Midterm evaluations were last week. It was an opportunity to talk with my cooperating teachers so they can tell me in what areas I need to improve. I have been self-assessing myself throughout this whole process; I know I need work. But there was one main point that ran through all the comments they were making. Assessments.
I think I am still halfway in student-mode and halfway in teacher-mode. As a student, when I hear assessment, I want to run for the hills. However, as a teacher, this is how I can see if my students are remembering and hopefully understanding the principles I have been teaching. Somewhere along this process, I have forgotten what good assessments look like. My methods professors would probably shun me if they heard that, but it is true.
For some reason, throughout this process, in my mind, I have been thinking assessments only come in forms of tests and quizzes, because as a student, that is how I saw them. Now looking at assessments through a teachers lens, I see that the assessments can AND should be informal daily. The students do not need to turn in a worksheet everyday, that is unnecessary, yet that is sort of what I was doing. I would give them points for just doing the handout for the day. I thought that just because they did it, they deserved points. Not true.
After talking with my teachers, it is clear that my assessments can be small: an exit slip, show of hands, telling me an answer by way of so many fingers. I knew all this. But I was blinded by being in charge of all the points. I thought students deserved to get points every day. Here is the thing I did not realize; since students already get participation points, those are the points they get for the day. It does not need to be off of a worksheet, but their participation in the lessons.
So, this week I have been really trying to focus on giving small assessments daily. That way, I do not need to look at 2983 different worksheets after class to figure out if they need help now. I can do it on the spot.
This seems like an obvious lesson to learn, even before stepping into the classroom, but I needed to the experience to understand what happens when there is a lack of balance of informal and formal assessments.
Friday, February 27, 2015
Friday, February 20, 2015
Monitoring and Adjusting
This week I have learned the importance of monitoring and adjusting. I am experiencing this on a small scale level as well as a large scale level.
Small scale level:
On the day-to-day level it is important for teachers to adjust their lessons to the different classes. This week I had a lesson where the students were going to talk about symbols they have been tracking through the course of Lord of the Flies. Every sixth student has a different symbol. First, they were going to talk with their group who all had the same symbol, then they were going to jigsaw out to other students and share their knowledge.
When I had them pull out their symbolism papers, the majority had little to none writing on their papers. I knew I had to tweak my lesson plan or else they would not be able to talk with each other about anything. So, instead of starting them with their same-symbol group, I gave them five to seven minutes to have the opportunity to write down on their paper. After the students had this time, they were able to contribute to their group. I know this is a very small instance of adjusting, but it really shows me how important it is to adjust and not be upset about a disrupted lesson plan.
Larger scale level:
In my class that gives me woe, they are struggling to understand The Great Gatsby. The lexile level is what they are supposed to be reading at, but still they are struggling. The activities I have been giving them are not very effective because they are not reading/not understanding the material. They should have been halfway through the novel, but they are barely at the beginning of chapter one.
After a couple of class periods of frustration, I talked with my cooperating teacher. She gave me a suggestion. Earlier in the year, she had the class read in groups in class. That way they read the literature and you can make sure they are understanding it. So basically, I am starting my Gatsby unit over.
It is frustrating, but with this class I feel that is the best option. We tried this way a couple days this week and it seemed to be effective. The students seem to be getting it. The next couple weeks will help me see if this way is more effective. I'm optimistic.
Small scale level:
On the day-to-day level it is important for teachers to adjust their lessons to the different classes. This week I had a lesson where the students were going to talk about symbols they have been tracking through the course of Lord of the Flies. Every sixth student has a different symbol. First, they were going to talk with their group who all had the same symbol, then they were going to jigsaw out to other students and share their knowledge.
When I had them pull out their symbolism papers, the majority had little to none writing on their papers. I knew I had to tweak my lesson plan or else they would not be able to talk with each other about anything. So, instead of starting them with their same-symbol group, I gave them five to seven minutes to have the opportunity to write down on their paper. After the students had this time, they were able to contribute to their group. I know this is a very small instance of adjusting, but it really shows me how important it is to adjust and not be upset about a disrupted lesson plan.
