Quick Quizzes – Daily Assessments that Build Confidence and Success

I had so many light bulb moments at Comprehensible Cascadia this year, and one of them was about WHY Quick Quizzes are so useful and powerful for you and students. Now I’m convinced that I should be doing one every day for the WHOLE school year – I’ve been spotty in this, but now I’ve seen the light!

Why should you do it? One: You, as the teacher, get quick data on who is struggling with what. If students were alive and paying attention during class, it is reasonable to expect that every student can get 100% on these Quick Quizzes. If someone doesn’t, it is easy to see where their comprehension is faltering, and adjust your instruction towards increasing their comprehension starting the next class period. (Hello, admins! #UsingFormativeAssessmentData) Two: It puts a nice bow on the end of the class period, rounding out the class experience while also sneaking in more input. Score! Three: It can help students see that the work of language acquisition is listening with the intent to understand, every day. “Being fluent in a language” (whatever that means for you/them) is not a goal that is far off in the future – it is a daily effort towards understanding more and more so that you can use more and more. If you can ace the quick quiz just about every day (again, an attainable goal for students with a teacher like you who goes slow, keeps it comprehensible, and keeps it at least mildly interesting!), then you can learn to speak the language. I think this is one of the most compelling reasons to administer daily Quick Quizzes. Four: Unfortunately for our students’ intrinsic motivations, we exist in a society that demands grades be attached to learning. Similar to point 3 above, we can show students that a grade in a CI classroom is something that is built through listening and reading to understand daily, instead of thinking that there is some far-off test to cram for. (I wonder if increasing the frequency of theses Quick Quizzes will help de-center the grade in the students’ experience of the class, moving them from seeing grades as “gotchas!” to seeing them as ways to build their own learning and assess their progress towards goals. “Quizzes” can be scary just because we call them “Quizzes,” but if they’re every day, they can lose that scary edge!)

When do I use Quick Quizzes?

I use Quick Quizzes at the end of a lesson sequence that has included opportunities to engage with both aural and written input. I usually go from Create (oral/aural class language experience), to Review, to Write (co-create class text, modeling strong writing habits), to Read, to Extending the learning through the Quick Quiz. Again, it kind of puts a nice bow on the day’s learning experiences and provides a nice summary moment of what was “covered” that day.

If it’s springtime and your classes have turned especially…er…zesty…you can maybe throw an additional Quick Quiz into the middle of the class period. This can help reset the class and re-emphasize the importance of listening and participating in the creation of the class experiences in the L2.

How do I do it? – Logistics

At this point in class, you and your students have had a common class experience with input about something you and your students (hopefully) found interesting! Depending on how much time you have, you can choose to do either an Oral Quick Quiz or a Written Quick Quiz. I tend to use Written Quick Quizzes more for reasons I outline below.

An Oral Quick Quiz is great if you’re running short on time, and just want to get a temperature check on your class. It’s harder to get data on individual students this way, but it can be a great way to practice choral responses and keep class light and not too…quizz-y. You don’t need any materials for this one.

A Written Quick Quiz gets you data on paper for every student in your class, and quick. This helps you identify students for intervention, and you can even put grades in the gradebook with this information! Each student will need a piece of paper and something to write with. For paper, I suggest having a student job being Paper Passer – and train them how to do it quickly. (Aka count out how many are needed in a row, and pass them to the person on the aisle, NOT handing individual sheets to each student.) You can use scrap paper cut up into quarter sheets, or 3×5 index cards. Students don’t really need a ton of space because the quiz is so quick, and this helps save paper! #recycling #GermansAreGoodAtIt ANOTHER IDEA I just had was maybe the act of getting the paper for the quiz is a brain break! It can be a quick game, or you could leave the paper at strategic points in the classroom so students can just quickly go to retrieve it, allowing them 30ish seconds of movement to revitalize their brains for even more input.

