Dr. Karin Hess

Published by  MiddleWeb  · 11/04/2025 It’s rare to find a teacher who’s never used exit tickets at the end of a lesson. I suggest some ways we can reframe what most of us call exit tickets and apply them more effectively  during  the lesson. Exit tickets (also called exit cards, tickets out, etc.) are typically used by individual students at the end of a lesson for two formative purposes… READ MORE

Most people can remember not-so-great experiences working in groups – one person dominates the conversation or is not respectful when...

[Originally published by MiddleWeb April 2024] Years ago, I heard Dr. Howard Gardner make a comment that has stayed with me all these...

[Originally published by the Aurora Institute CompetencyWorks Blog 10/10/23] Fully embracing the seven design principles of...

[Originally published by MiddleWeb 10/25/23] When you choose a scaffolding strategy, do you first consider the intended learning targets...

(Originally published in the COMPETENCYWORKS BLOG October 2023) If you were to analyze student work samples in a body of evidence for...

(Originally published by MiddleWeb May 15, 2023) The words metacognition and reflection are often used interchangeably. Although they’re...

(Originally published by ASCD on March 20, 2023.) When I began teaching 3rd grade, my assessments included observing, conferencing,...

[First published in COMPETENCYWORKS blog February 2023] Deeper learning happens when students become actively immersed in challenging...

For decades, I’ve supported teachers in developing problem-based performance tasks and project-based learning assessments. One thing I’ve...

AKA “Is everything in the rubric equally important to assess?” This activity was co-created by Alysa Cummings and Karin Hess while...

What does it look and sound like when your students are doing rigorous work and thinking deeply? Over the years, I’ve heard a lot of...

[Originally published by Renaissance Learning] Think back to the last really rigorous and complex task that you worked on. Did you...

[Published November 2020 by Students at the Center] Research tells us and both employers and colleges confirm that communication,...

(Originally posted May 13, 2020) When our governor declared in March that learning would continue while schools are closed, he added that...

(Originally published by ASCD April 4, 2019.) Most educators agree that asking students to engage deeply with the content they are...

College and career readiness includes expectations that students demonstrate deep conceptual understanding through the application of...

Visit Focus Area In 2010, as the Common Core State Standards were simultaneously being developed, Dr. Karin Hess was charged to recruit...