Stimulate the intelligence of children from an early

Does every child is intelligence? that questions often arise from the mind of every parent who wants his son to have the intelligence to be successful future ahead. Probably true that not every child is smart, then what about the children who are not smart? whether the bleak future? or just the opposite? Intelligence of a child is often associated with traits: love reading, school smart, always rank 1 and a high IQ. Yet according to child psychologist Kak Seto, a measure of intelligence is not really as mentioned above, that this characteristic is one measure of true intelligence. But is not the only measure of intelligence.

Intelligence of a child should be measured by how optimal child can develop his best. There are children who are gifted in music, kinesthetic, visual-spatial, interpersonal relationships, and emotional and spiritual intelligence. And all that is considered an intelligence anyway. In history, many successful people just emerged from among those who are considered less intelligent, for example, call the Thomas Alva Edison, Albert Einstein, Bill Gates as an example of successful people in their field, but judging from the background belakangngnya comes precisely from among those who considered intelligent and tend to be bleak future. But because of persistence in the areas of interest to cultivate brings proven success in life.

Behold the child's success in optimizing the talents and interests that will lead to success cultivated the days ahead. Here, the role of parents and teachers of the school environment have an important role. Parents who interact more with children urgently need to find or capture interest, excitement and talent of a child in a particular field, then it is immediately communicated to the teachers the school environment. While the school as a formal institution, a place where children practice socializing, interacting and self-actualization should be able to know the child's interests and talents are different. This knowledge is important for teachers in schools so that children do not experience the pressures of not getting the optimal distribution in the areas of interest.
In essence, stimulate the intellect from an early age is crucial as a starting point for a successful future ahead of education. 

Tips on Managing Disruptive Students

Find suggestions on dealing with those students who always want to act out and disrupt the quiet classroom environment. Some behaviors may be quickly altered early on in the year, while some additional strategies may be needed for students who habitually and intentionally disobey instructions.

Need Some Help?

Do your students hang from the rafters? Do the other teachers on the hallway complain as you have the loudest classroom on the hallway? If your class appears to act more like a circus than students engaged in a learning environment, then you may want to change the way you go about bringing order to your classroom.

Personally, I do not think that learning can take place until your classroom is disciplined enough for that exchange of information to occur. I understand that sometimes teachers do activities in their classroom that encourage students to interact with other students, thus creating noise, etc. However, I am primarily referring to students who are out of control in a learning environment, one in which a teacher is attempting to instruct his or her students.

Every Teacher Has At Least One...

Every teacher loves to have that perfect class in which everything seems to be running smoothly until that one student walks in who challenges the teacher's patience level. Now, you have that one student who will disrupt and disturb your class constantly and habitually. It is to the point in which the other students are politely asking the student to avoid interrupting their learning experience. If you have this situation, there is an effective measure that you can take to quiet the disturbance.

Moving Students

Sometimes a student who is continually being disruptive needs some time away. Speak to the student and tell him or her how the distraction is affecting his or her learning and the learning of the whole class. Have a designated place in the classroom for the student to go when he or she needs to regain focus. This may mean a different table or quiet area of the classroom. This is not to isolate the student, but to give him or her a choice about where to go when focusing becomes difficult. You may find that the student will willingly go there.

When there are no other students around, the student may be able to regain focus on the work at hand. Be sure when using the SmartBoard, blackboard or dry-erase board that the student is in full view of the teaching instruction being presented.

After allowing the student some quiet time, most students will want to return to the class when they have regained focus. Students can return to the rest of the class when they are ready. Eventually the student learns self-discipline in the classroom.

What if it Doesn't Work?

Talk to the student and see what is occurring in the student's life that is causing this problematic behavior. Sometimes, you will discover that the student has a parent serving in the armed forces in Iraq or some other life changing event is occurring in the student's life.

Other times, you will discover that the student is in desperate need of attention and is acting out at school as there has been a recent addition to the family or the student's mother has remarried. So, the student feels the need to get attention at school, which as his behavior is being reported to the parent, the student is getting negative attention at home as well.

In these situations, the student may be open to talking about this problem with you, the teacher, or if the teacher is uncomfortable hearing the personal life of this student, a teacher should send the student to his/her counselor so that the student can get the attention that he or she needs.

Generally, if a student is misbehaving, there is a deeper reason that accounts for the problematic behavior.

Be Interested

Teachers are not fond of those students who disrupt class, but some students do not know any better, so just face the facts that these students are young and are still learning.

Find something interesting out about the student who habitually disrupts class. If he is into four-wheeler riding, ask him to show you a picture of his four-wheeler.

Sometimes, something as easy as showing an interest in your students will eliminate problematic behavior as the student realizes that you actually care about his or her performance.

