With the end of the year fast approaching, it’s a useful time for reflection. 

By pausing to ask the right questions, you can:

1. Prompt learning reflection and encourage shared learning
2. Gather student feedback to refine your teaching approach
3. Prompt students to reflect on their personal growth and encourage them to take ownership of their future learning
4. Encourage empathy and support interpersonal skills
   

We’ve compiled 22 questions for end of year reflection you can use with your students. We’ve also added some bonus questions in Ziplet. Find out more at the end of the article.

Prompt reflection

Prompting students to reflect on their learning encourages memory retention and promotes shared learning. It can also give you ideas for which parts of your lesson plans to change for the next year group. 

Some questions to try include:

• What did you like most about this subject this year?
• Which assignments helped you learn the best this year?
• What were the top 3 things you learned this year?
• What was your most memorable activity from this year?
• How could I have better supported you as your teacher this year?
• If I had to cut one part of the subject, what should it be?
• What advice would you give to students who’ll be in this subject next year?

Find these questions in Ziplet under “End of Subject Review”.

Asking these questions gives you a framework for group reflection and insight into the things that stuck with students.

Celebrate achievement

Encouraging students to think about their achievements and the challenges they have overcome helps them connect their actions with outcomes.

Helping students recognise the impact of their own behaviours and taking time to set intentions for the future can help them grow as students. 

In case that’s not enough, answers to these questions also provide a handy reference point when it comes to writing up reports and any end of year conversations with parents. 

• What is one thing you achieved this year that you will remember for the rest of your life?
• What is something you accomplished this year that you are proud of?
• What was your favorite activity or event this year?
• What is one thing you learned about yourself this year?
• What is one way you surprised yourself this year?
• What was the biggest challenge you overcame this year?
• How did you grow as a student this year? Think about your skills, study habits, and mindset.
  

Find these questions in Ziplet under “End of Year Student Reflection”.

Encourage empathy

Encouraging students to think about the impact of their behaviour helps foster positive classroom culture. 

These questions ask students to think about how they have had a positive impact on those around them.

• What was the nicest thing someone in our class did for you this year?
• What are 3 things you did this year to help your classmates? 
• What did you teach your classmates this year?
• How did you contribute to making this class successful this year?
• How did you help others learn this year?
• How supportive did you find your classmates in this subject?
• How did you make it easier for others to contribute in class this year? 
• What might you do differently next year to help support your classmates?
  

Find these questions in Ziplet under “End of Year Student Reflection”.

Conclusion

Asking the right questions at the end of the year provides teachers and students with a moment to pause and reflect. By doing so, you can encourage students to take ownership of their personal development. You might also find opportunities for improving your own teaching practice. 

Take the next step. We’ve added some of these questions in the Ziplet app, making it even easier to ask your students a question.

We’ve also added 5 bonus questions for Ziplet Plus users under the “Exam and Assessment Preparation” template questions in the Ziplet app. 

Try them for yourself in Ziplet Plus. If you haven’t tried Ziplet Plus yet, start your free trial today.