. You gain some very valuable information through this activity and this helps you to be more accurate with your selection of instructional delivery methods. Thanks for sharing this with us.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
The way I approach the variations in age in my classes is to pretest them, and, to directly ask each and every one of them: a. What do you expect to learn in this class; b. What do you expect to give to others in this class; c. How do you best learn written materials; d. How do you best approach hands-on learning; e. When being tested, what is the worst way, and the best way for you to take an exam.
It not only tells me a lot about the learning styles of the individuals; it also helps me set up the class so that my students have the best chance of succeeding academically.
Carolyn,
I experience this challenge as well each time I start a new class. It requires a lot of planning and creativity to keep the learning ranges engaged and moving forward in the course.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Even with pretesting, I find this one of my most difficult areas. Our students range from recent high school graduates to students who have already obtained a masters degree in one field but decided to obtain certification in another area. So I find it challenging when preparing instructional material that will be comprehended at all levels.
Jeannette,
This can be a part of learning more about your students. I use pretesting for that purpose. Also, using pretesting with adult students and then talking about the structure as well as the items that were tested can help them to see that they know more than they think they do about the topic. Most of them come in with a real fear of not knowing how to take notes or be successful in class. Pretesting can help them see how they can be successful.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
