How Do You Know That Your
Students Are Learning?
2012 Curators’ Teaching Summit
Nov. 12, 2012 – Session 3
Classroom
Assessment
Techniques
What are CATs?
• Formative assessment – usually ungraded and
anonymous feedback from students about what
they understand
• In contrast to summative assessment (evaluates
student work with a grade)
• Provides info about effectiveness of teaching
methods
• Helps students assess their own learning
Adapted from: Angelo, T. A., & Cross, K. P. (1993). Classroom assessment techniques: A
handbook for college teachers. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers.
Dinosaur Clickers or ...
The One Minute Paper CAT
Tips for Trying CATS
• Start small. Try one or two easy CATs
(at most) in a semester.
• Don’t use every class period. Once a
week maximum.
• Try it out yourself first or on a
colleague to work out the bugs.
Tips for Trying CATS (cont.)
• Allot about twice the time it took you to
do it when using it in the classroom.
• Make sure to “close the loop”! Let
students know what you learned and
what you will do with that information
to help their learning.
Adapted from: Angelo, T. A., & Cross, K. P. (1993). Classroom assessment techniques: A handbook
for college teachers. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers.
Discussion Questions
1. Brainstorm with your table about other questions
that could be used for a One-Minute Paper. What
would be a good question for a One-Minute
Paper in a class that you teach?
2. What are the advantages of formative
assessment (such as CATs) over summative
assessment (tests/quizzes/graded homework)?
The disadvantages?
3. Are you already doing formative assessment in
your class? Have you been successful in closing
the loop?
Become a CAT Expert
• Each table is asked to work together through
the CAT exercise you have been given.
• Answer the discussion questions and be
prepared to share with the group at large in
about 10-12 minutes.
CAT: Application Cards
Students hear or read about an important principle,
generalization, theory, or procedure in class.
The instructor then hands out an index card and
asks them to write down at least one possible
application for what they have just heard or read.
The application must be something different than
what has already been mentioned in the lecture or
reading.
Adapted from: Angelo, T. A., & Cross, K. P. (1993). Classroom assessment techniques: A handbook
for college teachers. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers, p. 236.
Student-Generated Test Questions
Students have the benefit of discovering how
well they understand the material by preparing
test questions and model answers that could
end up on the exam in revised form.
Adapted from: Angelo, T. A., & Cross, K. P. (1993). Classroom assessment techniques: A handbook
for college teachers. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers, p. 240.
CAT: Background Knowledge Probe
Short, simple questionnaires that instructors
develop to use
• at the beginning of a course
• at the start of a new unit
• or, prior to introducing an important new topic
in order to collect feedback on students’ prior
learning.
Adapted from: Angelo, T. A., & Cross, K. P. (1993). Classroom assessment techniques: A handbook for
college teachers. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers, p. 121.
CAT: Pro and Con Grid
Students analyze
• pros and cons
• costs and benefits
• or, advantages and disadvantages
of an issue of mutual concern by making a simple
two-sided grid that they turn in to the instructor.
Adapted from: Angelo, T. A., & Cross, K. P. (1993). Classroom assessment techniques: A handbook for college teachers.
San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers, p. 168.