Larger scale level:
In my class that gives me woe, they are struggling to understand The Great Gatsby. The lexile level is what they are supposed to be reading at, but still they are struggling. The activities I have been giving them are not very effective because they are not reading/not understanding the material. They should have been halfway through the novel, but they are barely at the beginning of chapter one.
After a couple of class periods of frustration, I talked with my cooperating teacher. She gave me a suggestion. Earlier in the year, she had the class read in groups in class. That way they read the literature and you can make sure they are understanding it. So basically, I am starting my Gatsby unit over.
It is frustrating, but with this class I feel that is the best option. We tried this way a couple days this week and it seemed to be effective. The students seem to be getting it. The next couple weeks will help me see if this way is more effective. I'm optimistic.
Friday, February 13, 2015
testing 1...2...3...
This week did Sage Testing. Basically, it is an end of the year writing test that measures how well a student understood the standards for that year. We are doing the writing portion in February. I will say that again. The end of the level testing is done in February. This makes no sense to me. How can you test the knowledge of students at an end of the year level standard when they have only completed half of the year? It blows my mind.
So that is why for the past few weeks, I have only been focusing on ways to help them on the test. Last minute prep sort of stuff. While important, it has taken the fun out of teaching English for me. Through all my methods classes, I was taught to teach in context. In other words, if I am teaching a class novel, the activities and lessons and learning are intertwined with what we are reading. I see it as a sneaky way to have students learn. They learn how to write arguments by tracing symbols in a piece of literature and giving their claim, evidence and reasoning. It seems more fun when attached to literature.
But I have not had the opportunity to do that for the first half of the term because I have had to focus solely on the testing. Needless to say, I am excited for next week and the weeks to come. I get to dive into the book and teach principles and incorporate the literature in my lessons. I will get to have discussions about the book and what the students are thinking.
I am not saying that only focusing on testing is a bad thing; it is just not what I see myself when I think of having my own classroom. If I can focus on the core standards and incorporate those into my lessons, then the students should be fine when it comes to the test.
This week, I had my first parent-teacher conferences! I was not as scared as I thought. I realized that my grades were justified and I really only had good things to say about my students. I will admit that sometimes I could not place a face with a name. There are a few things I could improve for next time:
This week was good in showing me the testing side of teaching. I have only experienced teaching at a student level, so it was pretty eye-opening to see the teacher side. It is quite mind-numbingly boring. But it is all part of the experience.
So that is why for the past few weeks, I have only been focusing on ways to help them on the test. Last minute prep sort of stuff. While important, it has taken the fun out of teaching English for me. Through all my methods classes, I was taught to teach in context. In other words, if I am teaching a class novel, the activities and lessons and learning are intertwined with what we are reading. I see it as a sneaky way to have students learn. They learn how to write arguments by tracing symbols in a piece of literature and giving their claim, evidence and reasoning. It seems more fun when attached to literature.
But I have not had the opportunity to do that for the first half of the term because I have had to focus solely on the testing. Needless to say, I am excited for next week and the weeks to come. I get to dive into the book and teach principles and incorporate the literature in my lessons. I will get to have discussions about the book and what the students are thinking.
I am not saying that only focusing on testing is a bad thing; it is just not what I see myself when I think of having my own classroom. If I can focus on the core standards and incorporate those into my lessons, then the students should be fine when it comes to the test.
This week, I had my first parent-teacher conferences! I was not as scared as I thought. I realized that my grades were justified and I really only had good things to say about my students. I will admit that sometimes I could not place a face with a name. There are a few things I could improve for next time:
- bring my seating chart.
- That way when I am faced with the dilemma of not knowing the face of the named child, I can quickly look and recall information about them
- bring a laptop
- This way I could access grades, attendance, and other important items I could need.
- post-its
- Luckily, my cooperating teacher had some. This is great for making notes that I can stick directly in the gradebook so I can remember and forget what I talked about.
