Digital Blog Post #J - Chapter 11

Scramble by McKenzie Rhodes from Wordle

HEY HEY HEY! I just have to say that this semester and class has been flying by! It's crazy to think that we were all just introducing ourselves a few weeks ago and now we are getting closer to final projects and blog posts.
Throughout chapter eleven it talks about the different ways students can be assessed, not just through the traditional testing approach and more towards what students have created themselves. Student assessment is when the students are assessed on what they have been learning in the classroom through their teacher. What the students are learning goes hand in hand with how you are teaching. If a student is not doing well, what am I doing as a teacher that may be hindering that child? And what can I do to help them be more successful?   Along with this teachers are also being evaluated differently. New teacher assessment is when teachers are being evaluated by their supervisors on their work. I remember throughout high school and middle school teachers warning the class that there would be someone sitting in the classroom evaluating their teaching, so we needed to be on our best behavior! But as our textbook states, the evaluation process starts way before we are even a classroom setting with testing, supervision, and writing (Maloy p. 277). OH BOY.

Heres a funny video from YouTube on parent teacher conferences and how their twins are being evaluated. It's comical, but also true to a point. I think as some of us become future parents we need to be careful when we compare our children to one another or "the kid that licks the blackboard". They will most likely not be on the same track on every subject, and that is okay!

Digital teaching portfolio, which at this point in our education, as future teachers, I hope have heard about! But if you are new to that topic, digital teaching portfolios are a way for teachers to show their work online in an organized way. "Even if you have finished several education coursed and a teacher licensing program as a student teacher, or begun your first job as a full time classroom teacher, documenting professional learning accomplishments in a digital teaching portfolio is a way to provide career-related information to school administrators and teaching colleagues and an opportunity for personal reflection on your development as an educator" (Maloy p 279). I think the last part about being able to reflect on your development as an educator is a big point. For me, I would love to see what I was thinking or doing in a classroom when I first start teaching, then a year later, when I have my first year under my belt, I can reflect and see how much I have grown, or where I could use some more work.

Creative Commons photo by Anabell Alicia from Flicker

A really interesting topic that is somewhat new to me, that I wanted to dive into was the topic of democratic schools and classrooms. Democratic schools and classrooms in general is a new topic and way of thinking how a class would be set up. It gives the student more of an opportunity to be involved in their education and academic learning. Here is an article from IDEA on what a democratic school and classroom looks and from the view point of a lesson plan for grades 5-12th grade. I think it is a great way for students to be more involved in their learning. I know as a student if i have a voice in my education then I am more likely to pay attention because I am truly interested in the subject. I think we will see student involvement in the classroom increase, participation, and grades improve if we move towards this type of education

References:

Alicia, Anabell. "Education." Flickr. Yahoo!, 10 Oct. 2010. Web. 24 Mar. 2017.

Maloy, Robert, Verock-O’Loughlin,Ruth-Ellen, Edwards, Sharon A., and Woolf, Beverly Park (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.

Rhodes, McKenzie. "Scramble". Wordle. 24 Mar. 2017. Web. 24 Mar. 2017

Strader, Shawn. "Bringing Democratic Education to Your Classroom and School (Lesson Plan)." Bringing Democratic Education to Your Classroom and School (Lesson Plan) | The IDEA Library. N.p., 13 Jan. 2011. Web. 24 Mar. 2017.

Undulator. 2015, October 15. Retrieved March 23, 2017, from www.youtubecom