CHAPTER

ASSESSMENT IN THE
AFFECTIVE DOMAIN

The affectivedomainis partof a systemthatwaspublished

in 1965 for identifying, understandingand addressinghow peOple
learn.In the Blooms taxonomypublishedin 1965, threedomains
were identified: cognitive, affective and psychomotor domains. In
this Chapter, we shall be concernedwith the secondof thesedomains
which is the affective domain.
Unlike the cognitive domain which emphasizes measurements
of reasoning and the mental faculties of the student, the affective
domain describes learning objectives that emphasize a feeling tone,
an emotion, or a degree of acceptance or rejection. It is, admittedly,
a far more difficult domain to objectively analyze and assess
since affective objectives vary from simple attention to selected
phenomena to complex but internally consistent qualities of character
and conscience. Nevertheless, much of the educative process needs
to deal with assessment and measurement of students abilities in
this domain. For instance, it is often heard that certain people are
schooled but not educated. simply refers to the fact
This cliché
that much of the processes in education today are aimed at developing
the cognitive aspects of development and very little or no time is
spent on the development of the affective domain. The development
of the psychomotor domain is also an important consideration in
education. However, due to space and time limitations, this book shall
not cover the appropriate measurement and evaluation techniques in
the psychomotor domain. The interested reader, however, is referred
to the list of references given at the end of this chapter for more
information.
We shall first discuss the taxonomy developed in the affective
domain as a starting point of our discussions on measurement and
evaluation in this particular educational domain of interest.

57
mmgc OFSwosm LEARNING
ASSESSMENT OUTCOMES z;
(ASSESSMENT

1. The Taxonomy in the Affective Domain

The taxonomy in the affectivedomain contains a large
number
in theliterature
ofobjectives asinterests,
expressed attitude
values,andemotional
appreciations, setsor biases.(Krathwohlet a1
i
1964).Thedescriptions
of eachstepin thetaxonomyculledfro";
s Taxonomy
Kratwohl Domain(1964)aregivenas
of Affective
I follows:

Receiving is being aware of or sensitive to the existence of

certain ideas, material, or phenomenaand being willing to tolerate
] include:
them.Examples todifferentiate, to listen(for),to
toaccept,
respond to.

Responding is committed in some small measure to the ideas,

orphenomena
materials, involved tothem
responding
byactively
{ Examples are: to comply with, to follow, to commend, to volunteer,
to spend leisure time in, to acclaim.

Valuing is willing to be perceiyedby othersas attaching

importance to certain ideas, materials, or phenomena. Examples
include: to increase measured proficiency in, to relinquish, to
subsidize, to support, to debate.

Organization is relating the value to those already held and

bring it into a harmonious and internally consistent philos0phy.
Examples are: to discuss, to theorize, to formulate, to balance, to
'
examine.

by value or value set is to act consistently

Characterization
in accordance with the values he or she has internalized. Examples
include: to revise, to require, to be rated high in the value, to avoid,
to resist, to manage, to resolve.
If we are desirous to apply the continuum of Krathwohl et
al. to our teaching, then we are encouraging students to not just
receive information at the bottomof the affectivehierarchy.Instead.
as teachers, we would like them to respond to what they learn, to
value it, to organize it and maybe even to characterize themselves as
environmentalists,geology majors or earth scientists.Notice that in
thesescience for instance,
subjects, also to mentionand
it is important
perhaps study the biographies of great scientistssince these serve as
inspirationfor themto emulate haveled
thewaythatgreatscientists
siInple lives and devoted their talents to the cause of science.
 Chapter6 -Assessment In theAnew D main

