Alternatives to assessment: how to encourage students to learn
Should student be encouraged to learn alternative systems other than grades? Definitely! After all, this approach involves several stages,
Systems for additional motivation of the student
Should students be encouraged to learn alternative systems other than grades? Definitely! After all, this approach involves several stages, after overcoming which students not only achieve results effortlessly but also receive a certain desired "prize". This approach teaches students goal-setting - an important skill in adult life.
What systems should be used as an additional incentive for students to diversify the educational process? Here are some ideas.
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Stickers or chips
Junior and middle school students love stickers and bright chips. Receiving such a reward for working on a lesson can be a great motivator.
You can develop several incentive criteria. For example, for diligence, for excellent behavior in class, for a decent result, for creativity, and more.
Getting a sticker can be an incentive in itself, and you can offer a scale of incentives. For example, by collecting 5 stickers/chips, you can get an exemption from homework, get an automatic grade for independent work, and more.
This incentive system will be an effective tool for both individual and group work, if you first unite students in separate teams, between which to organize competitions.
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Trackers
Offer students some encouragement for diligence and performance. For example, if all students do homework during the month / do not receive comments on behavior during the lesson / have a score of at least 6 points, etc., they will expect a certain encouraging surprise (interesting lesson-Webquest, creative meeting with a traveler, polar explorer, famous writer or musician, a free professional photoshoot from an acquaintance - ideas depend solely on your imagination and real possibilities).
The tracker can be designed in the form of a colored motivational table, where you can celebrate the results of each lesson, or you can be more creative - create a bright thematic map, which will clearly show the path to success and the number of steps from start to finish.
It is important that the tracker is in front of the student, and you - the teacher who offered this idea to students - kept their word about the reward.
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Encouragement points
When there are more than 25 students in a class, it is quite difficult to give deservedly high marks to those students who answered during the survey. After all, in this case, students answer one thing - a maximum of a few simple questions.
On the one hand, this is often not enough to give a high grade, and on the other -
It is unfair to ignore these answers, as it can demotivate students. In this case, the accumulative scoring system will come in handy. It may not be identical to the classic 12-point system, but proportional. For example, for every 5 points received for oral answers, a student receives 10 points in the journal and so on.
In this way, you can motivate not only each individual student but also individual groups or the whole class. For example, set a goal for teens: After the students score "N" points together, instead of the usual lesson, you will arrange a competitive quiz for the class, play a favorite online game, organize a quest, watch a movie, visit an interesting tour or more.
Give students/groups a certain number of points for each lesson or task. The sooner they get the required number, the sooner they will receive the chosen incentive.
You can count points in a Google document. The main thing is that students can review the current number of points and the goal at any time, if possible.
Encourage students to learn with easy, effective, and creative approaches!
