5 E's Lesson

Engage: I will demonstrate Math Dance moves. I can have a few students come up and I will have them do some of the moves. This engages them because it looks ridiculous and is funny.
Explore: Students come up with their own Math Dance Moves. They discover ways they can get their body to look like math. They collaborate with other students to come up with group moves or discover what other students have done.
Explain: Students come up and tell the class why they chose their move and what math concept it represents.
Elaborate: Students work in groups to try and make mathematical sense of the different moves. They can make an equation with their moves, etc. They are working together to try and fit all of their ideas together. They can present their moves to the class.
Evaluate: Students fill out an exit sheet at the end asking them if they liked the idea their group came up with. The exit slip will also ask them to come up with one more way they could have put the moves together. I will ask them if they enjoyed the activity, and what they felt they've learned from doing it.

Information Processing

Social Cognitivism Study Guide

Social Cognitivism Study Guide

Objectives:

●     Identify ways in which an understanding of triarchic reciprocal causality will impact your future teaching.

●     Describe ways to encourage self-regulation in your students.

●     Explain ways to successfully model skills and knowledge in your curriculum.

●     Analyze the impacts of self-efficacy in students and in the teacher.

Key Terms:

Pages 269-273

Learning (social cognitive view) – Learning happens through observation of others.

Social cognitive theory – Theory that adds concern with cognitive factors such as beliefs, self-perceptions, and expectations to social learning theory.

Observational learning – Learning by observation and imitation of others.

            Attention – As teachers, we need to capture students’ attention to the critical features of the lesson by making clear presentation and highlighting important points.

            Retention – In order to imitate behavior, you have to remember it. The material will need to be represented in some way like verbal or visual, or both. Practice helps us remember.

            Production – Practice, feedback, and coaching.

            Motivation and Reinforcement – If we anticipate being reinforced for imitating the actions, we may be more motivated to pay attention, remember, and reproduce the behaviors.

Vicarious Reinforcement – Increases the chances that we will repeat a behavior by observing another person being reinforced for that behavior.

Self-reinforcement – Controlling your own reinforcers.

Self-management – Use of behavioral learning principles to change your own behavior.

Pages 423-434

Triarchic reciprocal causality – An explanation of behavior that emphasizes the mutual effects of the individual and the environment on each other.

Self-efficacy – A person’s sense of being able to deal effectively with a particular task.

Human agency – The capacity to coordinate learning skills, motivation and motions to reach your goals.

Modeling – Changes in behavior, thinking, or emotions that happen through observing another person – a model.

Factors that affect observational learning (Table 27.2, pg. 428)

Developmental Status	Use strategies, compare performances with memorial representations, and adopt intrinsic motivators.
Model Prestige and Competence	Observers pay greater attention to competent models. Modeled behaviors convey info about functional value.
Vicarious Consequences	Valued consequences motivate observers. Similarity in attributes or competence signals appropriateness and heightens motivation.
Outcome Expectations	Observers are more likely to perform modeled actions they believe are appropriate and will result in rewarding outcomes.
Goal Setting	Observers are likely to attend to models who demonstrate behaviors that help observers attain goals.
Self-efficacy	If they can do it, I can too. They do things they see other people doing that they feel like they should be able to also.

Live Models (not in text) – An actual individual demonstrating or acting out a behavior.

Symbolic Models (not in text) – Involves real or fictional characters displaying behaviors in books, films, television programs, or online media.

Teachers’ sense of efficacy – A teacher’s belief that he or she can reach even the most difficult students and help them learn.

Review Self-regulated learning (pages 435-441) – Analyzing the Task, Setting Goals, Devising Plans, Enacting Tactics and Strategies, Regulating Learning.

Summary:

I didn’t think I’d agree with this theory as much as I do. This section talked about how people learn by watching others. This is where modeling comes in. I learned math primarily by reading solutions manuals. As I was following what was going on, I was able to learn the math involved. It’s hard to learn something if you haven’t seen it done. If you were trying to learn how to throw a basketball, it would help to watch someone do it first. I also liked the idea, “If you can do it, I can too.” Lots of people have that sense of ego. Why not exploit it?

