Assess Chapter 8

Abstract:
Chapter 8 focuses on the decision on whether you should grade or not in the classroom. On one hand grades seem necessary to track the progress and knowledge of a student but yet on the other you may think that there are other ways to track such things than a letter grade between A and F. The chapter addressed the issue of grading becoming an essential part of the educational system and how it is a good way to gauge a students understanding. Opponents’ to grades say that grades can have a negative impact on student who do not understand the material immediately and hence do not receive high grades. This can be discouraging for students and can lead them to give up where if there were no grades the only thing that would be important was whether the student learned the material or not.
Reflection:
Our group really felt that grades tend to be overrated but until a better method is developed to evaluate a student than grades will have to do. People tend to worry too much about grades and not enough about learning the material. That is the reason why students are in school is to learn not to remember for the test next week and than forget about it. Students can go all the way through high school and learn minimally and receive good grades nonetheless because they are not required to ever learn but yet to memorize. Our group feels that although grades are overrated when used productively they can be a great tool in assessing a students knowledge and progression through a unit, month, semester or school year.

Assess Ch. 14

Abstract:Chapter 14 was about report cards and how to make them work for both the parents and colleges. Both parents and colleges want an accurate representation of the students progress, learning and knowledge but unfortunately this can not always be found on a report card with letters A-F but sometimes another method must be used to show the real position of the student. The book understands that parents want something to look at in a glance and understand but the bad thing about that is those report cards are not always representations of the student.
Reflection:Our group feels that a change needs to be made to get away from the traditional report cards but are not sure how to do it. We feel that change is necessary but the jury is still out on how to change the system. Report cards need to be able to show a parent truly how their child is doing as well as demonstrate the same things to a college. This is where it become tricky because their needs to be some common trend between students applying to colleges so they can be compared and if you are getting a smiley face from Oak Hill High School and a B from Traip Academy how do you really know which student will be more successful and you should admit to your university.

Fair Isn't Always Equal Chapter 13

Tyler Duran 13 Nov 2007
Ryan Michaud
Rebecca McIntire
Samantha Brissette
Fair Isn’t Always Equal Ch. 13


Abstract:
Chapter thirteen was focused on grade books and the many ways to set up and record a student’s grade in the book. The chapter opens with the admission that no one form is best, and that teachers should sample many types and choose the best, or combine the best into a format that works for them. They go on to list several recommendations from other individuals, one of whom suggests listing a “f” or “s” near the grade to determine whether the assessment was formative or summative. They go on to suggest many different ways of grouping the grades—longitudinal, by weight, by category or by topic. Each system has its downfalls and benefits. The chapter concludes with stressing that it doesn’t matter what system you use, as long as you are constantly checking whether the format works the best for our current needs.



Self-Relations:
While many examples were given of how to set up a blank template for a gradebook, electronic formats were merely glossed over. Mt. Blue High School, and many others, have all switched to Power School, which only allows for so much variation in setups. More time should have been dedicated to the future of grading systems, which is in electronic forms.

Assessing Chapter 12

Reflection on Reading

Name: Tyler Duran, Sam Brisette, Rebecca McIntire, Ryan Michaud
Date: 11-09-2007
Book Title: Fair Isn’t Always Equal
Chapter: Twelve

Write a brief abstract of the chapter.
Chapter twelve started off by outlining the two most common grading systems in the secondary classroom: the 4 point and 100 point scales. It then went on to suggest that the 4 point scale was better because of its magnitude (or lack thereof). That is, because the grading scale is smaller it will have a higher rate of inter-reliability, or use across classrooms and school districts. It went on to correspond the grades of a 100 point scale and their 4 point equivalents, and then exemplified the problems with 100 point scales: the vary across schools districts. It then goes on to emphasize, however, that the 4 point scale does not, and should not, be used to equate an equivalent letter grade at the end.

How did you connect to the reading and briefly reflect on your thoughts?
Probably because of its shortness the entire chapter seemed to be an “ah-ha” moment. It also helped that the chapter was focused around two central grading systems, and compared the two. I agree that the 4 point system is better because it is easier to implement, is inter-relatable, and has less variance than a 100 point scale. More importantly, it is a lot more “rubric friendly,” which is essential in letting students know what is expected of them in order to guide them in fulfilling their potential as a learner

UbD/DI Chapter 9

Reflection on Reading

Name: Tyler Duran, Sam Brisette, Rebecca McIntire, Ryan Michaud
Date: 11-09-2007
Book Title: UbD/DI
Chapter: Nine

Write a brief abstract of the chapter.
This chapter discussed how lesson plans would look from a teacher who used backwards design and implemented differentiated instruction. It offered example syllabi, step-by-step procedures of how to implement the processes, and examples both UbD and DI through an example Health class plan. It also offered various activities and how to observe classroom behaviors in order to recognize when and how implementation should occur. I thought it was a good summary of everything the book had preached to us with an example of what a lesson plan should look like.

How did you connect to the reading and briefly reflect on your thoughts?
I really connected with the part where it said students should use rubrics to guide and revise their work; and that they will regularly set goals related to achievement, progress, and work habits. Although the chapter was a bit wordy these two suggestions seem to be something that would work effectively in the classroom because students would know where they are supposed to be, what is expected of them, and self-evaluate themselves to discover how they can improve. Essentially, it’s all about learning.

