Introductory Blog Activity
What is a blog. Blogs, short for weblogs, are used to share information and opinions with readers and to solicit feedback and discussion. They often take the form of a journal and are regularly updated with new entries.
You will be creating a blog to serve as a record of your learning as we go through the various modules. Reflect on the the focus of Modules 1 & 2 and blog about how it has helped you plan and create your unit. Please answer the following questions: How can Curriculum-Framing Questions help support my students' learning? How can I plan ongoing student-centered assessment?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
28 comments:
CFQ's focus both my students and my teaching in a unit. They enhance 21st century skills by involving the students in investigation. On-going assessment allows mt to ensure "no child is left behind". The final project only comes after a student is confident in their abilities to produce the concept.
How can CFQs help support student learning?
CFQs help support my students' learning by bridging what is being taught in the classroom to their lives. If we can make a connection with the CFQs, they are more likey to see the relevance of the content and hopefully engage in the learning process.
How can I plan ongoing student-centered assessment?
When planning ongoing student-centered assessment, I need to consider that tasks are matching the objectives and that all learning styles are considered. This is the beauty of project based learning. There is more than one way to express acquistion of knowledge of a particular subject matter.
CFQ's clearly help support students' learning by providing a framework that will target higher - level thinking skills from our students. CFQ's connect the learning to real world application. Therefore, one would be hopeful that connecting the learning to real world application would facilitate motivation.
When planning ongoing student-centered assessments, I would want to provide an assortment of formative assessment techniques. The assessment methods would target multiple intelligences and ensure that each student demonstrates their understanding of the learning objective(s). In addition, assessment planning would involve the student and provide them clearly defined guidelines and ways that will allow them to assess their own progress.
How can Curriculum-Framing Questions help support my students' learning?
CFQs help align the different lessons/tasks in the unit with the standards, the other tasks, and the relevance of the learning to the students’ lives. Once relevance is established, students’ innate motivation kicks in to grasp the content of the lesson.
How can I plan ongoing student-centered assessment?
I can plan ongoing student-centered assessment by including it in my project plan with a checklist I can print out and use. This checklist would list a variety of assessments in line with the student tasks in the unit. A printed checklist would allow me to walk around the classroom to listen, observe, and then assess. I would have a rubric for projects as well to make the assessments fair for all students.
This is my first BLOG session!!!!
I agree with Shannon and Meg about how CFQ's help to focus students and teachers.
I also use checklist to help with assessment. The checklist starts with day one of the project providing timed checkpoints along the way. Each check point has a value. This seems to keep teh kids on track.
For me, CFQ's are vital to keep me focused on the specifics of the topic I am teaching. They help make huge ideas more manageable & precise.
I, too, use checklists in order to determine whether or not students have obtained the knowledge I have intended to impart. Having used project-based assessment for about 6 years, both in core academics & electives, I've found students actually looking forward to coming to my classes when they are in the midst of their projects. What a concept to actually make learning fun!
Curriculum-Framing Questions encourage students to use higher-order thinking skills and help them understand the concepts being taught. They also provide a good structure for organizing a lot of the information for them. The learning will become more meaningful for the student.
I can plan ongoing student assessment by having small group discussions where the students would be observed as they engage in the activities and ask questions while they work. This will allow me to keep track of the students understanding.
Curriculum-Framing Questions provide a structure for organizing questioning throughout projects and promote thinking at all levels. They give projects a balance between content understanding and exploration of intriguing and enduring ideas that make learning relevant to students. Curriculum-Framing Questions guide a unit of study and include Essential, Unit, and Content Questions.
Ongoing student-centered assessment is not the easiest task to achieve. However, it can be as simple as observing class time. I really like the idea of doing student-teacher conferences, daily calenders to write what they accomplished, step by step sign off sheets, and task management rubrics. I think one of the most difficult tasks for students is to plan out their time and get the project done in a timely manner. By doing an ongoing assessment a teacher can save both themselves and the students unwanted and needed stress.
