Meaningful Assessment with Rubrics, Clickers, and Inspiration

Rubrics provide teachers with an excellent way to evaluate students.  Not only do these checklists help keep the teacher on track during grading, but it also guides the students throughout the entire assignment. Rubrics can help add a sense of objectivity to subjective projects as well.  Technology-based rubrics are especially great for assessing meaningful learning.  Although rubrics can be time-consuming to create, they provide clear and detailed lists of expectations for student products.  Today, there are a plethora of rubrics online at teachers’ disposal, however the writers of our textbook remind teachers to be diligent when using rubrics from these banks.  Teachers should check to ensure that rubrics are applicable for the anticipated learning outcomes in their own classroom.  We checked out rubrician.com for this class.  There are also other sites to help you make your own rubric the way you want it.  Rubrics are one of the best ways to assess meaningful learning in the classroom, especially in language arts when assignments can often be subjective. 

The best feature of clicker assessment tools is that students can respond to questions without having to raise their hands or talk over each other. Students simply key in a response, and the results are visible to the entire class. Clicker technology is a great way to assess meaningful learning because it can be used to quickly test knowledge in order to check for understanding and reevaluate teaching methods.  This technology also “evens the playing field” as our book tells us. Often, it is a race to answer first in class.  However, the opposite is also true.  Students are slow to answer for fear of embarrassment or fear of being incorrect.  With clicker technology, all students answer without these fears coming into play.  Clicker technology assesses meaningful learning by encouraging participation from each student in the classroom.  It allows for individualization and self pacing. 

I think Inspiration and Kidspiration would make really great tools in the classroom after looking through the websites. These tools allow the students to organize their thoughts in a visual manner that aids them in understanding material. It feels a lot like mind-mapping to me, but on a much higher level.  I checked into both Inspiration and Kidspiration, and I think Inspiration would be helpful in my high school English classroom.  Organizing visual concepts for theme, character, and plot would be so much easier with the help of this software.  I think students would enjoy using it as a medium for brainstorming and organization for essays and papers as well.  

Audience Response Systems | Electronic Voting | Interactive Learning | Qwizdom. Web. 20 Apr. 2011. <http://www.qwizdom.com/?gclid=CNLygeH3mpcCFQZqswodWV6D-g>.

"Kidspiration - The Visual Way to Explore and Understand Words, Numbers and Concepts | Inspiration.com." Inspiration Software, Inc. - The Leader in Visual Thinking and Learning | Inspiration.com. Web. 21 Apr. 2011. <http://www.inspiration.com/Kidspiration>.

Rubric, Rubrics, What Is a Rubric?,Sample Rubrics, Holistic Rubrics, Free, Downloadable, Rubric Links, Rubrician,Templates, - Rubrician.Com. Web. 20 Apr. 2011. http://www.rubrician.com/

Jonassen, D., Howland, J., Marra, R., & Crismond, D. (2008). Meaningful learning With Technology (3rd Edition). Columbus, OH: Pearson/Prentice Hall.

Visualizing with Technology

Digital storytelling is great for getting students actively engaged in a project. Students have to apply their creativity to make a storyboard, use a camera to film the video, and some type of editing software to create the completed product. Students really have to use their critical thinking skills to tell a story digitally. I think this could be a really great idea for students. Students get to exercise their creativity and have fun while still gleaning necessary information from the lesson.  This would be a really fun tool to use in the English/ language arts classroom.  I think this type of activity could aid in reading comprehension and sequencing.  By creating a storyboard for a short story or part of a play the class is reading, students can visualize what is going on in the story.  Shooting the video, doing the artwork, and having the ability to edit the story would allow students some creativity and ownership in a project.  I think this would be really helpful for students struggling to retain information from reading assignments.