Information Processing in the Classroom

Explain how you will use the information processing model of memory to teach a lesson in your content area. Your response should include specific ideas for gaining and maintaining students' attention, activating prior knowledge, rehearsing information in working memory, dual-coding, and encoding to long-term memory.

Learning and using the Quadratic Equation:
Attention: Attention is attained and maintained by having engaging activities and switching the activity ever 10-15 minutes. The class starts with a fun game that refreshed solving polynomials by factoring. The activity would be one that gets them up and moving. Some of the students could be a factor. For example, one student would be (x-3), and another would be (x+2). Other students would be equations like (x^2 - x - 6). The factors would have to go find an equation they belong to and the equation would be searching for it's factors. The activity would switch into a brief explanation of how some equations can't be factored so we need to learn a new method for solving equations. I would then introduce the formula and we would learn the quadratic formula song. The song would play with the lyrics on the board.
To add some psych terms... the first activity is activating their prior knowledge after gaining the attention. We are using that knowledge of equations to move into the formula. We rehearse the song over and over to make sure the students are keeping it in working memory. We are sing the words while also looking at the equation visually. They are using both visual and speech to learn the idea. By using the catching song, it's being encoded to long-term memory. We can also repeat the song every few days to make sure it's making it to long-term memory. Tada! Beautiful lesson... er, it probably is only half a lesson.

Behaviorism in the Classroom

Explain how you might use shaping to help students learn a difficult concept or skill. Be specific - choose a specific concept or skill and narrate how you will shape it. Remember that shaping MUST include reinforcement for each successive attempt.

Shaping:
Difficult Skill: Linear Inequalities.
Step 1. Review Inequalities - Play quick review game. Students enjoy playing and it allows the students to feel success when they get the right answer.
Step 2. Graphing of lines - Every day they walk in, we'll do the desk hunting game where students will be given an equation and they will need to find the seat that has the correct graph on it. In order to motivate them to learn it well, I will have days where if all the students can find their correct seat in a certain amount of time, they can chose their own seat the next day.
Step 3. Graphing Inequalities - I can add these into the Seat Swapping activity too, but I could also do challenges in class for the kids to be able to explain when and where to shade, etc. These challenges can be set up like an obstacle course. They would move through the course by answering the questions correctly. Half of the kids would be at stations while the other half moved through the course. Then they would switch. This activity provides motivation for the students by creating a desire for them to complete the course but my motives would be to have them accomplish the goals for the lesson.

I know these are all games type activities. I was having a hard time thinking of other things that could act as reinforcers.

Constructivism Study Guide

Constructivism Study Guide

Objectives:

●     Analyze the impact of constructivist pedagogies on teaching and learning

●     Consider how constructivist techniques can be implemented effectively in your content area

●     Discuss when constructivist techniques are most appropriate

●     Identify constructivist theories beyond what is provided in the text

●     Promote higher-order thinking and conceptual understanding

●     Evaluate the use of constructivist pedagogies in the US and other nations

Key Terms:

Pages 371-383

Constructivism – View that emphasizes the active role of the learner in building understanding and making sense of information.

Individual constructivism – are concerned with how individuals build up certain elements of their cognitive or emotional apparatus.

Radical constructivism – Knowledge is assumed to be the individual’s construction; it cannot be judged right or wrong.

Social constructivism – learning means belonging to a group and participating in the social construction of knowledge.

Community of practice – Social situation or context in which ideas are judged useful or true.

Situated learning – The idea that skills and knowledge are tied to the situation in which they were learned and difficult to apply in new settings.

Complex learning environments – Problems and learning situations that mimic the ill-structured nature of real life.

Social negotiation – Aspect of learning process that relies on collaboration with others and respect for different perspectives.

Structure (not in text) - Help kids see structure of the discipline. How it fits into the big picture.

Readiness (not in text) - What are they ready for? Based on ZPD.

