Acknowledgement
I am indebted to Dr. Beverly Levine for her valuable comments on this article.
Building Rapport with Weaker Learners through Classroom Testing
Ilana Salem, Israel
Ilana Salem is an EFL teacher and teacher educator in Israel. She holds an MA in Applied Linguistics and TESOL from University of Leicester. Her published articles deal with classroom testing, linguistic authenticity and teachers' judgment of grammaticality.
E-mail: isalem@neto.net.il
Menu
Introduction
Pre-test period
During the test
After the test
Conclusion
References
Motivated learners are a pleasure to teach, aren't they? Particularly those with intrinsic motivation, who find learning English inherently interesting or enjoyable (Ryan and Deci 2000; 55); their teacher is a true facilitator, provider of opportunities to improve and enrich their language. Weaker learners typically lack intrinsic motivation and they struggle with a wide array of difficulties that hinder learning such as: learning disabilities , attention disorders, emotional and behavioral problems. These might manifest themselves in disrupting the class, in not doing homework or completing assignments, not knowing how to organize their work, not coming to school, being late for class etc. (Hoffenberg-Serfaty, date unpublished; p.1).
Besides these obstacles, at least in the high school I am familiar with, many weak learners are busy with other activities such as planning their youth group sessions, taking care of their numerous younger siblings, voluntary work with special needs kids, or working on their sawing, art or accountancy projects. Some of them might be extrinsically motivated to try their best in order to achieve the highest marks possible, to please their parents and so on, but others just could not care less about the English lessons. It is therefore of vital importance to create positive working relationship with them, in which they become their teacher's partners in achieving the predetermined educational goals – be it enhanced communication skills, better reading comprehension ability or passing the final.
Such supportive working relationship is often referred to as 'rapport'. Linsin (2012) defines rapport as '… a connection you make with your students based on their positive feelings for you. When they like you and trust you, and when you in turn like and believe in them, you'll form a bond that makes classroom management a lot easier' (p.1). Rapport, then, can be viewed as '… a contextual variable that sets the stage for effective teaching' (Buskist and Saville 2001; p.1).
Many things contribute to building rapport with weak learners. One of them is, perhaps surprisingly, classroom testing. In spite of their indifference towards English studies, weak learners usually do care about their report card marks, and about their school leaving exam score. And you want to help them work toward these aims in a pleasant and positive classroom climate. You want them to feel that their efforts are appreciated and that you are helping them in achieving high marks – and again: this is partnership. But tests by their nature usually make low achievers nervous, anxious, disappointed and frustrated. And that really demotivates them, particularly when they believe that they worked hard towards the exam (they tend to be unrealistic), but eventually could not cope. So how can classroom testing become a positive and rapport building experience?
My suggestions are based on my own long-year experience with 12th graders in a girls' school where the first and foremost goal is education towards refined personal traits and positive social values. High academic achievement is the next priority, and this is where some students are lower achievers than others. All students, however, wish to pass the same school exit exam in order to enter higher educational programmes. English is taught as a compulsory subject. Each class is divided into three proficiency level groups.
This paper relates mainly to pen-and-paper tests in grammar, vocabulary and reading comprehension. Some of the ideas presented here might be relevant to other areas of testing such as oral proficiency or free writing, which are themselves powerful rapport builders due to their communicative nature, but the specific aspects of such assessment is outside the scope of this article. In addition, while most of the tips below are equally applicable to general student population, they seem to be of higher value when dealing with weaker learners, who are in greater need for emotional and logistic support. The suggestions are divided into three parts: pre-, during, and post- test period. 'Test' will include both periodical classroom testing such as quizzes and mid-term exams as well as pre-final and school exit examinations.
Throughout the first term I occasionally remind my students to keep their handouts neat and tidy so they can study from them for the upcoming tests and assignments. Quite early on in the school year I give an open-material quiz in a format similar to the mid and end-term exam. In this assignment each student is allowed to work from her own materials only, whatever she brings is fine. This way they get organized and acquainted with their collection of handouts – not always an easy task for weak learners.
During the term I give a few quizzes of various kinds to review recently covered points and train them in effective test taking. Often I can suspect from their pre-test over-anxiety that in previous year(s) each quiz and test evoked a lot of nervousness and tension, an over-reaction stemming from their uncertainty about what the test was going to be like, from inappropriate test level or unfamiliar task types, from typos or unknown vocabulary (in tests taken without dictionaries) … So through shorter classroom quizzes and assignments tailored for them specifically, they begin to view testing as part of their learning experience, for which they are able to prepare and which they can handle with relative calm and simply demonstrate their knowledge and skills. The process takes a few months, but by the midterm exam all the needless anxiety is gone; they are even able to smile during the test.
Of course you as a teacher must know what you are doing – devise the tests carefully and don't frustrate your students unnecessarily. On the one hand, put in some transparent items to begin with, on the other hand include a few challenging items for your more ambitious students, who might welcome (not too demanding) intellectual challenge. Check and recheck your test carefully to eliminate your own mistakes that might easily lead to situations in which your presence in the examination room is required. The instructions must be crystal clear and familiar to your students to prevent confusion and any need for clarification. Bear in mind that your test should be practical: you want to mark it fast.
