Standards-based Grading

Here is a VoiceThread narrated presentation I created about Standards-based grading. It describes the history and definition of it, what it looks like compared to traditional grading practices, the arguments for and against it, and how to implement it in your classroom.


Here is my recorded interview with an expert of Standards-based grading, Matt Townsley.

Here is a link to my Diigo shared bookmarks outliner for the most helpful and informative resources I found on Standards-based grading.

Thoughts on Inquiry-Based Learning

After taking the Master's class on Inquiry Based Learning (IBL) this summer, I am fully convinced of its effectiveness to help students develop a deeper understanding of not only science, but whatever they investigate. Compared to traditional learning, you can see from the picture below how much more engaged and responsible a student is during IBL.

Spirou, C. (2012). Inquiry based learning pl faculties. [Slide] Retrieved from http://www.slideshare.net/CherineSpirou1/inquiry-based-learning-pl-faculties

Wilkes University (2016), highlights the strengths of IBL in their summary of this course:

"Wilkes Inquiry-based instruction is a powerful way for students to learn through active engagement with their environment. Teachers who engage in this form of instruction orchestrate a learning environment that allows students to develop deep understanding and enriched knowledge about selected topics. Inquiry should be one of the methodologies that teachers employ in meeting the challenges of today's academic expectations. We live in an era of rapidly expanding knowledge, which highlights the need for students to be lifelong learners. Inquiry skills support students' abilities to question and methodically investigate a wide range of subject matter. This course will explore Inquiry as a teaching technique, utilizing technology to support the various stages of the process."

As far as what I will do with IBL in the future, I see myself as keeping it at the forefront of my teaching as much as possible, especially in science class. IBL makes so much sense because it encourages and facilitates a student's natural curiosity to investigate, which everyone is born with. I just want to make sure that I never take the fun away from them by telling them what I learned from my investigations if they can do it themselves! It should be my job to do give them opportunities to investigate the questions they have (related to the curriculum) and provide the time, materials, and structure necessary for them to do so. To help me remember more specifics about implementing IBL in my classroom, I've compiled some highlights from my notes taken during this class:

Highlights of IBL

• IBL's Process (for students to go through)
• Ask – question out of curiosity, identify problem
• Investigate – research, study, experiment, observe, re-question
• Create – make connections & synthesize info to create new ideas
• Discuss – share new ideas, give & receive feedback, compare
• Reflect – look at big picture, analyze what was learned/created, determine new questions to investigate…
• 
  
• Building Community - in order for students to have the confidence to question phenomena, experiment with trial and error, and effectively communicate their findings to a larger audience, there needs to be values upheld and taught to them...
• respect for one's self, each other, and property
• active listening
• empathy
• encouragement, especially during problems & challenges
• cooperation
• supporting ideas with evidence & data
• positive, persevering attitude
• quality before quantity
• everyone's contribution is valuable

• Process skills vs. Content - process skills are just as important as the content learned, because the process skills are the vehicle to reach the destination of knowledge
• observing
• questioning
• planning
• investigating
• formulating explanations
• making predictions
• analyzing data
• communicating

• Facts & Concepts - the difference is important to understand when planning for IBL
• Facts = very specific pieces of information (Frogs are amphibians)
• Concepts = big ideas that connect multiple facts together (How the life cycle of amphibians is affected by the environemnt)

• Useful Web 2.0 Tools - ways for students to show learning and participate in the investigations
• Presentation (VoiceThread, Prezi, Google Slides)
• Video (YouTube Video Creator, WeVideo, iMovie)
• Mobile (Kahoot, Quizlet Live)
• Community (TodaysMeet, Google Apps for Education - the collaborative aspect)

• Scientific Explanation - how a student should explain their investigation's findings
• Declare a hypothesis
• Provide evidence for the hypothesis from the investigation
• Explain how the evidence connects with the hypothesis

• Backward Design Lesson Plan Method - thinking with the end in mind first, then deciding on the means to get there
• Start with identifying what the standards or learning objectives are
• Decide what evidence is necessary for students to demonstrate understanding of content and/or mastery of a skill
• Plan facts, concepts & skills for students to develop; list of materials; description of learning activities

