Final ImagineIT Report
As I reflect back upon my ImagineIT project, I can honestly say I am really proud. While designing this learning opportunity for me and my students, it’s interesting to seen how the “unknown” at the beginning morphed into certainty and success. My mantra has always been that failure leads to success, and throughout this project, I’ve immersed myself and my students into learning more about assessment and understanding, as well as the beneficial and purposeful use of technology to enhance learning. I’ve learned to be flexible and take risks, which have all brought amazing opportunities into my classroom.
My students have soaked this all up, and from the mouth of a 5th grader, she couldn’t have said it better…
“I really enjoyed this project because I felt that it was harder and there were more mistakes that we could make, allowing us to learn and understand the topic more than a test." - N
Whoah. It was harder? You could make more mistakes? You learned more than a test could show? What kid says that but prefaces it with “I really enjoyed this?”
Brilliant.
My students’ parents and a handful of colleagues have also seen the positive effects of this project too, recognizing increased excitement for science and technology. Again, I am in a win-win!
Moving forward, this year has been about tremendous growth for me. I am truly okay with taking more risks both with my teaching and with my students’ learning. I am even more okay with the failure that each attempt at learning more about student learning may bring. As I refer back to my mantra once again, failure only brings success. And I am fairly certain, that my ImagineIT Project on alternative assessment through technology integration was met with success!
To see the project in action...watch the video below!
My students have soaked this all up, and from the mouth of a 5th grader, she couldn’t have said it better…
“I really enjoyed this project because I felt that it was harder and there were more mistakes that we could make, allowing us to learn and understand the topic more than a test." - N
Whoah. It was harder? You could make more mistakes? You learned more than a test could show? What kid says that but prefaces it with “I really enjoyed this?”
Brilliant.
My students’ parents and a handful of colleagues have also seen the positive effects of this project too, recognizing increased excitement for science and technology. Again, I am in a win-win!
Moving forward, this year has been about tremendous growth for me. I am truly okay with taking more risks both with my teaching and with my students’ learning. I am even more okay with the failure that each attempt at learning more about student learning may bring. As I refer back to my mantra once again, failure only brings success. And I am fairly certain, that my ImagineIT Project on alternative assessment through technology integration was met with success!
To see the project in action...watch the video below!
Imagine IT Update #2
Nearly two months into my ImagineIT project, I’m proud to know that I’m sticking to the timeline I presented in January! In the beginning of January, my sixth graders were presenting their findings on how light interacts with different materials in alternative ways. I saw skits, songs, plays, and drawings to show their findings, all different from the traditional paper-and-pencil tests. Check out the video below that captures student learning leading up to their alternative assessments! And below the video are snapshots from their alternative assessment presentations.
Just two weeks ago, we celebrated National Engineers Week, connecting the problem-solving engineers do alongside the technology and science worlds. Students spent time coding Finch Robots and programming MaKey MaKeys. They also participated in group challenges focused on biomedical, green, and mechanical engineering.
While it is my hope to expose them to these fields, my huge take-away was the collaboration and persistence skills needed to work within a STEM-related field. I am also curious to see how students can connect these experiences to future alternative assessments. Can they use coding, programing, as well as design challenges to engage their peers in understanding of the science-related content they must learn? Only time will tell! |
And lastly, I’ve introduced students into working on their World of Wonder projects, this time having new twists added. They’re required to work in at least a pair, but no more than three students. Beyond a shared slides presentation, they are also going to be required to showcase what they know in an alternative way, other than a standard presentation. I must say they are truly excited to show what they’re learning in a unique way. They've just gotten started, with their WOW presentations due on March 28, 2016.
ImagineIT Update #1
Since school resumed in January, my ImagineIT project started up in full swing! Right after the break, sixth grade students completed their second round of alternative assessment. Students needed to be able to develop and use a model to describe that waves are reflected, absorbed, or transmitted through various materials (NGSS: MS-PS4-2), and while I could have given them this as the only way to show me their understanding...
Possible Standardized Test Question Items
I opted for an alternative route!
Students created their own hidden message with limited materials (notecards, markets, and colored filters) like those below. They'd still be hitting the standard where they'd have to describe how light waves are reflected, absorbed, or transmitted through various materials, but in a new, creative way that got them thinking deeper and more collaboratively...
Students created their own hidden message with limited materials (notecards, markets, and colored filters) like those below. They'd still be hitting the standard where they'd have to describe how light waves are reflected, absorbed, or transmitted through various materials, but in a new, creative way that got them thinking deeper and more collaboratively...
