Source: Barton, A., & Thomas, W. (2017). Remaking the Grade. Independent School, 76(4), 92-100.
Summary:
In this article, middle school dean Annie Barton, and director of curriculum and instruction, Thomas Wendell, share the experiences that their school went through with moving away from the traditional approach to grading. They shared that three years ago, they had attended a conference that left them questioning their traditional grading practices and whether or not they were accomplishing what they wanted. They determined that they didn't and also decided that middle school was a good fit for shifting away from traditional grading practices because middle school students' brains are still very much malleable.
Their next in the process was to look at their school mission and pinpoint what they wanted students and teachers to work towards. They came up with three categories that would be reported to show student achievement, academic mastery, productivity, and contributions. Productivity focuses on individual behaviors like resourcefulness, mindset, and others. Contributions has a more community based focus.
Their next step was to create rubrics that allowed for teachers to show where students were at in their learning of the three different areas. They decided on a 4 point scale, with each section labeled exceeding, meeting, approaching, and unsatisfactory. Meeting+ and approaching+ were two subcategories that could be used as well. They have made over 100 changes to the rubric and still consider it to be a draft as input has caused and will continue to cause changes.
In the 2015-2016 school year, 6th grade teachers began to implement their mission-based system. They knew that they would have administrative support and were ready for their to be bumps in the road. They found themselves questioning new things as they came up, how often to assess, the weight of formative assessment vs. summative assessment, etc. What they found was that there were fewer discipline problems as teachers had conversations with students about productivity and contributions to class which led students to more understanding and self reflection. They also shifted away from trying to get the best percentage and instead were asking for more feedback. This pilot helped them to then transition to policy. They would implement it one year at a time and for the time being, only keep it at the middle school as high school transcripts are something that can be high stakes.
They have been working with their community to explain their purpose for the shift and the benefits that this kind of mission based system can have, but still have three common concerns come up. One concern is that it seems more subjective than A-F systems, the second is that it might be less rigorous, and the third is that it may hinder students' college prospect. To respond to the first concern, they state the numerous studies from many years that show that A-F grading is indeed subjective and also explain how their rubrics have clear key behaviors and that teachers meet regularly to be sure that they are on the same page. For the second concern, they explain that they have yet to see a student earn all exceeding, whereas earning all A's was very commonplace. Having removed extra credit, teachers are also focusing on more depth than breadth to challenge students towards mastery. And for the third concern, it seems to be focused on two specific things. Parents are concerned students won't know how to earn A's at the high school, which doesn't have missions based currently, as well as what might happen for their college hopes if the high school does get rid of traditional grades. The school addresses these concerns by explaining that while students are no longer "gaming the system" to earn A's in middle school, they are learning other very important skills that will indeed help them to earn plenty of A's. For those concerned about their students' college prospects, the school explains that the New England Board of Higher Education and the New England Secondary School Consortium met with admissions officers from highly selective schools in the area. Through the meeting, they determined that students with proficiency based transcripts would not be disadvantaged.
The last part of the article is some self-reflection of where this school is at. Their 8th grade teachers will roll out the last portion of their new policy this fall. While they are confident in the successes they have had so far, in both the students' perceptions towards learning and their teachers' knowledge of where students are in their learning, they understand that it is difficult to fully comment on their results while they are still in the implementation process. There are still certain aspects of implementing it at the high school that they want to look into further before they decide to do the same kind of system there. In the end, they give themselves a score of Approaching+
Reflection:
I enjoyed reading this article, especially because the authors were very honest in what they presented with the difficulties and concerns that arose during the process so far. I think that this kind of model or some other kind of standards based, objectives based, target based system is something that is perhaps in works within my district. I don't know how far in development it is. At a conference I went to, I heard from Garth Larson, whose district is doing something similar with their grading. What I like about both of these schools/districts and what they did with the grading is that they focus on what is is that students are learning academically as well as behaviorally. Both have included a portion of their grading system that reflects some self-regulatory skills that students need as well as community based skills that students also need to be well rounded citizens both inside of and outside of schools. I feel like the social-emotional side of middle school students is often overlooked in the extreme push for higher standardized test scores. Implementing an approach like this may be one way to help bring back more emphasis on the social emotional side of learning as well. All teachers understand the importance of the social emotional and how those skills are just as important, if not more important, than the academic skills. They should all work together, be taught, and be part of conversations that students have with their students. It is clear that in this middle school, that is definitely the case.