Assess Chapter 11

Tyler Duran 8 Nov 2007
Ryan Michaud
Rebecca McIntire
Samantha Brissette
Fair Isn’t Always Equal Ch. 11


Abstract:
Chapter eleven in the text focused on six issues that often arise with grading. First up is the debate between recording a zero or a sixty in the grade book. They argue that a zero only dilutes and ruins the whole idea of having a grade report the mastery that is achieved. They suggest recording an “I” for incomplete and then, if the assignment is never turned in, be changed to a sixty. The chapter goes on to discuss how to grade gifted students, whether to weight grades, and how to grade late work. The chapter concludes with the tough subject of how to grade special needs students—should they be held to the same standard as the other students in that grade, or whether they should be given a grade based on their achievement and improvement over the course of the year.


Self-Relations:
At this point in my reading, all the texts seem to be running together. I have the feeling I have read this exact chapter before, but I think it was in a different text. So while the information is relevant, it has already been delivered to me before and thus has lost any initial reactions I might otherwise have recorded here. Many however, felt the chapter highly useful and was a change in pace from the other two texts that seemed to repeat themselves.

Chapter 7 Assess

Abstract:
Chapter seven centers on grades, and all the meanings and ideas that grades incorporate. They start by providing a short blurb from an essay response and asking how we would grade it. Some feel that all students, regardless of their situations, should be judged by the same standards as everyone else. Others, including this text, feel that teachers should adjust grades according to the students' backgrounds. The text acknowledges that if we change grades due to personal issues that they become increasingly relative and subjective. They also state that judging what is normal from one student against another does not accurately report the student's learning. To solve many of the problems, schools are switching to an A,B,C,I scales so that they don't accept failure, but give an incomplete to be made up later. The chapter concludes that grades are usually given at the end, and thus are not conducive to providing students with timely feedback to encourage growth.

Reflection:
The part that stuck out to us the most in this chapter was the quote at the beginning. We really liked the fact that this teacher took the time to make up a whole new system of grading just so that it would relate the grades to the students' abilities better. Even though it was more work for him and took up more time, he was still willing to do it. We also think it's cool that he did this because he probably got a lot of crap from parents and the school, at least at first.

Chapter 9 Assess

Abstract:
Chapter nine dealt with the ten practices to avoid when grading. They spent a good amount of time convincing the reader to allow their students a retry on all of their work. They also feel that homework should not be graded, grades are for mastery only, and homework is practice. The text also emphasizes providing differentiation when needed and always assessing the students in the same content area that they are learning. It also cautions of allowing extra credit to influence a student's grade when they have not put the effort into demonstrating proficiency. Rules seven through ten deal with grades; not grading on curve, group grading, zeros, and non criterion based grading.

Reflection:
A part of chapter nine that stuck out to our group was number 7 on page 127. This was about not grading students as a group. This really stuck out to us because all of us have had experiences where we have been graded as a group and gotten an unfair grade. This happens so much in school that it makes some students even hate working in groups. Many students would rather work as individuals because at least they know that their grade will be their own.

Assessing Chapter 10

Reading Reflection

Name: Tyler Duran, Sam Brisette, Rebecca McIntire, Ryan Michaud
Date: 11-05-2007
Book: Fair Isn’t Always Equal
Chapter: Ten

Write a brief abstract of the chapter.
Chapter ten focuses on allowing work to be redone, emphasizing that this should always be decided at the discretion of the teacher. Although it was brief in its entirety the chapter offered many valid suggestions to allowing redo work. I thought the most important piece of advice was to base this decision based on whether the student who requests the redo option is an occasional or chronic offender.

How did you connect to the reading and briefly reflect on your thoughts.
Redo work is always a very tricky and murky subject for teachers, and it should be because it should be allowed on a case by case basis. Each student and their respective requests for rework are submitted for different reasons and obstacles that would force them to redo their previous work. I really connected with creating a calendar for completion because this then puts the accountability on the student, and the quicker the timeframe the better for both grading and understanding. When accepting this work I really connected with writing down both grades, maybe in an A/D format to see the student’s progression throughout the grading period, see if the offenses are occasional or chronic, and then reflect this on the student’s grade in the best way to explicate their knowledge of material and level of success in the class.

Ubd/DI Chapter 8

Reading Reflection

Name: Tyler Duran, Sam Brisette, Rebecca McIntire, Ryan Michaud
Date: 11-05-2007
Book: UbD/DI
Chapter: Eight

Write a brief abstract of the chapter.
Chapter eight discussed some basic principles teachers should incorporate into their grading systems for a differentiated classroom. It also dealt with how different grading systems can harm the motivation of some students, and to accommodate grades accordingly for each individual student. It also suggested using forms of alternative grading systems (i.e. not using the traditional A, B, C, etc.) which seemed to be a very novel and intriguing approach that some school systems are already implementing.

How did you connect to the reading and briefly reflect on your thoughts.
One of the most important aspects to the chapter was motivational loss of students due to certain types of grading systems. I found this to be a crucial aspect of grading because each teacher has a different system, and one of those systems has negatively affected every one of us in some way, shape, or form. I mostly connected to their discussion of avoiding using a mean grading system (principle five) because factoring in zeroes can severely effect a students overall grade while at the same time be a poor indication of student learning and understanding. The suggestion of using a 50 or some other numerical value seemed to be an easy and perfect solution to such a problem.

