- Pink ink is nice...if you're 7. And drawing unicorns. Pink ink on a lab report is not nice. Ever.
Plus, it clashes with my Stipula Calamo Red Fountain Pen Ink I'm using to grade. - There is an obvious connection between the quality of the question to the quality of an answer.
There was another variable that I hadn't considered. The questions I asked in class are very different than the questions asked on the lab and this changed caused confusion. There's a middle ground somewhere; I need to be able to ask better questions, but questions on the lab need to be modified to be a bit more user-friendly. - As I grade the students, I grade my own instruction.
- Writing is a window to the mind. Mostly. A majority of students demonstrated a clear grasp of the information; some demonstrated a clear misunderstanding. However, there were some students that I know understand the content but performed poorly on the response questions. I think that modifying the questions a bit will help these students communicate what they know.
Possible Solutions
At the beginning of the year, I do plan on spending extra class time to prepare the students for the year, and even the rest of their education. I can think of two ways that may help. First is to show students how to examine a question. If they understand the question, they can better answer it. Second is to set expectations for some of the repeated things we'll do in class. Glitter gel pens: bad. Bic Blue: good. One-word answers: bad. Thorough answers in complete sentences: good.
A Final Note
It seems like students are used to answering low-level questions or receiving completion grades on assignments in the past. Spending a few periods at the beginning of the year may help show students that comprehension is good, but we'll also need to learn how to analyze, make connections, and communicate their knowledge.
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