Tonight, I’ll be giving my 4th graders their “end of the year” assessment, as I mentioned last week. Before I do so, I’ll spend some time reviewing some of the major categories of learning from this year: the 7 Sacraments, Parts of the Mass, and the Ten Commandments. I plan to do so using lots of half sheets of paper, markers, masking tape, and the chalk boards. For the Seven Sacraments, I’ll tape 7 blank […]
It’s hard to believe that I only have 2 more classes left (plus a closing session with a prayer service) this year! With that in mind, it’s time for a review and a final formal assessment. With my DRE’s approval, I’ve put together the following assessment which covers the major ideas that we focused on this year, especially the 7 Sacraments and the 10 Commandments. 4th Grade Assessment 4th Grade Assessment answer key Before giving […]
As catechists, we all wonder whether or not we are getting through to our young people. Sometimes, we can do formal assessments such as giving an exam. More often than not, we can do informal assessments such as the one I did this past Monday evening. I ended my session
I was very pleased with the results of the Confirmation exam given last night! This was the best that my students have done in recent years. First, I had provided the young people with a study sheet 2 weeks ago, telling them precisely what would be included on the exam. I believe this made a big difference because some of them actually studied! One young man (who has a minor learning disability and has a […]
This is the question I have heard and will hear again on Monday evening when the young people take their Confirmation exam – I like to call it an assessment but to them it’s an exam! I explain it this way: This is not a matter of passing or failing to see if you’ll be allowed to be confirmed. If you don’t do well, that means that you and I have some work to do. […]
Authentic assessment is exactly what the name implies: it is genuine and real. Authentic assessment is performance-based: learners put into action what they’ve been learning. Beyond being able to speak or write about what it means to be a disciple of Jesus, learners must have opportunities to live out the call to discipleship. Service Experiences—Provide suggestions for specific ways that your learners can put their faith into practice serving others, either individually or as a […]
Informal assessment asks the question: What can you do with what you know and how do you do it? Ongoing—Include opportunities to assess your participants’ grasp of concepts by observing their participation in discussions, group work, prayer/reflection, and service to others. Specific Tasks—Include specific opportunities to evaluate verbal (oral and written) and non-verbal (drawn, crafted, etc.) expressions and responses. These need not be quizzes or tests but may simply be activities that invite your participants […]
A formal assessment asks the question: What do you know or understand? This type of assessment, accomplished in either written or oral forms, models Jesus’ attempts to assess his disciples’ understanding of his teaching and actions. When using quizzes or tests, keep the following in mind: Make sure that the items included on your quizzes or tests are consistent with the learning outcomes for your lessons. Provide your learners with opportunities for self-assessment. In other […]
How do we measure effectiveness in catechesis? How do we know whether or not we have achieved our learning outcomes? We may feel as though we’ve had a very good session. One catechist I know judges success on whether or not the participants “had fun.” That’s not a very reliable method of assessing whether or not someone has been further equipped to live as a disciple of Jesus. In catechesis, we are constantly assessing whether […]
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