UbD/DI Chapter 10

ABSTRACT:
Chapter ten was a summary of what the whole book had been discussing already; how to integrate UbD and DI. They add addendums to each stage such as instead of just focusing on learner results put in the results you hope to accomplish. They say that after you make a specific plan and use it, to monitor the results closely and change it to fit the results you see. They also stress not reverting back to comfortable and known methods when one is afraid of trying new things. They finish with ways you can implement the two theories at a school level, including meetings, workshops, and sessions where you explore your own essential questions.
REACTION:
It felt odd to be reading about a summary when we hadn’t felt we had finished learning about UbD and DI. One of the things that stuck out most in this chapter was the rule that one veteran teacher followed; she tried every new teaching strategy or idea three times before giving up on it. We think that it is a good idea because all students are different and the more you do something, the better at it you get. You work out the kinks and it will go more smoothly. The ideas for discussing and bringing the theories into your school were useful, however irrelevant at the moment as we don’t have a school yet. Other than those ideas the chapter was a rather boring summary and we could have better summarized the theories by re-reading the first chapter.

MI Chapter 12

Name: Tyler Duran, Sam Brisette, Rebecca McIntire, Ryan Michaud
Date: 10/29/2007
Book Title: Multiple Intelligences
Chapter: Twelve

Write a brief abstract about the chapter.
Chapter twelve focused on multiple intelligences and cognitive skills. It offered tips and tricks to enhance students in areas of weak intelligence by developing their strengths, such as using binary code to remember how to spell. It also continued the discussion of Bloom's taxonomy as it relates to MI theory.

How did you connect to the reading and briefly reflect on your thoughts.
While chapter twelve was fairly informative it often times felt that it lacked substance and felt a little weak in terms of their suggestions for cognitive tips and tricks. The binary example is perfect in these terms because it seems highly unlikely that a student would benefit from such an activity. I would tend to think that further memorization would confuse a student who is struggling to remember how to spell specific words. It also provided a great example of how sometimes teachers do not elicit learning from their students: over 70% of college students that had taken a high school physics course thought that there were two forces in motion whena ball was thrown into the air. This was an excellent point, however the advice from the text did not provide a real adequate solution to this problem.

MI Chapter 8

Abstract:
Chapter eight focused on different MI methods and activities that teachers can use to manage classroom behavior, especially behavioral problems with students. it provided varous ecamples of how to introduce new transitional topics and better effectively solve behavioral problems using different MIs. A template was provided that listed different intelligences and punishments that can be used to solve these problems. The chapter strongly encouraged enforcing methods that were in the same MI as the student causing the issue.
Reflection:
We found this chapter to be one of the more useful chapters in MI. Aside from chapter 6, I believe that this chapter provided the reader with the most relevant and informative information. One thing we found particularly interesting was if instead of yelling or repeating for students to be quiet, teachers could just stop talking or write "silence please" on the board. Many of us would definitely respond if a teacher did that.

Multiple Intelligences Ch. 11

Tyler Duran 9 Oct 2007
Ryan Michaud
Rebecca McIntire
Samantha Brissette
Multiple Intelligences Ch. 11



Abstract:
Chapter eleven in MI focused on the use of MI theory in special education, and how it can drastically change the ways teachers interact with their students. They suggested that learning disabilities can occur in all eight of the intelligences and not just the ones traditionally associated with disabilities (linguistic and logical). The chapter also stresses to not look only at the deficiency but at the strengths of the student in other intelligences to help them better understand the concepts that are weak. The chapter also mentions alternative ways around a problem, such as teaching an alternative symbol system or using alternative technology. It mentioned a machine that scans words and emits them in sounds for the student. The chapter also contains a list of successful and famous individuals who were deficient in one department or another. It concludes with listing the good things they think MI can do for special education.


Self-Relation:
I didn’t really know how to relate to this chapter to be honest; we haven’t really dealt with special needs. The emphasis on positive reinforcement of the strong intelligences in stead of forcing the student to do the things they are poor at was eye opening. Another important point was that under this system fewer students would be receiving referrals to special education. And yet another member really liked the idea of tailoring assignments so that students who were deficient in one intelligence could apply and learn using another intelligence.

Multiple Intelligences Chapter 13

Tyler Duran 9 Oct 2007
Ryan Michaud
Rebecca McIntire
Samantha Brissette
Multiple Intelligences Ch. 13


Abstract:
Chapter thirteen in MI was about applications of MI theory. The chapter focuses on three areas they deem important which are: computer technology, cultural diversity, and career counseling. They state that even though computers are often deemed only a part of the logical intelligence, it can be used by people with strengths in any intelligences, because there is such a variety in software available. They list several software programs and which MI they apply to. They then move on to the next factor where they state that an MI must be valued by a culture in order to be considered an intelligence; different cultures value different things, sometimes valuing one intelligence over the other. They finish with a list of careers and which MI they pertain to, and a small table listing prominent individuals in different careers from minorities. Students who have a tendency toward one intelligence could be very good at a career that emphasizes that intelligence. The chapter included two templates that showed numerous examples of how to incorporate MI into daily instruction.

Self-Relations:
This chapter seemed suited better to the student, to view as a resource on how they could further integrate their intelligences into their lives. Or this could be used earlier on with the introduction to MI theory and as part of the introduction to your students. That being said, the list of computer software was generally found to be helpful, because much of it could be purchased by the school and used to help and guide student’s education. Most really liked the list of MI savants, because one way to reach a student from a different background, is to relate the subject and examples into the curriculum. Some worried that the whole discussion of cultural intelligence seems really close to not being politically correct to me. I can’t see a teacher saying to a student that their culture values something so that student should care about it.

