Student Assessment

Are tests the only objective assessment of student learning?

This is the questions that has been posed to me this week. My answer? Tests are one of the LEAST objective ways to assess student learning. I believe this to be true for many reasons. First, knowing how to do something and knowing about something may not mean that you have every little detail about that subject memorized. For example, in college I took math all the way up through calculus. Since that course, I have been teaching basic math (sixth grade) and have not taken any other math courses since. Does this mean that given a test in calculus I would pass since I learned it? Probably not, because I have not used this information recently. My students, even though in a shorter amount of time, showcase this exact situation. We learn about fractions for several weeks in the fall. However, they are tested on it in April. Many who can do fractions if they have a refresher do not do well on the test because they haven't had as much time to practice using them while studying all the topics that are covered in a year's worth of math. However, by eighth grade many more students pass because they have now been practicing using fractions for about four years.

In education, teachers and researchers go on and on about different learning styles, different personalities, IEPs, etc. If we truly believe that all humans learn differently, then why would they all be able to show their knowledge in the exact same way? One students might be able to talk about what he has learned in a presentation, but forget which things to mark on a test. Another student might be terrified to speak in front of his peers, but study for a test at home and pass with flying colors.

Tests are not the only way to assess student learning. Teachers should include many forms, including informal daily assessments and other scheduled formal assessments.

Running Tab

I have found so many website and ideas to use over the course of the last few months, that I wanted to keep a running tab of locations and ideas.

Search the web for data to be used for graphing.
http://www.e-learningforkids.org/
http://nlvm.usu.edu/en/nav/topic_t_5.html (create graphs)
http://nces.ed.gov/nceskids/createagraph (create graphs)
Geometer's Sketchpad
Microsoft Excel
Microsoft Word
http://www.digitalcitizenship.net (rules and guidelines to using technology)
www.brainpop.com
Blogs
MangaHigh
Microsoft PowerPoint
YouTube
Digital Cameras
Virtual Field Trips
Social Networking/Twitter
Podcasts
www.phatmath.com
ePals
Safari Montage
TPS Cybrary
Senteo clickers
Elmos
Genius slim tablets
Safari live
Aver keys
DVDs

A Technology-Infused Classroom

What would a technology-infused classroom look like? How do I plan to have a technology-infused classroom?

Before technology can even be addressed, a teacher must have an idea of the objectives to be taught and how to infuse HOTS (higher order thinking skills) into the lessons. Without these two items, technology in a classroom will have no relevance or impact.

So, with objectives and goals in mind, what does a 21st century classroom look like? To begin with, there are computers available for the students to access any information they might need in order to research, create, or practice the objectives. A SMART Board is available for whole-class instruction, along with videos and presentations - made by either the students or the teacher. Students should also have access to audio and video recording devices to enhance presentations and learning. For my math classroom, hand-held electronic math games and activities would be beneficial for exciting practice of the basic skills that all mathematicians will need. A printer would be available for students to create visuals for the classroom and projects.

My current classroom is filled with all of the above stated technology. However, I have not been prepared to use the technology to its fullest advantage over the last 5 years because I had little training on how to integrate it into a math classroom. Since January, when I began my Master's course, I have already used more technology in my classroom than I did the last four and a half years combined! Why? Because I have now done the research required for ideas on how and why to use technology. I have the summer off now to come up with more ideas and lessons so that the 2010-2011 school year will look completely different in my classroom! Students will engage in PowerPoint lessons, research projects, digital creations, and best of all, they will be thinking and creating ideas for themselves!

Visual Literacy in the Classroom

As both a teacher and student I know when I see something cool that uses technology, it captures my interest far more than just sitting and listening to someone talk on a topic. If there is something I can be looking at, even if it is notes to go along with the lecture, it helps me focus better. Visual literacy is an opportunity for teachers to capture the interest of their students so that they are more engaged in learning and listening. Visual literacy is not THE answer to learning, but it may be the answer to helping students focus in the classroom like they would focus on sports or video games or other activities that they are involved in.

The new text book that my district has purchased for next year includes PowerPoints that align with each lesson in the book. I used these lessons this year experimentally with our geometry unit and my students were so much more engaged in the lesson than when I was just doing notes on the SMART Board. Next year I would like to continue using those along with other PowerPoints that I make myself. Other visuals I would like to explore are virtual field trips that would include examples of how math is used in the world around us.

As I've gone through my Master's course, I have found many great resources on the Internet that I feel would benefit my students. I feel like the Internet can open up a whole new world to my students through math games, examples, etc. While using the Internet this year, I have faced a lot of frustration with the Internet working at random on certain computers and the Net Support I have set up not working accurately so that students get off track and go to websites or applications that do not involve math and/or learning. I desperately want computers to be an asset in my classroom, but I want to find a way to make them a positive teaching tool, rather than a fight with the students about which websites they can see - when the Internet is working correctly.

Learning Styles and Technology

Describe the importance of the using a variety of instructional strategies and the value they add to education of students in the 21st Century. Evaluate the role technology plays in the implementation of various instructional strategies. How will this impact your teaching of students?

It's so important in today's schools that students be exposed to hands-on, lecture-based, and visual learning. The hands-on aspect of the classroom will give students a chance to experience what they are learning, which will help them retain it longer and have a deeper understanding of the concepts being taught. Lectures, in my opinion, are good for two reasons. First, there are some of those auditory learners out there who need to hear what they are learning. Second, many college and university courses are still set up in a lecture format and I feel it is a disservice to our students not to expose them to that so that they are at least familiar with it. Visuals are good for those students who need to see something to understand what is being said, but also as something to refer back to. These three teaching methods apply to technology just as they apply to every other discipline that students learn, perhaps more so because it is not something that is readily available in every home and not every parent is able to help their child learn it since they may not know much about technology themselves.

The website http://diplomaguide.com/articles/30_of_the_Best_Educational_Tools_for_Auditory_Visual_and_Kinesthetic_Learners.html offers a variety of technology tools to use in the classroom for each kind of learner. The more familiar I become with different kinds of technology, the better I am able to implement them into my classroom. Technology, especially computers, is very exciting for students and it can apply to all three kinds of learners, which makes comprehension in a math class that much more accessible.