Rebecca J White
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Reflection of DOMAIN 3: Instruction after teaching “The World on the Turtle’s Back” Lesson
3a Communicating with Students: Expectations for learning, Directions for activities, Explanations of content, Use of oral and written language
My goals in this component continue to be to ensure that expectations for learning are always clear to students and that rubrics are provided and discussed for student reference. This is not always the case now, because occasionally I'm unable to provide students with rubrics early in an activity, or I don’t fully address student questions about my expectations. I know that I could improve in this component because there are always a few students who turn in activities that demonstrate quality effort, but don’t meet expectations for activity. For example, some students will produce quality writing that simply does not address the prompt. Others will turn in products that are missing significant elements. Evidence that I’m improving in this component could be that students are increasingly meeting expectations for performance and that instructions for activities are followed by all students.
It’s important for students to know about the agenda for each class, because it increases student accountability and motivation for learning. Writing the agenda for each class on the blackboard, so that students can glance at it and ask questions or get prepared ahead of class, helps learners to take charge of their own learning and affirms that the learners are respected participants in the educational experience, both of which builds students’ motivation to learn. This is one way that I have evidenced the component, using written and oral instructions. Similarly, instruction for the final application and synthesis activity, Create a Mythic Storyboard, are written on the handout for students to read while I explain and answer students’ questions.
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After students write a warm-up in response to the painting projected on the smartboard, I conducted a mini-lesson which provides fundamental background information for the lesson, evidencing explanation of content. I asked students to recall prior knowledge to define a myth and to describe the function of a creation myth. Using the textbook, I briefly summarized important points about the Iroquois way of life and a few historical events of the era, to establish context for the content. Likewise, during the whole-class discussion of 2-column notes, I shared my own findings in order to fill out content which students may have overlooked. This further evidences explanation of content, following students’ independent reading and note-taking.
Here's a sample of my own 2-column notes, which I shared with students during modeling and whole-class discussion:
Scaffolding instruction of 2-column notes is an example of evidence that I clearly communicated expectations for learning and directions for the activity. While I demonstrated the process of gathering information from the text to show how the myth contains parts that resemble myths and stories from other cultures, I thought aloud. Students learned by example and explanation how the activity was designed to build understanding of the essential question: What themes and elements reoccur in creation stories across cultures? During my explanation of the instructions, I read a myth that I'd created using the same Mythic Storyboard.
3b Using Questioning and Discussion Techniques: Quality of questions/prompts, Discussion techniques, Student participation
Full student participation in whole-class discussion is one of my goals in this component. I also aim to incorporate a wider range of total participation techniques in more ways during every lesson. Evidence that I’m achieving in this component would be that every student in every class is able to vocalize their ideas and questions. Currently, I know that I have weaknesses in this component because there are a few students in each class who I worry may sometimes pass through an entire lesson without sharing ideas or asking questions.
Think-Pair-Share is one of the total participation techniques that I’ve only recently begun to implement. In this lesson plan, I asked students a set of complex questions (p45 #5), which led to their initial consideration of the essential question: How do myths reveal the ideas or practices that are important to a culture? This is a high-quality question because students need to synthesize knowledge from different sources to create their own hypothesis. When students talk about their ideas with a partner, it increases participation for all students. I listened into conversations during those 2 minutes of peer discussion and asked each group to contribute to a whole class discussion. I think I could have improved this activity by facilitating discussion in which student pairs responded directly to other pairs of students. The Quick-Write (p45 #6) similarly engaged all learners in responding to a series of complex questions that solicit consideration of the second essential question.
3b Using Questioning and Discussion Techniques: Quality of questions/prompts, Discussion techniques, Student participation
Full student participation in whole-class discussion is one of my goals in this component. I also aim to incorporate a wider range of total participation techniques in more ways during every lesson. Evidence that I’m achieving in this component would be that every student in every class is able to vocalize their ideas and questions. Currently, I know that I have weaknesses in this component because there are a few students in each class who I worry may sometimes pass through an entire lesson without sharing ideas or asking questions.
