Evaluation, test taking should be only one of the options.
In the first few days of this academic year, I was lucky enough to take part in a workshop at my school that looked to introduce a more effective way of teaching a language. The methodology is known as TPRS (teaching proficiency through reading and story-telling). The presenter was fantastic and I have begun to incorporate many of her strategies into my day to day teaching.
Within the workshop, several ideas stood out to me. The classroom setting is the most important. Homework being the least relevant. This is something that I really enjoy. The main focus of the class being communication and structured communication at that! The presenter used a line that hit me quite hard that day. “If a student can’t do something, it’s because he or she hasn’t learned it yet. That means I have to teach it to you”. This was a simple and powerful thought, especially if you have already taught the skill. Maybe it needs to be re-taught, a different way, or just repeated…
I think the time crunch works against this idea, and we need to begin to look at skills and skill acquisition over content and testing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jczglmpEvSE
There is a plan in the works!
Andrew
I am really excited to collaborate and share what worked (and what didn’t) in our classes. I started using it this week and so far it has been a hit!