59

We are also interested in students attitudes toward science,

and science and specific science topics. We want to
scientists,
fmd teaching methods that encourage students and draw them in.
Affective topics in educationalliteratureincludeattitudes,motivation,
communication styles, classroom management styles, learning styles,
use of technology in the classroom and nonverbal communication,
interests, predisposition and self-efficacy As teachers,we need to be
careful about our own actions that may negatively impact on students
attitudes which go straight into the affective domain. For instance,
facial expressions that reveal sarcasm, body movements that betray
distrust and dislike, should all be avoided.
The affective domain is the least studied and most often
overlookeddomain in educationalliteraturedespitethe fact that
almost every researcher or author begins with a premise on the
importance of the affective domain in the teaching-leaming process.
The reason, perhaps, is the fact that the affective domain is the most
nebulous and the hardest to evaluate among Blooms three domains.
Traditional assessment procedures, for instance, concentrate on the
cognitive aspects of learning and as teachers majority of us typically
focus our efforts on the development of tests and instruments for
measuring cognitive learning. However, it is important to realize
that by tapping the potentials of the affective domain in enhancing
learning, we increase the likelihood of real and authentic learning
among our students. Similarly, students may experience affective
roadblocks to learning that can neither be recognized nor solved when
using a purely cognitive approach.

2. Affective Learning Competencies

Affective desired learning competencies are often stated in
the form of instructional objectives. What then are instructional
Objectives?
0 Instructional objectives are specific, measurable,short-term,
observable student behaviors.
° Objectives are the foundationupon which you can build'
lessons and assessments that you can prove meet your
overall course or lesson goals.
0 Think of
objectives as tools you use to make sure you
reach your goals. They are the arrows you shoot towards
 Ourcomea
FswamLEARNING (ASSESSMENT
2)
AWI'ENrIc,

your target(goal).
The purpose of objectives is not to restrict spontaneity
or constraint the vision of education in the discipline;
but to ensurethat learning is focused clearly enough that
both students and teacher know what is going on, and so
learning can be objectively measured. Different archers
have different styles, so do different teachers. Thus, you
can shoot your arrows (objectives) in many ways. The
1
importantthing is that they reachyour target (goals) and
I score that bullseyei
We have reproduced the taxonomy
of educational objectives
in the affective domain as adopted from Krathwohl. Each level of
the affective domain
is given a description and an example of an
appropriate objective or learning competency is provided. Notice that
it is far more dichult to state an objective in the affective domain
because they often refer to feelings and internal processes of the
mind and body that cannot be tested and measured using traditional
methods. We also mention in passing that we assess and measure the
affective domain in schools but such measurements will not be used
to grade students on this domain.
° Definition
__./.__.

~\
\ ._
_._Ak__ wgwu#
7 _#7 7,
_A_*____i##_~

E Level # ii; Example Vi H7

'I Receiving «I Being or via Individual
awareof would .
attendingto something reada bookpassage
_-> intheenvironment
£4
~. about
civil
rights.
Mfg} ' W#%
Respynding some
Showing new I Individual
would
answerquestions
asa result about
behaviors thebook,
readanother
ofexperiences
I bookl
bythe same author,another
1) » bookaboutcivil rights,etc.
--
vA EVE
individual
-
definiteThe
some m
showmg
ValuiIIf ?@ involvement
or , might '
(I demonstrate
this
byvoluntarily
N i comfnltment
_ _,
g a lecture
attendIng oncivilrights.
, a new Theindividual
@fation/g Integia"ng q
ones II acivil arrange
might
i , into rights I valuesetofvalues, rally.
, nerai II
I 9. itsome rank
ing
i Vmn9 general
oneS Ii
9N0 / _
\\\ I priOrities V /
W'I individual
Rita? g4:
C fa §"Zati
hE",N\ \ Ath tThe
conjiséeni'y
Admgva the
value
tirmiy is cEImm I
anew
by'a\ 7{1 ? /.zzW 330
CW" becoming
perhaps /
rights
leader 4/
I e ' /,//
1 T Taxonomy
in theAer _
5.3% i V
D Bloom, &
3.,Mas Ct'Ve .
Domain b
:hyVI// /Fi9re domain New (1956).
Had
of
Taxonomy
l1,1()|1'Nfe(;tiveSiYOer-l
DaVidMcKay
 6 - AmmmentIntheMum Domuln
Chapter

61

Likewise, we provide some examples of verbs or behavioral

01
terms that can be used to expresslearning comp¢t¢n0i69 objectives
the importance
in the affective domain. We cannot stress enough
of using behavioral terms in specifying our learning 00mpetencies.
and measurement
13ehavioralterms tend to simplify the assessment
methodologies that are suggested in this textbook. Behavioral
objectives focus on observable behaviors which can then be easily
translated in quantitative terms.