• 5E Instructional Design Method - research-proven way to empower and equip students in scientific investigations
• Engage
• Explore
• Explain
• Elaborate
• Evaluate

• Formative Assessments - feedback given/recorded during the learning process to help the teacher appropriately adjust instruction for maximum student progress, and to help the student see where they are at to be able to better manage and focus their learning
• Define & explain expectations; set learning goals
• Observations
• Discussions (various questions used to gauge student understanding)
• Self-assessments
• Informal quizzes
• Checklists
• Single-point rubrics

• Summative Assessments - grading students at the end of a unit/semester/year to determine what they learned compared to the learning goals
• Unit test
• Culminating presentation
• Standardized achievement test

How the 5E Instructional Model Helps Support Inquiry-Based Learning

Denton ISD. (2016). The 5E Instructional Framework for Secondary Academics. [Infographic]. Retrieved from http://www.dentonisd.org/Page/185

The above infographic does a great job at summarizing the 5E Instructional Model for learning. The creator of the infographic, Denton ISD, a school district in Texas, also has a great accompanying PDF that further describes each part of the model, specific student behavior (questions & actions), and what the teacher can/should be doing to facilitate each part.

Inquiry-based learning is built on the foundation of students being at the center of their learning, having more ownership and involvement in their learning, and solving relevant investigations to develop deeper understandings and skills for life. The 5E Instructional Model definitely helps this method of learning, and puts some structure on it. To see how exactly that happens, we need to better understand how the 5E Instructional Model works.

As all teachers know, the best place to accurately understand something is to go to the primary source. So, most of my time learning about the 5E Instructional Model was from its creators, BSCS (Biological Studies Curriculum Study). I'm surprised that I hadn't heard of it before, even though it was created in 1987. But that just goes to show that there is a LOT of helpful information out there just waiting for discovery - by me and my students! Here is a quick and simple overview video of the 5Es from their site:

After taking time to watch some of the videos from BSCS and reading their descriptions, I tried my hand at defining each part of the model in my own words. I also included an example of how each would be used in a 4th grade science lesson on magnetism:

ENGAGE: The teacher connects students' prior knowledge to a new topic/concept to be investigated and understood. Students are drawn into the topic with an interesting 'hook' that pertains to their lives and heightens their curiosity.
This could happen by a teacher pulling out Doodle Magnetic Drawing Boards for students' to draw with and connect prior experiences with it and the topic under study - magnetism.

EXPLORE: This is when students are given the time, tools, and means to have a more in-depth, hands-on experience related to the topic so that they can prove/disprove pre-conceptions and create new understandings about the topic. 
This could happen by giving students a variety of magnets (including magnetic rocks), iron filings, and other materials that help them see and experience how magnetism works and what affects it's strength and forces.

EXPLAIN: Students are given the opportunity to share their observations and new understandings about the topic based on their explorations. The teacher/text can also provide some more explanation(s) to deepen the students' understanding.
This could happen by having students pair-share, document their learning in a journal/lab book, discuss their findings as a whole class, or even compare their observations and conclusions to a text or the teacher's knowledge.

ELABORATE: Students are challenged to take what they've learned through their explorations and explanations, and apply it to a more complex task, question, or investigation. Students develop a deeper understanding of the topic through a more rigorous and informed investigation.
This could happen by the teacher challenging the students to perform a multi-faceted investigation. The success and understanding of it will depend on utilizing everyone's skills and knowledge related to the topic. 


EVALUATE: The teacher and the students assess how the students performed during the investigation, what they ultimately discovered, what skills and understandings they developed and/or mastered, and what they proved/disproved.

This could happen by the teacher and students using a rubric or checklist. It could also involve a round-table discussion and analysis of each group's investigation results and performance.

