Michelle's Reflection - Formal Assessment: CA1 Test

The first Literature test I had to administer was a test based on Act 1 of The Merchant of Venice for the Secondary 2 classes.The test had 4 questions. Question 1 was a characterisation question on Bassanio and students were required to write about two of his character traits using the PEEL format. Question 2 was another characterisation question, this time on Shylock, and students had to write about one of his character trait, also using the PEEL format. Question 3 and 4 basically asked students to describe aspects of the plot.

Overall, I felt that the test was meaningless and ineffective. Firstly, prior to the test, students were already given a worksheet with two to three character traits of each main character in the PEEL format. Thus, students who made sure to study that worksheet and memorise the character traits in the PEEL format generally did well for the test. All they had to do was to regurgitate what they had memorised. When I talked to students personally after returning the test, some of them admitted to me that they had no idea what they were writing and that they just wrote that Bassanio is an opportunist for example, because that was what the teacher taught them. So what I felt was that students with better marks were not necessarily better Literature students who knew how to interpret a text or explain a point coherently. The test was therefore not a good indicator of their ability as a student of Literature.

Secondly, the PEEL format which they were forced to answer in did more harm than good to some students.  Instead of writing a paragraph that flowed cohesively and coherently, some students wrote their answers in such a manner:

P: (one liner)
E: (quote that they memorised)
E: (one liner)
L: (repetition of P)

Many students saw it as lines to fill up and they felt that as long as they had one line for P, E, E, and L, they will get a mark for each line. The argument thus did not always flow consistently. The second E which is supposed to be the explanation sometimes was just a repetition and rephrasing of the quote they wrote in the first E, or sometimes just a different example from the text that supports the point but not related to the quote they provided.

Thirdly, I also felt that students were confused because the 'easier' questions that just required them to describe the plot were in the later section of the test. The way the questions in the test was structured was such that the inferential questions came before the literal questions. This did not make much sense to me, especially since I tried to use Hillocks' hierarchy of skills  in the design of the formal assessment for my group project for this ACR course. Evidently, my students also could not understand this and decided that it must be some sort of 'trick' so many students unnecessarily explained more than was required of the question.

In conclusion, the effectiveness of the test was affected by how the students were taught over the past few months and also, how the questions were structured and designed. As the Literature lessons seemed to focus on content more than skills, many students could only reproduce what they have been taught and what they have memorised, therefore defeating the purpose of the test which was supposed to evaluate how well they could explain a point.

Elizabeth Final Reflection

Focus on a specific assessment task in your school. Describe the assessment and discuss its effectiveness

In the Sec 2 Lit classes in PLMGS, an alternative mode of assessment required the students to engage in  project where they creatively engaged with the text of “Merchant of Venice”. There were several options the students could choose from. In one option, students could create a family tree, linking the characters together in an organized manner and giving  detailed character descriptions. In another option, students were given four scenarios from the text (one example: Shylock’s daughter running away with his money). Students would then design and create a newspaper with these four scenarios.

These projects allowed students to explore the text in greater depth, based on prior knowledge as well as in their own discoveries. The creation of the family tree, for instance, employed characterization skills, which had been partly covered in class, but also required them to read the text in further detail. By putting these information down into a family tree, it helps students to organize their thoughts and what they know about the characters in  a more systematic manner. The newspaper reports employed students creative juices and also developed  their writing styles. I was impressed that some students were able to write in the style very similar to that of a journalist, making the newspaper article very convincing and believable. While there were some groups of students who gave substandard work, most groups put in a lot of effort in drawing out information from the text and presenting it in their own creative methods.

The projects were graded according to the rubric that consisted of 5 categories: (i) Content (ii) Creativity and style (iii) Analysis of characters/events                     (iv) Presentation of project (v) Teamwork. While this rubric seems comprehensive and “covers all grounds”, I realized that it was not so when I was tasked to grade the projects.

Firstly, the “teamwork” component was  rather unclear, as it could not be seen overtly if everyone in the group had done their share of work. For this component, I would improve it by getting students to do a “Peer Evaluation” form, so that, as a teacher, I would be made more aware, should there be free loaders in a group.