Intuition (not in text) - Allowing kids to go through with their gut.

Motivation (not in text in this context!) - Kids are motivated by things that are real and authentic.

Spiral curriculum – Bruner’s design for teaching that introduces the fundamental structure of all subjects early in the school years, then revisits the subjects in more and more complex forms over time.

Enactive (not in text) - Hands on processing. (Baby Books, crinkle, fuzzy, etc.)

Iconic (not in text) - Processing using imagery. (Picture Books)

Symbolic (not in text) - Processing using symbols like words, letters, etc. (Chapter books)

Pages 384-404

Discovery learning (not in text) - Figuring out based on prior knowledge. Feedback is necessary.

Authentic activities (not in text) - Individualized. Tasks identical or similar to what they'll encounter later in life.

Inquiry learning – Approach in which the teacher presents a puzzling situation and students solve the problem by gathering data and testing their conclusions.

Problem-based learning – Methods that provide students with realistic problems that don’t necessarily have “right” answers.

Anchored instruction – A type of problem-based learning that uses a complex, interesting situation as an anchor for learning.

Cognitive apprenticeship – A relationship in which a less experiences learner acquires knowledge and skills under the guidance of an expert.

Reciprocal teaching – A method, based on modeling, to teach reading comprehension strategies, designed to help students understand and think deeply about what they read.

Cooperative learning (spend some quality time with this - there are some great suggestions!) – Situations where elaboration, and argumentation are integral to the activity of the group and where learning is supported by other individuals.

Reciprocal questioning – Students work in pairs or triads to ask and answer questions about lesson material.

Jigsaw – A learning process in which each student is part of a group and each group member is given part of the material to be learned by the whole group. Students become “expert” on their piece and then teach it to the others in their group.

Structured controversy – Students work in pairs within their four-person cooperative groups to research a particular controversy.

Pages 405-414

Service learning – Combines academic learning with personal and social development for secondary and college students.

Digital divide – A split between access to technologies between those who fall into high versus low socioeconomic status.

Summary:
My way of thinking! I'm extremely interested in hands on learning. I'm kinestheic and so I've always learned this way. I've wondered if it would help most people or just some. In learning about out learning styles, there was a pretty even distribution in our class. I wonder if it would be as effective for other types of learners. There are many different approaches to teaching constructively. These range from cooperation to inquiry learning. I love the idea of having students come up with their own desires for learning, and the teacher helping them. This is how young children learn. If they aren't interested, they won't do it. This allows for students to remain excited about learning rather than hating it after being in the education system.

Marcia's Identity States

Behaviorism Study Guide

Behaviorism Study Guide

Objectives:

• Identify when the use of behaviorist strategies is most appropriate
• Describe a system of reinforcers and punishers you might use in your future classroom
• Discuss the differences between classical and operant conditioning

Key Terms:

Pages 241-252

Learning (Behaviorist definition) – Process where experience causes permanent change in knowledge or behavior.

Contiguity – Association of two event because of repeated pairing.

Stimulus – An event that activates behavior.

Response – Observable reaction to a stimulus.

Classical conditioning – Association of automatic responses with new stimuli. (Pavlov's dogs)

    Neutral stimulus – Stimulus that's not connected to a response.

    Unconditioned stimulus (US) – Stimulus that automatically produces an emotional or physiological response.

    Unconditioned response (UR) – Naturally occurring emotional or physiological response.

    Conditioned stimulus (CS) – Stimulus that evokes an emotional or physiological response after conditioning.

    Conditioned response (CR) – Learned response to a previously neutral stimulus.

Generalization (not in text) – the tendency to respond in the same way to different but similar stimuli.

Discrimination (not in text) – the ability to perceive and respond to differences among stimuli... more advanced form of generalization.

Operant conditioning – Learning in which voluntary behavior is strengthened or weakened by consequences or antecedents.

Reinforcement/Reinforcer – Use of consequences to ALWAYS strengthen behavior, or an event that follows a behavior to increase likelihood their do it again.

