Assessment of or for Learning

I've been looking for online resources on the topic of using assessment to improve student learning. So far, I've found two that I really like.

The first one is a Pearson Issue Paper titled Using Assessments to Improve Learning and Student Progress. This paper makes the distinction between assessment for learning (formative) and assessment of learning (summative) and the reasons both are needed to improve student learning and the organizations that support them.

The second is titled Using Assessment to Improve Instruction from the Harvard Graduate School of Education and outlines an eight-step process for data analysis and action. They promote their book outlining the steps, which I might just have to get a copy of.

Any other sites you know about on this topic?

The Whirlwind Has Quieted

The last several weeks have been exciting and full. My mantra, "Who wants a boring life, anyway?!" was put to the test.

Besides my regular job and facilitating two online courses and taking another, we had many extra social events: the end of my son's hockey season for which I volunteered to put together the team yearbook, and his Eagle Scout ceremony and reception. Then to round out the month, both kids were in the musical Oklahoma with seven performances in two weekends (I attended five - it was sooo good!).

Now the online courses are finished and the track and baseball seasons are just beginning. And graduation will be here before you know it!

Making Connections

Though it might drive me to my grave early, there have been some advantages to teaching two different certification courses and completing the practicum of my eLearning for Educators Certificate simultaneously. The biggest advantage is seeing the connections. Like most professions, I suppose, teaching is a science as well as an art. There are some strategies that have substantial research to back them up, but when it comes to the moment, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. What works for one teacher, one learner, and one piece of content has so many variables to consider. As educators, it's our job to know about as many of the variables as possible, know ourselves, know our learners, know our content, and then use our expertise in these things we know to create the most beneficial learning experience for the moment.

Good Stories

What was your best learning experience? What was your worst? What learning theories are reflected in your classroom?

These questions were the prompts for some good story telling this week. We realized that one of the best factors for best learning experiences is teachers who are passionate about their topics and the success of their students. We also realized that how we teach is dependent on who and what we teach. Or maybe we're drawn to who and what we teach because of how we like to teach and feel most effective?

The Love of Chaos

The first week of certification courses I am facilitating is now complete. I'm facilitating #50 Curriculum and Course Construction and #53 Educational Psychology. The first week is always a little hectic getting the technology and expectations figured out. Both courses have the benefit of being filled with learners with a wide variety of educational and experiential backgrounds. Sometimes people who might be seen as having the least amount of experience in a given topic are the ones who have the ability to see things the oldtimers overlook - similar to not being the best person to proofread your own paper. On the other hand, those who have been around teaching and learning for awhile have great stories to illustrate points. The mix creates a rich learning environment.

I'm also using the Curriculum and Course Construction course as my practicum for the E-Learning for Educators graduate certificate from UW-Stout. It's interesting being a facilitator and learner at the same time. Though I do just as much learning as a facilitator and facilitating as a learner - there's something in that thought...

These facilitating and learning experiences are enjoyable and enlightening. But note to self for next year - running the courses sequentially rather than concurrently might be better for everyone involved. I love chaos. I must; whenever I put one thing to rest I seem to replace it with at least one new thing. (My husband is a bit apprehensive about what will replace our children leaving the nest.) From Margaret J. Wheatley's book Leadership and the New Science: Discovering Order in a Chaotic World (1999), "But the greatest challenge for me lies not in adopting any one new method, but in learning generally to live in a process world. It's a completely new way to be. Life demands that I participate with things as they unfold, to honor the mystery of it, and to see what emerges...It's not easy to give up the role of master creator and move into the dance of life" (153-154). My goal: Let go, embrace the chaos, dance.

Branching Out

I've just expanded the purpose of my blog to reflect on the teaching and learning going on in the two courses I'm facilitating over the next two months. The courses are Curriculum and Course Construction and Educational Psychology; both are certification courses for technical college instructors. It looks like there are some dynamic individuals with diverse backgrounds that will lead to some interesting discussions. I'm looking forward to it!

Week 8 Relfections

The final week of the course has ended. If you haven't had the experience of online interaction, you might not believe it when I say I will miss the other students in the course. I do look forward to logging in to the discussion board to see what others thought about the readings, projects created, feedback on my thoughts and projects. The varied backgrounds of the other students provides multiple viewpoints.

This week we finalized our final projects and read a couple of articles on using discussion boards. One article titled, Benefits of An Online Discussion List in A Traditional Distance Education Course, by Bradshaw and Hinton (2004) made a couple of points that interested me. One is the idea of exposure versus transformation in learning situations. A second is "if the course content is meaningful within the student's particular social context and their cultural and value system, learning is more likely to occur."

Many years ago I taught grammar and punctuation to middle school students and adult learners. Students are exposed to grammar and punctuation starting in first grade, though for many the concepts never seem to click and stick - no transformation occurs. In my mind, the secret lays somewhere in the second concept listed above. There lacks meaning in their social context, culture, and/or value system. The issue is not exclusive to English. When I figure out how to redesign learning systems to address this, I'm sure you'll hear about it.

My classmates have developed interesting projects for this course. I hope they continue to update their blogs as they implement them. I would like to see their results.