Arrange a Conference

It is a good possibility that in these cases, the students are you dealing with have problematic or dysfunctional home lives, so it may be unlikely that you will get a parent or guardian to attend a teacher/parent conference. In these cases, arrange a conference with a principal and the student, so that maybe the administrator can pull some information out of the student. Even let the student pick what administrator he or she would like to meet with as if the student has a good relationship with one of the principals, he or she may be more comfortable discussing his problematic behavior.

Use a Reward System

With this particular student who has a difficult time behaving in class, reward him or her on those days when the student was the perfect angel in class. Give the student a drop grade or a homework pass or some meaningful incentive that encourages the good, respectful behavior.

Managing Problems Part Way Through the Year

At this point in the school year, teachers are tired of dealing with problematic and disruptive behavior from students. Teachers have exhausted their means with regard to implementing classroom management strategies and still have students who refuse to refrain from talking as well as those students who will do anything and everything to gain the attention of their peers. Teachers are just trying to last the remainder of the school year and are looking forward to their break.

Isolate the Student

Here are some suggestions to help you prevent from pulling your hair out.

Isolate the student who is disrupting your class to an area of your classroom where no one sits. If you have to, move the students from the rows that surround the student and give him no one to talk to and no one to bother. If you have a full class, this suggestion may not work. If you have a table against a wall, move the student to that particular table so that the student is all alone and has no one to disrupt or bother.

Isolation and/or alienation can work wonders and can increase the attentiveness of your class and eliminate those unnecessary disruptions.

Revoke Privileges

Also, take away some meaningful reward or consequence for this student. If you allow your students to earn eating/drinking privileges, do not allow this student to eat or drink in class. If the student already has these privileges, revoke them. After all, if the privilege is that meaningful to the student, he will reform his problematic behavior and work hard to regain the privilege.

Avoid Putting the Student in the Hallway

Remember, that as a teacher you are liable, so I would avoid sticking students in the hallway. Generally students are notorious for roaming campus and end up getting in even deeper trouble. As a teacher, you are liable for whatever actions the student engages. This means that if a student does something serious to another student or injures himself, that student as well as his or her parents may sue you. I realize that this is not fair, but you have to be careful as to your actions as a classroom teacher.

Do you have any further tips to share?

How do I Create Tests for my Students?

Introduction
Assessments are essential to the learning process. As the class instructor, you need a means of gathering information on the effectiveness of your instruction and a way to measure your students’ mastery of the course’s educational outcomes. For students, assessment provides them with feedback on their learning and can also be an incentive for improving academic performance. From an administrative perspective, the cumulative value of assessments is tangible data suggestive of student achievement. Perhaps the most well known form of assessment is a test or an exam, so given the high stakes of evaluation, from a variety of perspectives, and the importance of accurately gauging students’ learning, it’s imperative that you design valid, well-written tests.

Test Composition and Design: Where to Start?
Identify Course Goals
It might seem obvious, but one of the most important steps of test composition is to revisit your overall goals and objectives for the course and to determine which goals you intend to evaluate with this test, bearing in mind that a formal test or exam is not always the best way to evaluate the desired learning outcomes. Once you have identified which outcomes what you want to measure, consider what type of question or prompt best facilitates the students’ production of that outcome. For instance, is it your intention to create a test asking students to recall definitions or are you interested in having students demonstrate their ability to compare various concepts and defend their position on a controversial subject?

Many people utilize Bloom’s Taxonomy, a hierarchical structure of thinking skills, as a tool for gauging the cognitive depth of student learning. Figure 1 depicts a more recent adaptation of Bloom’s Taxonomy and it can be useful to keep in mind when constructing tests. Consider, for instance, the difference between the first test or assignments of the semester when you simply want to measure the students’ ability to understand or recall new information, and the final exam in which you ask students to independently analyze data or situations or possibly create a project or document representative of the information covered throughout the semester. The required skills or desired level of cognition will vary based on the educational objectives for each exam, so it is vital that you keep your pre-determined goals and objectives in mind throughout the test composition progress.

For additional information on Bloom’s Taxonomy and sample questions for each level of cognition, please see the additional resources provided.

Determine Test Structure/Design
Much like learning styles, research shows that many students have a preferred test format, so in order to appeal to as many students as possible you might consider drawing from a variety of testing methods or styles. In fact, you can design a single exam to include several kinds of questions and measure a range of cognitive skills. Some common types of tests and test items are discussed below. Objective Tests: An objective test is one in which a students’ performance is measured against a standard and specific set of answers (i.e. for each question there is a right or wrong answer). When composing test questions, it is important to be direct and use language that is straightforward and familiar to the students. In addition, the answer choices provided on the test should be challenging enough that students aren’t able to guess the correct answer simply by comparing how all of the options are written. Examples of objective test items include the following.

