Assessing Skill in Application and Performance

Technique Description What to do with the data Effort Required Where to find
more information
Directed Paraphrasing Assess how well students
summarize and restate important
information. Ask students to
prepare a paraphrase of the
chosen topic. Tell them who the
intended audience is, what the
purpose is, and what limits exist
in number of written words or
sentences.
Circle the clearest and
muddiest points in each
response using different
colored pens. Look for
patterns of clarity and
confusion. Provide feedback
to the class.
Preparation: Low
In class: Medium
Analysis: Medium
p. 232
Applications Cards Assess how well students
understand the possible
applications of what they have
learned. After students have
learned about a principle, theory,
or procedure, pass out index
cards and ask students to write
down one possible real-world
application for what they learned.
Quickly read through the
responses sorting them into
piles based on how
appropriate, reasonable, and
useful the applications are to
the topic. Share some good
and poor examples with the
class.
Preparation: Low
In class: Low
Analysis: Low
p. 236
Student-Generated Test
Questions
Assess what students consider to
be important content. This
assessment should be conducted
a week or two before a test to
allow time for feedback. Provide
students with specific guidelines
for the number and type of
questions to be submitted. Ask
students to provide the answers
to test their questions.


Review the questions. Are
topics overrepresented or left
out? Are the questions
relevant? Are they clearly
written? Is the level of
difficulty appropriate? Select
responses that would make
good test questions. Revise
some that are salvageable.
Share these with the class as
a study guide. Provide
feedback to the class by
discussing what makes a
good test questions. Give
some examples.
Preparation: Medium
In class: Medium - High
Analysis: Medium - High
p. 240