MI CH 5

Abstract:
Chapter Five discusses how to integrate the idea of multiple intelligences into teaching. A brief history of various early forms of teaching that took intelligences into consideration shows that it is definitely in students' best interest. Next, a traditional teacher is compared with an MI teacher. It then describes some of the ways one might carry out teaching in each intelligence. A seven-step procedure is given, which outlines the process a teacher might use in order to use as many intelligences as possible in their lessons. Some key questions are given that teachers can use to plan their lessons. An eight-day lesson plan is used as an example of one way to make sure each intelligence is catered to in a given unit.

Reflection:
One thing that stuck out in the chapter, probably more than anything to one of our group members, was the description/ comparison of an MI teacher to a traditional teacher. After reading the nine examples they gave, she could not help but notice that her Physics teacher in high school had done ALL of them, VERY frequently. She always felt he was a very effective teacher, but never could explain exactly why. She now realizes that he appeals to every intelligence on a daily basis. She can only hope that having him as a teacher for two years will have given her enough ideas to be an effective teacher as well.

MI Chapter 6

ABSTRACT
Chapter 6 of Multiple Intelligences addressed a very important subject. Incorporating MI into your teaching. In the previous chapter we had discussed how to incorporate MI to curriculum but now the book has gotten into incorporating MI into teaching strategies. Chapter 6 gave 5 examples for each of the 8 MI's on how to connect to those students and get through.
REACTION
As a group we tended to really like chapter 6. We all found the chapter to be extremely helpful and see a future in using the ideas given in our future classrooms. Up to this point in the book we have been bombarded with great information but nothign that was going to distinctly make us better future teachers. Now that we have completed chapter 6 we all believe that we are more enlightened and better informed on how to incorporate all the MI's into our classrooms. It is one thing to tell somebody about the Atlantic Salmon but it is a completely different thing to provide them with the tools to catch an Atlantic Salmon.

MI Chapter 14

Reflection on Reading

Name: Tyler Duran, Sam Brissette, Rebecca McIntire, Ryan Michaud
Date: 10-03-2007
Book Title: Multiple Intelligences
Chapter: Fourteen

Write a brief abstract of the chapter.
Chapter fourteen was an informative (but very brief) review of the proposed ninth intelligence; the existential. This would be an intelligence that would involve “a concern with ultimate life issues.” It is very heavy with religious connotations, but also has a very philosophical aspect to it. However, Armstrong warns about using it too much in the classroom because it can be hard to assess, and is the hardest to apply to most activities and assignments. He finishes the chapter by providing a few examples of which subjects existential intelligence could be applied to.

How did you connect to the reading and briefly reflect on your thoughts?
The thing that stuck out most to me in this chapter was the fact that it would be really hard to use the existential intelligence in schools. It makes sense that teachers would be reluctant to address it because they would get in trouble for a violation of the separation of church and state. While I do not think I will ever use the “ninth intelligence” in my classroom (at least until more research is done), I do think it is important just to be aware of it. It could also be integrated into history and geography, because religion is such a strong source of both conflict and knowledge.

Multiple Intelligences Chapter 7

Tyler Duran 4 Oct 2007
Ryan Michaud
Rebecca McIntire
Samantha Brissette
Multiple Intelligences Chapter 7



Abstract:
Chapter seven in MI was an incredibly short chapter focusing how to create a classroom environment that encourages use of MI. They centered on two topics: the ecological factor (the physical classroom environment) and MI activity centers. They list questions about each intelligence to quiz yourself on if you are providing stimulation for each of the intelligences. They conclude by explaining what temporary and permanent activity centers for each intelligence are and how they can be integrated. They also provide examples of what games and activities could be included for each center and how to arrange the classroom to accommodate these centers.



Self-Relations:
All of us found the idea of activity centers for students in their free time was useful and interesting but were either impractical or not age appropriate. The stress on not providing students with simple “busy work” was also a hot topic as we all knew the feeling of doing worksheets that accomplished nothing. However, despite the few useful things to be found in the chapter it could have been combined with chapters five and six to create a cohesive, useful chapter that was not broken up.

Assess Chapter Six

Abstract:

Chapter 6 was a very helpful chapter all about creating test questions. This chapter started out with an example of an awful, unclear multiple choice question that would really be assessing how well the student could guess what the teacher was looking for. Basically, that is what the chapter is about. It provides examples of fair test questions that don’t make the student do busy work, but get down to what they know and don’t know. Things such as double recording, avoiding bad wording, not using timed tests, including fun questions, and following the same instruction you used are just a few of the tips given.

Reflection:

There were many things that stuck out to us in this chapter. One was that teachers should write out the words true and false so that students have to circle one and can’t use the whole tf together trick. Another is that teachers give away answers without knowing it. If they put an “an” in front of their multiple choice question, and only one answer grammatically works with an “an”, the question was pointless unless you were testing their grammar. I liked the idea of putting a question that is impossible to answer on the test. I do not think it would be fair if the teacher did not tell the students there would be one like that though.

