So as this course draws to a close, here are a few thoughts on it all. For me, this has been the best course (of three) I've taken this summer by far, and certainly one that has left me seeing sooo much potential for how I can (and soon will) use it in my own classes. Many of the things that we were exposed to have some legitimate, worthwhile, maybe even necessary roles to fill in the modern day classroom. Most have stood up to the scrutiny of my guiding principals and proven their worth (although nearly constant re-evaluation is important, and something I'll have to add to my GP's).
The proof is in the pudding. I saw the creation of my final project components as some kind of lesson/unit preparation that also happened to be something I'm turning in for a grade in my WebTools class. I am very grateful for that. Thanks to Eric and my classmates for contributing and investing a little bit of themselves into what we've worked on together. Although it probably sounds corny and/or cliche to say this (frankly I don't care if it does, because I do sincerely mean it) , but.... it's not the end really, it's just the beginning. Tomorrow I'll wake up and start creating the class web pages and wiki(s) that I'll be adding my project parts to, and I'll do it all with a smile because I will enjoy setting the stage to my students' new "best year" ever. Oh ya,.. and I hope to see you on The Science Teacher's Hub Home, created by Marta.
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Monday, August 3, 2009
Final Project
Here it is! My final project for my WebTools class! As you can see, I have two parts to it. First, I created a voicethread for two different lab reports (I have a third one around somewhere, but couldn't find it today) written by former students of mine(I did get permission, and have removed their names anyway). In this assignment, half of my students are to comment on (and even make editorial notes) the voicethread example #1, while the other half does the same on the voicethread for example #2. Specifically, they are to be commenting on the lab's design and the lab report itself. The lab that these students did is a lab that my students will do this year as well, so they will be familiar with the procedure. As far the grading rubric is concerned, prior to this assignment, I will have spent some time with my students going over it (but nothing too deep just yet). That grading rubric is the same one that I/we will eventually use to grade this next year's lab reports.
When they are finished making their comments, there is a blank grading page at the end for them to give a grade on the example they read. When they are done with that, I will probably have the two halves repeat this whole process using the other example that they did not yet evaluate. The purpose of this voice thread assignment is to help my students understand what we do/do not want in a good lab report, and how the rubric can be used, and how it will be applied when they submit their own for scoring. To be more specific, this is designed for my standard level, year long high school chemistry students.
Example #1
Example #2
Once my students have completed this assignment, we will have some class discussion (probably not lengthy) on it. At this time, I will share with them any comments I made on these lab reports (that they might have missed), the grade that each example earned, and why (if students ask for clarification). Following this, they will begin to write their own lab reports. Working in the same groups they were in for their own lab experiments, they will then use Google Docs to create their own collaborative lab report.
And here is "Part 2" of my project. It is a screencast assingment intended for my IB Physics students to do after each time they complete a simulation assignment. They will probably be working in pairs during class time, and each pair will be posting their own screencast assignment to our class wiki. This is intended as a means of formative assessment, so grading them will be based largely on completion and evidence of thought.
Go ahead and listen to the screencast I made about this screencast assignment (which will a recurring assignment, whenever we have been working on simulations for a couple of days).
I must say,... I am excited to implement both parts of this final project in my classes this year. I honestly believe that they both will help my students be more successful and maybe even happier in their learning!
When they are finished making their comments, there is a blank grading page at the end for them to give a grade on the example they read. When they are done with that, I will probably have the two halves repeat this whole process using the other example that they did not yet evaluate. The purpose of this voice thread assignment is to help my students understand what we do/do not want in a good lab report, and how the rubric can be used, and how it will be applied when they submit their own for scoring. To be more specific, this is designed for my standard level, year long high school chemistry students.
Example #1
Example #2
Once my students have completed this assignment, we will have some class discussion (probably not lengthy) on it. At this time, I will share with them any comments I made on these lab reports (that they might have missed), the grade that each example earned, and why (if students ask for clarification). Following this, they will begin to write their own lab reports. Working in the same groups they were in for their own lab experiments, they will then use Google Docs to create their own collaborative lab report.
And here is "Part 2" of my project. It is a screencast assingment intended for my IB Physics students to do after each time they complete a simulation assignment. They will probably be working in pairs during class time, and each pair will be posting their own screencast assignment to our class wiki. This is intended as a means of formative assessment, so grading them will be based largely on completion and evidence of thought.
Go ahead and listen to the screencast I made about this screencast assignment (which will a recurring assignment, whenever we have been working on simulations for a couple of days).
I must say,... I am excited to implement both parts of this final project in my classes this year. I honestly believe that they both will help my students be more successful and maybe even happier in their learning!
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