I've had students who became offended when I assessed with too many factual prompts late in the semester.

It may sound strange to you, but because of past experience, many of your students come into your class with no understanding that assessment relates directly to course content. Hints in transitional prompts help provide content-assessment connections. By starting a course with transitional prompts sprinkled among factual prompts, students will learn the expectations of an adequate answer to a conceptual prompt while achieving success during the learning experience. They also begin to understand how content fits into a conceptual prompt framework. As the course progresses, use of transitional prompts decreases in proportion to the implementation of conceptual substitutes–students are gradually weaned from the need for hints and clues.

Transitional prompts can be used for longer periods of time with students who are developmentally unprepared for conceptual prompts. In some classes transitional assistance may be required only briefly in the beginning units of the course. In other classes, it might be appropriate for transitional prompts to be the predominant type prompt used in assessment for the entire course. In either case, or any case in-between, students are more challenged than they would have been by a steady diet of factual-only assessments.

You might be surprised. I've had students who became offended when I assessed with too many factual prompts late in the semester or year. "What's the matter? You think we don't know this stuff so you're asking only easy questions?" is a typical complaint. And that is music to any teacher's ears.

Berger, Sandra L. 1991. "Differentiating Curriculum for Gifted Students." ERIC Digest #E510. Council for Exceptional Children, Reston, VA.; ERIC Clearinghouse on Handicapped and Gifted Children, Reston, VA. ED342175

Bloom, et. al. 1956. Taxonomy of Educational Objectives: The Classification of Educational Goals. Handbook 1: The Cognitive Domain.

California State Department of Education. 1990. California Framework for Science Instruction.

Loulou, Diane. Oct 1995. "Making the A: How To Study for Tests." ERIC/AE Digest. ERIC Clearinghouse on Assessment and Evaluation, Washington, DC. ED385613

Potts, Bonnie. Feb 1994. "Strategies for Teaching Critical Thinking." ERIC/AE Digest. ERIC Clearinghouse on Assessment and Evaluation, Washington, DC. ED385606.

Sutman, Francis X.; And Others. Mar 1993. "Teaching Science Effectively to Limited English Proficient Students." ERIC/CUE Digest, Number 87. ERIC Clearinghouse on Urban Education, New York, N.Y. ED357113