Positive reinforcement – strengthening behavior by presenting a desired stimulus after behavior.

Negative reinforcement – Strengthening behavior by removing an adverse stimulus then the behavior occurs.

Punishment – Process that ALWAYS weakens or suppresses behavior.

Presentation punishment – Decreasing the chances that a behavior will occur again by presenting an aversive stimulus following the behavior; also called Type I punishment.

Removal punishment – Decreasing the chances that a behavior will occur again by removing a pleasant stimulus following the behavior; also called Type II punishment.

Continuous reinforcement schedule – reinforcer comes after every appropriate response.

Intermittent reinforcement schedule – reinforcer comes after some but not all responses.

Extinction – disappearance of a learned response.

Cueing – providing a stimulus that “sets up” a desired behavior.

Pages 253-268

Applied behavior analysis (ABA) – The application of behavioral learning principles to understand and change behavior.

Premack Principle – states that a more-preferred activity can serve as a reinforcer for a less-preferred activity.

Shaping – reinforcing each small step of progress toward goal or behavior.

Positive practice – practicing correct responses immediately after errors.

Response cost – punishment by loss of reinforcers.

Group consequences – rewards or punishments given to a whole class for adhering to or violating rules.

Contingency contract – contract between teacher and student that specifies what student must do to earn a reward or privilege.

Token Economy (token reinforcement system) – system where tokens are earned for academics and behavior which can be exchanged for a reward.

Fading (not in text) - behavior modification where an initial prompting to perform an action is gradually withdrawn until the need for it fades away.

Summary:

There are lots of ways to condition or train people to respond in desirable ways. You can do individual conditioning or group/class conditioning. I'll need to figure out what kinds of things I'll be able to do in my school and what kinds of conditioning would be best for my classes. I found the severe behavior problems information interesting. Students with severe behavior problems seem to behave better when they can earn something monetary. I really liked the contingency contract for completing assignments graph. I like how the chart moves up so it shows progress always in an upward slant. I like the idea of students being able to gauge how they are doing with this chart. I could make a standard chart for everyone in the class and they could fill out their progress as we go throughout the semester with regular check ups. My only question would be what the chart looks like if they got behind on one section and was on track later... so they might have several late assignments.  

Moral Development Study Guide

Moral Development Study Guide

Objectives:

• Explain various theories of moral development.
• Analyze the relationship between moral and cognitive development.
• Determine a child’s stage of moral development and implement strategies to promote moral development in the classroom

Key Terms:

Pages 119-128

Theory of mind – Understanding that people have their own minds, thoughts, feelings, beliefs, desires, and perceptions.

Perspective-taking ability – Understanding that other have different feelings and experiences.

Moral reasoning – Thinking process involved in judgments about questions of right and wrong.

Moral realism – Stage of development wherein children see rules as absolute.

Morality of cooperation – Stage of development wherein children realize that people make rules and people can change them.

Moral dilemmas – Situations in which no choice is clearly and indisputable right.

Kohlberg’s stages of moral development

Level 1: Preconventional morality

• Stage 1: Punishment-avoidance and obedience
  • Rules are obeyed to avoid punishment. A good or bad action is determined by it's physical consequences.
• Stage 2: Exchange of favors (Personal Reward Orientation)
  • Personal needs determine right and wrong. Favors are returned along the lines of “You scratch my back, I'll scratch yours.”

Level 2: Conventional morality

• Stage 3: Good boy/good girl
  • Good means “nice.” It is determined by what pleases, aids, and is approved by others.
• Stage 4: Law and order
  • Laws are absolute. Authority must be respected and the social order maintained.

Level 3: Postconventional morality

• Stage 5: Social contract
  • Good is determined by socially agreed-upon standards of individual rights. This is a morality similar to that of the U.S. Constitution.
• Stage 6: Universal ethical principle
  • Good and right are matters of individual conscience and involve abstract concepts of justice, human dignity, and equality.