Thursday, June 22, 2017
Wednesday, June 21, 2017
Flip Your Students' Learning
Source: Sams, A., & Bergmann, J. (2013). Flip Your Students' Learning. Educational Leadership, 70(6), 16-20.
Summary:
Authors Aaron Sams and Jonathon Bergmann start off the article with two sentences that set the tone for the whole piece, "Flipped learning is not about how to use videos in your lessons. It’s about how to best use your in-class time with students." They go on to explain that having students go through the lecture at home allows for the teacher to have more one on one time with the students in the classroom. This kind of approach may not work as well in classes that are heavily inquiry based and instead those that have more didactic information. Teachers should think about how they could use flipped learning to increase the face-to-face time with students.
After having decided on where this could come in, the next step is to think about the how. The article lists multiple real examples from classrooms along with links to the videos. Some of the ideas for how to do this are as follows: videos to preview units, videos to pose questions, to review concepts that are needed for upcoming lessons. They go on to explain that the idea of sending students home with something to do in order to be prepared for the upcoming lessons is not anything new. It simply helps to create a more student centered approach where teachers a free to help more students one on one.
Bloom's taxonomy being looked at in conjunction with flipped learning can help to take some of the lower levels of work outside of class, in turn pulling the higher levels back into the classroom. To add on to that, as teachers create a library of lessons, a mastery approach can grow out of Bloom's as well. In their classrooms, they have students move on to new objectives only once they have shown that they have mastered them. This then changing how assessment works because students need to prove that they have mastered something.
After having done some reflection based on the Universal Design for Learning, Aaron and Jon determined that watching videos was not always the best way for all students to learn. Instead of them being a requirement, they were added to other resources as an option for students to choose what best suited them. Something else that became tied to more choice was the traditional assessments. Students still needed to show their understanding, but they got to choose how to best show their understanding. The authors then explain scenarios from classrooms with varying students, subjects, and needs.
The next section on the article focuses on ways for teachers to get started with flipping, Jon and Aaron explain that they didn't develop their approach in a year and learned new things along the way. One word of advice that they had was to think of the flipped classroom more as flipped lesson, flipped learning, or flipped thinking, because they don't convey the idea that flipping lessons is a 100% kind of thing. Instead, they suggest that teachers implement the videos and other aspects when they are necessary, and to start slowly. Maybe flipping one lesson or unit each semester, quarter, etc.
In the end, the explain that a flipped classroom gives teachers the ability to meet the varying needs of their students in a flexible way. A student-centered way.
Reflection:
I enjoyed reading this article because while at first glance you might think that it will be all about how to make videos for all of your lessons, it really delves into the reasons behind flipping lessons. More so than flipping them just to have students working on application in the classroom instead of listening to lecture. What it all boils down to is using the flipped lessons as yet another tool in the tool kit for helping students to determine in which ways they learn best and to work through things at their own pace. I think a major underlying message in this article, and something that is important for me to remember as well, is that there is no one perfect solution, or tool out there. It is a combination of lots of different approaches with the idea that students have some choice and say in their learning as well.
As I move to another grade level of language arts that I haven't taught before, but keep my two Spanish classes this year, I struggle with which classes I want to try some of these ideas out with. I don't want to take on too much, trying to jump in with these ideas full time in all of the different areas. Two different grade levels, and three different curriculums (all which are still being written) for language arts, Heritage Spanish, and Spanish 1 are a lot to handle. I will have to keep reminding myself that it will not be perfect in one year and that taking on too much at once can have the opposite effect. Like Jon and Aaron suggested, I can use videos and resources that are already created and set a goal to start recording some lessons instead of trying to set of goal of recording all possibilities.
