What happens when engaging activities learning does not transfer to test results?

Question

I teach high school geometry to regular to low level students at a low-income inner city school. I've been using the Kagan cooperative learning techniques, games, making posters, etc. to teach math concepts, but the learning doesn't transfer to better test scores. I've had my AP and other education experts observe my class, and they all say they loved how the kids are learning.
I do see slight improvements like less than 10%, but not nearly the level of improvements that will increase the school ratings, etc. I get about 20% of my students falling asleep during tests because they are only used to the engaging activities. And I get another 40% who can't sit still and guess. The ultimate purpose is for the kids to do better on the state test, but how do you train the students to take tests?

Anybody ever experienced this?

That is you as a teacher are doing what the educational experts suggests and it doesn't seem to work. We teachers end up getting blamed for our teaching.

Answer 1

I'm also an inncer-city teacher and I can relate to your concerns. Part of the problem is that the tests are supposedly designed to measure students' grasp of underlying concepts. But that's not what they actually measure. They are mostly word problems, so in the end they are primarily testing the students' verbal skills. A very bright math student who can manipulate numbers expertly, or a very slow student who can demonstrate understanding using manipulatives, will both fail a standardized test if they can't read and comprehend the test questions.

I've found that my urban students have a lot of trouble with word problems. One teaching strategy that I had some success with was teaching them how to "decode" test questions. In other words, I literally gave them lists of key terms in word problems and what they mean. So at the very least, they knew that if the question asked "how many more," they had to subtract. But I'm talking about 3rd graders here. I don't know how well that would apply to higher level math.

The bottom line is that if you want test results, you have to make some time to teach test prep. I would guess that your kids who can't sit still during the test are feeling really intimidated. Often, kids who are perfectly capable of doing the work just freeze up when they see a test. The only real way to combat this is to familiarize the kids with the test format. Help them to understand how the test is structured, and give them tools for attacking the questions that they CAN answer. It's important for the kids to understand that even if questions 1 and 2 look impossible, question 3 might be something you know. So don't get bogged down. It's stuff that seems intuitive to adults, but children who are not accustomed to feeling successful don't automatically have these "habits of mind," if you will.

I say, take some portion of the day or week to do test prep. Help the kids make the connection between the engaging, hands-on stuff and the test questions. It's really the only way to raise scores.

Answer 2

Hi, I'm not familiar with the Kagan programme either. I am a teacher in Australia, and this is an issue I have been concerned about for some time now. We would have to be fools to ignore the fact that hands-on manipulation of concrete materials does improve students learning, but we still do the majority of testing by pen and paper. My experience has been that there is very little education board of studies etc are doing to accomodate the gap between learning strategies and assessment. My advice to you would be continue with your learning techniques, but designate a time each week to a pen and paper type assessment - not necessarily a test as such, but an exercise where the children must demonstrate on paper the concepts they have mastered through their hands on activiteis that week. Then when the state tests roll around, they have had ongoing experiences with this type of assessment and are more likely to achieve success.
I guess it's blending both worlds in a way. - And good luck, you are obviously a hard working, caring teacher, seeking the best for your students. God Bless you!

Answer 3

I suggest that you continue to use the Kagan method (which I'm not familiar with) as your primary teaching strategy, and then incorporate some extra "teaching to the test". Talk to your students about the importance of standardized testing and being able to express your knowledge in the way that society requires. Perhaps you could give them the example of a road test: the government won't allow you to express your ability to drive a car by singing a song. Then, give them concrete strategies that they can use when taking the test (I'm an LA person, not a Math person, so I don't know math test strategies), presenting the tips in a way that suggests you're giving them "insider info". If they think they have an advantage because you've given them this information, they'll be more motivated to put forth an effort on the tests.