Secondly, the different projects demanded different skills, the universal rubric was not as applicable to some projects. For instance, for the group doing the family tree (which only required them to link characters and do a character description), “content” was not part of their assignment. As such, when it came to the grading of the “content” section, it became rather ambiguous. The rubric, hence, was not universal, and could not be used accurately for each project that had been given to students as options they could choose from. For such a task, where there are options of the kinds of projects that students want to embark on, perhaps, a rubric for each option of project would give the project a more accurate assessment. 

Ada's Reflection V - Literature learning journeys to Salem & New York

c.                Describe and discuss an innovative or creative practice in your school.

I would say that holding learning journeys are no longer an alien concept in our education system today. Many schools are actually strong advocators of learning journeys as they believe in the educational benefits that it brings. Learning journeys could indeed help to enrich and extend the educational experience of our students as it helps to make real and concretize their learning. That said, learning journeys that are held locally are already enriching as it is because students are brought out of their classrooms to broaden their horizons and gain more insights about their learning. Tapping on the benefits that such learning journeys are able to afford to students, Pasir Ris Crest Secondary decides to take one step further and bring a group of students to Salem, Boston and New York. Although overseas learning journeys are definitely not something new today, the selected students and the Literature teachers who went to United States certainly had a very meaningful and exhilarating experience. Since the students are studying The Crucible, going to Salem was certainly an eye-opener for them as they not only had the chance to deepen their understanding about the text but also experience first hand what life was like during the Puritan days. They also get to visit the House of the Seven Gables where they were required be creative and write a poem to reflect on their visit there. This would certainly ensure that learning objectives are still met while students are out of the school context.

Apart from that, the students also got to watch the Phantom of the Opera play at New York City. What better way to deepen their love towards the subject than let them enjoy and see such experiences unfold in front of their very own eyes? Students not only get to soak themselves in such majestic architecture and environment in one of the greatest plays ever produced, but they would also learn about the etiquette of watching a play and this is definitely something that they can apply in their lives when they return home.

Furthermore, with the recent emphasis on a multi-disciplinary approach, and the need to derive maximal educational benefits from every educational activity, Pasir Ris Crest Secondary School also undertook these visits as an integral part of the formal curriculum so that they can enhance the learning experience of students. The students also went into the world-renowned Harvard University where they were actually brought around the institution by the guides. This is certainly another experience that students would not easily forget and I also think that this is a good way to motivate them in their own learning.

I am truly amazed by this practice when I learnt about it as I sincerely believe in the benefits that such learning trips are able to endow to students, especially when it consists of several innovative practices that would further engage students in their learning and understanding of the text.That said, since the school made English Literature compulsory to all students, it would perhaps be better to have more students to go for such learning trips although I am aware that there are manpower and budget constraints to consider. If more students went for such trips, then more teachers are needed to take care of the students which is not possible since there not enough English Literature teachers in the school. Nevertheless, although such practices may be nothing new to us, I believe that these are certainly some of the innovative and creative ways engaged by the school to maximize the educational impact on the students’ learning and more importantly, to keep the flame of their love towards Literature alive and burning. 

Reflection 5: Time Practice after School

a) Focus on a specific assessment task in your school. Describe the assessment and discuss its effectiveness

Assessment task

In my school, there is a dedicated time slot for each subject (to conduct any extra classes or remedial etc) everyday after school. During this dedicated time slot for literature, students (mainly sec 4s) are made to do “time practice” where they are required to do lit practice papers. Sometimes, they are tasked to do unseen poetry/prose question and sometimes they are required to look at questions based on the text that they study, depending on the consensus of the literature department. Once students have finished or when the time is up, the teacher will collect their essays and mark them. They will be given a certain grade/marks. The questions will then be discussed during their literature lesson.

The good

This “time practice” helps simulate exam condition, allowing students to practice analyzing exam question and writing their answers in a given time (50 minutes). With much practice, students will get used to the amount of time given and will know roughly how much time they should take to plan and write their essay. In essence, it is a good way to prepare students for exams. Personally, I have been to several classes to invigilate this “time practice” and I must say that I thought the students looked very serious in doing the questions. They seem to look like they took this opportunity very seriously. I could see that students were trying their very best to finish their essay despite knowing that it was just a practice paper. Or so it seems…

The bad

Despite students’ apparent effort, I do not know how well they did for their essay. As such, I cannot really say for sure how effective it is. However, I managed to ask some students about their thoughts on this “time practice” exercise. Most students felt that it is not really helpful as they cannot write to their potential due to fatigue. This “time practice” is scheduled after school and so, most students complained that they were tired and, could not think and write their essays well. They mentioned that they were just doing it because they had to and were not taking it seriously. Every other day, they have other subjects, which they have to do this “time practice” exercise. As such, students have lost sight of its true purpose. They just see it as a lesson after school that they need to complete.

