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A Favorite Formative Assessment: The Exit Slip
November 8, 2012 | Rebecca Alber
When we think about all the different ways we check for understanding in the classroom, a go-to strategy for many teachers has always been the exit slip or exit ticket. For this strategy, students write at the conclusion of learning, sometimes on a half-sheet of paper with sentence starters provided. It's then collected by the teacher. Why a favorite? Being that they come at the end of a lesson, unit, or segment of study, exit slips give teachers a snapshot of the overall student learning.
Robert Marzano, classroom researcher and education author, recently wrote in depth about this formative assessment. In the article, he shares four uses for exit slips. Students:
- Rate their current understanding of new learning.
- Analyze and reflect on their efforts around the learning.
- Provide feedback to teachers on an instructional strategy.
- Provide feedback about the materials and teaching.
An exit slip can also be be a great way to set up the next day's learning. With that in mind, here's a few uses to consider:
Discover Shared Interests
Before introducing a group project that includes student choice, students can respond to a strategic question via an exit slip, sharing their primary topics of interest and their reasons.
Activate Prior Knowledge
Instead of taking time during class to create a concept/topic map, you can provide students with the concept or topic word at the end of class, activating their prior knowledge, and have them write words and phrases related to it on their half sheet of paper. When they come into the classroom the next day, they will see all their ideas displayed around the main word or phrase. This brainstorm also serves as a diagnostic check for the teacher.
The Start of an Essay
The low-stakes nature and end-of-class urgency of the exit slips creates a space for students to write quickly, jotting down all that they know about something. You could ask, for example, "Tell me all that you believe to be (a character's) motivation for ______ in the book________." Students write and write for several minutes. You can hand it back to them the next day, telling them they have a start to their first draft of a character analysis essay.
Surveying Students
Use the exit slip to survey students on a current issue or hot button topic related to them (i.e. curfew, cellphone use at school). The data can be used to launch a lesson on the art of debate, or start a unit on argumentative writing ("75% of the class agrees that...").
The beauty of the exit slip is that it puts the learning in the students' hands. It's also empowering for them when they see what they have shared influence what and how they are taught the next day.
We'd love to hear your ideas. How do you use exit slips in your classroom?
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Comments (21)
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Flipping the slip
How about an entrance slip? Are you entering the room out of obligation or because you want to learn about the content within the room? If it is out of obligation do we really think any of these strategies are going to truly bear fruit? Once again we appear to be putting lipstick on a pig, kids forced to take irrelevant courses b/c they are mandated, the pig still smells like ... a pig.
I really like this article!
I really like this article! It gave me so many good ideas - as do the comments posted.
I often use exit slips as a means of capturing what students (or teams) know about the "big idea" of the lesson. I like the idea of team exit slips occasionally because it requires students to work together to pool their knowledge about a central question - thereby increasing the learning. I also use exit slips to ask them to comment on their teamwork - it gives me a sense of where the group needs help with that important skill.
The method I use is less
The method I use is less formal. Students write a reflection at the end of a training session. However, these are all great ideas and I will now do something more formal. Thank you :)
These exit slips sound like a
These exit slips sound like a great idea for secondary classes. All of my experience is elementary, with class sizes usually over 30 students. Self-reflectivity and self-evaluation are not really age appropriate for elementary kids.
My favorite quick and easy (for me) way to check for student understanding is to do an Activate Prior Knowledge activity at the beginning of the lesson if I'm not sure of where the students are. I do this a lot these days because I visit classrooms to do special science lessons.
When I was teaching full time, I usually knew where the kids were coming from. But with new material, I did quick checks by constantly querying a variety of students, making the lesson a dialogue between me and the class. When there was a point that I really wanted to be mastered by the end of the lesson, I'd target my questions to my weakest students, figuring if they got it, then everyone probably did.
Exit slips
I really enjoyed reading this article and even the comments. When writing my lesson plans I usually use exit slips as my closure. However, I feel that I needed a novel approach to the exit slip. Thank you all.
I have more than 12
I have more than 12 differentiated tickets so that we can use them in lots of ways!
Student perspective
I think using the exit slip as a formative assessment is a great idea. Teachers can use exit slips within all grade levels. I am currently in a graduate program for elementary education PK-6. I never thought about integrating exit slips into my lesson plans. I used exit slips a lot in high school and in my undergraduate studies. It is interesting to see that exit slips can be utilized effectively in elementary grades as well. Within elementary grades I believe it is extremely important to activate prior knowledge and to go off of what your students already know. Therefore, I think using exit slips to guide proper instruction for the follow up class will be very beneficial. Also, discovering shared ideas could also be achieved by using exit slips. I also think using exit slips at the beginning of the year could be a great way to get to know your students!
Exit Slips= Cooperative Learning
As a teacher we all know it is hard to monitor who is totally mastering the content we are instructing our students on. However, we are responsible to continuously check for understanding so we don't get through the entire lesson with students not mastering the content.
The exit slip is just that, an exit slip. Students are able to show off what they have gained from your instruction. I have observed a teacher that allowed students to work independently on their exit slips, and then place their exit slip on the door when done. When all the students are done; students then choose a slip off the door and peer-check. This exercise allows students to discuss the content and misconceptions of the lesson.
Ticket-out
I use this type of assessment in my classes, students appreciate being asked about their education at all ages. I find that it takes a few times of practice and feedback for students to think critically about the questions posed. Also, I have to ask substantive questions rather than yes/no questions so that I can get useful feedback.
Want to try
I am still a rather new middle school language arts teacher, and haven't had used the exit slip yet. It is, however, something I have heard in seminars and in talking with classmate teachers in grad classes. But I haven't met a teacher at my school that uses this and was hoping to see it in action first. All my students have their own iPads and access to our online learning source Moodle. I plan to use a Moodle quick quiz as an exit slip- students can log on and respond to a question or two quickly. Any one tried this approach? Suggestions of an easy way to start with using the exit slip? I just want to jump in with it after Thanksgiving.