[ Receiving Responding Valuing Organlzation Characterization

. accept . complete . accept . codify . internalize
. attend o . defend - discriminate . verify
comply
. develop . . devote ° display
cooperate
. recognize - discuss . pursue - order
- examine. seek . organize
- obey \ - systematize
)K
~ respond - weigh
A LLAA A L *
r
Figure 2 Behavioral Verbs Appropriate for the Affective Domain

In the affective domain, and in particular, when we consider

learning competencies, we also consider the following fecal
concepts:
Attitudes. Attitudes are defined as a mental predisposition
to act that is expressed by evaluating a particular entity with some
degree of favor or ,disfavor. Individuals generally have attitudes that
focus on objects, people or institutions. Attitudes are also attached to
mental categories. Mental orientations towards concepts are generally
referred to as values. Attitudes are comprised of four components:
A. Cognitions- Cognitions are our beliefs, theories, expectancies,
cause-and-effect beliefs, and perceptions relative to the focal
object. This concept is not the same as feelings but just a
statement of beliefs and expectations which vary from one
individual to the next.
B. Affect- The affective component refers to our feeling with
respect to the focal object such as fear, liking, or anger.
For instance, the color blue evokes different feelings for
different individuals: some like the color blue but others do
Aumermc
ASSESSMENT LEARNING
or STUDENT OUTCOMES
(Assessmsm
2)

not. Some associate the color blue with loneliness while

others associate it with calm and peace.
C. Behavioral Intentions- Behavioral intentions are our goals,
aspirations, and our expected responses to the attitude
objeet.
D. Evaluation- Eyaluations are often considered the central
component of attitudes. Evaluations consist of the imputation
of some degree of goodness or badness to an attitude
object. Wheh we speakof a positive or negativeattitude
- toward an object, we are referring to the evaluative
component. Evaluations are a function of cognitive, affect
and behavioral intentions of the object. It is most often
the evaluation that is stored in memory, often without the
corresponding cognitions and affect that were responsible
for its formation (Robert Scholl, University of Rhode Island,
2002)
Why study attitudes? Obviously, attitudes can influence the
way we act and think in the social communities we belong. They
can function as frameworks and references for forming conclusions
and interpreting or acting for or against an individual; individuals, a
concept or an idea. For instance, think about your attitudes toward
drinking alcoholic beverages or gambling or going on an all-
night bar hopping spree every night. Or, perhaps, think about your
attitude towards mathematics and mathematical equations. Do these
attitudes shape the way you think and correspondingly act? What is
your response? How is your response informed by each of these
attitudes?
Several studies in the past, for instance, concluded that poor
performance in school mathematics cannot be strictly attributable
to differential mental abilities but to the students attitudes toward
the subject. When mathematics classes are recited, students with
negative attitude towards mathematics tend to pay less attention and
occupy their minds with something else. Thus, attitudes may influence
behavior.Peoplewill behavein ways consistentwith their attitudes.
Motivation. Motivation is a reason or set or reasons for
engaging in a particular behavior, especially human behavior as
studied in psychology and neuropsychology. The reasons may
include basic needs (e.g., food, water, shelter) or an object, goal,
state of being, or ideal that is desirable, which may or may not be
 -
Chapter6 AssessmentIn the AftecuveDomain

