心理学与生活-第7章

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areas　covered　in　the　course　are　reduced；　the　course　bees　less　and　less　the　broad　survey　it　is　intended　to　
be。　

At　the　introductory　level；　most　professors　assign　all　or　most　of　the　chapters　in　the　text　and　little　or　no　
outside　reading。　Because　of　their　familiarity　with　the　material　covered　in　the　introductory　course；　instructors　
can　underestimate　the　difficulty　of　the　text　for　students。　Students　who　do　well　in　the　introductory　course　
study；　rather　than　just　read；　the　text。　If　you　do　want　to　assign　some　additional　readings；　be　sure　that　your　
campus　library　can　supply　enough　copies　of　the　assigned　material。　

Will　I　make　writing　assignments？　

Your　decision　concerning　writing　assignments　is　likely　to　be　influenced　by　the　size　of　your　class　and　the　
amount　of　assistance　you　can　expect　for　reading　papers。　Writing　experience　is　an　important　element　in　
education　and　if　you　have　the　time　and　resources；　you　should　include　some　written　work　in　your　
requirements。　A　good　option　is　to　assign　several　short　papers　rather　than　a　traditional　term　paper。　

DECISIONS　ABOUT　TESTING　

How　many　tests　will　I　give？　

Due　to　the　scope　of　material；　it　is　best　to　test　frequently　in　an　introductory　course。　Tests　do　take　class　time；　
and　if　you　think　of　tests　as　purely　a　means　of　evaluation；　you　may　feel　that　frequent　testing　takes　too　much　
class　time。　However；　tests　are　powerful　pedagogical　tools　because　they　inspire　students　to　study　and　they　
provide　feedback　on　the　effectiveness　of　students’　efforts。　Marvels　of　modern　technology；　like　the　test　bank　
acpanying　this　text；　have　made　testing　relatively　easy　for　the　instructor。　You　choose　the　items　from　the　
test　bank　and　the　puter　program　will　print　them；　number　them；　scramble　them；　and　provide　you　with　an　
answer　key；　or　keys　if　you　use　more　than　one　order　of　items。　You　can　also　edit　test　questions　and　add　your　
own。　

What　kind　of　tests　will　I　give？　

Multiple…choice　tests　are　the　standard　evaluative　method　in　introductory　psychology。　Many　of　the　multiple…
choice　questions　in　the　test　bank　that　acpanies　this　text　involve　application；　interpretation；　or　
conceptualization　so　you　need　not　feel　that　you　are　just　assessing　rote　learning。　If　you　prefer　to　give　essay　
tests　or　bine　essay　questions　with　objective　items；　you　will　also　find　a　supply　of　essay　questions　in　the　
test　bank。　

What　will　my　tests　cover？　

Tests　in　introductory　classes　primarily　cover　the　text；　you　can　select　and/or　edit　items　from　the　
professionally　written　Test　Bank　to　cover　the　text　material。　You　may　also　prefer　to　let　students　know　in　the　
syllabus　that　tests　will　include　outside…class　assignments　as　well　as　anything　that　occurs　in　class；　such　as　
lectures；　films；　demonstrations；　and　experiments。　Of　course；　you　will　have　to　write　your　own　questions　to　
cover　these　other　aspects　of　the　course。　

How　long　should　my　tests　be？　

Most　students　can　read　and　answer　a　multiple…choice　question　in　less　than　a　minute；　so　if　your　class　lasts　
50　minutes；　the　test　should　have　no　more　than　45　items　to　allow　a　few　minutes　for　test　distribution。　If　your　
class　period　is　longer　than　50　minutes；　give　a　longer　test　since　reliability　increases　with　test　length。　It　is　best　
to　make　the　test　the　only　activity　of　the　class　day。　

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No　matter　how　much　time　is　allowed　for　a　test；　some　students　will　not　be　ready　to　hand　in　their　paper　when　
the　allotted　time　is　up。　Tell　them　you　are　leaving；　and　that　if　they　want　to　receive　credit　for　the　test；　they　must　
hand　in　their　papers　immediately。　

What　will　I　do　about　students　who　miss　tests？　

There　is　no　ideal　solution　to　this　problem。　One　“must”　is　that　you　have　a　policy　you　can　easily　enforce　and　
that　you　inform　students　of　this　policy　in　the　syllabus。　Ideally；　do　whatever　you　can　to　discourage　students　
from　missing　tests。　One　way　to　do　this　is　to　require　verification　of　illness　or　other　legitimate　reasons　for　
absence　on　test　days。　Still　another　helpful　hint—inform　students　in　the　syllabus　that　you　advise　them　to　
drop　the　course　if　they　miss　more　than　one　test。　