Summary:
Authors Aaron Sams and Jonathon Bergmann start off the article with two sentences that set the tone for the whole piece, "Flipped learning is not about how to use videos in your lessons. It’s about how to best use your in-class time with students." They go on to explain that having students go through the lecture at home allows for the teacher to have more one on one time with the students in the classroom. This kind of approach may not work as well in classes that are heavily inquiry based and instead those that have more didactic information. Teachers should think about how they could use flipped learning to increase the face-to-face time with students.
After having decided on where this could come in, the next step is to think about the how. The article lists multiple real examples from classrooms along with links to the videos. Some of the ideas for how to do this are as follows: videos to preview units, videos to pose questions, to review concepts that are needed for upcoming lessons. They go on to explain that the idea of sending students home with something to do in order to be prepared for the upcoming lessons is not anything new. It simply helps to create a more student centered approach where teachers a free to help more students one on one.
Bloom's taxonomy being looked at in conjunction with flipped learning can help to take some of the lower levels of work outside of class, in turn pulling the higher levels back into the classroom. To add on to that, as teachers create a library of lessons, a mastery approach can grow out of Bloom's as well. In their classrooms, they have students move on to new objectives only once they have shown that they have mastered them. This then changing how assessment works because students need to prove that they have mastered something.
After having done some reflection based on the Universal Design for Learning, Aaron and Jon determined that watching videos was not always the best way for all students to learn. Instead of them being a requirement, they were added to other resources as an option for students to choose what best suited them. Something else that became tied to more choice was the traditional assessments. Students still needed to show their understanding, but they got to choose how to best show their understanding. The authors then explain scenarios from classrooms with varying students, subjects, and needs.
The next section on the article focuses on ways for teachers to get started with flipping, Jon and Aaron explain that they didn't develop their approach in a year and learned new things along the way. One word of advice that they had was to think of the flipped classroom more as flipped lesson, flipped learning, or flipped thinking, because they don't convey the idea that flipping lessons is a 100% kind of thing. Instead, they suggest that teachers implement the videos and other aspects when they are necessary, and to start slowly. Maybe flipping one lesson or unit each semester, quarter, etc.
In the end, the explain that a flipped classroom gives teachers the ability to meet the varying needs of their students in a flexible way. A student-centered way.
Reflection:
I enjoyed reading this article because while at first glance you might think that it will be all about how to make videos for all of your lessons, it really delves into the reasons behind flipping lessons. More so than flipping them just to have students working on application in the classroom instead of listening to lecture. What it all boils down to is using the flipped lessons as yet another tool in the tool kit for helping students to determine in which ways they learn best and to work through things at their own pace. I think a major underlying message in this article, and something that is important for me to remember as well, is that there is no one perfect solution, or tool out there. It is a combination of lots of different approaches with the idea that students have some choice and say in their learning as well.
As I move to another grade level of language arts that I haven't taught before, but keep my two Spanish classes this year, I struggle with which classes I want to try some of these ideas out with. I don't want to take on too much, trying to jump in with these ideas full time in all of the different areas. Two different grade levels, and three different curriculums (all which are still being written) for language arts, Heritage Spanish, and Spanish 1 are a lot to handle. I will have to keep reminding myself that it will not be perfect in one year and that taking on too much at once can have the opposite effect. Like Jon and Aaron suggested, I can use videos and resources that are already created and set a goal to start recording some lessons instead of trying to set of goal of recording all possibilities.
Tuesday, June 20, 2017
Podcast
I made a podcast on how I might use podcasts in my classroom. While I thought I was in a quiet spot, my cat was feeling like he needed some attention, so you might hear him in the background! :)
Open Resources - A change for schools?
There are more and more open resource websites for teachers popping up all the time. Here are a few that were shared with me or that I found through a quick search: The OER Commons, Illinois OER, Share my Lesson, and LearnZillion. All that I have looked at have a few unique aspects to them, but something they all have in common are free resources, lessons, or other lesson tools that are available to teachers.
Do websites like these have the potential to change schools?
In my opinion, when looking at just the resources that are available, they don't. They can't.
