Day Eleven: Reviewing for a Test, Part Two

My main objective as a teacher in Catholic schools is to help my student to develop a relationship with God so they can grow closer to their Authentic Self. I keep that in mind while I am preparing my lessons. I ask myself, “How will this lesson really help my students?” Most of my students will go on to college, and they will be successful at whatever it is they want to do. That vocation to which they are called (I refer to it as a secondary vocation), or the job to which they are called, requires certain skills. As a teacher, I can help them practice study skills that will help them succeed in school, their success in school prepares them for whatever job they will do, and, Hopefully, that job will be fulfilling. It is a small piece to their Faith journey, but actually teaching study skills is a spiritual exercise. The rest of this lesson involves me teaching them how to prepare for a test, using just notes the teacher has provided.

The students divide into three groups. Each group is responsible for one of three jobs: Vocabulary, Daily Objectives, and Possible Questions.

The desk where I write these tests and lesson plans. (photo P. Smith)

One person in each group needs to create a document containing all of the data that is gathered. This document will be emailed to the teacher, and he will combine your notes with the notes of the other two groups and make it available to the entire class.

They can use the whiteboard to brainstorm ideas, but before they email anything to the teacher, students share the Bellwork with each other and see if there is anything that needs to be added to the notes. While they are working on this, I assist students in organizing their information.

Most of my students have been successful in the past, but they often need to be reminded that there will come a day when they are not naturally good at a particular subject. They should practice study skills so they will know what to do when studying for a difficult exam or test. I give them the following tips to be a “Master-Student”:

•       Go back to your written “Assignments”. Make a document with the questions and your responses.

•       If you have good responses to these Assignments, reviewing your own writings will cover roughly 80% of the material that will be on the test.

•       Much of the test is derived from the Assignment questions.

•       Make Quizlets or notecards based on the Vocabulary. (Most of the students know this skill).

•       Review the Daily Objectives and ignore the ones that you feel confident about. Focus on the Objectives that you are worried about. This saves time when studying.

Students are actually learning a lot more St. Augustine of Hippo than they thought. (Stained glass window at Immaculate Heart of Mary in Atlanta, Georgia. photo P. Smith)

The students spend the rest of the class working on this. They are studying for the test. Some of the students figure out that this actual process is making this study guide is one of the best ways that they can study for the test. This is the part of the unit where the teacher has to “let go” and just Trust that the students will use the time effectively. I will be honest…I know many students will not use their time effectively. I make notes of those students and talk to them about why they did poorly on their tests.