This site is a class blog space for new Career and Technical Specializations and Heathcare Science teachers enrolled in the New Teacher Institute (NTI) at Georgia State University in Atlanta, Georgia.
Monday, April 14, 2014
Test Justification
In the event of a parent confronting me about a test grade and confronting me on the accuracy of the test, I would have to take a number of things into consideration. The first thing would be the percent of students that did pass the test. If the class has an overwhelmingly high number of passing grades (higher than 50%) then I would bring that to the attention of the parent. The next factor would be how long we had been covering the material for the test and if the students were given a study guide. If the test was over a topic that had only been covered for a short time and the student in question had been absent a lot, then I might be lenient with the allowance of a re-take. Also if the students had been given a study guide, often they are, I would not be as lenient with the allowance of a re-take. I also would explain to the parent that before each test begins I go over what each portion of the test is, the directions for each section, and what is expected for the format. Any student with a question is to ask at that time. I would always take any criticism openly and be flexible with students. I do make all of my own tests, and my students all know that I am not a person that lives a life with no error. So, I would take a parent complaint very seriously, step back, and evaluate my test and it's content.
Trent that is about the same thing I would do. I also give a review the day before the test and go over every question on the test. So if they pay attention to the review they should receive a very high grade. Anyway, I think the parent or guardian should understand why their son/daughter failed the test listening to your explanation. Good job.
ReplyDeleteTrenton, you gave almost the exact answer I gave for this situation. I think most teachers know when a student isn’t performing well on tests because the tests reflect back on the teacher. When a student bombs a test it bothers me as the instructor who was responsible for getting them the content. Once I know whether or not the student did anything with that information I can better lay the blame with them or myself and correct from there.
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