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Return to Table of Contents for More Strategies INTRODUCTION:
I’ve been teaching Psychology for 19 years, and it’s clear that my students
begin the semester with varying degrees of commitment and levels of
responsibility that directly affect their success. I hypothesized that
assigning students to write about their strengths and weaknesses early in the
semester might create a heightened self-awareness that would keep them “on
course” and less likely to accept low grades or drop out. To do so, I adopted
the Self-Assessment from the On Course text by Skip Downing for use in my
Introductory Psychology class. Specifically, this self-assessment (which
is available for free on the Internet) is intended to raise students’
self-awareness in eight areas of Student Success: Accepting Personal
Responsibility, Discovering Self-Motivation, Mastering Self-Management,
Employing Interdependence, Gaining Self-Awareness, Adopting Lifelong Learning,
Developing Emotional Intelligence, and Believing In Oneself. I found that
providing this self-assessment after my first exam improved scores on subsequent
exams and reduced attrition. Although I used this activity in my Psychology
class, it could easily be used in any other course that requires periodic
evaluation of student work. PURPOSE
SUPPLIES
/ SET UP
DIRECTIONS 1.
Give students HANDOUT 1: “Instructions for Writing a Journal Entry based on
the Results of the Self-Assessment.” Discuss the assignment with the
class and answer questions. Explain that this assignment is an opportunity
for self-reflection that will be very valuable to them if they respond
truthfully. To be valuable, however, their responses must reflect their
current reality, not the way they would like to be. Without honesty, this
self-assessment will be inaccurate. Reassure your students that there are
no “right or wrong” answers and that each student is an individual with
potential for personal and academic growth. I assigned this project
between the first and second exams. Alternately, I can see great value in having
this activity take place within the first 3 weeks of the semester. 2.
Grade the written assignment using criteria of your choice. My criteria
include points for being on time, well-written (few grammar and spelling
errors), minimum length, following directions, quality of insights, and apparent
effort. I counted this writing assignment as worth the same amount of points as
a major exam. Of course, provide feedback as appropriate. 3.
Toward the end of the semester, give students HANDOUT 2: “Follow Up
Evaluation.” This assignment is intended to solicit students’ opinions
about whether/how the Self-Assessment and subsequent writing assignment assisted
them in keeping “on course” in the class. I give the follow-up
evaluation about three-quarters through the semester to remind students of their
commitments for keeping on course and to give me feedback on this assignment’s
effectiveness. I don’t grade this follow-up evaluation. EXPERIENCES My
students wrote very candidly in their Self-Assessment papers about their
strengths and weaknesses. In the areas of weakness, they examined
successful strategies that could help them improve. Here are some of the
statements students wrote in their papers: “I
absolutely believe in myself and my ability to succeed, but I often
procrastinate and sabotage myself. I realize this now even more by doing
this assignment, and I feel it’s time to ‘get a grip.’” “I
am the first in my family to go to college, and I feel a lot of pressure to do
well, but I’m scared because my grades in high school were not good. I
want to get good grades, but I’m scared I’m not as smart as the others.” “Being
out of school for 12 years and coming from an abusive relationship has made me
DETERMINED to succeed. I realize I am responsible for myself. My
success or failure is totally up to me.” “I
scored low on interdependence because I hate the dynamics of ‘group work.’
Usually one person (me) ends up doing all the work, and the others slack off.
At least, that’s the way it was in high school. I’m assuming, I guess,
that it will be the same in college. Maybe I shouldn’t make that assumption,
but I hate working with others. I’d rather do the work myself. If
I absolutely can’t do it alone, then I’ll ask for help.” OUTCOMES I
assigned this Self-Assessment project in week three of the semester, between my
first and second exams. Through this assignment, students who did poorly on the
first exam (D or F grades) had an opportunity to reflect on possible reasons WHY
they scored so poorly and identify strategies for self-improvement.