Ethic of care – Carol Gilligian – individuals move from a focus on self-interest to moral reasoning based on commitment to specific individuals and relationships, and then to the highest level of morality based on the principles of responsibility and care for all people (like Kohlberg's state 3, good boy/good girl).

Social conventions – Agreed-upon rules and ways of doing things in a particular situation.

Internalize – Process whereby children adopt external standards as their own.

Summary:

I've never thought about morality in a high school class room. I found the first few definitions interesting. I remember when I realized everyone doesn't think like me... It's hard not to feel like everyone should think like me... I'm so smart! Haha. Kohlberg splits morality into stages. I'd never thought of them having stages, but I feel it's important to identify what kind of morality your students are in and try and help them get to the next stage. This seems like it would be tied in to identity and what you believe in. Some morality issues need to be taught, but not in the general form. I feel like I'd been taught codes of ethics etc... but it should somehow be sneaked in with the general content. Maybe I could present a moral dilemma situation that relates to math. I can't think of any right now, but I would love to do something like that!

Identity Blog

How will you support your students' identity development? Be specific. Use suggestions from the textbook and/or online resources to support your strategies.

I reading about identity online, I came across this article called Six Ways to Build Your Teen's Identity. I really liked the ideas and I think they would be great to implement into a classroom. I've adapted them to fit my classroom needs.

1. Encourage Self Discovery

I want students to think about who they are and what they believe in. I know identity doesn't seem like it directly relates to math, but you could stray a little from math once in a while. I want to give students a word and have them write down everything they think about it. I feel like we could dedicate each week to a new theme like trust or something (I think I've mentioned this idea previously in this class...). Throughout the week we could explore different trust situations and if possible relate them to math. :)
2. Acknowledge Natural Abilities

Students love to be recognized for what they are good at. When you can see their talents and encourage them to develop them further, students can better develop who they are. Also try and notice talents they may not be aware of and help them explore them. Try and incorporate ways in which the students can use their talents, even if their talent isn't math. This can be done in different assignment, projects, and class instruction.
3. Create a Class Motto

By having a motto that is often repeated, students begin to believe that it's true. It's kind of the like the idea of the book The Secret. If you believe it's true, it will come true. The example in the article mentioned a family motto of "we aren't quitters." I love this motto! It's simple, but keeps them driven. I feel it would make a great classroom motto!

4. Value Uniqueness
Students don't want to be like everyone else. Celebrating what makes them unique can help them develop themselves separated from the rest of the teen population. I could let students know when they are missed and why. I'll need to be specific about what it is that was missed like their humor, good attitude, etc. I can also have them come up with ideas that sets them apart from others and we can talk about or write about if they like what makes them unique.

There are lots of ways to encourage students to find their identity. The important part is to just do something.

Schooling the World

1. How is this film related to Vygotsky's Sociocultural Theory of cognitive development?

Vygotsky says society and culture influence thought. I thought it was interesting in the video when they mentioned how everyone has the same capacity of knowledge and learning, but they are learning differently depending on where they are. The farmers know how to tend the crops and animals. People in the schools know... something else? How to speak and read English... whatever good that does right now. I agree with some of the opinions that it's sad that the elderly who live on the farms believe they don't know anything. The theory stresses the interaction between developing people and the culture in which they live. Students are often learning about how western culture is great which could make them view their culture as sub par and make them feel like they have a lower quality of life equating to less happiness. Since the societal view of Indian culture is negative, they may be negative about their identity.

2. What are your reactions to this film? Has it changed your perspective in any way?

I'm a little frustrated with the video. I feel they've had some interesting points and it's opened my eyes a little bit... but it's no reason education is failing there!! They have no economy for them to be educated into. What will education do if the education they have doesn't help their society become better? They need to learn how to take baby steps. They need to learn less about America and how great it is and more about what's great about their country and what they can do over there to enhance their own society.

