Classroom Assessment Techniques

Classroom Assessment Techniques (CATs) are simple tools for collecting immediate feedback about student learning. When used effectively, CATs are low-effort strategies with big rewards.  They can help instructors:

• Quickly assess student comprehension or critical thinking.
• Easily determine whether students need additional information, support, or resources.
• Make meaningful adjustments to their teaching in real-time or for the future.
• Provide students with low-stakes opportunities to self-assess their own learning.

CATs are always formative in nature and, thus, can help build trust with students. They have also been found to support student engagement, critical thinking, and success, as well as instructor satisfaction and reflection for course enhancement. 

How to Use CATs

Instructors can use CATs strategically, both as pre-planned activities or as spontaneous learning checks. They can be used in both in-person and online teaching, and incorporated at any point in the learning process.  Instructors often use them for pre-assessments, before transitioning to a new topic, and/or at the end of a learning session. For advice on how to best use CATs in your teaching, book a consultation with one of our CELT Consultants. 

Examples of CATs

There are many varieties of CATS an instructor can use depending on their context and goals. The strategies below are among the easiest to implement. For a comprehensive list of CATs, check out Classroom Assessment Techniques: A Handbook for College Teachers (Angelo & Cross, 1993) from the CELT Library.

• Minute Paper

  How does it work?

  • Students are given one minute to respond in writing to specific prompts, such as “What was the most important thing you learned today?” and “What important question remains unanswered?”
  1. Prepare a prompt that solicits the information you want to obtain.
  2. Reserve 5 minutes of class time for the activity. 
  3. Deliver the prompt, and tell students how much time they have to respond.
  4. Collect student responses.
  5. Review and analyze student responses after class.
  6. Follow-up in a meaningful, timely way.

  Variations: 

  • Use the Minute Paper before a demonstration. Ask students to write down their prediction about what will happen. 
  • Use the Minute Paper when transitioning between topics, rather than at the end of class. 
  • Use the Minute Paper at the end of a small-group activity. 
  • Create an open-ended question in Poll Everywhere and allow students to respond with their electronic devices instead of paper. 
  • For online classes, add a Minute Paper to the end of a module or unit by creating a timed Brightspace Quiz with one written response question. 

  What to do with the results:

  • Review the responses in a timely manner (e.g., before the next class session) to identify common themes or misconceptions that should be addressed. 
  • Provide follow-up information to confirm, clarify, correct, or elaborate on students' thinking. Follow up may be sent via announcements, posted as a video in Brightspace, covered in the next class period, etc.
• Muddiest Point

  How does it work?

  • A variation of the Minute Paper, this technique involves asking students to describe what aspects of a lesson were least salient or most confusing, and what they think might help. For example, “What did you find most confusing about today’s lesson, and what would help you understand?”
  1. Prepare a prompt that solicits the information you want to obtain.
  2. Reserve 5 minutes of class time for the activity. 
  3. Deliver the prompt, and tell students how much time they have to respond.
  4. Collect student responses.
  5. Review and analyze student responses after class.
  6. Follow-up in a meaningful, timely way (e.g., email or announcement, during the following class).

  Variations:

  • Use the Muddiest Point before class or at the beginning of class to assess students' understanding of the readings or pre-class work. 
  • Use the Muddiest Point after showing a video or demonstration. 
  • For online classes, use the Brightspace Assignment Tool to create an ungraded Muddiest Point activity at the conclusion of a discussion, learning unit, or lecture video.

  What do I do with the results?

  • • Review responses to identify common areas of confusion. 
    • Provide follow-up information to clarify or supplement students’ understanding. 
    • If many students found the lesson confusing, consider using a different approach to teach the concept next time.
• One Sentence Summary

  How does it work?

  • Students are asked to summarize, in one sentence, their knowledge about a specific topic, idea, principle, scene, discussion, etc.
  1. Identify what you want to focus on. 
  2. Reserve 5 minutes of class time for the activity. 
  3. Deliver the prompt and tell students how much time they have to respond. 
  4. Collect student responses.
  5. Review and analyze student responses after class.
  6. Follow-up in a meaningful, timely way (e.g., email or announcement, during the following class).

  Variations:

  • Ask students to explain - in one sentence - how the current topic relates to a prior topic or issue. 
  • Create an open-ended question in Poll Everywhere and allow students to respond with their electronic devices instead of writing on paper.
  • For online classes, use the Brightspace Discussion Tool to create a discussion topic where students share their one-sentence summaries publicly. 

  What do I do with the results?

  • Analyze the responses for correctness and completeness. Look for opportunities to elaborate or clarify their thinking about the topic.  
  • Provide follow-up information (if needed) and/or acknowledge students’ understanding prior to the next learning session or assessment.
• Red Light, Green Light (or Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down)

  How does it work?

  • After delivering some content, such as a mini-lecture, video, demonstration, etc., students are asked to indicate whether they understand well enough to move on. Students raise a notecard with red or green coloring to indicate if they are ready to proceed. Thumbs up or down can be used as an alternative to the notecard.
  1. Identify a meaningful checkpoint to verify students' understanding during class time. 
  2. Provide students with a notecard that has a red circle on one end and a green circle on the other. Alternatively, ask them to use thumbs up/down.
  3. Deliver the prompt and allow students to respond.
  4. Quickly assess the overall readiness of the class to move on.   

  Variations:

  • Before class begins, use the activity to assess whether students feel prepared for class that day. 
  • Following the introduction of a new assignment, ask students if they understand the expectations. 
  • For online classes, create a Brightspace survey to ask a single question about students’ confidence in their understanding of a concept or learning unit. Include two response options, such as “yes” and “no” or “Ready!” and “Not ready.”  

  What do I do with the results?

  • Use the results to determine how many students are ready for what’s next. If many students are “not ready,” try to investigate what they need in order to feel ready. If few students are “not ready,” reach out privately to offer support.

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Supporting First-Year Students

Faculty who teach classes that are commonly taken by first-year students are uniquely positioned to make a positive impact on students' short- and long-term success. This resource includes evidence-based strategies that faculty can use to enhance their direct and indirect positive influence on first-year students: 

• Support Students in First Year Classes

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Faculty Teaching Tips

PFW faculty are using a variety of effective and creative teaching strategies to promote student success and engagement.  Explore the videos below for ideas that you can incorporate into your own courses.  

• Transparency

  Dr. Tanya Soule, Associate Professor of Biology, shares tips on why and how instructors should create transparency in their courses. 

• Gaming

  Dr. Lee Roberts, Associate Professor of German Studies, shares ideas and tips for using games to promote student motivation and success. 

• Practice and Prepare

  Dr. Jeong il Cho, Associate Professor in the School of Education, suggests strategies for delivering effective class sessions. 

• Solicit and Reflect on Feedback

  Dr. Rama Cousik, Associate Professor in the School of Education, shares tips on how to gather and use feedback to promote student learning and continuous improvement. 

• Support Student Wellbeing

  Dr. Lesa Rae Vartanian, Associate Professor of Psychology, shares the importance of checking in on student well-being and what resources are available on campus for mental health needs and concerns. 

  
  

  NOTE: PFW offers many services to help students with academic and personal matters.  You can review these resources on our Student Support Services page, or simply submit a CARE team referral.  When you submit a referral to the CARE team, a representative will follow up with the student connect them with the help they need.

• Build Connections

  Do you hate awkward silences during class? Cynthia Wilson, Senior Lecturer of Management and Marketing, shares a great technique to help students build connections and get engaged.