How can CFQs help support student learning?
CFQs help support student learning because they make connections to the larger picture, which include other curriculum areas and real life experiences. CFQs also develop higher order thinking skills. Students and Teacher are not just focusing on procedures and skills development. Understanding that the concepts being taught in a lesson have connections and relationships beyond the classroom allows students to see the value in what is being taught. Because of this their buy in is much higher.
How can I plan ongoing student-centered assessment?
Planning for student-centered assessment means that I need to take into consideration the different learning styles of all my students. Assessmeent becomes more flexible allowing for different ways for students to demonstrate their understanding. Ongoing student-centered assessments also help me to keep the focus on the learning outcomes, which in turn keeps unit plans on track.
This is the blog response of Chris Jensen. I am going in on the identity of Kathleen because I did not receive a invitation to the blog. The subject of this blog is how to initiate and use ongoing student assessment.
Assessment has been a controversial subject as long as students have been assessed. For years all students were assessed in academic areas via a traditional pencil and paper method, a sort of one method fits all. Over time a more student friendly method of assessment, "student centered assessment", has gained popularity. It entails assessing students in a manner that plays to their strengths. All teachers should be aware of the preferential learning styles of their students and whenever possible include those teaching styles in daily lessons. They should also try to assess their students in a manner that they can relate to the best. for example, I have several students who have a great deal of difficulty with a standard pencil and paper assessment. One of these students has difficulty formulating and putting down an answer on a piece of paper. For this student I call him up to my desk and quiz him verbally. Often he can express verbally what he can not express in writing. Another student processes slowly so I let her take her tests home so she can take as much time as she needs. Student Centered Assessment can be used on an ongoing basis by teachers circulating throughout the class relating to students on a one to one basis during periods of guided practice
The idea of Student Centered Assessment in itself is a good idea, but like many things has a potential down side. Student Centered Assessment at the elementary and middle school level is a viable concept, but eventually students must learn to adapt to a "one method fits all" approach, ie, a pencil and paper method. For, example, tests of critical importance such as the AIM's,the ACT's and SAT's are a pencil and paper method for all students, regardless of their learning/testing preferences.
In conclusion, teachers should employ Student Centered Assessment, but, at the same time seek to develope their students ability to do well in more standard types of assessment they will face in the future.
CFQ's are useful in that they focus my teaching and the students' focus in a general area. They also allow for bridges between various content areas and connections to the real world. If students see that knowledge is not relegated to specific subjects and that it does relate to real life they should be more motivated. This should lead to increased learning.
How can CFQs help support student learning?
To target higher-level thinking skills
To ensure student projects are compelling and engaging
To focus on important topics
To connect learning to other disciplines and other topics of study
To address compelling questions that students ask
How can I plan ongoing student-centered assessment?
It includes various means of gathering information about the quantity, quality and progress of students, their performance and academic work. Assessment may include the use of rating scales, observation checklists, content analysis, performances, discussions and written assignments. Assessment is generally ongoing and occurs during the learning process. It often has a formative element, intended to aid learning, add to Lesson Plans and guide the students. Assessment often offers feedback to the student and/or the teacher. Individuals are assessed, but responses are summarized to ascertain achievement of groups or subgroups of students.
CFQs help support my students' learning by making real world connections as well as connections to other academic areas. CFQs also aid in optimizing student engagement, guiding them to think more deeply, and sparking interest in other extensions of a unit. When done right, kids actually get excited about learning and as the teacher, I stay more on task with the bigger picture and objectives.
I can plan ongoing student-centered assessments by using the SEI Strategies and Reciprocal Teaching Strategies that support our classroom reading program already in place. On-going assessment also allows me to reflect and modify my unit lesson plans as I go. Since I teach intervention classes, modifications and differentiated instruction are a large part of everything I do in order to meet the needs of my ELL, Title I and Learning Disabled students.
