Phase III

"Each member of the teaching group must individually reread the entries throughout the Blog and then reflect on the overall experience. Describe (a) how your understandings for each the categories listed below changed based on your experiences this semester and (b) describe how this might impact your future teaching experiences.

Assessing Prior Knowledge

(a) I was confident about assessing prior knowledge through the use of a T/F pre-assessment.
I think that there is a difference between good assessment of prior knowledge and busy-work assessment of prior knowledge. It’s important to steer toward the ‘good’ side of things.

(b) I will definitely use pre-assessment strategies or hooks when introducing new materials.
It’s hard for me to always think in terms of assessing prior knowledge, but I’m convinced it must be done. I can see how helpful it could be in actually teaching.

Planning Instruction

(a) I hypothesized student computer skills to be proficient for the learning demographic.
Sometimes we do take things for granted when planning. It is often necessary to plan to explain things more thoroughly with students.

(b) I will consider several factors for future teaching: some learners may not have a computer in their home, some may not understand that the internet is a tool with several features to assist in finding information, some may need a great deal of one-to-one coaching in navigating the internet and using the Microsoft Publisher software.
In more general terms, we have to stop making assumptions about what are students are familiar with and have access to. This might be a good thing to pre-assess, even in a survey format.

Designing Instruction

(a) What changed about how I designed instruction was that you can plan, prepare, collate, and practice….and then it may snow…allowing only 3 students to come to class that day….the show must go on!! I will continue to give my all, my best, and my heart with each opportunity for instruction.
I think it’s important to have a broad variety of instructional options. I think it was Lydia who asked whether or not more options could be given, something I hadn’t thought of.

(b) I will always give my best!
More options can ALWAYS be given, I just have to get out of my structured box and let my brain be more creative!

Planning Assessment

(a) I don’t think I would change anything here.
Again, I feel it’s important to make sure that the method of assessment is accessible to all students. For a student who did not know or understand Microsoft Publisher, the assessment we planned may have been difficult.

(b) I will be mindful that the assessment matches the objective.
More structure in assignment guidelines would be beneficial.

Instructional Decisions/Teaching

(a) I will take more time – wait time – pause time – “this is what a web-quest means” – I will take more time to show my students how a task is to be done considering the possibility that some may never have done what is being asked of them.
It was hard for me not to overwhelm the small group that we were instructing, so I felt very invasive, and then very useless as I stood at the front of the room. It was a tough balance with so few to teach.

(b) Teaching this lesson to a small group of learned NAU students didn’t really afford the opportunity to realize what it would be like to teach elementary students. I realize what I must focus on is slowing down the lesson, modeling the task, and encouraging the efforts of the student.
There will be days when my class sizes are down, but I can’t distance myself from my students. That would be a prime opportunity to build some good relationships with students I don’t normally give a lot of my attention.

Assessment of Learning

(a) The rubric was an excellent assessment for this lesson plan. The pre-assessment T/F survey worked well too because it was somewhat of a “hook” for the lesson.
Varied formats of assessment are necessary, just to keep students engaged.

(b) It is important to work backward – what is the standard…what is the objective…how shall I assess learning? I will make assessments fair.
I’ll mix up my formats as often as possible. I’d like to be predictable, but not boring!

Attached below are the two separate copies of the lesson plan, the original and the modified (after reflection). Enjoy!

Original Lesson Plan

Modified Lesson Plan