63

Viewed as positive, such as seeking a state of being in which pain

The motivation for a behavior may also be attributed to
is absent.
Iess-apparent reasons such as altruism or morality. According to
Geen (1995), motivation refers to the initiation, direction, intensity
and persistence of human behavior. There are many theories that
explain human motivation. The need theory is one of these theories.
Abraham Maslows hierarchy of human needs theory is the most
widely.discussed theory of motivation. The theory can be summarized
as follows:
0 Humanbeingshavewantsanddesires
whichinfluencetheir
behavior; only'unsatisfied needs can influence behavior,
'
satisfied needs cannot.
o Since needs are many, they are arranged in order of
'
importance, from the basic to the complex.
o The person advances to the next level of needs only after the
lower level need is at least minimally satisfied.
0 The further the progress up the hierarchy, the more
individuality, humanness and psychological health a person
-
will show.
The needs, listed from basic (lowest, 'earliest) to most complex
(highest,latest)areasfollows:
0 Physiological: food, clothing, shelter
0 Safety and security: home and family
0 Social: being in a community
0 Self esteem: self-understanding, self acceptance
0 Self actualization: recognition, achievement
Herzbergs two factor theory is another need theory of
motivatioxi. Frederick Herzbergs two factor theory, concludesthat
certain factors in the workplace result in job satisfaction, while
Others do not, but if absent lead to dissatisfaction. He distinguished
between:
0 Motivators; (e.g. challenging work, recognition,responsibility)
which give positive satisfaction, and
° Hygiene factors; (e.g. status, job security, salary and fringe
benefits) which do not motivate if present, but if absent will
result in demotivation.

Thenamehygienefactorsis usedbecause,
like hygiene,
thepresence
W111make you healthier, but absence can cause health deterioration.
 orSTUDENT
AWN;Assessuem LEARNING
Outcomes 2)
(ASSESSMENT

The theory is sometimes called the Motivator-Hygiene Theory,u

From a practical point of view (vs academic) Herzbergs two factor
theory was proven more powerful than Maslows since its concepts
are simpler to understand. Steve Bicknell did considerable research
into Employee Engagement Data. In particular, the analysis of
Verbatim comments from over 50 companies it was found that them
Was a common theme between low hygiene - high motivator and low
Employee Engagement. Employees consistently recorded low.scoreg
against management/leadership - Employees were optimistic about
Success but happy to complain about leadership since their hygiene
factors had not been addressed. Message sort the hygiene, then drive
the motivation.

Finally, created by Clayton Alderfer, Maslows hierarchy of needs

was expanded, leading to his ERG theory (existence, relatedness
and growth). Physiological and safety, the lower order needs, are
placed in the existence category while love and self-esteem needs
in the relatedness category. The growth category contained the self
actualization and self esteem needs.

Motivation is of particular interest to educational psychologists

' because of the crucial role it plays in student learning. However, the
Specific kind of motivation that is studied in the specialized setting
of education differs qualitatively from the more general forms of
motivation studied by psychologists in other fields. Motivation in
education can have several effects on how students learn and their
behavior towards subject matter (Orrnrod, 2003). It can:

1. direct behavior toward particular goals.

2. lead to increased effort and energy.
3. increase initiation of, and persistence in, activities.
4. enhance cognitive processing.
5. determine what consequences are reinforcing.
'
6. leadto improvedperformance.
Because students are not always internally motivated, they
needsituatedmotivation,which is found in environmenttll
sometimes
Thereare two kinds0i
conditionsthat theteacher'creates.
motivation:

. Intrinsic motivation occurs when people are internally

motivated to do something because it either brings them
 Chapter6 -Aoseasment In the AffectiveDomain

65

pleasure, they think it is important, or they feel that what

they are learning is morally significant.

. Extrinsic motivation comes into play when a student is

compelled to do something or act a certain way because of
factors external to him or her (like money or good grades).

