Mind the Gap: (re)ExaminingSchooling, Assessing and the Theory / Practice Divide
Presented by: Jonathan Vervaet@jonathanvervaet
January 28th, 2015
“If students have not been told where they are going, it is
unlikely that they will arrive.” – Shirley Clark
Learning Intentions“I can become curious about
something in the research I want to inquire further into.”
“Assessment is the beginning and the end of my teaching. It defines my culture, my relationships, my learning community, my values, and my beliefs about teaching and learning.” - Matt Rosati
Our Traditional System
• Students are penalized if the don’t learn fast enough... Even though we know learning is an individual / developmental process.
• What you do at the beginning of the course will always count against you... Despite the fact the student might now understand what they did wrong and how to prevent it in the future.
• Grades include all student attributes... Even though we know grades should reflect the student’s ability to meet PLOs.
The Paradigm Shift
• Learning vs. Teaching• Outcomes / Standards vs. Tasks• Quality vs. Quantity• If students learn vs. When students learn• Confidence vs. Anxiety• Practice vs. One Chance• Improvement vs. Coverage
Tom Schimmer
Instructional Design
90% of what we know about the brain we have learned in approximately the last 2 years
Motivation 2.0
True or False:
Rewarding an activity will get you more of it. Punishing an activity will get you less of it.
Harlow (1949)
Radical finding, there was a third drive.
The performance of the task provided intrinsic reward.
The monkeys solved the problem simply because they found it gratifying to solve
the puzzle.
2Harlow (1949)
Rewarded the monkey with raisons.
“Introduction of food in the present experiment served to disrupt performance, a phenomena not
reported in the literature.”
The monkeys made more errors and solved the puzzles less frequently.
Deci (1969)
Day 1 Day 2 Day 3
Group A No reward
CashReward
No reward
Group B No reward
No reward
No reward
Deci (1969) – Carnegie Melon
Soma Block Experiment
“When money is used as an extrinsic reward for some activity, the subjects lose intrinsic interest for the activity.” Rewards give you a short term boost, but the effect wears off and can reduce long term
motivation.
If it is true that carrot and stick motivators don’t
work and often do harm, what are the implications for us as teachers in our grading and assessment
practices?
Formative Assessment:
5 Key Strategies…
sometimes 6!
Dylan Wiliam “Embedded Formative Assessment” (2011)
Formative Assessment:1.Learning Intentions and Success
Criteria2.Activities Designed to Elicit Evidence
of Learning3.Feedback that Moves Learning
Forward4.Peer Assessment5.Student Ownership of Learning
Formative Assessment:1.Learning Intentions and Success
Criteria2.Activities Designed to Elicit Evidence
of Learning3.Feedback that Moves Learning
Forward4.Peer Assessment5.Student Ownership of Learning
Formative Assessment:1.Learning Intentions and Success
Criteria2.Activities Designed to Elicit Evidence
of Learning3.Feedback that Moves Learning
Forward4.Peer Assessment5.Student Ownership of Learning
Formative Assessment:1.Learning Intentions and Success
Criteria2.Activities Designed to Elicit Evidence
of Learning3.Feedback that Moves Learning
Forward4.Peer Assessment5.Student Ownership of Learning
Formative Assessment:1.Learning Intentions and Success
Criteria2.Activities Designed to Elicit Evidence
of Learning3.Feedback that Moves Learning
Forward4.Peer Assessment5.Student Ownership of Learning
Carol Dweck (2006)
Fixed vs. Growth Mindset.
Fixed – Believe they have to work with whatever intelligence they have because it
can’t be increased.
They resist novel challenges if they can’t succeed immediately.
They’d rather not try than be perceived as dumb.
Carol Dweck (2006)
Fixed vs. Growth Mindset.
Growth – Believe intelligence can be built through life.
See working harder as a way to improve.
They persist and try a wide variety of solutions when given novel tasks.
Csikzentmihalyi (1990)
Flow Theory – The exhilarating moments when
we feel in control, full of purpose, and in the zone.
Daniel Pink (2009)
Autonomy –over task, time, team, and technique.
Mastery – Becoming better at something that matters.
Purpose
Formative
Assessment for Learning
Ongoing
To determine learning needs
Ungraded and Descriptive Feedback (uses
words)
Provides feedback to students and teacher to promote learning
Summative
Assessment of Learning
Occurs at the end of a learning progression
Graded to determine achievement level
and for reporting
Evaluative
Levels or Marks
Formative (for)
Examples:
-Oral questioning
-Draft work
-Reflections
-Portfolio reviews-Peer /self assessments
Summative (of)
Examples:
- Inquiry projects
-Presentations
-Grade conferences
-Portfolio reviews
-Tests and quizzes
Outline Signed by Parents 5 / 5
Wksht HW Check 0 / 5 Completed but it was copied
Homework Spot Check 6 / 5 Bonus marks for doing it!
Quiz #1 7 /10
Quiz #2 24 / 25
Quiz #3 0 / 33 Absent w/out a parent note
Binder Check 5 / 15 Missing Key Notes
Essay Rough Draft 0 / 12 HW Not Completed
Essay Peer Edit 0 / 10 Essay wasn't written
Essay Corrections 0 / 5 Essay still not done
Essay Good Copy 10 / 12 Got it!Particpation in Peer Edit Conference 0 / 5
Didn't have the essay written
Group Participation 5 / 5
Unit #1 Test 36 / 54Permission Slip for Field Trip Signed and Returned 5 / 5
A/B Partner – Mining for Gold
A – says what the most important idea was from the reading.
B – asks “Why is that important?”A – answers and explains.
B – again, asks “Why is that important?”
Do this until A can synthesize thought to a single word or phrase;
The NUGGET.Repeat for partner B.
Principles for Classroom Assessment
Students should be part of the assessment process and involved in setting criteria, setting their own learning goals and designing demonstrations.
)
"We must constantly remind ourselves that the ultimate purpose of evaluation is to have students become self evaluating. If students graduate from our schools still dependent upon others to tell them when they are adequate, good, or excellent, then we’ve missed the whole point of what education is about.”
- Costa and Kallick (1992)
Relationships are all there is. Everything in the universe only exists because it is in relationship to everything else. Nothing exists in isolation. We have to stop pretending we are individuals who can go it alone.
- M. Wheatley
You must use the research to support your practice to avoid being a well intentioned “Enthusiastic Amateur.”
- Fullan and Hargraeves “Professional Capital”
Teaching is not rocket science. It is, in fact, far more complex and demanding work than rocket science.
- Richard Elmore (Professor of Education Leadership at Harvard Graduate School of Education)
Contact Information
Jonathan VervaetEmail:
Twitter: @jonathanvervaetBlog:
jonathanvervaet.wordpress.com
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