Art teachers use multiple forms of formative assessment on a daily basis. Formative assessment is immediate and allows teachers to change content and make accommodations based on student learning. Teachers assess learning by monitoring student progress on a project and through conversations. Some easy strategies teachers use to assess learning include thumbs up- thumbs down or fist to five, but these ideas just scratch the surface. If formative assessment is an area you want to explore deeper, keep in mind we spend an entire discussion board talking about it in the AOE class Assessment in Art Education.
Exit slips are one of my personal favorite formate assessments to use with my Middle School students.
“Exit slips are one of the easiest ways to obtain information about students’ current levels of understanding.” – Robert Marzano
Exit slips are quick, easy, and provide immediate feedback.
Here are some exit slip samples from my classroom.
According to Marzano, there are four different kinds of prompts that teachers can use on exit slips.
- Prompts that provide formative assessment data
- Prompts that stimulate student self-analysis
- Prompts that focus on instructional strategies
- Prompts that are open communications to the teacher.
Here are more examples of wording you might consider using for exit slips.
- What is one thing you learned in the art today?
- The most important thing I learned today was…
- My favorite thing I learned in art today was…
- I need help with…
- What are you confused about regarding what you learned today?
- What could you have done differently to help you learn better today?
- How can what you’re learning in art be applied to your daily life?
- I wish…
- The thing that surprised me today was…
By reviewing the responses on the exit slips, teachers can quickly assess students understanding of a concept, the struggles they’re having, what they like or create differentiated learning groups based on the student responses.
Do you use exit slips in your art room as a formative assessment?
What ideas do you have for an exit slip?
Magazine articles and podcasts are opinions of professional education contributors and do not necessarily represent the position of the Art of Education University (AOEU) or its academic offerings. Contributors use terms in the way they are most often talked about in the scope of their educational experiences.
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