My thoughts

While this idea of getting students to practice writing is good, I see no point if students are made to do it constantly after school when they are feeling tired after sitting through 6-7 hours of lesson in the day. Perhaps making it less frequent would be better. Instead of focusing on quantity, why not focus on quality? I feel students should be well prepared before they are tasked to sit for the “time practice”. This ensures that the exercise will be taken seriously and students can give better written answers. As for now, doing the “time practice” constantly would not only be a waste of students’ time (as they do not take the writing task seriously) but also the teachers’, as they have to spend time marking a piece of work that is not good.

Grace's Reflections #5 - Year-end Literature Learning Journey to UK

c. Describe and discuss an innovative or creative practice in your school.

At the end of Sec 3, the entire Literature cohort (both Elective and Pure) embark on a week-long trip to the U.K., visiting the Bronte sister's family home and the Shakespeare Globe theatre, among other interesting sites. Being immersed in the cultural landscape that has shaped much of traditional English Literature texts, students gain a better awareness of the contexts that contribute to the style, diction and atmosphere in works such as "Wuthering Heights" (by Emily Bronte) and "Daffodil" (by William Wordsworth).

During the trip, the girls watch a live performance at the Shakespeare Globe Theatre. Bringing texts to live, the multisensorial experience is followed by a post-play discussion with their Literature teachers about set design, lighting, characterization and various aspects of dramatization.

Allaying concerns about cost, the school offers subsidized fares for students who require financial assistance. In addition, students may utilize their EduSave funds to offset the costs of the trip. 

There are three key learning objectives that are accomplished during this trip:

1. Live dramatic readings and performances by the girls during the trip

A day is set aside during the trip, for students to spend a day lounging with their friends at an outdoor picnic. During which, a 2-hour slot is given for the students to perform a live chorale reading of their Literature text (usually a Shakespearean play). The combination of being surrounded by friends and performing live in an outdoor park is a thrilling experience that aims to encourage girls to (tbc)

2. Post-trip sharing with the entire school

3. Personal engagement in 

LAVA PROJECT AT KCPSS - Media Literarcy

This post seeks to address the effectiveness of a unique literary assessment that has been introduced in my practicum school, Kuo Chuan Presbyterian Secondary School. In a bid to make learning fun, authentic, relevant and meaningful and to change the traditional way of approaching literature, the literature department decided to embark on this media literacy programme, which was intended to allow students to make connections to the world outside the classroom.

This programme is rolled out at the Secondary 2 level. It is a level-wide video competition aimed at providing students with an authentic context to use and appreciate the language. The main learning objective of this programme was to ensure that students can learn how to express themselves creatively and communicate effectively via the context of an actual film production, from the pre-planning to post-editing stage. A vendor comes to school to teach the students the practical film making skills during their IT lessons whilst the literature teachers conduct media literacy theory lessons during Literature lessons.

They have based this literature assessment in accordance with Newmann and Wehlage, the 5 standards of authentic instruction; which includes, higher-order thinking, depth of knowledge, connectedness to the world, substantive conversation and social support for student achievement. However, the general agreement among the literature teachers in my school is that even though we might have been able to bring the 'real world' into the classroom and to teach our students to media literate in today's 21st century world, there are certain gaps in the curriculum and the classroom process of rolling out this assessment.

This project stretches over two terms, with the students submitting a 3-5 minute short film as their final product. The other deliverables of this project includes an initial synopsis of the film idea, a research folio on the movie's plot line and characters, the script and a photo-board. The students are now at the last stage of the project, whereby after the submission of the photo board  they would have to complete the video and submit it to the teachers which will be then assessed and the best ones gets selected to compete in a inter class competition. During the literature festival week in July, these videos will be screened for all to see and students will have to vote the best video, script, actor, actress, camera man, editor etc.

