Retakes and reassessments are a hot topic in public schools today. Many districts and schools are making reassessments mandatory, which opens a huge can of worms that many teachers are struggling to manage. Students often think that being able to retake a test is a reason to not prepare the first time around and use it as a crutch.
In this blog post, we’ll discuss ways that you can structure retakes in your classroom to make them worthwhile for your students and not make you want to pull your hair out from tons of extra grading.
Public education is currently going through a massive shift in assessment and teaching practices. With the increase in accessibility to information, there is a great need for schools to find new ways to assess student learning. From an insider perspective, it feels like we are running at marathon speed trying to catch someone running a 100 meter dash.
It’s important to note the changes that have happened in the last, let’s say, 50 years of education. Educators are learning that the “plug and chug” style of teaching isn’t really that effective. They also know that students deserve an education that challenges them to think critically and be prepared for life after graduation.
The monthly 50 question test is now becoming project based assessments, real world applications, and collaborative assignments. Although there are still many benefits to learning test taking skills, the way that we assess is changing.
Education professionals are starting to realize that students should be given more than one opportunity to show their understanding. This is based heavily on the research done on student-centered and mastery-based learning.
In these teaching styles, the purpose of assessing students transitions from earning “grades” to truly understanding the material before moving forward. The idea that students don’t move forward to the next standard or topic until they have mastered the previous is great in theory, but, in practice, is just not feasible.
Offering retakes and reassessments is a good compromise and starting point for the transition from traditional grading to a mastery-based approach.
Student accountability
The most important part of allowing reassessments is making sure that your students are actually gaining knowledge and skills and that it’s not just a do-over. I’ve had students turn in quizzes and tests and then immediately tell me that they will need to reassess.
This felt so frustrating and disappointing. When I felt like I’d done everything that I could to help them, they made the decision to not put in the work to be successful (the first time around).
So the main question is, how can you make retakes worthwhile for your students?
Missing Work
You can ask your students to complete all homework and classwork correctly before taking the reassessment. This way, you know they are getting the practice in and not just skating by without doing the work.
Complexity
Make the retake more challenging than the original assessment. Retaking a test should be a privilege and not something that should just be expected. If your students are getting an extension because they didn’t complete the work the first time, your expectations of their learning should be higher not lower.
Catch Up
Another teacher that I worked with told her students that if they could stay caught up with classwork and homework for two weeks that she would accept their late work.
This is a good way to see if your students actually care about getting caught up or just want to dump a bunch of work on you to grade right before the end of the term.
I haven’t tried this strategy, but I would be interested to test it out and see if any students could do this successfully.
Meeting with you
Require your students to meet with you once, twice, or weekly to prepare for the reassessment. You will, of course, have to figure out what would work best for you and your students, but it is a great way to hold your students accountable.
It is also a great way to make sure that they are doing their best work and truly understanding the material.
Correcting mistakes
This is a great opportunity for your students to reflect on their mistakes and take ownership of their learning. When I have done test corrections, I have my students write the problem, explain what they did wrong the first time, then show the correct work.
I allow them to use their resources for this to ensure that they are right. Even the act of finding the information is incredibly beneficial and could be considered studying in a way.
Reassessments will look different for every class and teacher. Try out different strategies to see what works for you and your students then be consistent. Make sure that your expectations are clear and explicitly laid out for your students. Open communication is the best way to ensure that your retake policy is understood and respected.