Chapter 3

This chapter talked a lot about assessments and how to plan assessments. One of the main points in the chapter was that students achieve more when they have a clear picture of the expectations. This chapter also related a lot to stage one of creating a unit. It talked about in what order a teacher should plan assessments. The order that the book suggests is to first plan summative assessments, then pre-assessments. The last step is to plan formative assessments. The book also suggests that a teacher should plan for frequent formative assessments. The author says that the important thing is that the students learned the material. This is where the chapter connects to stage 1. The chapter talks about essential questions and understandings. The chapter then goes on to talk about making assessments authentic. I learned that there is two steps in this process. The first is to make sure that the assessment is close to how students will apply their learning in real world applications. The second is that the assessment needs to be authentic to how students are learning. One of the things in this chapter that really stood out to me is that in order for an assessment to be valid it must be varied and done over time. This chapter on assessment will definitely impact the way that I make lesson plans. I know that it is good to write out the assessments when I am making lessons plans. This chapter will also influence my formative assessments. I will incorporate them often into my lesson plans this way my students and I know how they are doing during the process of learning the new material.  

Chapter 2

This chapter talked about what exactly mastery is. One of the things that I learned was that not everyone has the same definition of what mastery is which makes it difficult to determine if a student has mastered a subject. One of the things that the author suggested was to talk to the school district and colleagues to see what their idea of mastery is and to come up with a common definition of mastery. The author also suggests looking at the curriculum and the standards to see what exactly mastery should mean to us as teachers and what it should mean in the classroom. One of the big ideas that I got out of this chapter was that it is important for you, your colleagues, and school district to have the same definition or general idea of what mastery means so that you can determine if your students have mastered the material or not. One of the things that the author said was that the curriculum is subject teacher’s interpretation. This will impact the way that I teach the standards and the curriculum because it is nice to know that I have some say in the way that I teach the standards and the material that has to be covered instead of the curriculum saying “say this and then say that”.  In this chapter the book says “to demonstrate sophisticated mastery, we’d like students to make an inference and elaborate on how they arrived at their conclusion in writing, orally, or some other way”. This will impact how I determine mastery in each of my student’s in the classroom.

Chapter 1

In this chapter the author introduces the idea that differentiated instruction is doing what is fair for students. He also brings up the point that is does not mean teachers are making learning easier for students but that it provides an appropriate challenge for students to thrive. The author talks about how people are concerned that when teachers do this they are making future not differentiated experiences more difficult for students. He addresses this by saying that when teachers differentiate, they give students the tools to handle whatever comes their way whether it is differentiated or not. I really liked that the author said “our goal as teachers is to be fair and developmental appropriate, not one-size-fits-all equal”. This statement confirmed what I believe teachers should be, fair. The goal he states is basically the title of the book. Fair isn't always equal. Most importantly, I feel, a teacher’s job is to be fair to all students. Equal comes with it because as a teacher you are giving each student an equal opportunity to succeed in your class.   The concept of fair but equal will impact the way that I teach and the way I treat my students. Grading tests in a math class is a good example of this, some students may get more points off on a problem than other students when they originally made the same mistake. If a student calculates a number wrong but gets the problem correct for the number they calculated, they wouldn't get as many points off as a student who calculated the wrong number and got the problem wrong for the number they calculated. 

Chapter 5

I learned a couple of extremely important terms and ideas in this chapter. This chapter introduced three different types of knowledge and gave the definition for each one. The three types of knowledge are declarative, procedural, and dispositions. The three types of knowledge were listed as the three types of educational goals. I also learned about the three different types of assessment. The chapter gave the definition and examples for each one. The three different types of assessment are summative, diagnostic, and formative. I learned about the concept of GRASPS and what each letter stands for. Some of the big ideas that I got from the chapter talked about evidence. Three of the important messages that I got out of this chapter are: 1) reliable assessment demands multiple sources of evidence, 2) a variety of classroom assessments may be used to gather evidence of mastery, and most importantly 3) a single test at the end of instruction is less likely to provide a complete picture of a student’s learning than a collection of diverse sources of evidence is. I also learned about the important of feedback. The book says that feedback should be timely, specific, understandable, and should allow for adjustment. All of these concepts impacted me and they will all impact the way that I teach. Instead of giving a test at the end of a unit, I know now that it is best to give diagnostic assessments before I begin the unit, formative assessments during the unit, and then to give a summative assessment at the end of the unit.