This alternative form of assessment is indeed a great idea as it has well thought out project focus, and a platform for students to showcase their talents and be assessed y the teachers and peers alike. However,  as with all good ideas this LAVA project definitely has its set of drawbacks. We have had complaints from students and parents alike regarding the tedious nature of this project as they are essentially being taught all of the tricks to produce and direct a film over the span of three months alone, at the end of which they have to deliver a end product that tests their application of their media literacy skills and understanding.

Often the general bout of complaints that come in revolves around issues of un -involved/ free-loading team members, not having the adequate resources such as camera, tripod to film the movie satisfactorily among st others. Concerned parents also do give feedback that this project is too time-consuming causing students to get stressed about this LAVA Project, which eventually erodes the initial interest element of the task and leaves them with the thinking that they just can't wait to get over this project. Also, teachers and students alike are running against time even to get the deliverable s all in order, so as to monitor their understanding and to address any major misconceptions along the way. And since only the winners of the level competition gets recognized at the end, the students feel cheated when the final product which required lots of effort on their part does not get its due recognition at the end. To cap it all of, this major project which covers a considerable part of the curriculum only has a percentage of 5% of the formative assessment portion of the students final marks. Once parents, or students find out about this percentage they automatically feel that they need not give a 100% of their effort to the project, causing the other team members to suffer.

This project also requires teamwork , with able group members whom are able to carry their weight as the task allocation is quite distinct from each other, which cannot be substituted by the other, in the event one decides to be the freeloader of the group. The roles that they have been given includes, director, cameraman, editor, scriptwriter, producer. They would all have to double up as the actors and act out their final product as well. Despite the fact that the school as a media lab, this is made available to the upper secondary students whom are currently pursuing their media studies programme as an o level subject.

Despite having much literary value and worth as a teaching idea,the tedious nature of this project deters students from enjoying the project and in some extreme cases causing resentment between team maters, teachers, parents and Literature as a discipline itself.

I sincerely believe in the idea of teaching subjects in a relevant manner, that could serve as an additional skill set that they have accumulated during their stay at KCPSS. It also serves as an outlet for creative expression as the students are seen to come up with imaginative ideas indeed. I think the greater problem here is the attitude towards creativity, and the thought that it can be assessed within such complex and rigid forms of rubrics and assessment. Whilst,  I agree that we should impose standards for any assessment  the learning value of the subject should not be lost in the drive to attain the assessment marks alone. Also, students have to realize that any creative task requires hard work and perseverance to showcase your true talent to the world. On the other hand, teachers should also realize the limitations of our students, in being able to comprehend what is expected of them, their ability to manage time, and work effectively in a group. It is also difficult to expect students to remain engaged through a project idea that stretches over such a long period of time. Interesting activities must be put in place to motivate them along the way as well. Teachers should be flexible to understand what might hinder the process of completion of the task at hand and encourage groups to get out of that rut as well.

At their level, lots of hand holding is also required in terms of assistance in comprehending concepts such as mise-en-scene, camera angles, framing, editing, photo boarding and etc before it is expected from them as a final product. Also such literary projects must constantly be reviewed to ensure close monitoring on the group's contribution among others.

These are just ways that we can seek to make this project more viable and engaging for the students and teachers alike.

Shariffah Reflection 5 - The Detriments of Having the Same Formative Assessment for Express and Normal Academic Students

a. Focus on a specific assessment task in your school. Describe the assessment and discuss its effectiveness.

The Detriments of Having the Same Formative Assessment for Express and Normal Academic Students

While we believe that Literature is a subject accessible to both NA and Express students because of the thematic relevance of human struggles, using the same essay and passage-based tests for both streams will also become a very big human struggle for NA students.

The class that I am currently teaching is a Sec 3 combined class from two Normal Academic classes. Within the class itself, I have students who annotate and highlight everything without knowing why each quote is significant, some who highlight only words they do not understand (and since it's Shakespeare, that sums up to a hefty bit), some who bring the book to class but refuse to refer to it or take notes, and two students who do not even bring the book at all; one because he is brilliant and either sleeps or asks me weird questions, and the other because he finds Literature extremely difficult and demoralising. Using the same test paper for this class already gives a range of problems, starting with do some of them even know what the passage is about? Imagine the problems if they were given the same test paper that an Express class is taking - how do they even start?