Finally, the last concept relates to self-efhcacy. Self-efficacy is

an impression that one is capable of performing in a certain manner
or attaining certain goals. It is a belief that one has the capabilities
to execute the courses of actions required to manage prospective
situations. Unlike efficacy, which is the power to produce an effect
(in essence, competence), self-efhcacy is the belief (whether or not
accurate) that one has the power to produce that effect.
It is important here to understand the distinction between self-
steem and self-efficacy. Self esteem relates to a persons sense of
self-worth, whereas self efficacy relates to a persons perception of
their ability to reach a goal. For example, say a person is a ten'ible
rock climber. He/she would likely have a poor self-efficacy in regard
to rock climbing, but this wouldnt need to affect his/her self-esteem;
most people dont invest much of their self esteem in this activity.

thatin eertaincircumstances,
on learninghasindicated
Research
having less self-efficacy for a subject may be helpful, while more
negative attitudes towards how quickly/well one will learn, can
actually prove of benefit. One study uses the foreign language
classroom to examine students beliefs about learning, perceptions
0f goal attainment, and motivation to continue language study.
(Christine Galbreath Jemigan, What do StudentsExpect to Learn?
The Role of Learner Expectanczes,Beliefs, and Attributions for
Success and Failure in Student Motivation.) Survey and interview
results indicated students attributions for successand failure and
their expectationsfor certainsubjectslearningabilityplayeda role in
the relationship between goal attainment and volition. It appearsthat
Over-eihcaciousness negatively affected student motivation. For other
studentswho felt they were bad at languages,their negativebeliefs
increasedtheir motivation to study.
 Chapter6 - AssessmmtIn theAlisa». Domain

67

Tools
3. Developmentof Assessment
As'sessment tools in the affective domain, in particular, those
which are used to assess attitudes, interests, motivations, and selfa
Efficacy, have been developed. There are certain good practices in
developing these instruments. We consider a few of the standard
in the aEectivedomain.
assessment-tools

Self-Report. Self report is the most common measurement tool

in the affective domain. It essentially requires an individual to provide
an account of his/her attitude or feelings toward a concept or idea or
people. Self reports are also sometimes called written reflections. In
using this measurement tool, the teacher requires the students to write
'
his/her thoughts on a subject matter, like, Why I Like or Dislike
Mathematics. The teacher ensures that the students write something
which would demonstrate the various levels of the taxonomy, e.g.
'
lowest level of receiving up to characterization.

Rating Scales. A rating scale is a set of categories designed

to elicit information about a quantitative attribute in social science.
Common examples are the Likert scale and 1-10 rating scales for
which a person selects the number which is considered to rehect the
perceived quality of a product. The basic feature of any rating scale is
that it consists of a number of categories. These are usually assigned
integers.

Semantic Differential Scales

The Semantic Differential (SD) tries to assess an individuals

reaction to specific words, ideas or concepts in terms of ratings on
bipolarscales defined with contrasting adjectives at each end. An
example of an SD scale is:

Good Bad

Usually, the position marked0 is labeledneutral, the 1 positions

are labeled slightly, the 2 positions quite, and the 3 positions
 orSTUDENT
AssESSMENT
AUTHEtmc Lammne
OUTCOMES
(ASSESSMENT
2)
68

texu-emely. In the illustration above, for instance, a 3 close to good

\vould mean an extremely good reaction while a 3 close to bad
\avould be an extremely bad reaction. The scale actually measures
two things: directionality of a reaction (e.g., good versus bad) and
also intensity (slight through extreme). Usually, a person is presented
With some concept of interest without any other explanatory remarks
e.g., Math teacher, and asked to rate it on a number of such scales.
Ratings are combined in various ways to describe and analyze thg
persons feelings. A number of basic considerations are involved in
SD methodology:
°
Bipolar adjective scales are a simple, economical means for
obtaining data on peoples reactionsi With adaptations, such
scales can be used with adults or children, persons from all
walks of life, and persons from any culture.
° scales tend to be correlated,
Ratings on bipolar adjective
and three basic dimensions of response account for most
of the co-variationin ratings. The three dimensions, which
have been labeled Evaluation, Potency, and Activity (EPA),
have been verified and replicated in an impressive variety of
studies.
° Some adjective scales are almost pure measures of the
EPA dimensions; for example, good-bad for Evaluation,
powerful-powerless for Potency, and fast-slow for Activity.
Using a few pure scales of this sort, one can obtain, with
considerable economy, reliable measures of a persons
overall response to something. Typically, a concept is rated
on several pure scales associated with a single dimension,
and the results are averaged to provide a single factor score
for each dimension. Measurements of a concept on the EPA
to astheconceptsprofile.
arereferred
dimensions
. EPA measurements are appropriate when one is interested in
affective responses. The EPA system is notable for being a
multi-variate approach to affective measurement. It is also a
generalized approach, applicable to any concept or stimulus,
and thus it permits comparisons of affective reactions 00
widely disparatethings. EPA ratings have been obtained for
hundreds of wordconcepts, for storiesarid poems,for social
roles and stereotypes,for colors, sounds, shapes,and fof
individual persons.
 chapter 6 - Assessment In the Affective Domain

