Strategies to assess students understanding HINGE QUESTIONING Strategies to assess students understanding

Hinge questions Questions that diagnose the depth of a students understanding Need careful planning Are ideally used to asses common misconceptions Can be done at any point during a lesson Challenging idea that needs careful thinking. Should be used sparingly when really trying to diagnose the depth of understanding. Important that students cannot select the correct answer for the wrong reason. Particularly challenging to use during a lesson as you then have to react to their responses immediately in similar ways perhaps to MCQs.

Golden Rules They can be answered in no more than 30 seconds They are not multi-step as that would make it hard to identify where the misconception lies You learn something from each incorrect answer It is not possible to arrive at the correct answer whilst still having key misconceptions

What makes a good hinge question? Which of these was an immediate cause of Hitler becoming Chancellor? Hyperinflation in Germany The death of Hindenburg The Reichstag Fire The collapse in Schleicher’s authority Which of these was an immediate cause of Hitler becoming Chancellor? Nazi violence intimidated many voters and opponents Schleicher’s authority collapsed Hindenburg and Von Papen believed they could control Hitler as Chancellor

Odd One Out: Industrial Revolution Factories were significant A computer was designed There was lots of pollution and smog which caused poor health Many kids didn’t live beyond five There were many coal mines Trains were invented There were fewer farms and less open space London was highly populated due to jobs Electricity powered the lights Give reasons for your answer.

Industrial Revolution Factories were significant A computer was designed Babbage designed a computer There was lots of pollution and smog which caused poor health Many kids didn’t live beyond five There were many coal mines Trains were invented There were fewer farms and less open space London was highly populated due to jobs Electricity powered the lights Only in a handful of places right at the end of the Industrial Revolution – most public lights were gas lamps

Hinge questions to test the application of knowledge Which of these sentences best begins an answer to the question, “How does Shakespeare present Lady Macbeth’s relationship with Macbeth in this scene?” Lady Macbeth sees Macbeth as cowardly and tells him what to do. Shakespeare shows that Lady Macbeth is in charge; for example, she tells Macbeth to “Give me the daggers.” Lady Macbeth is shown as dominating Macbeth and acting decisively for them both.

Supernatural and religious explanations of the causes of disease Which of there sentences best summarises the influence of church on medicine: The medieval church was very powerful. Ordinary people received most of their teaching from the church The church owned large amounts of land in England. The land was used to build churches, monasteries and convents The church used religion to answer the questions people had about illness and disease. The church blamed peoples sins for their illnesses The church emphasised the importance of God. People learned God controlled every aspect of the world.

Supernatural and religious explanations of the causes of disease Which of there sentences best summarises influence of church on medicine: The medieval church was very powerful. Ordinary people received most of their teaching from the church The church owned large amounts of land in England. The land was used to build churches, monasteries and convents The church used religion to answer the questions people had about illness and disease. The church blamed peoples sins for their illnesses The church emphasised the importance of God. People learned God controlled every aspect of the world.

The two boxes below explain one reason why changes in landownership made resistance to the Normans less likely after 1071. Which is the better answer? 8/9: Write a paragraph for the second bullet point. Changes in landownership made resistance to Norman control less likely after 1071 because the tenant’s in chief had a great deal of power. A tenant in chief were the large landholders of Norman England who held their land directly from the king. There were 190 tenants in chief. They could take land off the thegns. This meant that the tenants could reward their followers making them more powerful and increase their control. Changes in landownership made resistance to Norman control less likely after 1071 because the tenant’s in chief had a great deal of power. The tenant in chief could reallocate land when a thegn died. Moreover, they could dispossess thegns who acted against them or failed to fulfil their obligations. This was significant as the tenant in chief also had their own followers to reward, therefore, they could make their followers ‘heirs’ to the land resulting in increased control of their area.

Summary Use Hinge questions at any point in the lesson Plan carefully – a hinge question is an analytical tool to assess understanding and identify misconceptions, not test specific knowledge Can be used as an effective strategy to model examination answers