Final Week: Assessment as Motivation
In my first semester of graduate school (over 30 years ago) my cohorts and I took a battery of tests that were explained to us a few weeks later. To our surprise, the test scores, as well as our undergraduate GPA and GRE scores, were used to predict our individual success in the master’s program.
Immediately, I knew that the model had not predicted success for me. And I was correct. I shrugged it off, but at that very moment I vowed to prove the model wrong. For the next few years, the words played over and over inside my head, telling me that I would not finish the program. It caused me to do the opposite. It motivated me to finish.
The model, it seems, wasn’t always correct. It was missing one variable: motivation.
Eight weeks of thinking about assessment has brought me to this reflection point: Motivation is a necessary wild card. As an instructor, I can conduct a student-centered class and offer authentic assessments, but I must truly want students to get the most out of the activities. And my desire to help them learn must then be conveyed with sincerity and openness.
Some students are buoyed by the praise they have received throughout their lives, while others lose faith in themselves. By the time students get to college, they already have audio or video loops in their heads telling them that they are smart or attractive or hard workers. Unfortunately, some loops tell them “You’ll never amount to anything” or “You’re a lousy writer.” My heart sinks when I hear them repeat it aloud.
If I could wave a magic motivation wand, I’d do it. Without a wand, though, I will need to carefully choose assessments that help students want to learn. Even more powerful is honest, not sugarcoated, feedback that can help them identify their strengths and feel good about their work. Assessment, like writing, is a process that needs our careful attention.
And the attention I have given to this course has helped me see that assessment can help students realize their full potential, which is the ultimate goal.
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