How do I do it? – Oral Quick Quiz Procedure

1. Tell students (probably in L1) how this Quick Quiz is going to play out: we are going to have a (4-8) question quiz that won’t require any paper and everyone is probably going to get 100% on because they were paying attention in class and have been doing a great job acquiring the new language! (A little encouragement goes a long way! You want students to know you have so much faith in them because they can do this, and this will take the edge off of it being a “quiz.”)
2. Let students know that you will be making a statement in the L2 about the information covered in class TWO times. They should be silent, and shouldn’t say anything between the first and second time you make the statement. After saying the statement the second time, students should all respond with either a “yes!” or a “no!” (Or True/False!) It sounds a little something like this:
   Teacher: “(in L2) Ok, number 1! Ben…plays… a lot of video games…on his Playstation. [Holding out hand like a stop sign] Ben…plays a lot of video games on his Playstation.” [Makes invitational gesture]
   Class: “YES!”
3. If the correct answer was yes/true, positively restate the information for the class to hear that input again, maybe even adding a quick question that extends the information. (“Yes, class! Ben plays lots of video games on his Playstation. What games does he play?”) If the correct answer is no/false, ask students to help correct you. (“No, class. Ben doesn’t play video games on his Playstation. What system does he play on?” “Nintendo!”) Then, repeat the corrected statement. This whole process is just about getting more input!!
4. As students get more comfortable with this process (maybe some class periods down the line), you can change from yes/no/true/false questions to this/that questions (“Does Ben play video games on his Playstation, or does Ben play video games on his Nintendo?”) or open-ended questions (“What system does Ben play video games on?”)
5. Continue on making statements about the information covered/created in class that day. Celebrate all correct, confident answers from the class, and gently correct any incorrect answers. Go for your predetermined number of “questions,” or just go until you run out of steam.
6. Celebrate! Your students are doing the work of language acquisition by listening and reading to understand! I usually say something like “(in L2) WOW you are all so smart and so good at (L2)!!!”

How do I do it? – Written Quick Quiz Procedure

1. Tell students how this flavor of Quick Quiz is going to play out: we are going to have a (4-10) question quiz that everyone is going to get 100% on because they were paying attention in class and have been doing a great job acquiring the new language! (Theme: Success!)
2. Let students know that you will be making (4-10) statements in the L2 about the information covered in class, TWO times each. They should be silent throughout. For each statement, students write yes or no. (Or True/False!) It sounds and looks a little something like this:
   Teacher: “Ok, number 1! Ben…plays… a lot of video games…on his Playstation. Ben…plays a lot of video games on his Playstation.”
   Class: “(writing on their papers) Yes.”
   Teacher: “Number 2!” etc etc
   I do all of my questions in one go, repeating each one two times (once super slowly, once at more conversational speed (but still slightly slower than that)). ALSO don’t forget to write down your sentences for your own sake so y’all can grade them. I make up my statements on the spot based on what happened in class, so writing down what you said is essential if you’re doing anything involving healthy personalization and frequent questioning.
3. [As students get more comfortable with this process (maybe some class periods down the line), you can change from yes/no/true/false questions to this/that questions (“Does Ben play video games on his Playstation, or does Ben play video games on his Nintendo?”) or open-ended questions (“What system does Ben play video games on?”) Use a healthy mix of question types, but yes/no/true/false is tried and true and works great for this purpose.]
4. Make as many statements as you told students you would (and honestly what makes sense for your gradebook…I was on an 8-point grading scale last year so 4- or 8-question quizzes were best for me.).
5. I like to have students trade and grade right after we get through all the statements! I have them write “Corrected By: Soandso” at the bottom so I know they didn’t correct their own. (I tell them that if their grading partner doesn’t do this, THEY get the zero, so they check in with each other to make sure their partner has done it. I’m not that militant about it but, ya know, Teacher Lies!)
6. Read the statements you made during the quiz again in order, prompting students to chorally respond yes/no/true/false to each question. [This is like the process for the Oral Quick Quizzes above.] If the correct answer was yes/true, positively restate the information for the class to hear that input again, maybe even adding a quick question that extends the information. (“Yes, class! Ben plays lots of video games on his Playstation. What games does he play?”) If the correct answer is no/false, ask students to help correct you. (“No, class. Ben doesn’t play video games on his Playstation. What system does he play on?” “Nintendo!”) Then, repeat the corrected statement. INPUT. INPUT!
7. If you let students trade and grade, here’s an organizational hack: have them hand you the quizzes as they walk out the door, and then (once they’re gone) literally throw all the quizzes that got 100% in the recycling immediately. Good for them, they did it, but you’re more interested in students that got less that 100%, and on what. Ideally, this will not be many students, and you can make sure to use more comprehension checks and comprehensibility supports for these students in future lessons. If it’s a lot of students, reflect on why that might be, and consider filming yourself to see if you’re going too fast, introducing too much new vocabulary, only focusing on one area of the classroom, etc. I keep track of grades on a class roster in addition to in the online gradebook, and by only marking the students with less than 100% on the quizzes on the roster, it is easier for me to identify patterns and struggling students.