I don't think that I've heard of schools or districts (that have been successful in great growth) say, "You know, the one factor that helped us be the most successful would be the resources that we used in our classrooms." Resources, whether they be textbooks, Chromebooks, or programs online cannot cause change on their own.
When teachers, administrators, and curriculum coordinators come together, having already determined what their objectives are in reaching their students, and then they look at using some of these open resources. That is when I think change can begin to happen. Many districts, including mine, are having their teachers create new curriculum to replace textbooks and textbook curriculum. This is something that is daunting and time consuming for teachers and schools, especially when teachers feel like they need to create the day to day activities for classes all from scratch. I think that this is where open resources can come into play to help influence change. When schools and teachers have already come together with a common goal in mind, these resources can be picked and used to support that goal and remove some of the daunting tasks of curriculum writing.
Do websites like these have the potential to change schools?
In my opinion, when looking at just the resources that are available, they don't. They can't.
I don't think that I've heard of schools or districts (that have been successful in great growth) say, "You know, the one factor that helped us be the most successful would be the resources that we used in our classrooms." Resources, whether they be textbooks, Chromebooks, or programs online cannot cause change on their own.
When teachers, administrators, and curriculum coordinators come together, having already determined what their objectives are in reaching their students, and then they look at using some of these open resources. That is when I think change can begin to happen. Many districts, including mine, are having their teachers create new curriculum to replace textbooks and textbook curriculum. This is something that is daunting and time consuming for teachers and schools, especially when teachers feel like they need to create the day to day activities for classes all from scratch. I think that this is where open resources can come into play to help influence change. When schools and teachers have already come together with a common goal in mind, these resources can be picked and used to support that goal and remove some of the daunting tasks of curriculum writing.
Monday, June 19, 2017
Syncing OneNote Notebooks - Screencastified How-To Video
Our district recently refreshed the staff laptops with new ones. Staff could choose between "the clam shell laptop" which has a touch screen, but has no tablet capabilities, or "the 2-in-1 laptop" which is a full tablet and laptop in one. As part of picking the 2-in-1, staff went to training on how to use features of Windows 10, tablet mode, and the smart pen. Microsoft One Note was one of the things we were trained on.
A few of my colleagues and I were working together in a self-paced room because we had all used One Note before. I had always used the desktop version of One Note, and one co-worker had used both the desktop version and the app version and preferred the app version's layout and ease of use in the classroom. We didn't think that the notebooks were syncable between the different versions, but when I was playing with my new laptop at home, I figured out that they were! So, I decided to make a video showing them, and anyone else in my district, how to sync between the different versions.
A few of my colleagues and I were working together in a self-paced room because we had all used One Note before. I had always used the desktop version of One Note, and one co-worker had used both the desktop version and the app version and preferred the app version's layout and ease of use in the classroom. We didn't think that the notebooks were syncable between the different versions, but when I was playing with my new laptop at home, I figured out that they were! So, I decided to make a video showing them, and anyone else in my district, how to sync between the different versions.
Adaptive Learning: Are We There Yet?
Source:
Waters, J. K. (2014). Adaptive Learning: Are We There Yet? (Cover story). T H E Journal, 41(4), 12-16.
Summary:
After watching the TED Talk in class, I was more interested in the topic of self-paced learning. I found this article, from 2014, three years after the TED talk that right off the bat explains how what they call adaptive learning has been "heating up" because of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. They argue that adaptive learning and personalized learning, while normally used interchangeably, are actually different things. According to the article, personalized learning is something teachers have always been doing and includes adaptive learning, differentiated instruction, etc whereas adaptive learning is data driven and not always linear.
The article then goes on to explain that there are two different types of adaptive learning, those that the teacher looks at data and makes changes or reteaches as needed and assessment driven models where a program makes its own adjustments without the teacher.
The next section describes that there were many different companies that were teaming up with Microsoft or creating their own web based programs for adaptive learning. Examples: CogBooks, CCKF, Knewton,Triumph Learning, and ALEKS. A few programs are looked at in more detail next. Knewton's infrastructures allows 3rd party vendors to make their products more adaptive and generates data to create learning paths. Another platform maker, Smart Sparrow, uses content created by teachers to give adaptive feedback.
