Report Cards

It's funny how this topic just makes me remember of how scared I was everytime the teacher mentioned Report Cards. The funny part is that I always did well. I was one those "smart kids". I don't mean to brag but it's true. I had classmates wanting to copy from me and sit next to me when there was a test. Of course, I wasn't the only one. I was just one of them. Anyways, I guess I was just never sure of how I did because I always remembered like, "Oh I didn't do my homework one time because I was absent" and then just felt like that was the end of my good grades. It's silly now when I think about it but I think that a lot people felt like that. You never know what to expect for sure. Once I made it to High School, Report Cards were mailed to your house and I was always checking the mailbox before my parents could. I would open it up and see my grades and then decided if I should give it to my parents or not. Sometimes I would even forget.

Every Vote Counts!!!

I found this video and I think it has a good meaning so if you're interested please watch and please vote! =D

Portfolios

In class I saw different types of what people considered to be "portfolios". When I think of portfolios I think of folders with a collection of the student's best work. At least that is how portfolios worked when I was in school. I am pretty sure that I will use portfolios in my future classrooms. It's good to have your student's best work in a folder so that he/ she can see all of their accomplishments as the year goes by. It is also good for the teacher that the students will have the following year so that they can see the students best work and know that they are capeable of doing good work. When I was in high school, we had a checklist at the beginning of the year inside our portfolios. The list was of all the things that we would be putting inside our portfolios once the projects or essays were completed and revised. As we completed them, we would simply check it off the list and by the end of the year hopefully we had everything in our portfolios that was required because we also receieved a portfolio grade from our English teacher. I think that I will use my portfolios the same way as I did when I was in school unless there is a specific way that the school I am working at wants them done.

Rubrics

At first, I really didn't know much about rubrics because none of my teachers ever gave me one. Well at least, not that I remembered until now. Which is why I never realized how useful these rubrics can be. They are very helpful for both the student and the teacher. As far as the student, I think that they allow us to see exactly what the teacher is looking for and what he/ she expects from us in an essay, project or any assignment that is given. It is a great guide and we can check things off as we complete them. In my reading class, my professor gives the students a different kind of rubric as a guide when we make our lesson plans. I constantly look at it because it states everything that he will be looking for. I have gotten really good results because with a guide like that as help, you can't have many mistakes. There actually shouldn't be any at all if you pay close attention tot the rubric.

As far as the teacher, I think that it makes things easier for her as well. All the students will be graded equally no matter who they are or what is expected from them as an individual. They all were supposed to follow the same exact rubric so they will be graded according to what they did complete from the rubric or what they didn't. I will definitely use rubrics in my future classroom.

I <3 My Access

Today in class I was introduced to a program called My Access, and i was surprised by all the incredible things that this program has to offer. It is a great way for assigning homework or for classroom activities. It's also an excellent way for the students to practice and improve in certain areas. I hope that when I become a teacher this program is offered at my school. I plan to teach the 4th or fifth grade so I know that the students will find it easy once they get a hang of it. I enjoyed using the program today as both the teacher and the student because we got an idea of how it works both ways and we got a point of view from a students perspective. Well I liked it, hopefully others did too because it is a really great program and it will definitely come in handy in the future.( well for me it will!)

Homework

I think that homework is a good way to assess students. It's not the best way but I think that there are many accomplishments by giving homework. As a future teacher, I believe that giving homework is very important. However, too much homework will just overwhelm a student, and sometimes it might not even be completed or understood. I was once in Elementary School and I remember crying because I had alot of homework. It sounds silly but it happens. I will give my students homework, but just the right amount. Not too much but not too little. Enough so that I know that they will understand it and of course remember what they did. The only negative thing about homework is that the teacher is not watching his/her students actually do the homework. They might have their parents, a family member or even a friend in the same class or grade do it for them, but the truth comes out sooner or later.

Fairness in Assessment

Well this is just a short story about an experience I had when I felt that the way I was assesed was "not" fair!

During college, as we all know we have finals and midterms. My toughest class was history my freshmen year because during the lectures, I took two whole pages of notes for EACH class, FRONT AND BACK! Anyhow, a few weeks before our final, a student raised her hand and asked the teacher" Are we going to have a review for the final?" and the professor responded (confused)" A review???Well.....what do you think we have been doing the whole semester?" Meaning that ALL of those notes that we took every single class was our so called "review"! Not that I counted the pages or anything like that but they added up to about 150 pages! That night I stood up really late looking through my notebook trying to memorize as much as I could. First of all, it wasn't happening and plus it was HISTORY. Lets just say history and me are not a good match. After a while of skimming through the pages, I just closed my notebook and hoped for the best. Needless to say, when I saw the final in front of me, it seemed as if it was in another language.ha! I received a "D" and so did just about half of the class. My final grade for the class was a C+ though which I managed to live with.

Now I realize that this is a an "assessment no no". How are we supposed to learn this way? It is not fair and nothing is getting accomplished. As much as I hate to say it, I dont remember one thing from that class. I don't think that I learned anything because I was so stressed and worried.