I picture curricular framing questions as a large umbrella--one of those with an inner smaller unbrella so it cannot turn inside out. The essential question is the larger umbrella which can be used in a variety of subjects. The inner umbrella is unit questions which narrow the field yet they are still broad enough to require and encourage thinking. The content questions are the handle and they are more like strands of fiber optics in telephone wires which lead directly to and support the unit questions and the essential question.
On-going Assessment: I like Stephen Covey's "Begin with the end in mind" as a way to develop assessment. By knowing what standard and final outcome you want students to have, you have a destination and can do small regular assessments along the way to see how students are understanding the assignments. Since I teach students with special challenges, it is critical that the steps are small with much repetition and multiple checks for understanding along the way. Then if a student is not understanding the process, it is critical to reflect, reteach, or approach it in another way. My students also require a variety of ways to be able to demonstrate their learning with less reliance on paper and pencil products.
CFQ’s are important because they keep projects focused on the important learning; they encourage students to use higher order thinking skills. They help students understand essential concepts and provide a structure for organizing factual information. They ask open-ended questions, are tied directly to a project and are fact based.
I can plan ongoing student assessments by observing students, and listening to their small group discussions.
CFQ's provide a target for both the students and myself to aim at. They provide focus and purpose, keeping us all on track.
When planning on going assessments I need to keep my students in mind. My assessments must meet the various abilities, interests, and gifts of my students. The students need to be assessed in ways in which they are able to succeed. . . keeping our CFQ's in mind so that the target is hit. It may be hit in many ways, according to different gifts, just as long as it is hit.
CFQs help to support my students learning by giving them the opportunity to explore and to be a contributing factor to the process of the unit. Hopefully it will open their eyes to see how the topic applies to them.
I think the checklist sounds like a good way to guide assessments. To me they are a time of "pause" and see were we are all at. Also a good time to maybe rethink, regroup if needed, and work together. I like the idea of the kids working as teammates to help each other. I think sometimes they relate to the subject matter better that way. It also helps to build relationships.
How can CFQs help support student learning?
These questions keep projects focused on important learning. They encourage students to use higher-order thinking skills, help students fully understand essential concepts, and provide a structure for organizing factual information.
How can I plan ongoing student-centered assessment?
With assessment embedded throughout a unit of instruction, teachers learn more about their students' needs and can adjust instruction to improve student achievement.
CFQ's help to direct me as a teacher to stay focused and to be sure that the goals I have for a specific lesson are being met. As a second grade teacher CFQ's are useful to get kids excited; to stimulate their minds; and to strike up curiousity and interest.
Student centered assessment can be very involved and extremely fun ! Right now my kids are learning about penguins and when we conclude this thematic unit, I will assess what the children have learned by various physical activites [things penguins do];having the children draw certain things; locating places where penguins live on a globe; and answering some questions on a written quiz.
CFQ's are very difficult for my students to understand at this age. However I feel that if they are exposed to this type of questions more then they will begin to understand what it is all about.
On going assessment is easier to manage with project based learning. The students are more engaged in what they are learning and it is easier for me to see that they are understanding what they are doing.
Curriculum Framing Questions help the student focus on the subject they are studying but also allows them to broaden their view as they learn how it has an affect on other areas of their life.
See Chris' blog response under Kathleen's name.
Curriculum-Framing Questions provide a system for organizing questioning throughout projects and encourage student directed thinking. Planning for student-centered assessment means that I need to think about the different learning styles of all my students. Assessment becomes more accommodating allowing for different ways for students to express their understanding. An ongoing student-centered assessment also helps me to target my learning outcomes.
I agree with Lesley O. Checklists make others accountable.
CFQs use higher order thinking skills, which are vital to stimulating students minds.
Student-centered assessments allow the students to be involved in what they have learned.
I think CFQ's help support student learning by tieing their existing knowledge to the new subject being taught.
On-going assessment can be implemented by giving clear guidelines as to what your expectations are. Also a checklist is helpful to have a visual reminder of what is expected. And lastly, by my daily observations I can encourage them in their work.
Post a Comment