The　option　of　allowing　students　to　take　the　missed　test　later　is　not　advised。　If　you　do　not　have　another　test　
on　the　material；　the　class　will　have　to　wait　until　all　of　the　makeups　are　done　before　they　get　feedback。　Even　if　
you　do　have　another　test　you　can　use；　you　may　find　yourself　proctoring　individual　students　at　times　that　are　
convenient　for　them　rather　than　for　you。　

Here　are　two　options　for　dealing　with　the　inevitable　situation　of　missed　tests：　

。　Assign　a　score　for　the　missing　test　based　on　the　student’s　performance　on　the　other　tests。　
Substituting　the　lowest　test　score　for　the　missing　score　discourages　students　from　missing　tests；　
but　it　penalizes　students　who　miss　a　test　for　legitimate　reasons。　Using　the　average　of　the　other　
test　scores　seems　fair；　but　students　who　are　good　strategists　will　figure　out　that　it　is　better　to　be　
“sick”　than　to　take　a　test　unprepared。　
。　Students　drop　their　lowest　quiz　score。　This　is　an　attractive　option　because　students　who　miss　a　
test　can　use　the　missed　test　as　their　lowest　score。　However；　this　option　is　advised　only　if　you　
give　several　tests　during　the　term　and　only　if　the　tests　are　roughly　equivalent　in　terms　of　type　
and　difficulty。　One　caution　in　this　situation　is　that　the　last　test　score　should　not　be　dropped。　If　
you　let　students　drop　the　score　on　the　last　test；　those　who　are　satisfied　with　their　scores　on　
earlier　tests　may　consider　the　class　finished　for　them　several　weeks　before　the　end　of　the　term；　
and　therefore　fail　to　study　material　that　will　be　included　on　the　final。　
How　can　I　prevent　cheating　on　tests？　

This　is　something　we　do　not　like　to　think　or　talk　about；　but　cheating　in　the　classroom　is　a　reality；　and　you　
should　do　what　you　can　to　prevent　it。　Students　who　do　not　cheat　bee　justifiably　upset　if　they　perceive　
that　you　are　not　doing　your　best　to　prevent　cheating。　Here　are　some　methods　of　cheating　and　some　
preventive　measures：　

。　Copying　from　an　unsuspecting　neighbor。　Use　the　puterized　Test　Bank　to　construct　two　or　
more　forms　of　your　test。　Each　form　should　be　in　a　different　scrambled　order。　
。　Collaborating　with　a　friend　by　exchanging　papers。　Use　vigilant　proctoring；　watching　for　
students　to　exchange　papers　by　passing　them　under　the　seats。　
。　Getting　a　copy　of　the　test　before　it　is　given。　Keep　tests　in　a　securely　locked　cabinet　or　file　drawer。　
Be　sure　stencils　or　discarded　pages　are　not　left　in　a　wastebasket　that　is　accessible　to　students。　
。　Failure　to　hand　in　the　test　and　answer　sheet　and　claiming　absence　on　the　day　of　the　test。　Have　
students　sign　an　attendance　sheet　as　they　enter　the　classroom。　
。　Getting　someone　else　to　take　the　test。　Most　campuses　that　have　classes　large　enough　for　this　to　
be　a　problem　issue　identification　cards　with　pictures。　Have　students　bring　their　cards　to　class　
and　show　them　as　they　hand　in　their　tests。　
。　Surreptitious　use　of　notes。　Have　students　put　all　books　and　papers　under　their　seats　and　leave　
them　there　until　they　are　ready　to　hand　in　their　papers　and　leave。　Another　solution　is　to　make　
the　notes　legitimate—allow　students　to　bring　to　an　exam　one　page　of　notebook　paper　with　
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anything　they　want　written　on　it。　This　legitimate　pony　has　value　in　that　preparing　it　is　a　type　of　
active　study　and　because　clutching　their　pony　tends　to　reduce　anxiety　for　students　who　panic　
on　test　day。　

How　will　I　provide　feedback　to　students　after　tests？　

On　the　day　of　the　test；　let　students　know　when　feedback　will　be　provided。　The　longer　students　have　to　wait　
for　correct　answers；　the　less　interested　they　bee　in　checking　their　work。　Provide　immediate　feedback　if　
you　can。　Here　are　two　suggestions　for　acplishing　this：　

。　Students　record　their　answers　on　both　the　test　and　the　answer　sheet。　They　hand　in　the　answer　
sheet　and　keep　the　test；　scoring　it　themselves　from　a　key　or　keys　you　post　immediately　after　the　
test。　The　puterized　test　bank　makes　it　possible　for　you　to　provide　feedback　that　includes　
both　correct　answers　and　page　references　from　the　text。　
。　Create　an　exam　that　can　be　pleted　in　30　m