This research was originally published in The Science Teacher 86, no. 8 (2019): 18–26.
This research explored the use of exit tickets in order to identify best practices for designing, analyzing, and then acting on these assessments. Researchers posed a variety of exit ticket types, using their own questions. Upon reviewing the data, it was found the responses to be extremely useful. More specifically, they identified a high level of honesty from students, areas for improvement, and recognised students that needed additional support. Recommendations for future implementation included: involving students in the process, making questions as clear as possible, using technology, and framing questions in a relevant and timely manner.
Fowler, Windschitl and Richards aimed to identify how exit tickets can be used to:
The study involved 13 middle and high school science teachers from a variety of science disciplines. Each teacher chose from a number of exit tickets, including:
The teachers created specific prompts, collected student responses and analysed the feedback.
They were encouraged to predict student responses, and to reflect on the following questions:
Teachers identified that students felt heard, and shared ownership of the learning. The honesty of students’ responses was recognised and appreciated.
They also found that the responses highlighted students that required targeted support. The exit tickets indicated what students knew and what they wanted more instruction on.
Some teachers recognised that the questions they posed lacked clarity and required further refinement in future iterations.
The research identified generalised criteria for designing and administering effective exit tickets, including:
FOWLER, KELSIE, MARK WINDSCHITL, and JENNIFER RICHARDS. “Exit Tickets: Understanding Students, Adapting Instruction, and Addressing Equity.” The Science Teacher 86, no. 8 (2019): 18–26. https://www.jstor.org/stable/26899250.
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