Math has never been my favorite subject.  When it comes down to it, however, I am a very visual learner.  I need an example, or several, to follow and apply to a lesson.  I have to see how it is done before I can understand. I need to be shown, not told.  Thankfully, math lends itself to visualization.  Math is taught in examples and problem work.  In the chapter, four different methods are discussed that would help engage students in math work. The first example suggested graphing calculators. Graphing calculators allow students to see visuals of abstract ideas. This idea could be helpful since, “Students often have difficulty distinguishing important features of functional relationships.” (p. 198) I have a hard time visualizing in my head.  I need to get out of my head and see it on paper or a calculator in my hands.  The ability to see a picture almost always aids in understanding of the material.  The second method suggested was data sets. I love that the book suggested that teachers allow students to “tinker” with data since this helps them to analyze and, ultimately, understand it.  Fathom Dynamic Statistics Software takes the analysis of data sets to a larger, much broader level.  Not only does this help increase understanding, but it helps students develop important math skills at the same time. The last method was visual geometry. A lot of the time, students are intimidated by geometry because there are so many formulas and rules.  Geometry has a lot going on.  Often, students have no idea why they need to use or follow the guidelines and many rules of geometry. They just memorize techniques for the test and then forget. I think if students could better visualize these rules and formulas, they would better understand the rationale behind them.

            In some ways, I do think it is possible to learn from watching instruction on television, but I think that there has to be some kind of interaction to really learn.  Watching a chef cook a recipe on television doesn’t mean I now know how to make that dish.  Yes, they taught me the recipe step-by-step, but I haven’t done it myself.  I will still make mistakes if I try it myself without practicing.  I think application is so important when it comes to learning.  We don’t learn much from what we watch someone else do.  While it is good to have an example, we learn by doing.  Applying information is a critical part of the learning process.

References: 

Jonassen, D., Howland, J., Marra, R., & Crismond, D. (2008). Meaningful learning With Technology (3rd Edition). Columbus, OH: Pearson/Prentice Hall.

Podcasts in the Classroom

I regularly use my iPhone to listen to the podcast, “This American Life.”  During my first semester of college, my professor suggested listening to the program, and I have been streaming it ever since.  My favorite thing is that the newest podcast downloads automatically, and it is on my computer the next time I log in.  Then, all I have to do is plug in my phone, and I’m ready to listen.  I really enjoyed learning more about podcasts, especially in the classroom.  I think it could be a great tool in the classroom, especially in lecture-centered subjects.  In my classroom, I would love to be able to record my lectures so that students could download them if they missed class or simply wanted to review the day’s material.  This could be a great supplement for note-taking and studying. 

     Podcasting, like the other types of Web 2.0 technology we have discussed, allows students and teachers to connect outside the four walls of the classroom.  Podcasts can provide additional, supplemental information, in-depth information on similar and connected topics, and allow for a springboard for discussions in class and out.  Blogs and classroom websites are similar in this way.  Voice Threads are almost like a combination of blogs, wikis, and podcasts.  Participants can record audio, post discussions, and submit videos.  Each can add to creating a continuing dialogue between teachers and learners.

     I own an iPhone, which comes in handy since it has capabilities.  I can listen to music, take calls, send emails, and even read books I download in e-Books.  I also regularly use my iPhone to listen to the podcast, “This American Life.”  I am really interested in learning more about podcasts in the classroom.  If students could use their mp3 players to get up to speed following an absence, that would be wonderful.  I think listening to a podcast on my iPod would be lots more fun than rereading the lecture notes online or having to come in early for tutorials.  If using this in the classroom, it would be important to set clear boundaries early and remind students that this is a legitimate way to make up class time.  Information from podcasts would definitely be used in assessment as a check for participation and understanding.  It would also be important to remind students that this type of communication is not meant to replace face to face communication with the teacher. Any questions and concerns can still be addressed face to face.  It is a supplement, not a replacement. 

