I used the attached confidence test as a pre and post test to support the importance of theatre as an affective and whole-child thing-ma-bob to secure a grant to pay for my first annual theatre camp. I now use it in my classes as a secondary back-up to prove to anyone who needs it that theatre is important, because yadda yadda blah blah.
I've attached the pre-test that I use for the students. I do ask them to put their names on it, and stress the confidentially of it and that it's for data purposes and so on, so I can see how each individual student scores on it. I make sure that students see their scores 'before and after', and on the whole, generally, one notes improvement in student attitudes.
Be careful to instruct students to read each question carefully, as the questions aren't uniform (you'll see what I mean when you read it).
The file 'Confidence test' is a larger bank of 50 questions, without the formatting of the 1 through 5, as seen in the other document. Some of the questions I omitted, because. You may want to put them back in.
Be prepared to be slightly heartbroken when you do the initial run on this when you look at your student answers, but then be gently encouraged and feel the warmth of human goodness when you see their scores/confidence/self-worth feelings increase over time.
Wow I'm rambling. Have fun!
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Phillip Goodchild
Theatre Arts Instructor/Assistant Department Head of English
Hillsborough County Schools
Ruskin FL
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Original Message:
Sent: 09-04-2015 19:12
From: Ryan Moore
Subject: Tracking affective growth
I assume that, in our present cultural/political environment, many find themselves in the same place that I do: specifically the need to PROVE student growth statistically in order to keep their jobs.
I'm wondering, do any of you track students' growth in the important AFFECTIVE realms of theatre education (e.g. attitudes about theatre, self-confidence, attitudes about collaboration, and the like) and, if so, how? E.g. Do you have a great beginning of the semester survey that students later re-take that you'd be willing to share?
This question seems well-suited to the beginning of the year for most of us, I hope.
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Ryan Moore
Theatre Teacher and Forensics Coach
Ferndale MI
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