3. What was the most powerful moment in the film for you? Why?

It was when the male teacher was teaching about mirrors. The students weren't really responding, and he didn't seem particularly educated himself. You can't teach anyone if you don't know what you are doing. He was standing there and reading and repeating the same line several times. The students had no context for what was going on. Leaning isn't about sitting in a classroom. It's about being involved in something. Kids need to be doing something to learn. In one part of the video, it was mentioned that they were taken away from nature and learned about it with pictures in textbooks. I don't understand why they are teaching that way. If they are going to learn about nature, then nature needs to either be brought in the classroom or the students need to go outside and learn for themselves!

4. Is anything like this happening in the United States? Explain.

I'm not sure. This could be related to minority cultures. They are often times learning literature from the white perspective. They don't relate to what's being taught and don't seem to fit in either culture. When they get to the work field, there are many positions filled with white people and few for anyone with color. Teachers need to learn how to teach to each student and not be stuck in one way of teaching. The world is changing... education should too.

Differentiation

For a specific topic in your content area, explain how you would differentiate instruction for readiness. Ideas may include the use of grouping, different levels of scaffolding, intervention/enrichment, and/or the use of technology.

Unit Circle Integrative lesson: In the lesson, the students are given data that they need to analyze and find patterns. This is a discovery lesson where students are learning information from the data given. I would provide them half of a unit circle and have them look at similarities and differences. Every student will have something they could contribute. For the students that are more advanced, I could have them think about more complex connections.

Spaghetti Graphs: In this lesson they are making a sine graph from the unit circle out of spaghetti. I will model every step and the so all students will have the same chance for success. While they are doing the steps, I will also be available for questions. I will also have them working in pairs or small groups so they will have someone else to figure things out with them.

If I can, I plan on heavily using the smart board. With the Math Tools software, I can create math diagrams and use graphs. I will be saving each screen as we go, and all the examples. I feel it's more important to try and focus on the concepts rather than madly taking notes. I will provide the screens digitally with the students so they don't have to take notes. This will help kids with readiness because they can spend as much of their energy as possible on the lesson.

Social Development Study Guide

Social Development Study Guide

Objectives:

• Discuss the role of relationships and social contexts in education
• Identify Erikson’s Psychosocial Crises and discuss ways to address these crises in the classroom
• Consider the implications of Marcia’s Identity States on adolescent behavior
• Promote positive self-concepts among your students

Terms:

Pages 81-94

Bronfenbrenner’s Bioecological model

Everyone has Systems in side each other in the following order with the first being the most inside system:

Mesosystems in Microsystems – Family, Classroom, Peer Group, Religious Setting

Exosystem – Mass Media, Community, School System, Medical Institutions

Macrosystem – Cultural Values, National Customs, Political Philosophy, Economic Patterns, Social Conditions.

Authoritative – high warmth, high control. This is what I want to be. Listen for concerns, give reasons for rules, allow democratic decision making. Parents help children think through consequences of actions.

Authoritarian – low warmth, high control. This was my parents. Seem cold and controlling. Children are expected to me mature because parents said do. Little talk about emotions. Punishments strict, but not abusive.

Permissive – high warmth, low control. Warm and nurturing, but few rules and consequences. Kids will be kids.

Attachment – Emotional bond with someone else, often a parent or family member.

Overt aggression – Hostile aggression that involves physical attack.

Relational aggression – Hostile aggression that involves verbal attacks.

Pages 95-118

Psychosocial – emphasizes the emergence of self, search for identity, relationship with others, and the role of culture throughout life.

Developmental crises – a conflict between a positive and a potentially unhealthy alternative.

Erikson’s model of psychosocial development

Trust v. Mistrust (Birth-18 months, Feeding) Infant must form loving, trusting relationship with caregiver or they develop a sense of mistrust.

Autonomy v. Shame & Doubt (18 months-3 years, Toilet Training) Child's energies directed toward the development of physical skills like walking, grasping, and controlling the sphincter. Child learns control but may develop shame and doubt if not handled well.

Initiative v. Guilt (3-6 years, Independence) Child continues to become more assertive and to take more initiative but may be too forceful, which can lead to guilt feelings.

