How To Improve Teaching

Week 3 Learning Team Discussion Question

Learning Team C Response

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Scenario

(provided by Linda Mosch)

A portion of every lesson should be devoted to assessment. This can be quantitative or qualitative as well as formal or informal. The purpose is to give you feedback on what the students understand or if they have developed some misconceptions. Classroom Assessment is based on the following assumptions:

1. One of the most promising ways to improve learning is to improve teaching.

2. Goals and objectives must be explicit.

3. To improve their learning, students need to receive appropriate feedback early and often.

4. Classroom Assessment can provide motivation through inquiry and intellectual challenge

5. Collaborate with colleagues and actively involve students in Classroom Assessment efforts.

The results you obtain will help in the planning for individual needs as well as whole group needs. For example, you just conducted a fabulous lesson on physical properties of matter and the students participated in a cooperative lesson on categorizing the properties of matter. You review for a test, feel confident that your students understand but then 40% of the class failed miserably. Learning team week 3 DQ -What would you do in this situation? In your learning team think about this and provide an analysis and plan to correct the problem. Post your team response in the main newsgroup under this thread.

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Analysis:

In our analysis of the aforementioned situation, Team C concludes that the problem possibly included many variables. Such variables were: (i) students' lack of motivation to learn subject-matter; (ii) students' sense of embarrassment or being scared to communicate that they didn't understand the subject, and this was furthermore hurt by the teacher's assumption that there were no problems due to the lack of communication. We all agreed that more should be done to prevent a high level of student failure and promote a learning environment that encourages a clear understanding of the subject matter. This is accomplished by establishing the following classroom assessment plan.

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Objectives:

5 Classroom Assessment Objectives

1. One of the Most Promising Ways to Improve Learning is to Improve

Teaching.

Ð'* Research new lesson plan ideas.

Ð'* Experiment with classroom technology to present subject matter in

different ways.

Ð'* Analyze communication skills and improve weak areas.

Ð'* Consider all learning styles and make sure teaching style includes

applications that reach out to all learning styles.

Ð'* Ask a another experienced educator to observe teaching skills.

2. Goals and objectives must be explicit.

Ð'* Hand out and discuss a class syllabus which will clearly outline lesson

goals and objectives outlined for the course. Periodically review and

revise these objectives as required.

Ð'* Write down daily goals on the board using the following prompt:

"By the end of the period, you will be able to ...."

"and if you don't, let's discuss why not tomorrow."

Ð'* Begin class by introducing the daily goal.

Ð'* Open discussion to the students and allow them to sets some goals.

3. To improve their learning, students need to receive appropriate feedback

early and often.

Ð'* Give pretests, weekly quizzes, oral questions about previously