Think-Pair-Share is one of the total participation techniques that I’ve only recently begun to implement. In this lesson plan, I asked students a set of complex questions (p45 #5), which led to their initial consideration of the essential question: How do myths reveal the ideas or practices that are important to a culture? This is a high-quality question because students need to synthesize knowledge from different sources to create their own hypothesis. When students talk about their ideas with a partner, it increases participation for all students. I listened into conversations during those 2 minutes of peer discussion and asked each group to contribute to a whole class discussion. I think I could have improved this activity by facilitating discussion in which student pairs responded directly to other pairs of students. The Quick-Write (p45 #6) similarly engaged all learners in responding to a series of complex questions that solicit consideration of the second essential question.
3c Engaging Students in Learning: Activities and assignments, Grouping of students, Instructional materials and resources, Structure and pacing
This component includes the engagement of students in learning experiences, an area in which I think I’ll always be working to improve. Evidence of greater success in this component would be that students work to engage each other, without my direct guidance to do so. I struggle to ensure that students are responding to higher-order questions, unless I’m the one asking those questions. In the future, I aspire to increasingly facilitate learning experiences in which students are constructing and directing their own complex questions to their peers in authentic self-driven inquiry.
Modeling the 2-column notes active reading strategy, before students read and take notes independently, evidences the scaffolded structure within the lesson. Overall, the lesson plan is structured to take students from recalling relevant prior knowledge, through building background knowledge, and then synthesizing knowledge in a creative application. The lesson’s pace is somewhat dependent on the rate of student reading, since I ask for a show of hands to determine when at least 90% of students have completed the selection before moving to the next activity. Another factor in the pace of the lesson is whether, or not, I determine from my informal assessment of student learning that step 6 of the lesson plan is necessary. This step has students write the answers to comprehension questions 1-3 on p45 of the text, then review answers as a whole class.
Students have assigned seating in every class and these seats have been determined in part by who works well with whom. When students participate in the Think-Pair-Share, they’re advised to pair with the person in front/behind, so they interact with optimal partners. This evidences consideration of student grouping.
The Mythic Storyboard Activity at the end of the lesson engages learners by design, because it invites students to choose a natural event as their own topic. Furthermore, the activity provides every student with the opportunity to express their ideas and opinions creatively. These elements of creativity and self-choice function to foster engagement and increased motivation in the learning experience.
This component includes the engagement of students in learning experiences, an area in which I think I’ll always be working to improve. Evidence of greater success in this component would be that students work to engage each other, without my direct guidance to do so. I struggle to ensure that students are responding to higher-order questions, unless I’m the one asking those questions. In the future, I aspire to increasingly facilitate learning experiences in which students are constructing and directing their own complex questions to their peers in authentic self-driven inquiry.
Modeling the 2-column notes active reading strategy, before students read and take notes independently, evidences the scaffolded structure within the lesson. Overall, the lesson plan is structured to take students from recalling relevant prior knowledge, through building background knowledge, and then synthesizing knowledge in a creative application. The lesson’s pace is somewhat dependent on the rate of student reading, since I ask for a show of hands to determine when at least 90% of students have completed the selection before moving to the next activity. Another factor in the pace of the lesson is whether, or not, I determine from my informal assessment of student learning that step 6 of the lesson plan is necessary. This step has students write the answers to comprehension questions 1-3 on p45 of the text, then review answers as a whole class.
Students have assigned seating in every class and these seats have been determined in part by who works well with whom. When students participate in the Think-Pair-Share, they’re advised to pair with the person in front/behind, so they interact with optimal partners. This evidences consideration of student grouping.
The Mythic Storyboard Activity at the end of the lesson engages learners by design, because it invites students to choose a natural event as their own topic. Furthermore, the activity provides every student with the opportunity to express their ideas and opinions creatively. These elements of creativity and self-choice function to foster engagement and increased motivation in the learning experience.
Shown here are samples of students' products from the Mythic Storyboard Activity:
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3d Using Assessment in Instruction: Assessment criteria, Monitoring of student learning, Feedback to students, Student self-assessment and monitoring of progress
Establishing criteria that clearly evidences creative thinking, application and synthesis of knowledge is one of my primary goals within this component. It is always challenging to make rubrics which can fairly evaluate degrees of creativity and synthesis. Success in this component would be evident if students were able to use the rubrics measuring these elements to self-assess.
