I used to ask, among other things, about birth order (first-born or
only child, second-born or later), and whether the student preferred to
study alone or in groups. I would use this in a crosstabulation
exercise. I haven't done it recently. There were also a series of
questions that could be asked to evaluate political awareness, e.g.,
what is your recollection of the outcome of the land mine treaty (US
signed, US did not sign, no one signed).
So Del is really talking more about a survey, rather than a pre-test. I
like the idea of asking about NPR and how many hours a student works. I
will often post links to the audio files of relevant NPR stories I may
have heard, as supplemental material to the class and for the benefit
of our auditory learners. A fair number of my students have work
commitments that are financially necessary for them to be in college.
As one of those students, I connected better with professors who were
respectful of the juggling.
It wouldn't seem to me that you are talking about something graded,
since this occurs at the beginning of class. Perhaps it would help if
you stated for the list, the objective of the pretest. Is it
assessment, to find out what they know, or survey, to find out who they
are? I think the latter can incorporate elements of the former. The
data also may be used in exercises to promote statistical literacy, but
this takes time.
There are many informal, ongoing ways to get to know your students, but
use of them will depend on the amount of time you are able to spend at
the institution. Adjuncts, for example, may not have that luxury, but I
have seen many of them make significant headway in that regard,
possibly because they are closer (more recently) to the experience of
the students. From the perspective of standpoint theory, your
departmental admin will know more than anyone about students. Be sure,
however, to filter potential hearsay, gossip or abrogation of the
privacy of student records!
Good luck! It's likely each of us is as nervous as you may be. The most
empowering thing a professor (someone who's name you'd know) said to me
as a Teaching Assistant, was that even after twenty years of doing
this, he was still nervous at the start of each new class. My mileage
does not vary, and I'd worry if it did.
Richard Hudak
Merrimack College
On Aug 19, 2005, at 7:03 PM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
I vary the questions each semester. However, I always ask, the grade
they expect to get and how many hours they expect to spend in
preparation for each class, do they listen to NPR and how many hours
they work.
Del
Hi-
Again in preparation for the upcoming semester...
Does anyone have a pre-test they use for Introduction to Sociology
that
they can share? I am in the process of formulating one and I would
like
to see what types of questions others have used.
Thanks.
Amy Hite
--
FALL 2005 OFFICE HOURS:
MW 9:30-11 and 3-4, TUE. & TH. 1:30-2:30, Also, by appointment
THURSDAYS 12:15-1:15 - Group meeting open to all Sociology 1010
students.
Amy Bellone Hite, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor (Visiting)
Department of Sociology
Xavier University of Louisiana
One Drexel Drive, Box 32
New Orleans, LA 70125-1098
Phone: (504) 520-7518
Fax: (504) 520-7952
Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
"Human beings live in a world of meaningful objects--
not in an environment of stimuli or self-constituted entities."
--Herbert Blumer ,1969
Richard Hudak
Merrimack College
Sociology Department
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
