Benchmark 5
Deadline = August 13
Chapters 9, 10 & 11
Key Questions:
There are four key questions to
answer for each assignment. Please post your response to each of the four
questions. Remember to post your responses and respond to at least
one other member by each deadline.
FOUR QUESTIONS:
- What was new for you in these chapters?
- What did you read that you know is true and can relate
to based upon what you have seen in your experience as an educator?
- Did something interest you that you would like to research
further to obtain more information and a greater understanding?
- How will this change what you do daily or how can you
implement what you learned from these chapters?
Chapter 10: Do you use the Initiate-Respond-Evaluate (I-R-E) format? If not what do you use that is similar?
ReplyDeleteChapter 11: The authors learned that formative classroom walkthroughs create learning partnerships between teachers and students; among teachers within a grade level, building, or district; among administrators and teachers; and among an administrative team.
This year I trust formative classroom walkthroughs will create learning partnerships on your campus!
I also use the E as explain in a modified IRE questioning format. One item that I know I need to work on is the wait time in order for students to create/find in order to accurately answer.
DeleteMy admin and I had great walk through discussion sessions in which items were discussed and improvements were made and reevaluated. Work still needs to be done in order to mirror the book's examples; one of which is seeing the learning target utilized by students and seen during the actual walkthrough. However, I think it can be done and will be very beneficial to all. I can't wait to utilize some of the forms to see if my appraiser comments any differently.
I typically use more of a socratic method. My students get very frustrated because I answer their responses with another question and try have them think through their responses and analyze and evaluate their theories. I really have worked on my questioning so that I have the students thinking themselves.
DeleteWorking at a new school this year, I think that I will have the opportunity to build partnerships with the administration and teachers on my campus as we work together to do what is best for students.
Karen Harrell. I had never heard of the IRE format, but as I read the descriptors - I use it all of the time - I need to focus more on the probing questions. Loved these last three chapters. They are everything that I believe - students should be able to self assess - When I work with my tech team and student council students - they self assess and they are very motivated. They ask questions, plan, initiate and evaluate their progress. I have never been fond of external rewards, I have always wanted students to work hard and to be proud of their final product - evaluating whether it is the best they can do, These chapters support that whole idea. I had never thought about a learning target before, but when the students set their goals and work toward them they are self assessing. My PGP students set goals each year. During the year we go back and revisit what their goals are and how they are meeting their goals. Chapter 10 touched on questioning strategies. This is something that we have been working on at RCE. We have question stems in most of the classroom - we need to look at the stems on page 178 - we haven't focused on probing/follow up questions - love the one that is "what can you add"...that would keep students engaged in the classroom conversation. A take away from the book and last chapters - I will be working on learning targets with the teachers as we team together for their classrooms. By using the strategies in this book, hopefully we can develop a learning community that we feel comfortable to talk, share, assess and collaborate to improve out student achievement. RCE has been working on this for several years, however, this book brought several concepts into an "AH HA" moment as the book kept going back to the students viewpoint. If we assess our lessons from the view point of the student, we can see where we need focus our learning targets. Reading through this book has made me think about my lessons - sometimes when you have done something for a LONG time - you forget to self assess and make sure you're not just doing something to do something. I will definitely work on building partnerships with my teachers!
ReplyDeleteKaren, I too loved the last three chapters of this book. Students learning to self asses, ask questions, and evaluate their progress. I really want to ini ate the question stems in my classroom this year. I think it would be a great way to get students to have meaning conversations and develop their own questions as well.
Delete2. What did you read that you know is true and can relate to based upon what you have seen in your experience as an educator? I agree with Mrs. Moore, planning closed or open questions as a part my lesson planning to make sure that provoking questions are being asked. I also want to implement more questions stems as well so that it gives all my students a chance to participate in the lesson. Like it says on p. 193, questions help students aim for a learning target, take stock of where they are, and make progress toward reaching target. Questions promote thinking!
ReplyDeleteHow will this change what you do daily or how can you implement what you learned from these chapters? I really liked the lesson plan template (Figure 11.2) on p.205. This is something I would like to use when planning my lessons. What a great way to deepen the understanding of the lesson and make sure the target is being met. I also want to provide the "I can" statements so students can reach the learning target.
I really connected with the quote,” Students who are aiming for a goal- who have made it their own- can and will “activate and sustain” the thinking, beliefs, and actions that will move them toward their learning target.”
ReplyDeleteI am really striving to make this happen in my class this year as I explore and implement the true learning target technique on a day-to-day basis. This quote also made me smile in the way that if I, as the teacher, can create this in my students, then I have created life long learners that can accomplish anything they set their minds to.
1. I think the biggest thing that was new for me was the realization that with the learning target theory students have the look fors in hand at the beginning of the lesson. I like the learning target theory, but question the balance between allowing students to try, fail, experiment, and test theories and handing them all the look fors for every lesson. I think that many times students don’t really know how to question and experiment for themselves so finding a way to create look fors that allow them to self-assess along with experimenting at the same time.
ReplyDelete2. I completely know that the questioning strategies listed in Ch. 10 are completely true. It is absolutely essential to use open questions with students rather than closed. Students need to be able to think, analyze, hypothesize, and evaluate information and questioning with closed questions doesn’t allow for that kind of critical thinking.
3. I would definitely like to look more at creating student look fors that allow for experimentation, theorizing, and trial/error. Kids need to have look fors along with the ability to question and experiment. Creating quality look fors that balance both is possible, but I need to research the wording and idea a bit more.
4. I really want to work on creating student look fors for my lessons along with really looking at what the learning target is for each lesson and really begin to put together quality learning targets and student look fors that are models for my teachers.
I loved the chapters on student self-assessment and effective questioning. We always talk about students taking ownership of their learning, and I think self-assessment is something that allows them to do that.
ReplyDeleteWhen I first started teaching, I had an amazing mentor who asked the best open ended questions. They not only made the students think, they made the students talk. His students had the best discussions, and could learn so much from a short discussion. As discussed in the chapter, when students have to think and talk about the material instead of give the “correct” answer, they process more and learn more because they’ve had to make connections and synthesize the learning. Whenever I ask students questions, I try to channel him.
I agree with your ideas about self-assessment. There should be an element in every class' grading period where at least 1 grade was given by the student. I have found in the past that students are often hardest on themselves. I know I am harder on myself than most of my evaluators.
DeleteWe have been talking a lot at SWMS about the 25%/75% model. Where the teachers are talking on 25% of the class and the students are thinking/reading/collaborating/speaking 75% of the class period. I think that the chapter on effective questioning fits right into that model. I loved the question starters on page 184 and will create a little cheat sheet for me to be able to refer to until it becomes more mine.
ReplyDeleteI think that the book as a whole really speaks to being purposeful during our time with students. Purposeful lessons that are directly in line with the learning target, giving students things to look for in their own learning, giving effective feedback and using effective questioning. I have to admit, with a title like Formative Classroom Walkthroughs, I would have never picked it up myself to read it but I am glad I did read it. I just worry that there is so limited time in public education (people are stretched so thin) that implementing some of these processes will take time to shift the current status quo. Students would benefit.