Smart A$$ Responses

Ask yourself, if you aren’t getting the answers you want, are you asking the right questions?

Here are 2 worksheets where students got very creative with their answers.

Did the students give the teacher a response that they wanted? No.

Did the students deserve the response that they got? No.

Regarding the first worksheet, I created this image to make fun of it:

“You’ve got to ‘love’ worksheets typed on a typewriter and copied so many times that parts of the letters are missing.”

Did the student spell any of the 10 words wrong?

What if the teacher said, “Haha, that was sneaky, now look around the room and find 10 more words that you can spell”?

Looking at the second worksheet, what if the student gave the examples shared as their answers? What would the teacher have done then? (And who ‘jumps’ with their family???) The question coupled with the examples makes this a painfully boring task. The musical response by the student actually makes the assignment interesting.

Why the big red X?

“Not the answer I was looking for.”

No it wasn’t, but it is a very clever answer! One that should be recognized as creative.

What if the teacher said, “Haha! That’s great! What other action verbs do you know?”

Is the purpose of a worksheet to get the answers right? Is the purpose of assessment to count marks or to check for understanding? When someone doesn’t give you ‘what you are looking for’ does that mean their response is wrong and deserves a big red X?

Or is a smart a$$ response a wake up call that maybe you can ask better, more interesting questions?

Your chance to share:

4 thoughts on “Smart A$$ Responses

  1. Aaron Davis

    I am currently reading John Warner’s book ‘Why They Can’t Write’. He really hits the point in regards to exams:

    The SAT essay exam tested students on their ability to produce a writing simulation, not on their genuine writing abilities. The result is what I call “pseudo-academic BS,” a bizarre and counterproductive style where ten-dollar words like “plethora,” “myriad,” and “quintessential” are sprinkled in, whether the meaning of the sentence demands it or not.

    I wonder if smart a$$ responses are the canary in the coalmine? There are other ways. This is what people like Peter Hutton have been advocating.

  2. Pingback: Rebirth of my daily blog – David Truss :: Pair-a-dimes for Your Thoughts

Comments are closed.