In lower secondary, Literature for them was merely a simple understanding of characterisation and why people in books do the things they do. There is no study of literary technique as far as I know, and because of the MEDAL/ Combined Arts programme, Literature only gets about 3-6 months of air time a year for two years in lower sec. The point is, many students take up Literature not knowing what exactly is in store and thinking it to be a subject with no right or wrong answer and where they merely need to do a decent character study to pass.

Just yesterday I was teaching the class about answering author's technique essay questions using simpler questions like, "How does Shakespeare use imagery to show that Romeo is deeply in love with Juliet in Act One Scene Five?" When I demonstrated annotating the text on the board, I was half-surprised and half-worried to see so many students copying furiously what I had written. The impression I got was that they know this is important, but they have yet to understand why. Apart from memorising the quotes for the test and regurgitating, I do not know how else they can prepare for any test since they do not yet have the skills to link and weigh the importance of whatever they highlight. In fact, my suspicions were confirmed when I asked the class what imagery was and they hesitated. They suddenly became so quiet. I could almost hear them think, "Oh God, what is imagery?" When I listed "Language" and "Imagery" on the board, and I wrote down "diction" under Language, some asked me, "Cher, what is diction?" - so i changed it to choice of words - still cricket sounds in the background - so I explained it to them. Some of their expressions cleared, luckily. Then, when I went on to imagery, I began writing, "metaphor", and they very eagerly added on as I wrote, "simile, personification, oxymoron." So sad that they want to perform but do not know how. They know some of the broad terms, but have no idea how to identify it in a text, or why these techniques are significant at all. My heart went out to them because I realised that the foundation and knowledge of literary techniques for them is very weak. I gave them two simple quotes from the text about the use of light and dark imagery. I had just explained to them how to analyse it earlier and demo-ed doing a PEER paragraph. Later, I asked them if they could do a very simple PEER paragraph for me based on these two quotes of imagery from the text, but a most of them just gave me blur-sotong faces and one girl looked at me and honestly said she could not.

If this is the reality, and has been for some time in this school, I am seriously questioning the fairness of giving the same test for Express and NA students, whether it is for simple class or common tests or, worst case scenario, Mid-Years. Express students have a familiarity with language that most NA students do not. They can pick up things very fast; in fact the mention of a single word can get their brain juices flowing. They can discover things for themselves, teachers only need to prompt them and mediate here and there. But for NA students, this is really unfair.

I am supposed to cover all of Act Two before Mid-Years. I am strongly against this because I think there is no use covering the content if the students cannot pick out why each quote is significant. Knowing the plot is not enough, ultimately the exam question will not ask them to narrate the play. I think a focus on skills and technique would be better, so that they can read the book even in their own time and already have this instinct on what to highlight. So I am quite confused as to what I should teach at this point, since even if I go on with Act Two it would be like bulldozing a field of pretty lavender flowers that is just trying so hard to survive. I am tempted to teach them how to identify imagery and its effect like how we do in lower sec for the next lesson. In fact, I am thinking if the tests for NA students in the school should not even emulate O-Level passages yet, but be about identifying and analysing literary techniques using shorter, very simple texts where the techniques are very obvious just to teach them the skills first.

I do not know if the school moderates the matter by using a different answer scheme for NA students. Even so, I think the expectations for the quality of answers should be the same, but the questions need to be simpler so that students actually know what the question is asking for in the first place. I mean, what is the point of asking a chef and a novice to make a cake with the same ingredients, and then saying to the novice, "It is okay for you to make a lousy cake." If I were the novice I would feel sad and unmotivated. Rather, they both need to make good cakes, but the novice should have less ingredients than the chef so that it does not overwhelm him.

Formative assessments are integral to learning. For students in Singapore, it is the finish line that many work towards. Quite possibly, using a different formative assessment question for Express and NA students will better them both in the long run. Using the same formative assessment and differentiating the expectations for both is not enough, as NA students are too weak to digest the heavy content in a question that Express students would probably find manageable. In other words, an in-between passage does not really benefit either. The challenge would be to adapt the text and the question such that both NA and Express students can both understand what the question is asking for, and excel at it gradually. Like I've hinted earlier, NA students need a lot of confidence building. Using a test that is too difficult deviates against this and they will always feel like they have to catch up to something. Hence, using different formative assessment passage-based and essay questions would be better, short and long-term.