Throughout the lesson, I’ll be informally and formally monitoring student comprehension of the content and development of skills. For example, while students are reading and taking notes independently I’ll more around the room to check their notes for evidence of understanding and to offer one-on-one guidance, as needed.
The Mythic Storyboard Activity solicits evidence of understanding through students’ application of the knowledge in a creative synthesis. Students will show their understanding of the characteristics of a myth, by creating their own story in its image. Student-made myths will demonstrate understanding of the third essential question: How have myths functioned cross-culturally to explain reality and natural events?
The Think-Pair-Share enables me to informally assess student understanding of the second essential question: How do myths reveal the ideas or practices that are important to a culture? The Quick-Write provides evidence for me to formally assess student understanding of the same question, ensuring that every student is accountable for this knowledge.
3e Demonstrating Flexibility and Responsiveness: Lesson adjustment, Response to students, Persistence
Becoming a more responsive teacher who’s able to monitor student progress and adapt lessons in real-time to help all students succeed is one of my goals. It seems to me that it would be difficult to show evidence of my progress in this area, because it happens when I pause or diverge from lesson plans. I make multiple notes on every lesson plan after I’ve used it, in order to improve timing, add, or skip parts of the lesson according to my perception of student needs.
Step #6, writing the answers to three comprehension questions, is designed to be flexibly implemented, or not, depending on real-time assessment of student needs. This activity would function to strengthen comprehension of the myth, which is necessary to engage in other higher-order thinking activities about the content. In the first instance of teaching this lesson, I decided to ask a few students to volunteer to answer the 3 questions, which resulted in 1-2 minute whole-class review of major plot points. In the second class, I could tell by the students’ participation in the whole-class discussion following independent reading and 2-column notes, that review of the comprehension questions would have been completely unnecessary.
Establishing criteria that clearly evidences creative thinking, application and synthesis of knowledge is one of my primary goals within this component. It is always challenging to make rubrics which can fairly evaluate degrees of creativity and synthesis. Success in this component would be evident if students were able to use the rubrics measuring these elements to self-assess.
Throughout the lesson, I’ll be informally and formally monitoring student comprehension of the content and development of skills. For example, while students are reading and taking notes independently I’ll more around the room to check their notes for evidence of understanding and to offer one-on-one guidance, as needed.
The Mythic Storyboard Activity solicits evidence of understanding through students’ application of the knowledge in a creative synthesis. Students will show their understanding of the characteristics of a myth, by creating their own story in its image. Student-made myths will demonstrate understanding of the third essential question: How have myths functioned cross-culturally to explain reality and natural events?
The Think-Pair-Share enables me to informally assess student understanding of the second essential question: How do myths reveal the ideas or practices that are important to a culture? The Quick-Write provides evidence for me to formally assess student understanding of the same question, ensuring that every student is accountable for this knowledge.
3e Demonstrating Flexibility and Responsiveness: Lesson adjustment, Response to students, Persistence
Becoming a more responsive teacher who’s able to monitor student progress and adapt lessons in real-time to help all students succeed is one of my goals. It seems to me that it would be difficult to show evidence of my progress in this area, because it happens when I pause or diverge from lesson plans. I make multiple notes on every lesson plan after I’ve used it, in order to improve timing, add, or skip parts of the lesson according to my perception of student needs.
Step #6, writing the answers to three comprehension questions, is designed to be flexibly implemented, or not, depending on real-time assessment of student needs. This activity would function to strengthen comprehension of the myth, which is necessary to engage in other higher-order thinking activities about the content. In the first instance of teaching this lesson, I decided to ask a few students to volunteer to answer the 3 questions, which resulted in 1-2 minute whole-class review of major plot points. In the second class, I could tell by the students’ participation in the whole-class discussion following independent reading and 2-column notes, that review of the comprehension questions would have been completely unnecessary.
Original lesson, without Domain 3 notes:
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