Industry v. Inferiority (6-12 years, School) Child must deal with demand to learn new skills or risk a sense of inferiority, failure, and incompetence.

Identity v. Role Confusion (Adolescence, Peer Relationships) The teenager mush achieve identity in occupation, gender roles, politics, and religion.

Intimacy v. Isolation (Young Adulthood, Love Relationships) The young adult must develop intimate relationships or suffer feelings of isolation.

Generativity v. Stagnation (Middle Adulthood, Parenting/Mentoring) Each adult must find some way to satisfy and support the next generation.

Ego Integrity v. Despair (Late Adulthood, Reflection on and acceptance of one's life) The culmination is a sense of acceptance of oneself and a sense of fulfillment.

Self-concept – Knowledge and beliefs about yourself, ideas, feelings, attitudes, and expectations.

Marcia’s Theory of Identity Development

Identity diffusion – a status in which the adolescent is not interested in making choices or pursuing information regarding identity.

Identity foreclosure – a status in which the adolescent commits to an identity prematurely, typically by conforming to others' expectations.

Moratorium – a status in which the adolescent is actively seeking information about identity but has not yet made a commitment.

Identity achievement – a status in which the adolescent has gone through an identity crisis and committed to an identity.

Gender identity – Self identification as male or female.

Sexual identity – A complex combination of beliefs and orientations about gender roles and sexual orientation.

Gender schemas – Organized networks of knowledge in brain about what it means to be a male or female.

Summary:

This section got me thinking a lot about parenting. I thought about the kind of parents we've already decided we wanted to be. I was happy to see it fit under the Authoritative parenting style. I'm not a huge fan of the title, but I agreed with it's description. I like learning about Erikson's Stages. As a teacher of Adolescent students, I'll get to help students with the most difficult stage involving identity.

It's going to be hard to not treat myself as a parent to the students I teach. I'm going to have to be especially careful not to sway my students to things I believe in. I know I will want the kids to discover and decide things on their own, but I will also have love for my students in which I could see myself guiding them in directions that I feel are good. Maybe that's ok.

.

Classroom Assessment Study Guide

Objectives:

• Describe how you can promote learning through your use of classroom assessment. 
• Identify the important qualities of good assessment. 
• Consider how you will use assessment, testing, and grades as you evaluate your students. 

Terms:
Pages 605-612 and additional pages/websites to clarify definitions, as needed

Standardized tests – Tests given, usually nationwide, under the same conditions and scored the same.

Classroom assessments – Assessments chosen by teachers to check for understanding. They could be unit tests, essays, portfolios, projects, performances, oral presentations, etc.

Measurement – An evaluation represented by a number.

Assessment – A way for someone to check for knowledge.

Formal assessment – Something that could be graded or turned in for credit.

Informal assessment – Something that you observe as a teacher that tells you whether students understand something but can't be graded... like listening in on group conversations, etc.

Formative assessment – Similar to informal assessment. Ungraded testing used before or during instruction.

Summative assessment – Testing at the end of a unit that assesses what they've learned.

Norm-referenced – Testing where scores are compared with the average. Standardized tests usually use this.

Criterion-referenced – Testing in which scores are compared to a set standard... like passing the Praxis exams.

Reliability – Consistency of test results.

Validity – Degree to which a test measures what it is intended to measure.

Fairness – Making sure all groups have an equal opportunity to show what they know on a test.

Practicality (not in text - see online lesson materials) – the amount of time, effort, and money the assessment requires.

Summary: This section over viewed the different types of assessment. In class we've emphasized Reliability, Validity, Fairness, and Practicality. I'm going to have a hard time finding balance between these. I like the idea of having practical tests and valid tests, but it will be hard to make sure those are fair for all students. I feel my testing plan seems like it could work. For any test I give, students will be able to make it up. I plan on having alternatives to the test provided that students can choose to do. These alternatives will still test the same content, but in a different way to help all students succeed. I will have criteria they need to do before they can do a retake though.