DI/UbD Chapter 6

Abstract:
Chapter 6 was one of the longer chapters that we have read so we felt that for being such a long chapter that very little new useful information was provided. Chapter 6 begins with a discussion of how understanding based curriculum and differentiated instruction are inextricably linked. This is something that has been repeated throughout the book, but mentioned here as an introduction. Next, core beliefs how to alter curriculum for all students are listed and discussed. Chapter six deals with responsive teaching and states that there are four overarching questions that govern a teacher in a differentiated classroom. Despite what many would think the text states that all students should be given the opportunity to process and learn information at a high level of understanding. The text also stresses the importance of not sticking low-level learners with constant “busy” work. Giving them only menial tasks to complete will not help them to understand the concepts or improve as a learner. They go on to say that students must know what is they are learning before they can demonstrate mastery of the subject. The second half of the chapter is dedicated to addressing classroom elements and teaching to patterns. If you know several students may need extra time, build that time into your curriculum; not only will it address the students that need that extra time, but it may end benefiting the rest of the class as well. Several tables are given throughout the chapter to emphasize the elements a teacher has control over and the many ways they can combine those elements.
Self-Relation:
The idea of building in the issues that are likely to occur was a good idea and would save time for both teacher and student. Even though the information is useful the text itself is a tad dry. The tables really help break it up and are great visuals. Something that really stuck out to us was the sports team analogy. First of all, many kids do sports, so they may already have that mindset of needing to know exactly when their work will pay off. Second, most students probably have that mindset regardless of whether or not they play sports. I think teachers need to give students more tests as students go along instead of one huge cumulative test. It gives them more of a chance to do well, and less of a chance to have a bad day that could cost them their grade.

UbD/DI

Tyler Duran 2 Oct 2007
Ryan Michaud
Rebecca McIntire
Samantha Brissette
UbD/DI Ch. 7




Abstract:
Chapter seven in UbD centers on teaching for understanding instead of memorization. They state that understanding must come from students searching for meaning themselves, and not from memorization of facts and dates. A majority of the chapter dealt with incorporating the essential questions into the learning and framework. They go on to list a couple of examples of essential questions in several different subjects. The chapter finishes with introducing the WHERETO framework which is supposed to provide a frame for teachers to remember what is important. The approach is helpful in developing strategies for student interest and motivation, practical assessment, and how to see clear evidence of student understanding. The chapter also provided a figure that listed strategies that can meet various ways of student learning.


Self-Relations:
The list of essential questions was helpful and a good resource to hang onto. I was also very grateful for the introduction of the WHERETO framework as it was finally something new and useful. Many of us felt that the chapter was large and filled with useful resources that one should hang onto. Some among us felt that more was needed with the aspects of the WHERETO framework and that this was a very important concept. Some liked the chapter because it seemed to bring together the two classes better than any other concept thus far.

Assess Chapter Four

Reflection on Reading

Name: Tyler Duran, Sam Brisette, Rebecca McIntire, Ryan Michaud
Date: 09-26-2007
Book: Fair Isn’t Always Equal
Chapter: Four

Write a brief abstract of the chapter.
Chapter four outlined the three types of assessments that every teacher will use in their profession. It also introduced us to two types of rubrics, holistic and analytic, as well as providing information on different ways to create portfolios to show student progress and help identify areas where students need improvement and would benefit from guidance or differentiation. Portfolios also enables students to reflect on their own learning styles, their amount of knowledge learned from instruction, provide feedback to the teacher, and used as an informative tool to keep parents up-to-date on the child’s progress. The chapter provides many ways to successfully design rubrics effectively; as well as suggestions for allowing students to participate in this process.

How did you connect to the reading and briefly reflect on your thoughts.
I thought the chapter was very eye-opneing in regards to self-assessment. It broke off from the traditional forms of self-assessment that focus on students grading themselves in regards to performance tasks. It is essential that students make the assessments before the tasks; this way they can address the areas in need of improvement before a test or project. I also found the steps on how to design rubrics extremely useful. It designated what you should and should include, as well as providing various examples of different rubrics that varied in both type and usefulness. I particularly enjoyed the concept of only providing a thorough example of the highest achievement possible (in most cases, a 5) so that the student’s vision will only be focused on getting the highest possible score. I think this would be a very effective and subtle way to motivate students to learn and perform to their maximum potential.

Fair Isn't Always Equal Ch. 5

Abstract
The main idea of Chapter 5 was the concept of tiering or adjusting the level of complexity and challenge in a given assignment. The main idea of tiering is to maximizes the learning for all of your students. You are doing your students an injustice if you are aware that a specific student has only a basic knowledge of a subject and you hold them to a standard of a higher knowledge. Your are just setting your student up to fail which is not doing anybody any good. You are also doing a student an injustice if they have an advanced knowledge of a subject and you only hold them to a standard of a basic knowledge. In this case you are not setting the student up for failure but instead you are allowing the student to stop learning because they know that you only are going to hold them up to the level of basic knowledge. Chapter 5 also discussed the ideas of learning contracts as well as menus while re-emphasizing the usefulness of tic-tac-toe and the pyramid method. Chapter 5 also emphasized that there are certain keys to tiering such as Tomlinson's Equalizer and the Taxonomy of Creativity. Chapter 5 concluded expressing the need to think about tiering every time you sit down to design a lesson.

