May 15, 2011

Three Methods of Ongoing Assessment Used by Tutors

The following article was excerpted from the Intermediate section of the Crossroads of Learning Tutoring Foundations Online Training and Classroom Workbook tutor training programs.

19173468_female_tutor_with_female_studentAs you continue working with a student following your initial assessment you will need to conduct some type of informal evaluation during each session to determine whether the student has learned the material covered in the session and where to begin instruction in the next session. The methods described below will help you in assessing student performance.

Observations

An observation is a simple way to determine what a student does when he/she is completing an assignment. The tutor merely gives the student a task to complete and then watches the student as he/she completes the assignment. The tutor should note how the student goes about the assignment.

  • Does he/she use an organized strategic approach or is the approach hit or miss/trial and error?
  • What portions of the work are done correctly or incorrectly?
  • Is there any evidence of frustration or confusion in completing the work?
  • How well is the student able to maintain focus on the task?
  • Does the student recheck his/her work for errors?
Think Alouds

A think-aloud is similar to an observation except that with this method the student thinks out loud and verbalizes what he/she is doing while performing a task. The student should say whatever he or she is looking at, thinking, doing, and feeling while going about the task as the tutor watches and listens. The tutor should not interject anything into the process, even if the student is proceeding incorrectly. The think-aloud allows the tutor to:

  • understand how the student is approaching a particular task or problem.
  • find out exactly where in the process the student is experiencing difficulties.
  • determine what concepts the student is missing.
  • uncover any misconceptions the student might have about the topic.

Think-alouds can be used with reading material with the student stopping at points in the reading to tell what he/she is thinking and what strategies are being used to understand (e.g. what he did when he came to a word in the sentence that he did not understand), in working through math problems (the step by step process) or science problems, and in interpreting assignments.

End of Session Summary

At the end of each tutorial session, ask your student to briefly summarize what has been learned in the session. This should only take a minute or two and will let you know how well your student has understood the material that has been covered, and help you plan for the next session. The end-of-session summary is valuable for both tutor and student.


The preceding article was excerpted from the Intermediate section of the Crossroads of Learning Tutoring Foundations Online Training and Classroom Workbook.tutor training programs. This curriculum articulates with certification requirements of the NTA (National Tutoring Association) and the CRLA (College Reading and Learning Association) and CEUs granted by Fielding Graduate University, Santa Barbara, CA.

Crossroads of Learning also provides  many free resources including an online community of interest for one-to-one educators (discussions, meeting areas, blogs, file sharing, etc.), a library of helpful Internet tools, the Journal, and Tutoring Town Hall interactive webcasts with timely subjects and experts in the field.  For more information visit www.crossroadsoflearning.com or Bob Lasiewicz, Managing Director, Crossroads of Learning, at 818.249.9692 ext 1, BL@crossroadsoflearning.com.

Filed under: Tutoring Practices

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