28 Nov Eagerness to learn: LAB Sint-Amands on experiences with Comproved
Comproved was initially used mainly in higher education, as the tool emerged from a research project between UAntwerpen and UGent. However, more and more secondary schools are discovering the benefits of the tool and the method of comparative judgement. A pioneer in secondary education in Flanders is LAB Sint-Amands. We were very curious and talked to some teachers about their experiences with the tool.
What is LAB’s view on education?
Kris Thomassen: ‘Very briefly: eagerness to keep learning. That is LAB’s baseline. And we do that by making students’ learning visible. Discussing their position in the learning process, looking at their approach and making adjustments together with the students.’
An Permentier: ‘In this regard, the materials we developed are applied in such a way that they are not just learning materials for the sake of learning, but a kind of meaning-based context is created around them. We work with projects of about seven weeks so that the students really work in an integrated way around a certain subject matter to see what the purpose of it all is.’
How does Comproved fit into this approach?
Kris Thomassen: ‘The fact that students are confronted with the work of others gives them insight into how well they are doing themselves. In Comproved, they get to see work of higher quality or with more depth than their own work on the one hand, and work that is perhaps a little weaker on the other. This allows students to position themselves more easily.’
An Permentier: ‘Giving feedback is also trained in a different way. Because they assess each other anonymously and they receive targeted instructions, they learn to give feedback in a positive and at the same time critical way. Because they give feedback themselves, they are also more open to receiving feedback. Thus, they learn to look at it through a different lens than if they were overloaded with teacher feedback.’
Femke De Smet: ‘At LAB, we also find it very important not only to put the goal first, but also the path towards it. Comproved helps students adjust from within themselves during that process.’
I find the tool for making evaluations objective, and especially for creative assignments, a really great aid.
What is the main reason for you to work with Comproved?
Ann De Keersmaeker: ‘Less evaluation work (laughs).’
Inga Pauwels: ‘And also, as was mentioned a moment ago, that students can compare themselves to the work of others. As a teacher, you can show a perfect example, but that good practice often remains an unattainable, difficult task for many. In Comproved, students see that others also encounter issues. Or they find the help in the work of others that can help them on the right track. There is enormous learning potential not only in receiving feedback, but also in giving feedback.’
An Permentier: ‘I find the tool for making evaluations objective, and especially for creative assignments, a really great aid.’
How do students experience working with the tool?
An Permentier: ‘It’s like with everything, if you do it too much they get tired of it quickly. So we do have to spread it out a bit. But if they are well informed and they can work with it in the right way, it’s definitely being well received.’
Ann De Keersmaeker: ‘With the younger students it sometimes dares to become a clicking game. But when they realise that I can see how long they took to do a comparison, it soon stops. I do notice that they grow into it and that they start to see the benefits of it more and more.’
How do students cope with the rankings?
An Permentier: ‘They are mainly interested in their own work and the feedback they received on it. The ranking is a nice one, but for them that is not what they are doing it for. There is also no fuss about it among each other, I have the impression.’
Kris Thomassen: ‘They are also quite used to living in a kind of ranking here because we work with routes depending on how easily they learn or how much support they need. So the idea that there is a difference there too is nothing new for them.’
Femke De Smet: ‘I would like to nuance a bit. It’s not that we focus very much on what students can and cannot do. It’s that we work very much in a tailor-made way and that we are mainly busy looking critically at ourselves. Because that is something that is very much embedded here, the ranking and the feedback don’t hit as hard.’
Students also gain more insight into quality of work. As a teacher, you can say that the structure of a text is not right, for example, but that often remains too abstract for the students. When they see a concrete example in Comproved of what the structure should look like, it makes it easier for them to apply it in their own work.
Do you notice a difference in quality in assignments assessed with Comproved?
Ann De Keersmaeker: ‘The fact that they can go and steal a little bit from each other with their eyes, get some inspiration, helps them to perfect their work. Because they get a different kind of input with the peer feedback it helps them to even fine-tune further.’
An Permentier: ‘I think it’s an advantage that sometimes they get the same feedback two or three times from different peers. Because then it hits. When they then get a chance to rework and resubmit their assignment, you do see a difference.’
Femke De Smet: ‘They also gain more insight into quality of work. As a teacher, you can say that the structure of a text is not right, for example, but that often remains too abstract for the students. When they see a concrete example in Comproved of what the structure should look like, it makes it easier for them to apply it in their own work.’
Can you use Comproved for all subjects?
An Permentier: ‘I think it’s harder in factual subjects, like maths or natural sciences.’
Inga Pauwels: ‘Yes, those work less in cycles.’
Femke De Smet: ‘I don’t agree with that. I think everyone can use Comproved. I’m convinced that you go through some kind of cycle in every subject.’
Lieselot Saelens: ‘I use the tool in maths for my students that follow an independent route for the first time. I give them the theory and they have to make their own scheme to go with it. In Comproved, they then compare each other’s schemes. They check whether all the theory is included, they can get inspiration from each other for the layout, use of colours, etc. That way they have that control among each other and I can let go of it a bit. In the beginning, I sometimes showed my own scheme too, but I noticed that they can do it without my example.’
Do you have any tips for bringing colleagues into the Comproved story?
An Permentier: ‘For instance, we have a website with a lot of tools on it, and for each tool we indicate who the expert is within the school. So colleagues know who to contact. We have also already organised IT markets during pedagogical study days. Then you can show colleagues the tool, explain it, highlight its strong points, go through a number of things together. Once colleagues get the hang of it, they continue to use it. So that works.’
Lieselot Saelens: ‘You also just help each other out. I had a colleague last year who wanted to use it for the first time and she asked me to help. Then we set up that first assessment together.’
Inga Pauwels: ‘Creating and uploading the student list is something people struggle with in the beginning. When we create such a list, we put it on a drive so that colleagues working with the same student group can just use that list.’