Talk to your students before tests and create a cooperative climate. Tell them you think about them personally while developing their test and you are interested in their success no less than they are. Also: they should come to major examinations after having breakfast and enough sleep. Studying for the exam the previous night is counterproductive. And last but not least – your own appearance and behavior when dealing with test issues should be assuring and relaxing.
If you are in the examination room during a major exam, you could offer a friendly hello accompanied by an encouraging smile. The weak group students might try to attract your attention in order to ask you a question or two. They should be encouraged to simply answer all the test items to the best of their ability without seeking assistance. In addition, if they have a personal comment (e.g. they missed school time due to illness, or their sister got married last night, or they have a hospitalized parent etc.), they are welcome to communicate this information by writing a note in the test paper. Your acknowledging each note in a way you consider appropriate is a powerful vehicle to enhance rapport.
In a test-room where different test-level groups are seated (this is the case in our school during major exams) a situation might arise in which your weak group works calmly and orderly but other groups are struggling with their versions and needing a lot of support and explanation. This is unfortunate but can be used to educational advantage, to boost your weak group's self-assurance. How? You can praise your students by saying: 'I really appreciate your test-taking behavior. You are setting a good example to everyone here in the room.' It is sometimes possible to give individual attention by walking along the rows and stopping by your students. This is very reinsuring for the very weak ones, even if you just say 'you are doing well', or 'just write what you know and don't worry about what you don't know/understand', 'thank you for writing so clearly and neatly', ….
Students generally like their tests to be marked and returned promptly. Low achievers are particularly appreciative of this; not only are they impatient to see how well they did, they also feel proud of having received their tests before other groups have received theirs. This in turn potentially raises their self-worth. Let me share some technical tips in this regard. I have a few symbols indicating whether an item is completely or partially wrong. I subtract these points and give a mark. I try to 'ignore' one or two minor mistakes, or disregard a 1/2 a point in my final calculation of the test-mark. I type up a compact answer key for all test tasks, a rather small slip attached to each test paper. I tell my students that since I mark very fast, calculation errors might occur, so could they please check their mark and return the test for a recheck should they find numerical inconsistencies.
Some students are lower achievers on major exams than on shorter quizzes. To tone down their frustration I assure the class before returning the test papers that there are a whole lot of other marks in my record book, assessing their continuous progress. The mark they get on this exam will be included in the mean average, with a slightly heavier weight. I also inform them about the class mark distribution such as: 2 students got above 90, most got between 70 and 89, while a few got below 50 – they need a lot of further practice if they wish to pass the final. The tests are returned at the end of the lesson.
After all this, there is hardly any resentment or complaints. Some of your weaker students who looked frightened or indifferent at the beginning of the year might write you a note in their test paper saying, 'Thank you for the clear test', or 'Thank you for the thorough preparation you gave us', or 'Thank you for your interesting and varied lessons'. Of course you will not get such compliments from all students, but even a few such notes (or alternately smiley encounters in the hallway) show that you and your class are heading towards a positive rapport and a relatively joyful and cooperative working relationship.
By careful devising, administrating and marking of your test, accompanied by discussing the relevant issues with your class, supportive learning climate has been reinforced, students' willingness to cooperate has been strengthened, and their grasp of what's needed clarified. This makes future classroom communication clearer and more effective, and encourages your students' deeper involvement in further studies (see Ryan and Deci's model of various degrees or forms of extrinsic motivation [2000; p.61]). Thus, instead of turning classroom testing into a monster, you have transformed it into a motivating factor for further learning.
In this way, building positive rapport with low achieving classes can significantly contribute to the quality of the learning environment. There are, however, some limitations. Firstly, some students are less cooperative than others and secondly there will always be little fires to extinguish and hurdles to overcome in a group with problems such as the ones mentioned in the introduction. But let us not despair – our job is to try our best.
Buskist, W. and B.K. Saville (2001) 'Rapport building: creating positive emotional contexts for enhancing teaching and learning', Association for psychological science observer 14/3; assessed January 29, 2013 at
www.psychologicalscience.org/teaching/tips/tips_0301.html
Hoffenberg-Serfaty, E. (date unavailable) 'How do we get their attention? A behavior management primer for weaker and learning disabled students', ETNI web site; accessed August 22, 2012 at www.etni.org.il/ellen2.htm
Linsin, M. (2012) '2 easy ways to build rapport with your students', Smart Classroom management website; accessed January 22, 2013 at
www.smartclassroommanagement.com/2012/01/14/building-rapport-with-students/
Ryan R. M. and E.L. Deci (2000) 'Intrinsic and extrinsic motivations: classic definitions and new directions', Contemporary Educational Psychology 25, 54–67.
Please check the How the Motivate your Students course at Pilgrims website.
Please check the Building Positive Group Dynamics course at Pilgrims website.
Please check the How to be a Teacher Trainer course at Pilgrims website.
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