WAIT A MINUTE

"An education isn't how much you have committed to memory, or even how much you know. It's being able to differentiate between what you know and what you don't."
Anatole France

OVERVIEW

Wait a Minute is a brief, but useful assessment of student reactions to course materials, activities, and assignments.
IMPLEMENTING THIS ACTIVITY
  1. Construct one or two questions that students can answer quickly, but meaningfully.
  2. Put the questions on an overhead or on the board.
  3. Set aside the first and last 5 minutes of the class for the 1-minute paper.
  4. Distribute index cards or ask students to use a half-sheet of paper to write their responses.
  5. Student names are not necessary, although you may choose to have them identify themselves.
  6. Ask students to respond to the questions frankly and concisely.  They may use single words, short phrases or very short sentences.
  7. Tabulate answers.  Make note of useful comments.
  8. Allow the feedback to inform future instruction.

REFERENCE

► Angelo, T.A., and Cross, K.P. Classroom Assessment Techniques, 2nd ed., Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, 1993, pp. 148-153.