Students who did well (A, B or C grades) were also able to reflect on their
strengths and weaknesses and possible areas of improvement. All students
were prompted to think about their level of commitment to successfully complete
this course. A
significant majority of students (83%) performed one grade level better on the
second exam, following completion of this Self-Assessment Assignment. This
improvement on the second exam was higher than in past semesters, and the
attrition (drop-out) rate for the class was lower than usual. On
the evaluation of the activity, many students expressed self-satisfaction in the
fact that they DID something to improve. The most dramatic improvement came from
a young man who went from an F on the first exam to a B on the second. He
stayed after class to express his joy at improving his performance and
increasing his understanding of the material. It was the first time he’d
done well on a college exam in any class. I believe that his (and the others’)
increased self-awareness through the Self-Assessment Assignment may have
stimulated them to take actions to improve. They expressed “ownership” of
their success or failure. I believe this Self-Assessment Assignment, when
done early in the semester, helps struggling students transform themselves into
successful students. Almost all students expressed in their
Self-Assessment paper an appreciation for the opportunity to evaluate themselves
subjectively. As a Psychologist, I also appreciate that this assignment
introduced my students to the value of introspection and self-honesty, a key
insight for both students and therapeutic clients. Perhaps
the Self-Assessment assignment prompted them to consider WHY they failed the
first exam and what they could do better next time, instead of the
“knee-jerk” response of quitting at the first sign of difficulty. To test
this possibility, I administered a follow-up evaluation toward the end of the
semester by having students score (on a 10 point scale where 10 is high) the
degree to which they felt the Self-Assessment Assignment contributed to their
commitment, improved their study strategies and grades, and eliminated the
thought/choice of dropping the class. The results of the follow-up
evaluation are as follows (N=97 students): QUESTION
#1: Write the number that indicates the degree to which you
think that doing the self-assessment paper increased your commitment to
successfully completing this class by asking you to honestly evaluate your
strengths, weaknesses and need for improvement in personal responsibility and
self-management. _____ The
majority of the students, 59% scored an 8 or higher, indicating that most
students felt this assignment motivated them to be successful. A total of
79% scored a 7 or higher. Only 20% of the students scored a 5 or below. The
majority of the students, 66.6%, scored a 6 or higher, indicating that most
students felt this assignment contributed to their improvement on studying and
later exam performances. QUESTION
#3: Write the number that indicates the degree to which you
think that doing this Self-Assessment helped to eliminate the thought/choice of
dropping this class? (Answer this question only if you DID once consider
dropping this class early in the semester). _____ Of
the 81 students who reported that they had thought about dropping the class, 64%
scored an 8 or higher, indicating that this assignment helped eliminate the
thought/choice of actually dropping. A whopping 88% scored a 5 or higher,
indicating that this assignment affected a vast number of students in a positive
way. PERSONAL
LESSONS I
am more aware now of how many assumptions I have regarding students. I
assumed before this assignment that students had already done an informal sort
of self-evaluation prior to enrolling in college. What an absurd
assumption! Without awareness, I (and probably many other college
educators) would assume that students are committed to success or they
wouldn’t BE in college. However, I also know from experience that many
students are not there to succeed, but are there because they’re lost,
struggling not only with schoolwork, but are also struggling with their own
identity, purpose and worth. Before implementing this project, I’d
hoped to stimulate my students to higher performance, purpose and self-worth
simply through the classroom learning experiences I provided in the classroom. I
guess I expected them to gradually develop awareness. Now, I see that this
assignment creates a clearer focus early on for them to accept their own active
role in the learning process and responsibility for their own success or
failure. Prior to this, if struggling students weren’t “getting it,”
I felt ownership…now ownership rests clearly on the students. It is my
responsibility to create a positive, creative environment conducive to maximum
learning. It is the student’s responsibility to respond to the best of their
abilities and maximize their own strategies for success. I think this project
clarified for me the appropriate boundaries and responsibilities each of us has
in the classroom. SOURCE
The journal assignment is adapted from Journal Entry #1 in the On Course text,
4th edition, pages 8-12. (Also available free on the Internet at http://oncourseworkshop.com--Menu
item #10.) RESOURCES: HANDOUT
#1. Instructions for Writing A Journal Paper Based On The Results Of The
Self-Assessment This
is the first of several “Journal” assignments in which you will be asked to
reflect inwardly on your current attitudes and behaviors. This Self-Assessment
Assignment will allow you to obtain and reflect on your scores in the “8 Areas
of Student Success.” First, take the self-assessment found in your On
Course text, pages 8-12. Or you can take the same self-assessment for free on
the Internet at http://oncourseworkshop.com
(Menu item #10). Below
are the technical requirements for this assignment: 1.
