I have a student that is already in the field working and was actually a great student but she can not pass the state test because of test anxiety. Well we all test different and i think alot of it is just nerve. I think it is really a mental disorder.
Natalie, what are some of the test taking strategies you discuss with your students?
James Jackson
Fear factor with testing has such an important impact on the student's testing. Some fear can be related to just not being prepared, and some fear is just innate and comes with the thought of taking the test and failing. I work with students to encourage them to know the material and realize they know the material. Having had fear and anxiety though much of my own education, I know that self discipline, self perception and not fearing failure, but being prepared, and getting my mind in the right place has helped. I work with these students, help with relieving [re-test fear with relaxation techniques as well as test taking strategies.
I thibk this is a great idea. Competition can get the students motivated.
mary, awesome job focusing on reaching beyond the minimum. I have always found value in discussing my grading rubrics with students and establishing clear guidelines as to what will be necessary to achieve each grade level. I also associate that excellent work results in the highest grade while good work is above average and fair work is average or the minimum to pass. These terms seem to resonate with students more than just letter grades.
James Jackson
mary, I like your focus on getting some questions per chapter. What steps do you take to also ensure there are questions that address the objectives of the course? Another technique to consider is to know what level of bloom's taxonomy is required for the specific objectives and then have students provide the appropriate questions that address the required learning outcome and to what level of mastery.
James Jackson
Gina, games and simulations are great learning tools. Especially the ones that keep track of strengths and weakness areas of the student's knowledge base. Such tools are also great for instructors to monitor high risk areas of knowledge where more course discussions may be needed based on the results of the instruments.
James Jackson
Shanna, great technique as long as you are meeting the overall objectives of the course. When they develop their courses do you lay out any guidelines such as the number of questions within each learning objective of the class? Thanks for any additional information you can share.
James Jackson
Using tests, quizzes as discipline is a control issue which eliminates motivation.
I agree and always review before. Also ,I have them do both individual and group projects so that the quizzes aren't the main grading factor. This extra work on their own allows them to exceed what is expected to obtain their grade goals.
My students vary in age and educational background and because so many quizzes are required in our course --they immediately go into fear mode.I use a great deal of activity in my review of the material to be tested.i divide the class into teams and present questions from the content to be tested. points are given for successful answers and unsuccessful answers lose a team member who then asks the opposing team a question. The team with the most students standing get a reward. (extrinsic)
We also do whiteboard drawing competitions and hands on demonstrations of the material to be learned and then after a break they get their quiz.
Mariann--I also have used this method as an assignment and a review for the final. Students are assigned to come up with 3 questions from each chapter we have covered in class, then we take a practice test with those questions prior to the final. It really works well.
Sometimes I like to use games as quizzes. If a quiz is made fun, then with most students, the fear of the quiz is decreased because they were distracted by the fun that they were having. Material is absorbed more when you enjoy going to class. Plus, quizzes are used to check the students knowledge and allow them to know where they need to focus their studying, which is why I like to take the pressure off a bit.
Involving the students in determining test questions is a method that i use. I have my class split in groups and the take information from the notes taken in class and the reading, and they make a question for the other groups to answer. The group has to be able to answer the question that they created. This is done everyday, which makes as a review for the group and a quiz for the other groups. At the end of the week i take all the questions and make the foundation of my test with them. I add a few other questions of my own.
I often use pre-tests as a way to help students overcome their fear factor. These contain questions that are similar to those that will appear on the actual test. Students seem to like this idea especially if they receive extra credit for completing the pre-test and for participating in class. Often, it can turn into a debate when they discuss why an answer is correct. This, in turn, makes the class more interesting.
I also give out weekly homeworks based on the lectures & the coming quiz.This lets me asses if they have been putting attention during class & if they understood what was being said in lecture. The homework reflects much of what is going to be on the quiz. This gives them a study guide as to what to expect. For the most part, if they study their homework, & possibly some of their notes from lecture, they should be pretty prepared for the quiz. I let them know if they where able to get 100% on their homework, they pretty much have the answers for the quiz.
I have my students create questions that they think might be on an upcoming exam. Usually the day before an exam, I divide my students into 2 groups. Each group develops questions for an exam. We then have a group discussion about the questions. I then will use many of the questions generated on the exam the following day.
By getting the students input for tests, it helps reduce their anxiety.
Eva, assessments are one of many tools that can be used to enhance the learning experience of students. Can you share any other techniques you have used as a learning tool other than assessments?
James Jackson
A quiz should never be used as a threat. Above anything, a quiz should be looked at by a student as what they need to work on/study more of. When I give homework, it is based on questions & answers that will be on the quiz itself so that they might use this as a study guide for what is to come. On this homework I have them fill them out while we are in lecture so that they can ask questions about the homework & about the quiz so that they feel more comfortable about taking the quiz later.
Using a quiz as a discipline control technique only makes the fear worse. It uses quizzes as punishment instead of a learning reinforcement. Many students already have test anxiety and don't need negative reinforcement. They need encouragement and to know that the instructor believes in them confidence in themselves and the material.
