Weekly Reflections

Week Eight: 
Final Reflection
Well, the end has arrived.  This week, I put the finishing touches on my project.  I really enjoyed viewing the final projects of my classmates, and I continue to be amazed by the diversity and varied content included in our projects.  

This week, I also was interested in learning about AudioBoo, and I intend to spend some time seeing if I can incorporate its use into my own classes.  

I cannot believe the end is here, but I look forward to taking what I have learned here and using it.  I already have started to do so, and I am feeling inspired to do so much more.

Week Seven:
Much of this week was spent finalizing my project.  As I began, it felt a bit fragmented, but it came together as I pieced it into the Google site.  I have continued to come back to it throughout the week, attempting to look at it with fresh eyes each time.  I have found that I had some time to re-evaluate my learning objectives and revise a bit there.  I also considered the tools and their appropriateness for each objective, and I find that I am happy with what I have chosen.  I went back to my concept map and made some edits to reflect the final tools associated with the revised LOs.  All of this does reinforce working from the perspective of meeting the LO and the activity and tool necessary to assess the learning.

Also, I found the diversity of our group fascinating as I began to review the various final projects of my peers.  It really is amazing to see all of the differing course content, and how some of the same tools are being used for different activities.  I enjoyed the opportunity to review others' work, and then compare it to my own as we begin this final week to make last revisions.

Week Six:
It feels like a long week; I think because I had so much in it, including traveling for a work conference that left me a bit tired and overloaded.  Now I am trying to get my final project conceptualized and put together, which I have done some of, but it is not properly into my site...which I am not satisfied with yet.  I have much work to do this upcoming week to get the project finalized, and I am feeling a bit weary at the thought, but I know it can be done with proper time and attention.  I will devote time each day to getting it done over the next several days.  

Also, this week, we worked on creating our pre-course survey, and from this activity, I have learned that I want to continue to revisit this survey to condense it into a nice survey to garner as much as possible about my learners in order to assist both their needs and mine as a course begins.  It is important for me to consider exactly what I need to know from them and to also consider what might help them feel like they are able to begin the course with a sense of support.

The small team discussion this week was focused on considering how I will continue to adapt my methods of instruction and assessment and feedback to assist my students.  I have been thinking much about how to incorporate some strong rubrics into my course, and I will continue to find ways to strengthen feedback to students and create mini-lessons as part of that ongoing feedback and student progression.

Week Five: 
Bloom's Taxonomy was up for discussion this week in the form of a table we were assigned as part of our pre-thinking and planning for our final project.  Each time I am redirected back to Bloom's, I am reminded of the different levels of learning at play given specific learning activities and objectives.  Therefore, the table and corresponding discussion has been helpful in thinking about the course lessons and objectives I am trying to reach in my redesign process, and, of course, how I am going to assess them.  

Furthermore, the rubric activity has me thinking much about their use.  Honestly, I do not use rubrics much in my courses, and I do appreciate their value and use in terms of students understanding the criteria for grading, so I am thinking about how to incorporate them when needed, and not just for the sake of having them.  

I enjoyed hearing our instructor audio feedback for the toolbox, and I am storing info for the final project.

Week Four:
This week, much of my focus was on Blogger as my toolbox item. I did research, read articles, and considered how to use this type of tool as an assessment tool.  I found this activity helpful while thinking about how I might come back to using blogs in my classroom (online and f2f).  I enjoyed working with my group, and I think we came together nicely to create our first version of the toolbox.  I like the idea of the toolbox in general, and it has me thinking of other things I could create "toolboxes" for when thinking in terms of curriculum for my courses.

Furthermore, I am remembering a thought from a video in this week's readings: it had to do with ruling out large numbers of youngsters of all races who have other attributes that indicate high-level success in the real world even though they did not earn "stratospheric" SAT scores.   I have thought about this often this week since many times standardized tests are used to meet learning objectives and goals.  I, myself, deal with standard tests that are the most heavily weighted portion of my student grades, and I know they are NOT the only indicators of success in college reading....they are just ONE form of assessment.  So I am thinking and reflecting much this week on CHANGE and VARIED opportunities for assessment.
  
Week Three:
Discussion this week focused on Bonk's article and video, and I gained much from the readings/video and the follow-up class discussions.  I liked focusing on grading and matching activities with assessments as this is a focus of my current curriculum changes in my subject-area department.  This also helped me when it came time to complete the concept map this week; I went to Module One of an already existing course, which I am attempting to redesign bits and pieces at a time....it is a difficult and timely process to redesign if I think and try to do it all at once, but I am going to slowly add and change parts of the course each time it runs.  I was charged with creating the online course, and I am attempting to redesign with new focus and goals, and I am trying to address necessary components with my department to allow for all the changes I wish to make, especially after taking these courses, which have significantly helped the process.  

Also, this week, we began a team project: the midterm assessment toolbox.  I was glad that a teammate switched with me, because I get to use Blogger as my tool, which I want to add to my own online courses as an assessment tool, so this will work nicely as a learning process....I will get to consider this tool as a form of activity and assessment item.  I have been thinking much about blogging as a reflective journaling tool, but I also want to consider how else I might use this tool in my reading prep courses, so I continue to explore ideas as I move forward in the assignment for the toolbox.  

Finally, I was reminded of the Jigsaw method, which I have used before in my classroom.   I plan to come back to this method, and I am also exploring projects that will allow me to employ this technique in my classes, both f2f and online.  It is a great exercise in teamwork.   
Week Two:
This week, we created our individual course blogs. I chose eBlogger because it is the one I usually tend to use first.  I like its features, and I tend to be able to navigate it pretty well.  I am finding that I remember it takes time to blog, which is partly why I stopped using it in my own classes, along with the fact that I shifted disciplines and just have been busy creating new class designs and curriculum.  But doing this blog and others in other courses has reminded me that I like them, and I enjoyed the readings this weeks as reminders of how blogs can be used in education.  I am starting to think about ways to use them in my my reading prep courses.  

Also, this week the discussion with classmates has been great.  I really love the diverse and eclectic group of people in our class, and reading and learning about each one as he or she offers discussion always helps me process the week's lessons.  

I wish to continue development on the blog as recommended by our instructor, peronalizing and adding video or more gadgets when I have time.  

Finally, I am taking away from this week the learner-centered assessment vs. teacher-centered assessment interactive lesson we did.  I think this idea of learner vs. teacher centered is quite interesting, and assessments in general,from my experience, tend to go towards teacher centered experiences....I do think there needs to be more alternate forms of assessment that are acceptable all around.  It is something I find of great value to discuss. 
   
Week One: 
During week one, I was overwhelmed a bit, not because of this class, but because I was trying to wrap up another course that actually ends this Friday, and it was just too much to do...I think I have begun to feel more settled now that the other class is over very soon, and I have worked hard to finalize the portfolio for that class. 

For the beginning of this Assessment class, I was happy to participate in the "Let's go to the Movies" icebreaker because it was engaging and fun....sometimes, I think, "Oh, no, not another icebreaker..." but I really enjoyed this one very much because I am a movie fan.  It was a nice way to get to know the classmates and remember some really great movies I must watch again.  I like icebreakers, but I think I might have been on writing overload this week because the classes were overlapping.

I struggled for at least three days with figuring out how to use the wiki, something I have never used before, but finally got it figured out!  Thank goodness.

I am trying to keep up with the reading as I know this class is going to offer much needed and relevant information for my current career.  Assessment methods and instruments have been on my list of things to change!  More reflections to come soon for Week Two...