Personal Reflection
We particularly enjoyed the learning menu because it related the necessity of tiering to the theory of MI which we have been studying in our other text. We liked how it resembled the tic-tac-toe template by allowing the students to choose from a variety of different responses to best fit their learning style and mental intelligence. We also really liked that it incorporated UbD by exemplifying the fact that if the student demonstrates mastery of the essential questions and understandings it doesn't really matter what the mode of response is. As students we often were not big fans of tiering because it seemed like it was holding students to different standards which didn't seem fair to the students who were held to the high standard. Why should more be expected out of us than is expected out of the group across the room. That just isn't fair! Which actually is a perfect segue into the title of the book. As pre-service teachers we now all understand the necessity of tiering and it's importance in our future lesson plans.

Multiple Intelligences, Chapter 10

Tyler Duran 27 Sep 07
Ryan Michaud
Rebecca McIntire
Samantha Brissette
Multiple Intelligences Ch. 10


Abstract:
Chapter ten in Multiple Intelligences focused on assessment and MI theory. They discussed the “evils” of standardized testing and the alternative MI assessments and their benefits. The chapter also gives a very table on the second page contrasting the differences between standardized testing and authentic testing. The text feels that authentic testing is much more effective for a variety of reasons, such as associating learning with teaching. They also provided examples of questions, and then demonstrated how the questions could be rephrased to suit all 8 intelligences. They go on to discuss portfolios as demonstrations of MI and the majority of the chapter is dominated by examples of alternative assessments and ways to collect evidence of MI. Portfolios are also good ways of allowing for the student to self-reflect and allow demonstration of all MIs.


Self-Relation:
This chapter discussed varied and MI assessments in what I felt to be a far less superior way to the other textbook. The examples and lists of alternative testing and the student sign up list were what I felt to be the only relevant and useful sections of the entire chapter. While some of us barely made it through the chapter a few did find the tables useful because of the example questions it provided. However, we didn’t find much else useful in the chapter.

Assess Chapter Three

Abstract:

Chapter three’s focus was on principles of assessment. Wormeli tells us that students come to us “biased” on the subjects we are trying to teach, and it is our job to help them see the “truth.” He reminds us that having students work in small groups may break up monotony, but is not actually differentiation until we divide those students according to aptitudes or interests. The text suggests providing the students with a copy of the end of semester test at the beginning of the year and telling them exactly what they should be learning. One cannot determine what students need to learn without first discovering where they are at with their knowledge of the content about to be discussed. It describes the differences between pre, formative, and summative assessments. Thus, they suggest pre-assessments to determine where students are at and to make the pre-assessments relevant to the concepts being taught. The chapter goes on to describe the principles of a good assessment and allowing students to “try again,” and concludes with stressing the importance of reflecting on the assessments given and altering the lesson appropriately.

Reflection:

The most helpful aspect of the chapter was the steps and examples of how to plan and design formative assessments that assess students' knowledge and skills. The concept of having a hierarchy of challenge per assessment helps relieve students of pressure that is associated with graded work and allows them to focus on learning. Two particular suggestions really stuck out: allowing students to make up their grades, and providing pre-assessments in orger to gauge student readiness. We also really liked the example of how an evaluation is just a snapshot and that it takes a photo album to really show what students have learned.

Assess Chapter One

Abstract:
Chapter One established a definition of differentiated instruction as well as provided examples of ways to differentiate instruction. It was a bit of a review, but it seemed to explicate two important aspects. One, that DI is an effective method of teaching,k but should only be used as needed. Two, DI also provides a challenge for all students because it forces them to think and understand at their highest level. This is contrary to many common beliefs that anything but traditional methods are seen as helping students by making the material easier. Wormeli also states that students who have been provided with differentiated instruction throughout their careers will not in fact be handicapped like previously supposed, but will be aware of how they learn best and able to use that in other situations and careers.

Reflection:
The thing that stuck out most from this chapter was the glasses analogy: that a near-sighted student who had glasses was being differentiated so that he had the same chance as other students to learn. This stuck out because most of us had never thought of that type of thing as being a differentiation. Also, the fact that differentiating is not making things easier for students is very surprising. We did not think of the fact that because students were not being allowed their excuses any longer, they were being challenged more.

Fair Isn't Always Equal- Ch. 2

Abstract:
Chapter 2 was about knowing when students have achieved mastery and how to tell when a subject is mastered. The author tells us that there are different ways that a student can achieve mastery but the most important thing is knowing what we are looking for to show mastery. In order to be able to identify master you must first have a clear understanding of what mastery is. Chapter 2 was fairly short and basically just introduced fair and accurate assessment.
Self-Relation:
As a group we connected to the reading through the examples provided as well as the quote by Ben franklin. We really thought Ben Franklin made a good point when he said that knowledge is nothing when it is isolated. Some of the examples that we particularly like were the mathematics example (ok only I liked it) and the basketball example. I believe that as a group we know truely understand the difference between knowledge and using knowledge to accomplish something. As a group we felt that mastery of a subject is more important than knowing something about the subject and that the grades should reflect that.

UbD_DI Chapter Five

Reflection on Reading
Name: Tyler Duran, Sam Brisette, Rebecca McIntire, Ryan Michaud
Date: 09-24-2007
Book Title: UbD/DI
Chapter: Five

Write a brief abstract of the chapter.

Chapter five primarily dealt with activities and assessment strategies that could be used as evidence (stage 2) for the desired learning results (stage 1). It provided many useful examples, criteria, concepts, templates, and cautions about when and how to use differentiated instruction. One of the most important aspects of the chapter was to conclude that differentiated instruction should not be used all the time and does not replace standardized tests; rather it enhances student learning through various activities (graded and non-graded) so that the knowledge can then be applied in a traditional format (standard tests). They concluded with stressing the importance of self-assessment and providing clear rubrics. This allows the student to clearly see both where they stand in their education and the goals to improve.