Application Questions:
1. How do you plan to use assessment in your future classes? Be very specific about the types of assessments you plan to use and why.
I'm not exactly what the best way to test is. I like the idea of having a paper pencil test similar to the ones I've had in college. They usually have a math problem, and students need to solve it. It's free response, so I'd be able to see how much they know, and they won't get be able to get lucky. I know the tests are boring... so I've also liked performance assessments. I was a little skeptical until I'd made one that I really liked in my curriculum course. I love the idea of having them do something as part of the assessment. One example would be to have them use the unit circle to find the 'secret code' to unlock something. It makes testing a little more fun, and by having an observation test where they might need to get up and move could help them and me.

2. Provide links for 3 resources that provide examples and explanations of how assessments are used in your content area that you can use for future reference.
Why are math testing websites so hard to find?
http://balancedassessments.concord.org/ The Harvard Graduate School of Education made a group and came up with a bunch of assessments that can be used in Math broken down by age groups.
http://illuminations.nctm.org/ This website has a bunch of lesson plans that involve doing something. These lessons can be taught and then modified into tests that are nontraditional and possibly more effective.
http://sbstjohn.com/QODWebSite/act_qod.htm When my content aligns with some of the ACT questions, I can use those tests questions to help the students get familiar with the ACT. This can also be done with the SAT's. I wouldn't use these on a Unit test, but maybe a small quiz or even a bell ringer.

3. List the standardized tests that will impact you and your students. Describe any concerns, fears, or other emotions you may have about these tests. If none of the test directly impact you, how could you help your students prepare for and endure them in their other classes?

My students will need to take the CRT, UBSCT, ACT, SAT, ITED, and MAP tests. I think that's all of them. Math is on almost every standardized test. I want to make sure kids are learning the things that I think will best help them in life and in college. I don't want to feel caught up teaching to the test. I don't think I'll have too much of a problem though. I plan on following the core, and it's laid out pretty nicely. I plan on covering everything that should be on the test, but I'll be doing it in an interesting and engaging way to hopefully help the kids remember it better. If each topic is taught in a distinct way, all the math shouldn't blur together.

4. Praxis II: 

When do you plan to take the Praxis II exam for your subject area? 

In July or August. I tried to look up dates... but couldn't figure it out, but at the end of the summer.

What is the minimum score that you must earn on the exam to qualify for your initial teaching license? 

I need a 138.

Look at the topics covered in your exam. What do you need to do to fully prepare for this test?

I need to do a bunch of practice praxis. I have some books, but areas I need to brush up on will be Statistics, Discrete, and Algebra/Number Theory. Some of the things I'll need to learn this summer because I won't be taking the classes I need until the fall. I'm mostly wanting to get the test out of the way before school starts in the fall and I'm way busy.

Look at the sample questions for your exam. Can you answer them correctly? 

It seems like I can do about half of them. Agh! I didn't know I would suck so bad. I feel with the proper prep, it shouldn't be a problem.

5. Praxis II PLT:
When do you plan to take the Praxis II PLT? (Hint: your answer needs to be sometime within the first three years after your initial licensure) 

I also plan on taking the PLT this summer. I'll be finished with all my education classes this block, and I don't see a reason to wait. The information is fresh now.

Look at the topics covered on the Praxis II PLT exam. Compare them with the Table of Contents in our textbook and your syllabi/textbooks for any other Education classes you have taken/are taking. What do you need to do as a student to prepare for this exam? 

Oh, wow... almost everything looks familiar to me. In order to prepare, I'll go over this packet I was given at a UEN convention. I'm not too worried about it. The guy teaching gave me a perfect amount of material that I'll just have to review. I shouldn't need to learn anything new.

Look at the sample essay and multiple choice questions for the PLT. How does this preview of the test change your perspective of your coursework and how you study? 

I did the first several questions, and they seemed pretty straight forward. There was one that I wasn't quite sure on, but the answer made sense. I'll just need to do some practice tests to get in the flow of what kinds of questions they ask.