Chapter 4

Some of the main points I got out of this chapter is that learning has more to do with a student’s ability to use skills to address problems than with retaining data. I also learned that to teach for understanding is to provide an intellectual diet that yields thoughtful, capable, and confident learners and therefore citizens. The book said “the more powerful the curriculum the greater the possibilities for the classroom, the teacher, and the students. One of the things that impacted me the most from this chapter is that in order to be an effective teacher, I must continually attend to the quality of the curriculum and instruction. This was discussed in Dr. Theresa’s class when we talked about PCK. The chapter introduced the idea that if a student isn't growing then the teacher isn't teaching that student. This statement will greatly impact my philosophy of teaching. I feel like a lot of teachers blame the students for not learning but the idea that is the teacher’s fault that the child isn't growing will impact the individual attention that I give to the growth of my students. At the end of the chapter three questions were asked that will greatly impact me as a teacher and therefore my classroom. The three questions were: Do we have the will and skill to accept the responsibility for the diverse individuals we teach? Do we have a vision of the power of high-quality learning to help young people build lives? Are we willing to do the work of building bridges of possibility between what we teach and the diverse learners we teach? I feel I can be a good and responsive teacher if every day I can answer these three questions with a confident yes. 

Chapter 3

In this chapter I learned about the backward design process. It says to first consider the big picture by considering goals, examining content standards, and reviewing curriculum expectations. The next thing to do is to narrow it down by considering in advance the assessment evidence that is needed to document the targeted learning has been achieved. The final step in the process is to completely narrow down what you are doing. In the last step, as the teacher you figure out what instructional activities are the most appropriate. The big thing that this design plan provides is the structure to support flexibility in teaching and assessments while honoring the integrity of the content but also respecting the individuality of the students learning processes. This impacts me in a big way. Since I will have to write lesson plans and the plan for a unit, I have a way of doing so that will first make sure that I have reached the content standards and curriculum expectations. Using this process I can look at the big picture first and then begin breaking the unit into parts. This process will make it easier to see where I am headed before I plan a lesson or unit instead of planning a lesson and not knowing where I am going with it or if it meets the curriculum or content standards. This method of making lesson plans will majorly impact my classroom because I can teach the curriculum and satisfy the standards while satisfying each student’s individual learning process and style. 

Chapter 4

In this chapter I learned that children benefit from instructional approaches that help them reflect upon their own learning experiences. They can reflect on their own learning experiences and relate them to multiple intelligences. To have students do this, a teacher has to introduce multiple intelligences by explaining it. I also learned that it is best to describe the intelligences using simple terms and by being inclusive, for example by saying who likes reading? I learned that as a teacher I should strive to teach students the multiple intelligences using all eight intelligences. This chapter impacted the way that I would teach the meaning behind multiple intelligences. I would think more about how I was going to introduce each one that would be inclusive since it would be easy to say something like “who is good at math? If yes you have logical intelligence” but that would leave out students that aren't good at math or who feel as though they are bad at math. I would also have to do a lot of planning to make sure that besides being inclusive, I am also introducing each intelligence in a way that students with different intelligences understand. I have to introduce each intelligence using all eight intelligences which will not be an easy task. I would have to plan a time to introduce the multiple intelligences instead of introducing them when I felt it was necessary or when there was extra time at the end of a class period, for example on a test day. 

Chapter 3

I learned that the single best tool for figuring out a student’s multiple intelligences is observation. The book said that sometime the best way is to see how they misbehave because misbehaviors are usually a cry for help, saying “I need to be taught this way”. Another way to observe students is to see what they do during their free time in school. The big take away I got from the chapter was that a teacher can set up activities for each intelligences and see what students chose to do. Also that parents are helpful in telling you what multiple intelligences are prominent in their children. You can get input from parents by introducing the idea of MI at back to school night and then by asking them about their observations during parent teacher conferences. What I learned in the chapter will impact my classroom more than it will impact me personally. During back to school night I can introduce the idea of multiple intelligences and then if I have “problem students” I can call a parent teacher conference and ask for the parents input as to why their child is acting in a certain way. I can also pose a solution that will incorporate the student’s multiple intelligences and see what the parent(s) think of the solution. As a first day or first week activity I can set up different stations around the room and have students look at the activities and then have them go to their first choice activity. To see more than one intelligence, I can have students go to their second choice activity after they complete their first choice activity. I can write down the first and second choices of my students this way I know their learning styles for the rest of the year. 