 
Lefever, L. (Producer), (2007). Podcasting in Plain English. Available from http://commoncraft.com

Wikis.Blogs.Social Bookmarking

          I have blogged for the last couple of years, but I haven’t had nearly as much experience with wikis.  I have had a couple of instructors and peers utilize wikis during my college career.  I remember my first English professor used one, and I had not a clue what he was talking about.   After checking out his site and those of other instructors, I began to get an idea of what a wiki was, but I sure didn’t know how to use or create one.  The lecture notes and videos to watch this week were really helpful in clarifying wikis for me.  Watching the video, Wiki in Plain English, the concept of a wiki was suddenly clear to me. I think a wiki can be an awesome classroom tool for projects and communication.  Students and teacher could easily collaborate on projects, especially in an English classroom like I will be working in.  A wiki would be an easy way to divide up group assignments, giving each individual a job to contribute.  Discussions could also be held via wiki.  One thing I think would be fun to do via wiki is relay writing.  Each student submits the beginning of an essay or story and then adds a subsequent paragraph to another student’s.  The process continues until we have several finished, collaborative papers.  The textbook discusses a wiki project on the Holocaust.  I think this is a great example of wiki use in the classroom.  Students were very involved and got hands on learning opportunities.  I look forward to being able to incorporate a similar project in my language arts classroom in the future. 

               When I read the term “social bookmarking,” I immediately thought of social media like Facebook and Twitter; however, after watching Lee Lefever’s video, Social Bookmarking in Plain English, I found that I had actually used social bookmarking tools before.  I have used such tools as Evernote, vi.sualize.us, and StumbleUpon for my personal and school activities, but I had not used the ones in the list provided.  I also follow a blog for teachers that provides links to new information and tools online.  I think this could be a great tool for teachers and students, alike. As Lefever pointed out, websites one teacher finds may prove useful to other teachers as well. Through social bookmarking sites, they can share their favorite websites with other teachers and save them for themselves. I believe this would be a great resource for students, too. If a teacher finds a website that is helpful for a class or unit, he or she can share it with their students. I am sure social bookmarking could be very useful in my classroom. I think it would help better build a community of learners and play into students’ strengths when it comes to technology.  I also like the idea of VoiceThread.  I like all of the different choices for commenting.  This is a great idea for students who aren’t necessarily just visual learners and need a voice to help them work through a problem or idea.  I would definitely be interested in trying this out. 

                I enjoyed reading about Tapped In.  It looks like another great way to create a learning community.  Teachers lack opportunities to communicate with their peers.  A quick chat in the hallway or teacher’s lounge is not enough, and staff meetings to simply discuss ideas or classroom challenges aree few and far between.  Like our textbook states, “Teacher isolation has long been an obstacle to the exchange of ideas and information in the teaching profession” (page 128).  Tapped In creates a solution to this problem. Teachers sign on and share their ideas and information with a community of their peers.I would love to get the opportunity to explore the site more in depth.  I appreciated the section for student communication as well.  It seems that this tool could be very useful and interesting.  I think it could provide an opportunity for growth professionally and culturally since teachers and students around the world can connect.  It’s nice to know that there are others facing the same challenges and successes.

Jonassen, DJ, Howland, JH, Marra, RM, & Crismond, DC (2008). Meaningful Learning with Technology. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson.

Lefever, L. (Producer), (2007). Wikis in Plain English. Available from http://commoncraft.com

Lefever, L. (Producer), (2007). Social Bookmarking in Plain English. Available fromhttp://dailymotion.com

Unknown producer. (2007). VoiceThread Introduction. Available from http://voicethread.com

Utilizing New Techniques for Assessment

Why do you use assessment activities? How do you assessment activities as a way to generate feedback that can improve learner performances?

Assessments are used to check for understanding and growth.  Basically, assessments provide students an opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned over the course of a lesson, unit, semester, or year.  Teachers can use the data gained through assessment to evaluate and analyze the strengths and weaknesses in a specific unit, from both the perspective of an educator and of a student.  Assessment data can highlight areas where the class as a whole just did not “get it.”  The teacher could then use this information to reformat the lesson in order to reach students.  In the same way, assessments highlight the successes as well.
What is e-portfolio? How does it help teachers and students? What are computer-based tests? Does the use of computer-based tests impact validity and reliability?