• Multiple-choice
• True-false
• Matching
• Problem based questions. These require the student to complete or solve an equation or prompt and are commonly used in application based courses such as mathematics, chemistry, and physics.

For further information on writing effective test questions, please contact the TLTC for a consultation or refer to the online resources provided below.

Subjective Test: Unlike objective tests for which there is a definitive standardized or formulated answer, subjective tests are evaluated based on the judgment or opinion of the examiner. Tests of this nature are often designed in a manner in which the student is presented with a number of questions or writing prompts for which he/she will demonstrate mastery of the learning objective in his/her response to the question. When composing prompts as test questions, it is crucial that you phrase the prompt clearly and precisely. You want to make sure that prompt elicits the type of thinking skill that you want to measure and that the students’ task is clear. For example, if you want students to compare two items, you need to provide or list the criteria to be used as the basis for comparison. Examples of subjective test items include the following.

• Essay
• Short answer

When grading subjective tests or test items, the use of an established set of scoring criteria or a well-developed rubric helps to level the playing field and increase the test’s reliability. For more information on rubric development, please see the additional online resources provided.

Table II contains a chart showing advantages and disadvantages for a selection of test items. It’s important to note that this is not an exhaustive list, and remember that as the course instructor, you have the freedom to choose what form of assessment most aptly measures your specific learning objective.

Test Composition and Design: Additional Considerations
Validity & Reliability 

Two key characteristics of any form of assessment are validity and reliability. As Atherton (2010) states, “a valid form of assessment is one which measures what it is supposed to measure,” whereas reliable assessments are those which “will produce the same results on re-test, and will produce similar results with a similar cohort of students, so it is consistent in its methods and criteria.” These attributes provide students with the assurance they need to know that the test they are being given is fair and reflective of what has been covered in the course. To establish a valid test instrument it is important always be mindful of your pre-determined learning outcomes and goals. This mindfulness will help to ensure that each question you develop is an accurate measure of the specified learning outcome. An example of an invalid question is one which tests a student’s ability to recall facts when it was actually intended to assess a student’s ability to analyze information.

As Atherton (2010) describes it, another way to think of reliability is in terms of “replicability.” Is there a general consistency in students’ overall performance on an exam? If the exam is given to more than one class or over the course of multiple semesters, is there consistency between the various classes? If so, the test is considered to be reliable. Strategies such as writing detailed test questions or prompts, including clear directions, and establishing and communicating clear grading criteria will increase test reliability.

Verifying validity and reliability in a written test can be challenging. For instance, in the grading of a writing test, what exactly are you trying to measure? The students’ writing abilities, content knowledge, all of the above? Be sure that all of your expectations for an exam are communicated to your students well in advance and always be sure that your expectations mirror those articulated in the overall course goals. Another way to increase test validity and reliability is to reexamine and possibly remove questions missed by a large majority of students. If a significant percentage misses the same question, there is a definite possibility that the question was somehow unclear or was not representative of the intended learning outcome.

Test Length:
Another important aspect of test composition is time management—on the part of the professor as well as the student. A common student complaint with tests is that the test was covered material never covered in class or had too many questions on something that was covered in only a few minutes. When designing tests it is helpful to remember that topics on which you spent a significant amount of class time, through instruction and activities, should be appropriately emphasized on the test. This does not mean that you should not include items that received less coverage in class, just be sure to maintain an appropriate balance.

Also, bear in mind that it will take students longer to complete the test than it would you. In his highly referenced book Teaching Tips (1994), Bill McKeachie outlines the following as a strategy for determining test length, “I allow about a minute per item for multiple-choice or fill-in-the-blank items, two minutes per short-answer question requiring more than a sentence answer, ten or fifteen minutes for a limited essay question, and a half-hour to an hour for a broader question requiring more than a page or two to answer.”

Conclusion
Tests and exams often play a significant role in the overall assessment of students’ learning. Therefore, as instructors, it essential that we pay particular attention to the manner in which we construct these instruments. Remember to always keep your course goals and learning objectives at the forefront of your mind as you begin to determine what kind of test is the best measure of your students’ learning. To that end, if it fits with your course design and content, you may want consider alternate forms of assessment such as group projects, student portfolios or other activities that extend and build throughout the course of the semester. These alternative or non-traditional forms of assessment frequently offer students a more authentic opportunity to apply their knowledge and higher-order thinking skills.

Creating tests and other forms of assessment can be a challenging task, but there are plenty of resources available to you. If you would like assistance with test composition, or if you have questions about assessment in general, please contact the TLTC for a consultation.

