Curriculum Instruction Assesment

In these chapters the author talks about Different ways teachers grade. In chapter 7 the main point is that grading is not a final thing. Two teachers may grade one assignment completely different ways. Teachers all have their own idea of what makes something worth an A grade this occurs because of bias and elements of an assignment that the teacher thinks it is most important. I liked how the book gave a short essay to grade. This gave a real example of how different people grade and made me start to think about ways that I can make sure I am grading for subject matter and not for flimsy things like visual appeal or spelling. This is where the importance of rubrics comes into play. Rubrics can help to eliminate some bias because we are following a guide on grading. In chapter 8 of FIAE the author talks about why we grade. The author also explains the implications on students who receive grades. The chapter also explains how teachers choose to grade things and why they are importa...

FIAE Chapter 11 is about the concept of grading in gradebooks. The chapter talks about everything from weighting grades to putting zeroes in a gradebook. The chapter talks about ways teachers deal with late or missing work. Personally, I don’t like to see zeroes in a gradebook so putting in blanks instead would be more helpful. I also think that there are some students who need to see their grade drop in order to get that work done and then they can feel accomplished by seeing the grade go back up again. In my field placement, there were several students who came in concerned about grades, got the work done, and then you could see some pride they had when their grade went up. When it comes to weighting grades I don’t agree with weighting in individual classes but classes as a whole should be weighted. Students who take AP level classes should have that AP weighted higher into their grade. In my senior class there were people in the top ten who did not take a single AP or honors class...

Chapter 6 explains the most effective ways for teachers to form questions that will show student mastery. Using several different question asking methods can assure that the subject area is really covered. Using different methods and prompts can play to all students abilities. Some students may be really good at multiple choice but horrible at short answer so this will give teachers knowledge of what the student really knows. If the student was given all short answer questions than they would not show what they actually know. I also think it is important for teachers to tell students what is expected of them when they are being assessed. In an AP class that I took we were given step by step instructions on how we should approach each type of question. This takes the stress off of how to answer the question and focuses on what students are going to put in the answer. I also think it is important to stress clear concise questions because if the student is confused about what is being ...

In chapter 5 the author describes the process and effect of tiering. Up until I read this chapter I had not heard of this idea. I now think of tiering as a sort of scaffolding. Students are given appropriate material and each class the old material is used to build upon new material. This is where pre assessments would be useful. You do not want to start a student on material that is too difficult because they will constantly be behind. You also do not want to start to easy because students will become bored with the material. I read in a different article about different ways that teachers can check in with students to make sure that they are not falling behind and one thing that I would like to implement in my classroom is colored sticky notes that students have on their desks all the time. If the student is confused they put a yellow note on top and if they are completely lost. This gives the teacher instant feedback while they are teaching as to what students are not understanding...

In chapter 4 of Fair Isn’t Always Equal talks about the creation and usage of self-assessments, rubrics, and portfolios. As a student I love rubrics. I need to be told the expectations of a project and report. I like the structure around a rubric and I find that I do better if I know exactly what expected of me. For my students I aim to be open to project ideas but giving rubrics to students may ease some anxiety students have about creating projects. I liked how the author showed examples of the different forms of rubrics that can be used. In two of my science classes teachers made students create something very similar to a portfolio. It was an interactive notebook that notes, labs, and general observations about the class. This was beneficial to the student because it would force even unorganized students to begin to be organized. It would also keep all the information needed in one easy place for students to access. The author talks about sending portfolios to parents but I do ...

Chapter 3 in Fair Isn’t Always Equal focuses on assessment formats and differentiated assessments. As a teacher it is important to understand that not all students will be able to succeed with what is first given to them. It is up to the teacher to change and adapt the learning to fit all students, this includes the assessment format. I liked the idea of having students know what is on the exam before the unit begins. This can ease some of the stress that students feel. One downfall of this is that some students who are in a class solely to graduate will use this information as a hint as to what they can forget and remember. Students may study to the test and not study for knowledge and growth. I think that an adjustment I would make to this would be to give an outline of the unit and have important topics that might be on the test underlined. That way students understand that a topic is on an assessment but they do not know which part or what questions will be asked. This can prompt...

Mastery seems like an impossible task to accomplish and measure. I think the author is entirely correct when he says that mastery goes past just;  knowing and relaying facts, manipulating knowledge, and applying information. Mastery is fluid thing because you can never know every little detail about a topic. The closest we can come to true mastery is understanding. Understanding is talked about in “Understanding by Design” and is explained using the six facets; explanation, interpretation, application, perspective, empathy, and self-knowledge. The use of these six facets is to help educators have a basis for knowing when students have shown proficiency and understanding of a subject. Once the students are capable of all these things they are considered to have shown mastery in the topic even if they do not know every little fact. I liked reading through the questions about what type of assessment would be considered most appropriate for looking at mastery. I think that most of t...

The first chapter explained the book’s namesake that “Fair Isn't Always Equal.”  Before I read this chapter I did have a basic understanding of how some students would need more help or might need larger font or some other assistance but beginning this book I am beginning to understand just how different differentiation can be. The author talked about cognitive principles and their effectiveness in helping to differentiate a classroom. It is evident that teachers are meant to provide scaffolding to various topics but some students will need more assistance and more resources to use as scaffolding. Differentiation is working all students to a common goal while giving everyone as little or as much scaffolding as they need to succeed. I visualize this by thinking of a tower. Some students will be able to walk up the stairs all the way to the top. Some students will need to take a water break and others may need to take an elevator halfway and then walk the rest of the way. The top ...