69

. The SD has been used as a measure of attitude in a wide

variety of projects. Osgood, et aL, (1957) report exploratory
studies in which the SD was used to assess attitude change as
a result of mass media programs and as a result of messages
structured in different ways. Their chapter on attitude balance .
or congruity theory also presents significant applications of
the SD to attitude measurement. The SD has been used by
other investigators to study attitude formation (e.g., Barclay
arid Thumin, 1963), attitudes toward organizations (e.g.,
Rodefeld, 1967), attitudes toward jobs and occupations (e.g.,
Triandis, 1959; Beardslee and ODowd, 1961; Gusfleld
and Schwartz, 1963), and attitudes toward minorities (e.g.,
Prothro and Keehn, 1957;Williams, 1964; 1966).The results
in these, and many other studies, support the validity of the
SD as a technique for attitude measurement.

Thurstone and Likert Scales

, Thurstone is considered the father of attitude measurement. He
address the issue on how favorable an individual is with regard to
a givenissue.He developed
anattitudecontinuum the
to determine
on the issue.
),
position of favorability
Below is an example of a Thurstone scale of measurement.

Example (from Thurstone, 1931):

Directions. Put a checkmark in the blank if you agreewith the 1
item.

1. Blacks should be considered the lowest class of human 1

beings. (scale value ? 0.9)
2. Blacks and whites must be kept apart in all social
affairs where they might be taken as equals. (scale
value = 3.2)

\_ 3. I am not interested in how blacks rate socially. (scale

value = 5.4)

_ 4. A rejiwal to accept blacks is not basedon any fact of

butonaprejudice
nature, which beovercome
should 2)
(scale value = 7.9)

MS. I believe that blacks deserve the same social

'
previledgesas whites. (scalevalue = 10.3)
 LEARNING
AunmmcAsssssuemor STUDENT OUTCOMES
(ASSESSMENT
2)

In 1932, Likert developed the method of summated ratings (or

Likerts scale), which is still widely used. The Likert scale requires
that individuals tick on a box to report whether they strongly
agree, agree, are undecided, disagree, or strongly disagree,
in response to a large number of items concerning an attitude object
or stimulus. Likert scales are derived as follows: First, you pick
individual items to include. You choose individual items that you
know correlate highly with the total score across items. Second, you
choose how to scale each item. For example, you construct labels for
each scale value (e.g., 1 to 11) to represent the interpretation to be
assigned to the number (e.g., disagree strongly = 1, disagree slightly
= 2, etc.) Third,
you ask your target audience to mark each item.
Fourth, you derive a targets score by adding the values that target
identitied on each item;

Below is an example of the use of a Likert Scale:

Statement: I do not like to solve algebraic equations.