How did you connect to the reading and briefly reflect on your thoughts?

I thought that chapter was extremely useful because it showed the importance of standardized tests while outlining the necessity of differentiated instruction. The tic-tac-toe model was perhaps that most helpful aspect because it provided different formats and examples for teachers to incorporate differentiation into their lesson plans. The chapter was a bit repetitive with the Assess text, but I thought for the most part it conveyed the information better, as well as providing more useful templates. I especially liked 5.4 and 5.5 for examples of how to differentiate instruction for increased student engagement and understanding.

DI/UbD Chapter 4

Abstract:
Chapter 4 outlined specific attitudes and skills a teacher needs to have in order to incorporate differentiation into the classroom. The text also stressed the importance of classroom management, but not as one might typically think of it. Usually classroom management makes on think of the teacher controlling everything, but the text suggests that students should also be managing themselves and their time to some extent. The text stresses that teachers must take responsibility for the success or failure of their students, so that both the teacher and the student continually work at improving learning and understanding.

Reflection:
The thing that our group as a whole connected with most were the skills that a teacher needs in order to be successful at helping students learn. We liked how the book set up the information; it seemed very organized and well put-together, much like our lessons will need to be in order to be effective. A specific part that stuck out was when the author mentioned that teachers should help students reflect about their learning. I think this is a very good idea and should be done frequently. This will help the student get the most out of their schooling. If they can tell their teachers how they learn best, the teacher can plan accordingly and help them learn better.

Multiple Intelligences Ch. 4

Chapter 4 of Multiple intelligences covered how to teach Multiple Intelligences to your students. The chapter provided the reader with many ideas on how to introduce the student to the theory as well as explain to the studnets in concepts that everybody understands.chapter 4 also discusses the reasons why teaching it would be helpful, as well as listing ways to go about teaching it. Armstrong makes several examples of activities that can be used to assist in educating the students. The only downfall with most of the activities that were provided is that they are mostly geared toward a younger audience and wouldn't be very helpful when teaching in secondary education. Armstrong concludes with the idea that you should try to incorporate Multiple Intelligence theory and model MI theory daily.

UbD/DI Chapter Three

Reflection on Reading

Name: Tyler Duran, Sam Brisette, Rebecca McIntire, Ryan Michaud

Date: 09-19-2007

Book Title: UbD/DI

Chapter: Three

Write a brief abstract of the chapter.

Chapter three focused on what should constitute a successful, engaging, and reasonable curriculum for teaching. It briefly identified content standards, the necessity of choosing which content is important to learn so students can meet such standards, and how educational benchmarks can be incorporated into the backward design model. Like some of the previous chapters it provided steps and examples of how the task (in this case, UbD) can be achieved. The text proposed focusing on the “big ideas” and “core processes,” than applying these to UbD in order to control content overload. Charts were included to help aim this planning process, and a series of questions at the beginning of the chapter guided the reader in identifying the major concepts of the text.

How did you connect to the reading and briefly reflect on your thoughts?

The chapter was useful in re-ascertaining what we had discussed in class on Tuesday. It was also helpful that the chapters were designed using the UbD model, which allowed for us to take in the information easier, although it can still seem a bit overwhelming at times. It also identified the flaws with benchmarks by stating there are over 3,000 different types in U.S. education and that to meet all the standards students would need over nine more years of schooling. The section that outlined frequently asked questions was also helpful because it put backwards design into a real world context and exemplified the responsive teaching model that is being stressed in the Armstrong book. This was useful because it emphasized that no matter the response mode, the criteria used for grading should focus solely on the content goals. This allows us as teachers to design curriculum in order to instruct all types of intelligences and ensure them that they can demonstrate their understanding in ways that best fit them as learners.

Multiple Intelligences, Chapter 3

Abstract:
The primary focus of chapter three was to stress the importance that teachers need to observe the different types of intelligence in each one of their students. The text tells us that children begin school with their intelligence preferences already intact. Many methods are suggested to determine intelligence, including giving a survey to the students, asking other teachers and parents, and looking at school records. The text also suggested collecting old school records and files on the students that contain their previous grades and comments. By seeing which areas they did well in and got the most compliments in, are most likely one of their preferred intelligences. The chapter also contains a table that outlines needs that certain intelligences have. Finally, after recommending everything else they suggest outright explaining and asking the student what they think their learning style is.



Self-Relations:
One of the most liked ideas in the chapter was to observe students in their free time. Simple modification in lesson planning would allow for you to set up activities that each emphasized the different intelligences, and observation could be accomplished. Another interesting idea was the to observe how a student misbehaves, whether they move around, speak out of turn or doodle all are indicators of an intelligence they prefer that they are not getting at the moment. In addition to observation, we felt it best to explain intelligences to students and ask them outright what they feel is their strongest intelligence and how they prefer to learn. After all, an individual is the best judge of their own character.