- writing more detailed notes
- I always think I will remember, but chances are I will not.
This week was good in showing me the testing side of teaching. I have only experienced teaching at a student level, so it was pretty eye-opening to see the teacher side. It is quite mind-numbingly boring. But it is all part of the experience.
Friday, February 6, 2015
Preparations...
This week marks the week before the big SAGE writing test. Everything in my student teaching has led to this test. All of these preparations have got me thinking about how I will eventually decide to prepare my students for the state tests.
To preface, I am a believer in assessment tests. Students should be accountable for their learning and earn the right to move on to the next grade. I am not a believer in the way the system is set up now. The test means something to the teachers, it could effect their job and even their salary, but it does not mean anything to students. I cannot count how many times I have heard students say that this test "doesn't even matter." If they have this attitude going into it, then how can we insure that they are doing their best? How can you put so much pressure on the teachers when its the students' scores that really matter? I have experienced students not wanting to do their work in class. They sit there. They stare at the wall. They ignore you. They will ignore the test. Unless, the test actually matters to them! The only solution that I can offer is that students need to pass, with proficiency, their end of the year assessments in order to move on to the next grade level. Then students would really need to pay attention all year long and for the test. Anyway. That is sort of a tangent.
Along the lines of students not wanting to do their work, I have been struggling to keep the hope of being an impactful teacher for all my students. When I see their bored faces or their heads down one their desks and they are sleeping, I get discouraged. After I told this concern to my cooperating teacher, she said, "you can't give up."
Well, if that wasn't just a life lesson slapping me in the face. This is how I see the teaching profession. You give all you have and then give a little more. And once that is rejected, you try again. Maybe it will hit the students now, maybe in twenty years, maybe never. The point is that you are the one trying to help them succeed. No matter what, they can see that someone is rooting for them.
Taking it one step further into my student teaching, I am not great at it right now. I am not as organized as I should. I do not have the more effective lessons. Heck, I can't even say a sentence without mumbling or stumbling in some way. But. I can't give up. I need to try my hardest so that I can give my students the best I can possibly produce.
This week has reconfirmed that every students has a chance at succeeding at something. I just need to help them find it and not give up looking just because it gets hard.
To preface, I am a believer in assessment tests. Students should be accountable for their learning and earn the right to move on to the next grade. I am not a believer in the way the system is set up now. The test means something to the teachers, it could effect their job and even their salary, but it does not mean anything to students. I cannot count how many times I have heard students say that this test "doesn't even matter." If they have this attitude going into it, then how can we insure that they are doing their best? How can you put so much pressure on the teachers when its the students' scores that really matter? I have experienced students not wanting to do their work in class. They sit there. They stare at the wall. They ignore you. They will ignore the test. Unless, the test actually matters to them! The only solution that I can offer is that students need to pass, with proficiency, their end of the year assessments in order to move on to the next grade level. Then students would really need to pay attention all year long and for the test. Anyway. That is sort of a tangent.
Along the lines of students not wanting to do their work, I have been struggling to keep the hope of being an impactful teacher for all my students. When I see their bored faces or their heads down one their desks and they are sleeping, I get discouraged. After I told this concern to my cooperating teacher, she said, "you can't give up."
Well, if that wasn't just a life lesson slapping me in the face. This is how I see the teaching profession. You give all you have and then give a little more. And once that is rejected, you try again. Maybe it will hit the students now, maybe in twenty years, maybe never. The point is that you are the one trying to help them succeed. No matter what, they can see that someone is rooting for them.
Taking it one step further into my student teaching, I am not great at it right now. I am not as organized as I should. I do not have the more effective lessons. Heck, I can't even say a sentence without mumbling or stumbling in some way. But. I can't give up. I need to try my hardest so that I can give my students the best I can possibly produce.
This week has reconfirmed that every students has a chance at succeeding at something. I just need to help them find it and not give up looking just because it gets hard.
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