Informal Interviews

Overview

Type of objectives

Knowledge, thinking skills, problem-solving, thought processes, reflective thinking

Number of students

Individual, class

Teacher prep time

Short

Class time

Depends on how the interview is administered, generally short

Scoring time

Short, long

Scoring method

Focused holistic

Possible problems

Can be misdirected; teacher must be an active listener; information cannot be generalized

Possible values

Can provide almost instant information on student understanding; easy to administer; no penalty for incorrect student responses; usually good formative assessment

Frequently Asked Questions

What is an informal interview?

The informal interview is an interview with a single student or a small group. Questions are not preplanned as in the structured interview. This type of interview was used in the PBS series, A Private Universe.

How might the informal interview be used?

Informal interviews can be used to assess the general level of understanding of students before, during, or after a unit of instruction. A small random sample of students can furnish a look at some of the misconceptions that students have. This can produce valuable data for lesson planning. Care must be taken to make the sample representative. Scores are generally not a part of this type of assessment making it non-threatening to students. Informal interviews can contribute insights into student learning that cannot be captured any other way. The informal interview is relished by many students because it makes them feel special.

However, students from some cultures may feel threatened as the adult/child relationship is not built on familiarity. As the interview progresses, the teacher will become more aware of student understanding, verbal skills, thought processes, habits of mind being employed by the child, and many other factors that can enhance the student/teacher relationship. Since unstructured interviews cannot be replicated, they are avoided in large-scale assessment but their value in the classroom should not be overlooked.

Preparing for the informal interview is generally much easier than planning for the structured interview, but time spent on the planning process will be rewarded.

What are examples of individual and group informal interviews?

Example: An Informal Individual Interview

Provide a student with a flashlight and a darkened room. Ask the student to tell you about light. As the interview proceeds allow questions to flow from the students response.

Sample questions. How does light get from the flashlight to the wall? How is light made? What is light?

Example: An Informal Group Interview

A group of students can be asked to complete the following statement in their notebooks: "All cells are . . ."

Students are reminded that all answers are acceptable in this type of assessment which is used strictly for diagnostic purposes. Students can be asked to share their ideas with the class.

In one ninth grade class students completed the statement and responded with the following information.

"All cells are square." Their life science book pictured a colorful diagram of a plant cell and viewing onion skin was their only lab experience.
"All cells are pink." The life science books had many drawings of cells, mostly pink.

These responses not only indicated some misconceptions, but they pointed also to a group of students who were probably good visual learners.

What must the teacher do to prepare for an assessment using informal interviews?

  1. Prepare a statement of the purpose of the interview for your students.
  2. Develop an interview question or questions for a unit you will be teaching. Be sure to describe the setting, present the problem, and develop a few questions.
  3. Describe how the interview questions will be presented so that students will feel comfortable with all answers.
  4. Describe how you will work the interview into your classroom without excessive demands on you or your students' time.
  5. Describe how you will use the results of the interview.
  6. Describe some of the possible strengths and weaknesses of your interview questions.
  7. After you have interviewed students, decide how to "sell" the use of your interview to others.