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Self Assessment makes the student privately but directly confront personal attitudes, paradigms, and biases that may unconsciously present a barrier to learning. At its core, the professor presents students with alternative ways of looking at a controversial issue and asks them to indicate, by writing on a 3x5 card, which viewpoint applies to them. The responses are then swapped 3-4 times face down, thus allowing the overall results to be read publicly and surveyed by a show of hands, this without compromising confidentiality.
Self Assessments are just that: Self-Assessments. This technique is an excellent way to make visible different styles of thinking and different attitudes on controversial topics...without embarrassing anyone individually. Written responses are announced ahead of time as private. Their purpose is to promote internal reflection, to bring paradigms, biases, or learning barriers to the surface.
When using this technique, a professor's first challenge is to recognize potential obstacles to learning ahead of time, compose 2-4 fair paradigm statements, and offer 2-4 reasonable and revealing choices. A second challenge is to capture what is revealed and employ it as feedback so that students effectively surmount their personal obstacles. The technique is most successful when the level of trust is high.
----T.A. Angelo and K. P. Cross, 1993. Classroom Assessment Techniques, 2nd ed. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass., p. 295-8. |
 Self Assessment |
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Consider the following two statements: A. "I don't take ideas for granted; I am a thinker. My opinions are pretty well thought out, are based on objective experience, and have solid reasons supporting them. When somebody else offers an opinion, I like to play the devil's advocate and, for the purpose of uncovering and testing my thoughts, I often take the opposite position. I am sincerely willing to open my ideas to others for scrutiny and critique. Naturally, I often see flaws and weak points in opposing views because I have considered them previously. I enjoy a good argument and often learn a great deal from thinking about and responding to the tough critique of a worthy opponent." B. "When I hear people voice opinions very different from my own, I seek first to understand why and how they could possibly think that way. I try to look at the issue from their perspective, to get inside their heads, to walk in their moccasins, to see how their culture or world view could prompt them to express such values. Then, only after I can mirror back to them their view stated in my own words, do I try to explain my position. I learn a lot just from listening to people explain why they think and act as they do. They usually have good reasons for adopting a stance different than mine, and I find that so attractive that I often find myself rethinking my own position." Self-Assessment Questions:
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