Muddy Points

Hi Group,

This is a follow up to my last point to explain my use of "muddy points". Muddy points are one of the assessment techniques listed in the following text which appears to be one of the cornerstones in classroom assessment. I may be wrong about that statement but I had a professor who thought that it was the bible: Angelo, T. and K. Cross (1993) Classroom Assessment Techniques. 2nd ed. Jossey-Bass Pub.

This technique requires students to submit on a piece of paper the answer to questions at the end of a lecture (or when ever you want to give it). The basic question is "What is something that you are still muddy about regarding today's lecture?" You can reword the question, etc. The students will spend a short amount of time on this and hand it in. You can then review the questions to see where the students are falling behind. You can review the content area as a followup and think about future ways to improve your instruction.

I decided to use the survey option on WebCT. The students were given 1 point for each week they submitted - 15 out of 15. This was possible because the option would tell you who participated but would not match up replies with names. The majority did participate because of the point situation but I would get the occasional "No questions at this time " response.

Another quick assessment is the "Minute paper" in which the students are given a minute to summarize the main concepts. You can review them later to see if you actually made a connection. Let me know if you have more questions.

Ken