Reflection on Reading
Name: Tyler Duran, Samantha Brissette, Rebecca McIntire, Ryan Michaud
Date: 09-12-2007
Book Title: Multiple Intelligences
Chapter: Two

Write a brief abstract of the chapter.
Chapter two was full of good ideas about the MI theory and personal development. It discussed the importance of recognizing your own areas of strength and weakness in the various categories of multiple intelligences, as well as your personal tendencies. Armstrong also includes an inventory so that the reader becomes more aware of this because one can only teach to and incorporate all intelligences once one understands them. Another important idea to remember was identifying moments in your life in which certain intelligence was either shut down or opened up.
He also suggests that the teachers use colleagues’ help, students’ help, and use technology to aid them. He believes that the major factors that influence whether or not people’s intelligences develop is their biological endowment, personal life histories, and their cultural backgrounds. The book used Mozart as an example; stating that even with his natural talent, had he grown up in a time when music was frowned upon he might not have become the prodigy he was.
How did you connect to the reading and briefly reflect on your thoughts?
Tyler: I thought that this chapter outlined the goals of our practicum block this semester, especially when Armstrong related MI to team teaching. The importance of identifying your own MI is a new concept that was introduced to us on the first day of class. We are also drawing on the expertise of future colleagues (Dr. Grace, etc.), learning how to build student-teacher relationships, and learning how to integrate technology into the classroom to offset our under-developed areas of intelligence from Dr. Theresa.
Samantha: This chapter continued to make me think of my family and friend’s intelligences and whether or not I could build up my "weak" areas. It was a little harder to stay focused because my obnoxious roommate kept talking to me after I already explained to her I had homework due. I ultimately decided that she had exceptionally strong linguistic intelligence, specifically in the verbal department.
Rebecca: I found it interesting to read about how parents’ ideas for their children’s futures could influence how their children’s intelligences develop. It makes sense that that would happen, but it is sad in a way. The parent could want their child to become a lawyer, while the child could have become a scientist and found the cure to cancer or AIDS. Teacher’s are also important role models and can have this effect as well. Hopefully this book will help to inform and instruct teachers to educate in a more effective and open way.
Ryan: I could really relate to the section about having your intelligence "shut down" during a paralyzing experience. I know this was the case for me and my spatial intelligence. I was treated very poorly and often discouraged by an art teacher in elementary and I haven’t liked art since. I am sure other factors were involved, but the book reminded me of this key turning point as a major possibility.

Multiple Intelligences Chapter One

Multiple Intelligences Ch. 1

Abstract.
In Chapter 1 of Multiple Intelligences, Armstrong discusses Howard Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences. He describes the eight intelligences that have met certain criteria that allow them to be called intelligences instead of just talents or skills. These criteria include the potential to be isolated by brain damage, the existence of exceptional individuals in that area, a developmental history and definable set of “end states”, an evolutionary history, support from psychometric findings, support from experiments, and an identifiable set of operations. In addition, Armstrong states that each person has some level of all eight intelligences; no one intelligence acts by itself, and there is no set way for the intelligence to be acted out. Armstrong also gives examples of career paths for each of the intelligences. He stresses as well, that individuals can improve their strength in any given intelligence through study and practice. Armstrong concludes the chapter by presenting the idea that there may be more intelligences that have not been fully tested as of yet.


Self-Relations:
The chapter offered a great introduction to the theory of MI, and the part where it described how each intelligence works over a period of time as it develops due to environment and influences. The discussion about savants and exceptional people interested us greatly. Having wondered how someone could be so brilliant at such a young age. The point Armstrong made that many times, when a person is brilliant in one area, they function at a low level in other areas was also of great interest. A couple of our minds wandered reflecting on the intelligences that our friends and family exhibit. We also thought it was very interesting, and encouraging to see that according to the MI Theory, most people can develop all their intelligences to a fairly high level provided they have accommodating life circumstances. The possible existence of other intelligences not yet ascertained was of great interest as well.

Integrating Differentiated Instruction and Understanding by Design: Chapter 2

Chapter 2 begins with emphasis on the most important part of teaching; the students. The second chapter outlines a variety of techniques that can be used by teachers in order to "get through" to there students. Chapter 2 was the introduction of responsive teaching and its importance in today's classrooms. The second chapter did a good job of giving examples from real stories from students where responsive teaching is necessary and in the best interest of the students. The chapter than shows a table that outlines different possible factors that can effect a students learning. The chapter continued with 10 tips on how to teach responsively without being overwhelmed by individualizing their teaching.. The chapter concluded with a 3 paragraph section emphasizing the need to understand your students.

Integrating Differentiated Instruction and Understanding by Design Chapter One

Abstract:
In the first chapter of Integrating Differentiated Instruction and Understanding by Design, Tomlinson and McTighe introduce the reader to the concepts of differentiated instruction and understanding by design. Understanding by design is primarily about the curriculum and its design, while differentiated instruction focuses more on the varied needs of students in order to ensure effective learning. Next, seven axioms and their corollaries are described which are examples of how understanding by design and differentiated instruction go hand-in-hand. Each set of axioms and corollaries contains a real life example. Each example describes how a teacher would best put the axioms and corollaries to use in his or her classroom.


Reflection:
The axioms and corollaries were insightful and the scenarios give the reader a sense of real world importance and effectiveness. They make the reader want to incorporate them all into their teaching. The part that stuck with many of us in group three was in the very last paragraph, where the author lists the characteristics of any professional: that they use they use the most current knowledge in their field, and they meet the individual needs of their clients. I think that is the perfect way to describe what a teacher should be doing. Teachers are professionals and should not just present the information and then leave the students to take it or leave it. These two characteristics of professionals are in essence understanding by design and differentiated instruction when applied to teachers.

Posted by Rebecca