Chapter 2

Central to teaching is what we as teachers ought to teach, meaning what we want students to know, understand, and be able to do. The second element that is central to teaching is who we teach. The two elements that are central to teaching means that as a teacher students should be what I am thinking of first when I am make, implement, and reflect on my professional plans. I learned that students come to the classroom to make sense of the world and of their place in the world. They also come looking for affirmation, partnership, accomplishment, and freedom. Because students are looking for freedom, I learned that students are better learners when their way of learning is accepted. This is important for me to include in my classroom. By allowing students to have freedom and allowing them to learn in their own way, I can fulfill the needs of my students. I learned that it is a teacher’s job to make the link between the basic needs of students and the curriculum. By allowing students to learn the material in their own way, I am making the link between the curriculum and the students’ need of freedom. In this chapter I learned about responsive teaching and how it means that a teacher is attuned to a students varied learning needs as much as the requirements of the curriculum. Teachers can benefit more students by implementing patterns of instruction that serve multiple needs. One way I can do this in my classroom is by teaching in multiple ways and by giving students the option to work alone or work in pairs. 

Chapter 1

Understanding by Design is the model that educators need because it acknowledges the core of standards. But also because it demonstrates how meaning and understanding can not only originate from, but also frame content standards so that students develop power of minds as well as gain an information base. Differentiated Instruction offers a framework for addressing learner variance as a critical element of instructional planning. Both of them together address two of the greatest contemporary challenges for teachers. The first of which is crafting a powerful curriculum in a standards dominated time period. The second greatest challenge is ensuring academic success for a full spectrum of learners that compose today’s schools. The partnership of the two models is essential where teachers aim to help each and every student to develop to their maximum capacity. Understanding by Design’s primary goal is to define and guide the application of principles of curriculum design. It is primarily a curriculum design model. Differentiated Instruction on the other hand, is primarily an instructional design model. Its primary goal is to ensure that teachers focus on the processes and procedures that provide effective learning for varied individuals. The big take away that I got from this chapter is that a quality classroom requires quality curriculum and quality instruction which is why Understanding by Design and Differentiated Instruction go together. It’s not enough for a teacher to teach in a way that satisfies a variety of learning styles if there isn't a good curriculum. In the same way it is not enough for there to be a good curriculum if the teacher can’t help all individuals learn. 

Chapter 2

As an educator chapter 2 tells me that I should first apply a model of learning to myself before I apply it in my classroom. This means that I need to determine the nature and quality of my own multiple intelligences and seek ways to develop them in my own life. I learned that the purpose of the multiple intelligence inventory is to begin to connect my life experiences with the eight intelligences. In order to accomplish this I need to look back in my experiences with the eight intelligences. As a teacher I will have to know how to tap resources in the intelligences that I would typical shy away from in classroom use. One of the best ways to do this is to draw on colleague’s expertise. In this chapter I also learned that there is 3 factors that an intelligence’s development depends on. The first is biological meaning that genetic factors or brain damage can influence an intelligence’s development. The second is an individual’s personal life history meaning experiences with parents, teachers, peers, and friends who either awaken an intelligence or keep it from developing by actively repressing the individual. The third factor is an individual’s cultural and historical background, in other words the time and place in which someone was born and raised. The second factor is particularly important to know as a teacher because as a teacher you wouldn’t want to repress a student from developing any of the intelligences. The other two important things that I learned about in this chapter where crystallizing experiences and paralyzing experiences. As a teacher I want to provide crystallizing experiences so that a spark is created that can help a student develop talents and abilities that develop one of the eight intelligences. 

Chapter 1

In chapter 1 I learned about Gardner’s eight intelligences and how he came to thinking of multiple intelligences. I learned that he questioned the validity of determining intelligence through the practice of taking students out their natural learning environment and asking them to do isolated tasks that they had never done before and would never do again. Gardner believed that intelligence has more to do with an individual’s capacity for solving problems and “fashioning products” in a natural setting. Even though we learned about some of the characteristics of each of the intelligences in class, I felt that the way the book described them helped me learn more about each intelligence. Linguistic has to do with a person’s ability to use words effectively in writing or verbally. People with linguistic intelligence tend to have the ability to manipulate the structure of language, the sounds of languages, the meanings of language, and the practical uses of language. In a math classroom, I could give word problems or give students the option to explain what they did to solve a problem to their classmates. Word problems that require explanation in the answer would satisfy the students that can use words effectively in writing. Explaining the method that was used to solve a problem would satisfy a student who can effectively use words verbally. I also learned that everyone has all eight intelligences and have the possibility for all eight to be adequately developed. By implementing ways to satisfy all the eight intelligences in my classroom, some students would be further developing their intelligences.