Evaluating Learners: Where do they stand

One of the toughest jobs of a teacher is deciding what grade to give a student. Let's say that a student tries extremely hard on a project, but doesn't identify all major points that need covered, should he/she get a failing grade just because not all information was covered. Or lets say you have a student that meets all requirements for a project, but doesn't work well with their team, and only puts in the bare minimum. Just because this student met the requirements, does it mean they deserve an A.

As teachers, we should try to make our lives easier by utilizing the resources given to us. Rubrics especially. Rubrics can be designed around the idea of pushing what you think is truly important, and it gives students a good basis for what to base their assignment around. If you believe teamwork is most important in your parliamentary procedure project, then students can always look back to that Rubric to make sure that they are working as a team, instead of on their own.

While it may seem oversimplified, Rubrics don't have to be complicated, and can be an easy inclusion on any assignment. Simply list out what are the top 4-6 things that are most important about that assignment, and then decide which you believe has more emphasis and deserves to be weighted heavier. If you believe all aspects have equal importance, then break everything down evenly, but you will often find that the item you list first in your mind is usually the one that you would weigh the heaviest.

If your still having trouble with this rubric idea, their are plenty of resources to help you, like online rubric builders. You can do customized ones, or depending on what your teaching, can upload ones created by other teachers. Edudemic has a list of 6 sites that they find helpful in making Online Rubrics.

Rubrics; just one simple tool to help you expand as a teacher.

Problem based learning vs project based learning

It can be hard too tell the difference between problem based learning and project based learning, heck they even have the same acronym (PBL). The main difference comes down to inquiry.

Inquiry can be a powerful tool in a classroom. It can be used to get students interested in the days lesson, or to teach the students the main concepts and terms of the day's lesson. The difference, in this case, is that while project based learning inquiry is wanted, inquiry is not wanted when it comes to problem based learning.

Problem based learning is using an exact step by step instruction set to solve a problem that students find. For instance, a problem that can arise is wiring a single switch lightbulb. While the order of the steps can be changed slightly, the steps required are always the same. In this way then, inquiry is not recommended because the learning would be focused more on the steps and less on what the actual problem is.

Project based learning is identifying any number of problems that deal with a certain topic, for instance water pollution, and finding a solution. Obviously, their can be no set directions for multiple problems, so inquiry is almost a requirement for a project, so students can figure out their own solutions. Here is a fun video I found on Project Based Learning.

No matter which method you use, students are going to be engaged and motivated to learn.

Making a difference with differential instruction

This week I had the pleasure of reading about differential instruction. I believe that as a teacher this should be one of our biggest pet peeves. We often hear other teachers (and ourselves) saying that one of our goals is to connect with students and make what we teach "real" to them, yet we all to often find ourselves making/utilizing a one size fits all lesson plan for our students.

As teachers, it might seem daunting to create lesson plans based solely around the idea of building on individual students interests and learning level. But it doesn't mean that students don't learn the same topic, it just means that the students can put their own spin on the lesson.

Interest approach:
This is the easiest place to incorporate differentiated instruction. Students can draw on their own experiences to answer beginning questions and use their prior knowledge to know what needs covered before getting into the lesson.

Content:
This is where things might get challenging. Sometimes to incorporate differential instruction in a lesson plan is hard when your trying to cover a broad topic and try to incorporate individualized instruction as well. But through the use of groups and cooperative learning or a pre-class exercise to see where students interests lie, teachers can incorporate students into the day's topics. Another idea, that the article doesn't discuss is student led conversation/debate/discussion. This gives students the opportunity to speak their mind and draw on their background for class.

Assessment:
This could be as simple as having open-ended questions or could get deeper depending on the situation. I think by giving students required questions and optional questions, you can challenge them as well as build on their expertise. When I call them optional questions I don't mean that their optional for students to answer, but instead they are a list of question options, and students must choose at least one question to answer. While many people say that this isn't the best option because students will choose whichever question is easiest, I would say that i agree. And why are these questions easiest, because that's what they understand best, and it builds upon the students prior knowledge. This helps make the information learned real, but keeps information learned in the lesson fun.

So, remember, if a student has issues with using the information provided, change things up, and give them some differential instruction time, it might just clear things up.