What do I do with it now that we’ve finished?

Hopefully you’ve corrected that sucker! Save yourself the time and effort, and the process of correcting it in the L2 is actually just an opportunity to provide more input.

These quizzes provide you with great data to work with in future class periods. If most students are getting 100%, then they are doing the work of language acquisition by listening and reading to understand! Bam! The ones who get less than 100% can get some extra love and support during future classes so they, too, can continue succeeding in their language acquisition journey. If during an Oral Quick Quiz you get lukewarm choral answers, this lets you know that students could be needing some more training on how to provide choral responses, they could be not feeling confident in their understanding of the language of the day, or they could use some additional love in the direction of taking risks and participating in class.

In order to acquire a language, learners just need access to level-appropriate input and interaction. The quizzes let you know if the input was able to do its job of being comprehended and processed in learners’ brains, and (did I mention??) are just another opportunity to provide more input!

Pro Tips!

1. Cue student silence and responses! Every class has enthusiastic students who just love to respond. I literally make a “I am a police officer, stop right here” gesture with my hand when students are not supposed to respond, and then gesture towards students with an open hand when I’m ready for them to respond. Students are processing a lot – rules of the activity and class, new language, the magical roller coaster of puberty – help them be more successful by using clear, cuing body language.
2. Let students know what to expect! Explaining the format and expectations of the quizzes helps students relax, as well as assuring them that they will do well. You also might have to let them know that this is how you gather data to report to their home adults how they’re doing, so their appropriate participation is essential. (Besides, they’re going to kick butt on these quizzes anyways, so if they just do their part, you get to send home the happiest reports!)
3. Practice and insist on choral responses! I think choral responses are a very important element of a TCI classroom. If you’re getting weak responses during an Oral Quick Quiz, verify that students understood the question first, and then retrain them to offer appropriately full-voiced responses so you can make sure you’re doing your job as best you can. Most of the time, students just need a reminder that this is your only way of knowing what’s going on in their brains, besides the dreaded Boring Paper Test. Celebrate solid responses, too!
4. Do them all the time! Doing Quick Quizzes frequently (multiple times per week) will take the edge off the “Quiz” part of them, and will reinforce in students’ minds that the work of language acquisition (and by extension, the grades they earn) (ugh I hate grades) is an everyday effort that builds and builds their abilities in super manageable chunks. Bam!

What if I want to learn more?

Here’s a great video of Tina Hargaden doing an Oral Quick Quiz with a French 1 class. This is in March, so Tina is asking students to respond to “Who?” questions that are actually fairly lengthy. At the end, she even has a “Why?” question! She makes sure to cue when students are to respond, which stops kids from blurting. ALSO she does a fun teacher trick – she stands on a table so that students think that she can see everyone, and whether or not they’re responding. Trickery! But it might help your Escape Artists respond more consistently.

What do you think? Do you feel ready to use Quick Quizzes? Comment below and send me any questions you might have!