Stoichiometry Applications

Here's the link to my finalized presentation of my action research plan:

http://prezi.com/bwmm86a0qr0f/?utm_campaign=share&utm_medium=copy


It's hard to believe we have finished our third class already! I hope everyone has a great break and just want you all to know I love working with you and I am learning so much from each of you. 

Personal Assessment Philosophy

Authentic assessment can be defined as a “performance assessment in which the student’s tasks resemble real-life tasks” (Popham, 2014). In other words it is an assessment that the student can apply to real world situations. The opposite being traditional assessments which consist of the standard multiple choice or true-false tests. The purpose of authentic assessments is to require students to use their knowledge and apply it rather than just memorizing and recalling answers to typically one answer questions. It also allows students to show their true selves. Many times students are answering questions on exams or assignments in a manner that they think their teacher will approve. While it is important to do the assignment correctly it is equally if not more important that the student is allowed to demonstrate their understanding and thoughts on the lesson through their own words.

This type of assessment is beneficial because it makes students think about how the subject they are learning about will affect them in the “adult world”. Too often students focus on what they need to remember in order to do well on a test. This is not how teaching or learning should work. Students should be learning about how they will use their newly acquired knowledge in their day to day practices. Authentic teaching answers the student’s ultimate question “will I ever use this?”. Bringing real world examples into the classroom allows students to see that there is a purpose to Algebra or Physics. These assessments allow teachers to see that if the student grasped the concepts of the lesson rather than just memorizing definitions or formulas. The importance is to be able to apply the knowledge outside of the classroom. If that cannot be achieved then there really was no purpose to the lesson. The day students cannot bring anything out of a lesson is the day that teaching has ultimately failed. This may seem overzealous but I think that’s what is missing in schools. Passionate teachers make for passionate students. If teachers are able to come up with assessments that allow students to see the lesson through other outlets the students will be able to apply it to learned concepts. Authentic assessments allow students to explore their thoughts and opinions while still learning the concepts.

The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) is based around the idea of applications being completed with critical thinking. With everyone following the same standards it allows teachers to ensure that progress is being accomplished. The CCSS is built upon the principle to prepare students for college, career, and life. In a way authentic assessment and the CCSS go hand in hand. Authentic assessment allows a student’s knowledge to be measured in a real life setting. Being able to do this allows both the teacher and the student to see how the lesson is going to affect them in the long run. Teachers want to be able to make a difference in their student’s education and leave a lasting mark on them. If a teacher is able to make things relatable to a student and have them understand the importance of a topic they will take it out of the classroom and keep it with them which is the result of authentic assessments. I do not have any experience with teaching with the CCSS but I am eager to get started. I think it is vital for students to know how they get an answer and not just say it because they know its right from memory. I want my students to take something home from class everyday no matter how small it may be.

I want to add just a few more insights to my personal philosophy since I have finally begun my field experience as a tutor in Towson High School’s ACCESS program. ACCESS is an optional after school program offered to students that received a failing grade in a major class in their first quarter. I am helping students with their chemistry and math. Today (December 9) was our first official day with the students. To start we had the students fill out a self-assessment about their learning styles and goals for the afternoon session. They were asked about their academic strengths and areas that can use improving. The final thing the students had to do was name the goals they will have reached by next report card (February 7, 2015). We gave the students about ten minutes to complete these assessments.

The teachers and I began to mingle with the students to find out what they had brought with them to the session to work on. At first I had a hard time finding any students that needed help with science or math so I sat with two students that were working on English and American Government. I was so eager to help I was willing to do anything. I even offered to help one student with his Spanish. Unfortunately he did not have his homework with him. This seemed to be a trend with most of the students in this program. They are very disorganized. I noticed that their notes and homework sheets are all over the place rather than separated by subject. Luckily another teacher noticed this and quickly came to the rescue with a bunch of folders and markers for the kids to sort their things out. One of my goals is to help the students keep their papers/notes together by subject.

I did eventually find a student that needed help with chemistry. We worked on her homework together and I could see that she was trying. She even admitted that sometimes she would overthink the problems. The sessions are only an hour but I am happy to report we got half of her homework finished. Before leaving the session her chemistry teacher, who is helping in the program as well, asked me how she did because he says he sees her falling behind in class but it is hard to help everyone because that class has over 30 students. I do believe that sometimes students just need a little one-on-one time to help them understand a concept. I am looking forward to helping her and other students as the program continues.

References:

Myths vs Facts. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.corestandards.org/about-the-standards/myths-vs-facts/

Popham, W. (2014). Performance Assessment. In Classroom Assessment: What Teachers Need to Know (7th ed., pp. 212-213). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.

Lombardi, M. (2008). Making the Grade: The Role of Assessment in Authentic Learning.Educause. Retrieved from https://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/ELI3019.pdf

McAlister, B. (n.d.). The Authenticity of Authentic Assessment: What the Research Says…Or Doesn’t Say. Retrieved from http://calpro-online.org/eric/docs/custer/custer4.pdf

Wiggins, Grant (1990). The case for authentic assessment. Practical Assessment, Research & Evaluation, 2(2). Retrieved November 2, 2014 from http://PAREonline.net/getvn.asp?v=2&n=2