Fix-Its:

“I NEVER LOSE.  I EITHER WIN OR LEARN.”  - NELSON MANDELA

The following questions were posed to an audience of teachers at a workshop that I recently attended:

“Is your school’s goal to identify winners or to create winners?"

"Are you setting out to ‘sort and select’ successful students or is it your goal for everyone to learn and succeed?”

The questions led me to further introspection on my teaching practices around testing:

* What is the point of Check-Ins?

* Do I put “tricky” questions on Check-Ins for the purpose of identifying the the “A” students?

* How can I use Check-Ins as a tool for learning?

These questions caused me to pause, reflect, and contemplate some major changes to my program.  Here were my answers to these questions and some subsequent changes made to my classes.

* What is the point of Check-Ins (tests)?

While I would love to explore math with students all year long and not ever give tests, the reality is that a periodic Check-In is a tool that informs both students and me of what students are actually learning.  Check-Ins let students know not only what they have mastered, but what they still need to work on.  So yes, I believe that there is a time and place for Check-Ins.  

* Do I put “tricky” questions on Check-Ins for the purpose of identifying the “A” students?

I have been at both ends of the spectrum when it comes to writing questions for Check-Ins.  There was a time where I relished writing difficult questions, the tougher the better.  I wanted to see if students could apply concepts that they learned on absurdly challenging problems.  Needless to say, this drove students crazy and the frustration that it caused did not contribute towards my goal of making students better at solving difficult problems.  There was also a time when I wrote very straightforward questions, where as long as students did exactly what was taught in class, they would easily be able to navigate the problem.  

Currently, my overall goal is that students understand math concepts well enough that they are able to discern when to use those concepts as tools to solve problems in different contexts.  I do not want to produce “robots” who are mindless number crunchers, but rather students who thoughtfully and appropriately apply the skills they learned.  Yes, the questions should be challenging.  Yes, the problems should require thinking: to analyze the problem, to figure out a way to approach the problem, and to figure out what math concepts and skills will help in solving the problem.  A Check-In problem should serve as an opportunity for a student to demonstrate their mastery of learned math concepts and their problem solving skills.

* How can I use a Check-In as a tool for learning?

Since my first day of teaching, I have always told students that when they get their Check-Ins back, they should study their mistakes rather than concentrating on the final score.  So what do kids do?  The typical student glances at the grade on the front page, folds up the paper, stuffs it in their backpack, and never looks at it again.  

I have also always preached that students should make it part of their study routine to correct their Check-In after getting it back.  What I eventually realized is that between the time that students take the Check-In and the next day when they get the Check-In back, students have not learned anything further, they have not done any more review.  As a result, asking them to correct their mistakes was largely a futile exercise because they did not necessarily have the skills, resources, time, or desire to do so.

So, the question then became, “How do I structure my class so that the Check-In is not a stopping point for student learning?”  First, I had to provide students with both the resources and the opportunity to learn from their mistakes on Check-Ins.  I now schedule the day after the Check-In to be a Check-In correction day.  After I return graded Check-Ins to students, they are then given time in class to learn from their Check-Ins by comparing their Check-In responses to my full answer key (posted on Google Classroom).  Students analyze their work and are expected to make appropriate corrections and changes to their Check-In questions.  I believe that Check-Ins are valuable learning tools provided that they are given the time and resources to use it as such.  

But I was not content to stop the learning process after the student corrections.  After students realize what they got wrong on their Check-In and then learn from their mistakes, it would make sense for them to have another opportunity to demonstrate mastery of the topics for which they fell short on the exam.  

Enter Fix-Its.  The point of Fix-Its is not just that students get another shot at raising their  grade, the hope is that they correct their errors and, in doing so, achieve greater mastery of the concept at hand.  My intent is that Fix-Its further the learning process.  Before the Fix-It, however, students must show me that they have made a good faith effort to prepare for Fix-It.  In order for students to be eligible for a Fix-It, they must do all of the following:

1) complete all the practice for the chapter

2) do a thorough job with Check-In corrections

The Fix-It prerequisites ensure that students take time before the Fix-It to review and relearn the topics.  Once a student completes all of the above, the student will then be approved to take the Fix-It.  The Fix-It occurs during class time approximately two weeks after the Check-In.  Students only do problems on the Standards that they did not show mastery on during the original Check-In (same topic, different problem).  The goal is that all students achieve mastery on all 8th grade content standards.  The Fix-It is intended as a tool to help students get closer to that point.  

In addition to the main goal of student learning, some secondary benefits to the Fix-It process are:  

    *  Student anxiety during the initial Check-In is lessened since they know that they will have another opportunity to show what they know on the Fix-It.  A lower stress level often leads to better performance as well.

    *  Since the Fix-It is available to everybody, there is no stigma against those who opt for the Fix-It.  It is actually our hope that every student elects to take every Fix-It.

    *  Students have greater incentive to regularly do their practice, since practice completion is a prerequisite for Fix-It eligibility.  More practice leads to better skills and mastery.  

    *  Last, and least in our eyes, is that students have an opportunity to raise their grade via the Fix-It.

As a result of having a Fix-It available, the initial Check-In becomes like a rough draft.  It is not the final product, you have another opportunity to revise your work and demonstrate mastery.  You would think that taking the Check-In once would be more than enough for students, but you'd be surprised by how many students happily choose to take our Fix-It, even if it does involve extra work on their part.  Fix-Its have been a wildly successful addition to our program and we are continually looking for ways to refine the process in hopes of further enhancing student learning.

For more on the topic of retests, check out this article by Reed Gillespie.

Here’s a follow-up to the the previous article with specifics about how to successfully incorporate a Fix-It policy.

If you are more of a video person, check out these two talks on retests by Rick Wormeli, a nationally renowned educator and author.