Response options:
" 1.
Strongly Disagree
* 2. Disagree.
* 3.
Agree
* 4.
Strongly Agree
It is common to treat the numbers obtained from a rating scale
directly as measurements by calculating averages, or more generally
any arithmetic operations. Doing so is not however justified. In terms
of the levels of measurement proposed by 8.8. Stevens, the data
are ordinal categorizations. This means, for example, that to agree
strongly with the above statement implies a least favorable perception
of algebraic equations than does to agree with the statement. However,
the numbers are not interval-level measurementsin Stevens schema,
which means that equal differences do not represent equal intervals
between the degree to which one values algebraic equations. For
example, the differencebetween strong agreement and agreement is
not necessarily the same as the difference between disagreement and
agreement. Strictly, even demonstrating that categories are ordinal
requires empirical evidence based on patterns of responses(Andrich,
1978) .
that attitudeshouldbe measuredby
In 1944,Guttmansuggested
multidimensional scales,as opposed to unidimensional scales such as
i
 chapter6 - Assessment
IntheMW
Ddmaln

71

those developed by Thurstone and Likert. Guttman pointed out that

there should be a multidimensional view of the attitude construct. He
developed the Scalogram Analysis, Cumulative Scaling, or as usually
called, Guttman scaling. The major characteristic of this scale is that
the response to one item helps predict the responses to other items.
For instance, if the individual responds negatively to the item I like
oranges, he is not likely to respond positively to the item Oranges
are great for breakfast.

Checklists
The most common and perhaps the easiest instrument in the
affective domain to construct is the checklist. A checklist consists
of simple items that the student or teacher marks as absent or
present. Here are the steps in the construction of a checklist:
- Enumerate all the attributes and characteristics you wish to
observe relative to the concept being measured. For instance,
if the concept is interpersonal relation, then you might
want to identify those indicators or attributes which constitute
an evidence of good interpersonal relation.
0 Arrange these attributes as a shopping list of
characteristics.
0 Ask the students to mark those attributes or characteristics
which are present and to leave blank those which are not.
Below is an exampleof a checklistfor Teachers
(Observatioxial
Guide) with emphasis on the behavior: Getting Students Attention
by Sandra F. Rief (1997). Notice that the observational guide will
probably consist of several other items like: focusing students
attention,maintaining students attention,and keepingstudentson-
task during seatwork, each of which requires corresponding series of
Observablebehaviors like the examplegiven for getting students
attention.

Checklists for Teachers

By: Sandra F. Rief, M.A.E74 (1997)

Getting students attention

° Ask an interesting, speculative question, show a picture, tell
a little story, or read a related poem to generate discussion
and interest in the upcoming lesson.
AUTHENTIC
Assessmem OUTCOMES
LEARNING
OFSTUDENT (Assessment
2)

. Try playfulness, silliness, a bit of vtheatrics (props and

storytelling) to get attention and peak interest.
Use storytelling. Students of all ages love to hear stories,
especially personal stories. It is very effective in getting
attention. _
Add a bit of mystery. Bring in an object relevant to the
' This is a
upcoming lesson in a box, bag, or pillowcase.
wonderful way to generate predictions and can lead to
excellent discussions or writing activities.

Signal students auditorily: ring a bell, use a beeper or timer,

play a bar of music on the piano or guitar, etc.
Vary your tone of voice: loud, soft, whispering. Try making
'
a louder command Listen! Freeze! Ready! followed by a
few seconds of silence before proceeding in a normal voice
to give directions.
Use visual signals: Hash the lights or raise your hand which
signals the students to raise their hands and close their
mouths until everyone is silent.
Frame the visual material you want students to be focused
on with your hands or with a colored box around it.
If using an, overhead, place an object (e.g., little toy car
or plastic figure) to be projected on the screen to get
attention.

Clearly signal: Everybody. . .Ready. . .

Color is very effective in getting attention. Make use of
colored dry-erase pens on white boards, colored overhead
pens for transparencies and overhead projectors, and colored
paper to highlight key words, phrases, steps to computation
etc.
spellingpatterns,
problems,
Model excitement and enthusiasm about the upcoming
lesson.
Use eye contact. Students should be facing you when you
are speaking, especially while instructions are being given.
If students are seated in clusters, have those students not
directly facing you turn their chairs and bodies around to
face you when signaled to do so.