I allowed them to choose the mode in which they wanted to express their understanding and required them to work in groups. We set the criteria for the assignment that would explain the phenomenon, and here’s how one group did just this (download the song file...you wont' want to miss out!)
Science Fight Song Cover (Explaining the Hidden Message) By Violet, Gio, Kayla, and Amel Verse: Like a flashlight, with a filter, shining on a piece of paper, Like how lightray, is just like a rainbow, I might only have 2 colors, but I can make a hidden message And all those little light rays, transmitting through a filter, shining on the message, so I see one color. Chorus: This is my light song, take back my filter, so I get white light, The light’s in a clear path, going to my eyes, I read it, I’ll play my light song, And I don’t really care if nobody else can see, but my flashlight still has enough battery Bridge: When a light source, hits an object, all other colors absorb into it, And the color we know it is, reflects back into eyes. I might only have 1 eye, but I can interpret the color. Chorus |
Moving forward, I am going to continue to use alternative assessment and technology integration to not only increase student engagement, but to try and uncover more of what students know in a way that is most comfortable for them.
For the rest of the fellowship, I am also exposing students to all kinds of technology (some of which I will be learning myself...yay!) so that they can have many ways in which they can show their understanding. I am excited to see where this will all lead me and my students, especially as I plan to expose this type of work to my fifth graders whom I will loop with for next year.
For the rest of the fellowship, I am also exposing students to all kinds of technology (some of which I will be learning myself...yay!) so that they can have many ways in which they can show their understanding. I am excited to see where this will all lead me and my students, especially as I plan to expose this type of work to my fifth graders whom I will loop with for next year.
ImagineIT Timeline: Spring 2016
My ImagineIT project is in full swing! Students have had the opportunity to explore alternative assessment individually. I’ve challenged myself to have students work in groups to see how this changes their thinking throughout the process, but also in how they collaborate and share their meaning of content with others, just like professionals do in the real world.
My project will grow this spring in many ways. First off, I want to continue using alternative assessment as I have seen student engagement skyrocket and their communication and collaboration skills expand. This means I will have students work in team-based settings rather than individually. I am excited to give students more choice in how they share their understanding of content, especially as their technology skills strengthen as I expose them to utilize new tools. National Engineering week is in late-February, and I am looking forward to how our celebration this week can expand their thinking into how they problem-solve.
By late March, I want to expose my current 5th graders to the idea of alternative assessment, as I am looping with them into 6th grade. How can I engage more students into sharing their knowledge of STEM related topics? How can I also have the 6th graders be more reflective in what they do to prepare them for the rigor of 7th grade? I’ll explore these ideas then.
Teaching is by no means an isolated field. By late April, I want to have extended my learning with others on my team. As I prepare my students to move on to the next grade level, how can I foster leadership and collaboration with teachers that my students will have in the future? How can they continue utilizing the skills/practices they learned with me? And how can I solicit feedback from parents who have played a vital role in helping their children with my alternative assessment and technology integration project?
By the time my MSU-Wipro fellowship is over, I want to extend my learning even farther than my classroom and my school. I am setting a goal for myself to submit an article for Science and Children magazine, focused on this project. I want to share all that my students and I have done with a greater audience!
My project will grow this spring in many ways. First off, I want to continue using alternative assessment as I have seen student engagement skyrocket and their communication and collaboration skills expand. This means I will have students work in team-based settings rather than individually. I am excited to give students more choice in how they share their understanding of content, especially as their technology skills strengthen as I expose them to utilize new tools. National Engineering week is in late-February, and I am looking forward to how our celebration this week can expand their thinking into how they problem-solve.
By late March, I want to expose my current 5th graders to the idea of alternative assessment, as I am looping with them into 6th grade. How can I engage more students into sharing their knowledge of STEM related topics? How can I also have the 6th graders be more reflective in what they do to prepare them for the rigor of 7th grade? I’ll explore these ideas then.
Teaching is by no means an isolated field. By late April, I want to have extended my learning with others on my team. As I prepare my students to move on to the next grade level, how can I foster leadership and collaboration with teachers that my students will have in the future? How can they continue utilizing the skills/practices they learned with me? And how can I solicit feedback from parents who have played a vital role in helping their children with my alternative assessment and technology integration project?
By the time my MSU-Wipro fellowship is over, I want to extend my learning even farther than my classroom and my school. I am setting a goal for myself to submit an article for Science and Children magazine, focused on this project. I want to share all that my students and I have done with a greater audience!