1. Learning environments are essential to classroom learning and we must differentiate our instruction to meet the needs of our students. Chapter 6 discussed how learning is no longer rote and that ties into all that we have learned this semester with using higher order thinking and questioning which uses more cognitive processes because one is actually "thinking" and processing rather than simply memorizing. Education is becoming more stimulating! (Well, we hope that it will!) Within learning environments, in relation to diagnostic teaching, one must use students' known misconceptions and teach the students how to combat that (ambiguity, chapter 9). We discussed how we as teachers must inform and teach our students ambiguity not only in learning, but also in the world we live. Page 135 hit home with the learner-centered environment. It was interesting to see that this author and Matlin are on the same page when using context to teach. The text discusses using home and community to reinforce learning or provide additional learning opportunities which are helpful or complimentary to classroom learning. Matling discusses how we learn better in certain context and it helps information to become encoded into our long term memory. And isn't that the goal of learning?!
2. I'm a bit tired of hearing about the assessing but chapter 6 gives some insight to testing...but it does not answer my question. If assessing should be ongoing and truly drive our instruction, then why do we waste our money on state testing that really appears invalid and doesn't give us a reliable source of information on how we can drive our instruction? A lot of people teach to the test, so then why assess at all if we are teaching it? Why are we not teaching that higher thinking and showing our students how to apply one formula to multiple situations? Assessment is no longer a tool, it has become a way for teachers to put a grade on a grade card. Most teachers don't assess more often because it takes too long and taking the info and applying it takes time out of the designated "plan time" so the tests simply pile up and waste not only the teacher's time preparing, copying, and administering, but also the students' time because they took a test for no reason at all...just to be thrown in a trash can.
3. As a "not so seasoned teacher," I found the information on assessments to be important and to turn the wheels in my head. I want to be a more reflective teacher and providing more mearningful assessments should help that reflection. We need to take a step back and look at our teaching and how we are teaching and assessments will keep myself and my students on their toes. Having lower readers, I need to constantly see what my students need and this is one way to go about finding what they need. I also liked when the book said we must have a balance of activities in our day. I need to do more of this with my kids. We seem to have the same routine so every now and then, I need to balance the activities with them to make sure I am covering other topics and/or ways of learning using their intelligences.
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I really like the way you summed up this weeks' reading and demonstrated how it relates to our previous learning. You have a knack for writing. Matlin does a good job explaining how we learn better in certain context, which helps information to become encoded into our long term memory, and I agree that you are correct: That is the ultimate goal of learning!
ReplyDeleteAlso, I like your point about the assessments: "why do we waste our money on state testing that really appears invalid and doesn't give us a reliable source of information on how we can drive our instruction?" I really don't think students should be assessed all at the same level since we have so many different levels of learners. For instance, who's to say that Student A hasn't learned more in one year than Student B, even though Student A isn't quite to the high level that Student B is at. Student A may have made leaps and bounds in this one year, but isn't that great of a test taker.