Paper must be typed, double-spaced, 12 point font 2.
Minimum of 5 (full) pages, 1” margins The
quality of your paper will be determined by the amount of honest reflection and
effort you put into your paper. There are no right or wrong responses.
Each student is an individual with different strengths and weaknesses. DIRECTIONS
FOR WRITING YOUR JOURNAL ENTRY: After
taking the Self-Assessment, begin your paper with your name, class time, and
date in the upper left hand corner, and provide a centered title:
“Self-Assessment: 8 Areas of Student Success.” Begin
writing in paragraph style about the areas on the Self-Assessment in which you
had your highest scores. Explain why you think you scored higher in these
areas than in others. Also, explore how you feel about these scores.
Your entry might begin, “By doing the self-assessment, I learned that I….” In
the next section, write about the areas on the self-assessment in which you had
your lowest scores. Explain why you think you scored lower in these areas
than in others. Also, explore how you feel about these scores.
Remember the saying, “If you keep doing what you’ve been doing, you’ll
keep getting what you’ve been getting.” With this thought in mind,
write about any specific changes you’d like to make in yourself during this
course. Your entry might begin, “By doing the self-assessment, I also
learned that I….” Then
write about any areas that were not addressed in the previous sections of your
paper. Make sure you address all eight areas of Student Success. In
closing, write about whether this assignment was valuable to you, and if so, in
what ways. In particular, what commitments for new behavior will you make
based on this self-assessment? HANDOUT
#2. Follow-Up Survey: Evaluating the Self-Assessment Think
back to the beginning of the semester when you wrote your first Journal Paper:
Self-Assessment – 8 Areas of Student Success. You scored yourself on
these 8 areas: Self-Responsibility, Self-Motivation, Self-Management,
Interdependence, Self-Awareness, Life-Long Learning, Emotional Intelligence and
Believing in Yourself. You then wrote about your highest scoring areas,
your lowest scoring areas, and those in between. You were asked to be
honest in evaluating your strengths and weaknesses. You were also asked what
commitments for new behaviors you would make based on this self-assessment. Now,
I want you to conduct a follow-up evaluation by answering the following three
questions, using a scale of 1 – 10 (where 1 = low, and 10 = high) 1.
Write the number that indicates the degree to which you think that doing the
self-assessment journal increased your commitment to successfully complete this
class by asking you to honestly evaluate your strengths, weaknesses and need for
improvement in personal responsibility and self-management. _______ 2.
Write the number that indicates the degree to which you think that doing this
Self-Assessment journal contributed to a significant improvement in your
studying and performance on later exams. ______ 3.
Write the number that indicates the degree to which you think that doing this
Self-Assessment journal helped to eliminate the thought/choice of dropping this
class? (Answer this question only if you DID once consider dropping this
class early in the semester). _____ --Debra Hansen, Faculty, Psychology, College of the Sequoias (CA), debrah@cos.edu * * * * * The ON COURSE NEWSLETTER publishes innovative strategies for helping students become active, responsible learners. To subscribe to this bi-weekly (monthly in the summer) e-newsletter, click here and send the resulting e-mail. No need to type anything. Our computer will automatically add your return address to the list of subscribers. You're always in charge of your subscription, with a subscribe/unsubscribe link in every newsletter. Have a best practice to share? Click here and request our publication guidelines.
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