An e-portfolio is “a collection of digitized artifacts that could include video clips, graphics, sounds, or documents,” that can demonstrate and reflect on what an individual has learned over a specific period of time.  E-portfolios provide a different means of assessment.  Much like notebooks and projects that students hand in to their teacher, e-portfolios allow students to think and work outside the box in ways that allow students to apply their learning instead of simply parroting memorized facts.  Computer-based tests are exactly what they sound like.  They are tests completed on or scored by a computer.  As long as computer-based tests match up with the curriculum presented to students in a unit of learning, I do not think computer-based tests impact validity and reliability too much.  However, if students are not used to taking tests on the computer, time management could be an issue.  This can be especially true on tests that require a composed response or problems that require scratch paper. 

Conclusion:

I really appreciated this chapter because it is important for teachers to think outside the box when it comes to assessment.  As we all know, standardized testing is not always the best way to gauge student performance and understanding.  High stakes testing has led to a rash of test anxiety and pressure for all tests.  By utilizing such methods as discussed in the chapter, I am now better equipped to gain a more accurate view of my students’ learning through assessment.  Tools such as e-portfolios allow student to apply and synthesize the knowledge they have gained throughout a unit.  Any opportunity to apply higher order thinking skills should be capitalized on in the classroom.  


Citation:   
Jonassen, David, Howland, Jane, Marra, Rose, and Crismond, David. (2008). Meaningful Learning with Technology. 217-39. New Jersey: Pearson Prentice Hall

Copyright and Fair Use Laws

Why do we have to respect copy rights and fair use rules?  Why is that so important?  How will you teach your students about this?

Copyright and fair use laws protect the intellectual property of individuals, groups, and corporations.  In essence, copyright laws protect creativity and prevent the stealing of ideas and concepts without gaining permission and crediting the source.  Fair use laws provide for a little more access and use.  This is especially helpful for teachers.  Both of these types of laws help protect individual and promote integrity in research.  It is especially important for teachers to keep their students informed on this subject.  While we want our students to be inquisitive in their research, there is a certain way to accomplish that.  Students need to be taught this concept through good examples set by their teacher.  It is important that we strive to follow the same guidelines we expect our students to adhere to.  After all, it isn't a choice, it's the law. I found Copyright Bay extremely helpful, and I would definitely encourage my students to use it as a resource in order to get them actively involved in the subject.

What is online safety and is it different from cyberbullying?  How can we protect our students and ourselves from potential online predators?

Online safety and cyber bullying go hand in hand, but they are different entities. Online safety is important in order to protect individuals from online predators, inappropriate sites, identity theft, and other dangers that come with surfing the web.  Cyber bullying is one of these dangers.  Cyber bullying often comes from acquaintances and peers.  Awareness of this phenomenon is especially important with the growing field of social media.  Students should be able to come to an adult and alert them of any problems.

What do you think about this week activities?  Did you learn anything new?  

I definitely enjoyed this week's activities.  The topics were ones that I knew a little something about so that made it more interesting to learn even more in depth details.  The copyright quiz was a fun way to figure out what I did and didn't know about the topic.  I think that activity would make for a great pre/post test for a mini unit on copyright laws, especially before beginning a research paper or project.  


Fryer, Wesley. Copyright 101 for Educators. 2003. Retrieved September 27, 2010. http://www.wtvi.com/TEKS/02_03_articles/copyright.html

Carnell, John. Bullying UK. Retrieved September 27, 2010. http://www.bullying.co.uk/

CopyRight Quiz. Retrieved September 27, 2010. http://www.csus.edu/indiv/p/peachj/edte230/copyright/quiz.htm

Joilet, Francis. A Visit to Copyright Bay. 2002. Retrieved September 27, 2010. http://www.stfrancis.edu/cid/copyrightbay/index.htm

National Center for Missing & Exploited Children and Boys & Girls Clubs of America. NetSmartz. 2010. Retrieved September 27, 2010. http://www.netsmartz.org/

U.S. Copyright Office. Copyright. 2010. Retrieved September 27, 2010. http://www.copyright.gov/