Up next is the explanation of data and how it is used. Because students are in school for a long time, you have the potential to track them throughout their education to create a "learner profile." Due to the amount of information that can be learned, the more a student uses adaptive learning, the more personalized it becomes.
Finally, the article goes on to explain how adaptive software has varying levels of adaptivity to it and can help to really personalize a student's learning experience. The tools can pinpoint specific areas of challenge to students instead of just the broad topic they struggle with. The article ends with the notion that adaptive learning can help teachers to become more outcomes-oriented and can be very powerful as well.
Reflection:
I went to the First Educational Resources conference that was held in my district last week, and the idea of flipped classrooms, personalized learning, standards based learning, and learning for mastery were all things that were mentioned or hinted at a lot, so I found it really interesting that some of these topics were touched upon in class this morning with the TEDTalk video from 2011. I wanted to look more into what I thought were the main ideas of the TEDTalk and came across this article. I enjoyed reading it, even though it is a few years old, especially because I looked up some of the tools that were mentioned to see if they were still around. Many of them seemed to be in their infancy in 2014, of the 6 that I looked up, they were all still in business. I plan to spend more time looking through their websites to see which of them, if any, might be feasible to use in my classroom as I plant to move towards a more blended, mastery based, student-paced classroom. It is exciting to see when ideas are brought up in many different ways in different contexts. It helps to solidify my vision for my classroom.
Links to the 6 Platforms
Triumph
Smart Sparrow
ALEKS
CogBooks
Knewton
Realizeit
Summary:
After watching the TED Talk in class, I was more interested in the topic of self-paced learning. I found this article, from 2014, three years after the TED talk that right off the bat explains how what they call adaptive learning has been "heating up" because of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. They argue that adaptive learning and personalized learning, while normally used interchangeably, are actually different things. According to the article, personalized learning is something teachers have always been doing and includes adaptive learning, differentiated instruction, etc whereas adaptive learning is data driven and not always linear.
The article then goes on to explain that there are two different types of adaptive learning, those that the teacher looks at data and makes changes or reteaches as needed and assessment driven models where a program makes its own adjustments without the teacher.
The next section describes that there were many different companies that were teaming up with Microsoft or creating their own web based programs for adaptive learning. Examples: CogBooks, CCKF, Knewton,Triumph Learning, and ALEKS. A few programs are looked at in more detail next. Knewton's infrastructures allows 3rd party vendors to make their products more adaptive and generates data to create learning paths. Another platform maker, Smart Sparrow, uses content created by teachers to give adaptive feedback.
Up next is the explanation of data and how it is used. Because students are in school for a long time, you have the potential to track them throughout their education to create a "learner profile." Due to the amount of information that can be learned, the more a student uses adaptive learning, the more personalized it becomes.
Finally, the article goes on to explain how adaptive software has varying levels of adaptivity to it and can help to really personalize a student's learning experience. The tools can pinpoint specific areas of challenge to students instead of just the broad topic they struggle with. The article ends with the notion that adaptive learning can help teachers to become more outcomes-oriented and can be very powerful as well.
Reflection:
I went to the First Educational Resources conference that was held in my district last week, and the idea of flipped classrooms, personalized learning, standards based learning, and learning for mastery were all things that were mentioned or hinted at a lot, so I found it really interesting that some of these topics were touched upon in class this morning with the TEDTalk video from 2011. I wanted to look more into what I thought were the main ideas of the TEDTalk and came across this article. I enjoyed reading it, even though it is a few years old, especially because I looked up some of the tools that were mentioned to see if they were still around. Many of them seemed to be in their infancy in 2014, of the 6 that I looked up, they were all still in business. I plan to spend more time looking through their websites to see which of them, if any, might be feasible to use in my classroom as I plant to move towards a more blended, mastery based, student-paced classroom. It is exciting to see when ideas are brought up in many different ways in different contexts. It helps to solidify my vision for my classroom.
Links to the 6 Platforms
Triumph
Smart Sparrow
ALEKS
CogBooks
Knewton
Realizeit
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