How can teachers support students to identify gaps in their learning?
We know that teaching quality is more important than how lessons are delivered, so what teachers do remotely is just as pertinent.
4 Tips For Pupil Assessment
Although it’s important for teachers to identify gaps in their students’ learning, it is crucial that we also encourage students to be independent in identifying problems with their work and where they need curriculum support. A good strategy is to give students time to find and fix their mistakes to help them reflect on their work. This will give them time to retrieve, correct and re-do their work.
1. Working independently
It is important
that teachers give students the opportunity to reflect on their work; make sure the assessment criteria are shared. A key part of the learning process is equipping students with the knowledge to identify gaps.
2. Student marking or colouring in
This is a simple and effective self and peer assessment exercise. This can be achieved online/remotely, although I suspect the impact will not be as powerful as in lessons, face-to-face. However, asking students to mark their own work using a student-friendly marking scheme, using colour coding methods is a simple step forward to help students move towards the next level.
3. Aiming for the next level
When students compare the work to exemplar material, this empowers the individual to identify where they can improve their work. Simple strategies include asking students to leave a red, amber and green signal on their work to indicate where they have struggled and where they think I have done well.
4. Motivation and challenge
Motivation is best understood by emphasising the desire to move from A to B. This can either be aversion— pulling away from something — or attraction — pushing towards something else. It is also important to understand the different forms of feedback. With the abundance of online technology, teachers are doing this through technology in the classrooms. There is absolutely no reason why this cannot be achieved through simple surveys by emails, text alerts or online technology if working in synchronous lessons.
It is critical that teachers work out how they can encourage self-assessment online during the COVID-19 pandemic. Find out more about what you can do.