Online Resources
Bloom’s Taxonomy:
Rathburn, S. Teaching Tip Bloom’s Taxonomy: Testing beyond Rote-Memory. Colorado State University, The Institute for Teaching and Learning
http://tilt.colostate.edu/tips/tip.cfm?tipid=87
This website provides a general and succinct overview of Bloom’s Taxonomy with sample test questions from each of the cognitive levels established in Bloom’s Taxonomy.

Vanderbilt Center for Teaching
http://www.vanderbilt.edu/cft/resources/teaching_resources/theory/blooms.htm
This link to Vanderbilt’s Center for Teaching contains detailed information on Bloom’s taxonomy, both the original and the revised taxonomy. It defines each level and provides a list of useful verbs to describe the cognitive processes associated with each level.

Writing Test Questions:
“Simple Guidelines for Writing Test Questions.” Renton Technical College Office of Instructional Improvement
http://webs.rtc.edu/ii/Teaching%20Resources/GuidelinesforWritingTest.htm
This website offers a comprehensive overview of how to construct test questions, covering a range of questions including True-False, Multiple-Choice, Matching, Completion, and Essay questions.

http://web.uct.ac.za/projects/cbe/mcqman/mcqappc.html#C1
This is the appendix from the web version of Designing and Managing Multiple Choice Exam Questions, a handbook for the University of Cape Town, South Africa. This link provides examples on how to write questions that are on the higher level of Bloom’s as well as more application of each level.

Clegg, V.L. & Cashin, W.E. (1986). “Improving Multiple-Choice Tests.” Idea Paper 16 from Kansas State University’s Center for Faculty Evaluation and Development.
http://www.theideacenter.org/sites/default/files/Idea_Paper_16.pdf

Cashin, W.E. (1987). “Improving Essay Tests.” Idea Paper 17 from Kansas State University’s Center for Faculty Evaluation and Development.
http://www.theideacenter.org/sites/default/files/Idea_Paper_17.pdf
For detailed information specific to improving multiple-choice and essay tests, take a look a these two IDEA papers. These are links to pdf files, and each contains information on constructing test items, the strengths and limitations for each item, and recommendations on using each to assess student learning.

Assessment: Rubrics, Validity & Reliability
Atherton, J.S. (2010). Learning and Teaching; Assessment [On-line] UK
http://www.learningandteaching.info/teaching/assessment.htm
In this article, Atherton provides an accessible discussion of assessment, applicable to any discipline or type of course.

Rubistar. http://rubistar.4teachers.org/
This website offers a free tool to help instructors create their own rubrics. It also offers a search tool to find sample rubrics.

Davis, B.G. (1993). “Quizzes, Tests, and Exams” and “ from Tools for Teaching. Accessed online
http://teaching.berkeley.edu/bgd/quizzes.html
A great reference for faculty, Barbara Gross Davis’s book Tools for Teaching, has several chapters devoted to the topic testing and grading. This is a link to the chapter on assessment. It offers a broad overview the topic as well as some general strategies for test design. The hard copy, which is available in the TLTC library, has specific chapters on designing all the items highlighted in this article.

http://www.park.edu/cetl/quicktips/authassess.html
Park University maintains an excellent website on summative assessments. This particular link compares authentic assessment to the traditional form as well as lists advantages and disadvantages of using this to assess student learning. In addition, it provides ideas for implementing various types of authentic assessments into your course.

Additional References
Anderson, L.W., and Krathwohl, D.R. (2001). A Taxonomy of Learning, Teaching, and Assessing: A Revision of Bloom’s Taxonomy of Educational Objectives. New York: Longman.
 

Bloom, B.S., et. al. (1956). Taxonomy of Educational Objectives: Cognitive Domain. New York: David McKay.
 

Gronlund, N.E., & Linn, R.L. (1990). Measurement and Evaluation in Teaching (6th ed.). New York: Macmillan Publishing Company.
 

Improving Multiple Choice Questions. (1990, November). For Your Consideration, No. 8. Chapel Hill, NC: Center for Teaching and Learning, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
 

Mandernach, B. J. (2003). Multiple Choice. Retrieved June 21, 2010, from Park University Faculty Development Quick Tips.
 

McKeachie, W. J. (1994) Teaching tips: Strategies, Research, and Theory for College and University Teachers (9th ed.). Lexington: D.C. Health and Company.
 

Svinicki, M.D. (1999a). Evaluating and Grading Students. In Teachers and Students: A Sourcebook for UT Faculty (pp. 1-14). Austin, TX: Center for Teaching Effectiveness, University of Texas at Austin.
 

Worthen, B. R., Borg, W.R., & White, K. R. (1993). Measurement and evaluation in the schools. New York: Longman.