Reading Reflection #9

Sarah Betzold

EDT 3470

Reading Reflection #9

                        A great method for understanding prior-knowledge of students is by doing a Know-Wonder-Learn (K-W-L) activity with students. This method allows the teacher to learn what the students already know and encourages students to ask questions about what they don’t know. It has students answering questions about what they know, wonder and want to learn about a particular topic. This is a great way for teachers to find out a lot of information about what students already know about something before beginning a project.

            It is important to establish anchors for a project because it will help you plan out where students will start with a project and end. It will help you plan out how students will reach their learning goals as well. Every student is not going to be on the same page when it comes to what they already know. For this reason, it is important for a teacher to establish anchors and differentiate instruction to make sure all students achieve.

            There are several ways to assess what students have learned during a project.  I really like the idea of simply asking students what they have learned. For instance, in our book, Reinventing Project-Based Learning by Suzie Boss and Jane Krauss, an Australian teacher videotaped his students as they told him what they learned and reflected on their experiences. I thought this was a creative and different way to assess students. Students can also be assessed through a presentation on what they have learned or create something new by applying what they learned to a new context. Teachers can also assess students by modeling real-world assessments such as having students create portfolios. The portfolios can then even be judged by a panel. This gives students an idea of how people are often assessed in the real world. Another good idea is having student submit their best work in a contest. This is a great motivator for students to work hard and allows students to present why their project is worth winning.

            These concepts relate to our projects because they are important for us to know as we start wrapping up our units in our class. It is important to know that assessments should not just be multiple-choice tests. There are many creative assessments teachers can do to see if students have met learning goals. It is also important for us to know the importance of establishing anchors so that we have a direction as to where our projects are going. All of these topics are especially useful for us to consider as we begin our teaching careers.