Thumb Up. Social media and network concept.. [Clip Art].
Retrieved from Encyclopædia Britannica ImageQuest. 
http://quest.eb.com/search/186_1623253/1/186_1623253/cite

I really like the 5E Instructional Model because from my experience in the classroom, it really makes sense for a flow of learning, especially with science investigations. Because science investigations are best done using the scientific method and empowering students to learn as they experiment and observe with hands-on materials, the 5E lends itself perfectly to helping accomplish that. The ENGAGE part helps first connect students' background knowledge with the upcoming investigation. The EXPLORE part involves the kids in 'getting their hands dirty' in learning with their scientific investigation. The EXPLAIN part helps students show and articulate their evidence-based learning with peers, which helps cement in their mind what they've learned. It also provides students with strong motivation to further their understanding with research to prove or disprove other questions they have. The ELABORATE part challenges students to take their learning to the next level by applying their investigation in more real-world ways. This is Inquiry-based learning at its best, because the students are seeing how their learned knowledge and skills can help solve a real problem. The EVALUATE part hopefully provides an authentic audience who can listen to and/or view the students' findings, and give helpful feedback to affirm their work and propel them towards deeper understanding and improved methods for future investigations.

Overall, the 5E Instructional Method complements and helps accomplish inquiry-based learning with a deeper, more organized methodology. 

Gaming in the Classroom? Why?

Conker's Bad Day Fur. (2012). Nintendo Entertainment System. Wikia. Retrieved from http://nintendo.wikia.com/wiki/List_of_Nintendo_systems?file=Nintendo_Entertainment_System_Model.png

I grew up on Nintendo, GameBoy, and any computer game I could get my hands on. Yes, I loved playing sports outside, and did a lot of that too, but gaming was probably my most time-consuming hobby. Why? Well, after taking some time this week to read about gaming in the classroom and analyzing my own experience with gaming, I came up with a list of reasons:

1. It was FUN!
2. It was challenging.
3. It gave me a sense of accomplishment when I overcame an obstacle, solved a mystery, mastered a move, or beat an adversary.
4. It was competitive when playing other real people or comparing scores with them.
5. It was addicting because I wanted to discover what was 'around the corner,' get to the next level, or find the next clue.
6. It connected with my interests. (Because of my fascination with Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and various Disney movies, I played many games based on those. I also liked to race anything in real life, so I enjoyed any good racing game too.)
7. It connected me with my friends. (I played some games just because that's what my friends invited me to play on a network, which was fun - whether in the same room on multiple computers, across the internet, or on the same gaming station).
8. It gave me a sense of control. I controlled the pace, the path, and who I played with.

I didn't grow out of gaming until mid-college, although at that point I actually made a conscious decision to stop gaming so that I could devote my time to my studies, friends, and outdoor activities. If I didn't have a family, self-discipline or goals in life, I could easily get back into my gaming habits - because it was FUN! 

But now as a teacher, I am starting to see how other teachers are successfully using gaming in the classroom to increase student achievement, engage kids, and better differentiate for each individual learner! A great example is my friend and vice principal of the school I'm at, Mark Janke. He has created his own game environment for high school and jr high history classes. You can hear him talk about gamification and how he runs his class game here. 

Going back to the 'list of reasons' above, an author and keynote speaker on gamification, Yu-kai Chou, actually created a similar list of 'core drives' that motivate people to do what they do. He calls his gamification framework, "Octalysis," seen below.

I watched his TEDx talk about it, which made a lot of sense! Here are my notes that I took from it, which are a much more research-based, intellectual 'list of reasons' for why gaming is FUN:

1. Epic Meaning & Calling – being part of something bigger than yourself
2. Development & Accomplishment – leveling up & achieving mastery
1. Short term goals being accomplished
3. Empowerment of Creativity & Feedback – building LEGOs
4. Ownership & Possession – desire to protect & build up/collect/improve
5. Social Influence & Relatedness – action based on what others do or say
6. Scarcity & Impatience – wanting something just because you can’t quite reach it!
1. Sense of urgency
7. Unpredictability & Curiosity – because you don’t know what’s happening next, you want to know! / lottery effect
8. Loss & Avoidance – doing something to avoid bad consequences

So all of this leads to the question of, is gaming in the classroom good for student learning? Yu-kai Chou would be quick to say, "YES!" He even lists 10 prime examples of gamification in the classroom, which he says produce "more effective educational environments." 

Screenshot taken at Duolingo.com

The first one happens to be Duolingo, which I have personal experience with. In fact, my wife, who is a stay-at-home mom, just started using (playing) it last week and uses it every spare moment she has! Why? For a couple reasons. 

1. She has always wanted to learn Spanish, especially living in CA. And now that we just moved into an apartment right above a Hispanic family in which the parents don't speak English, she has great motivation to do so because she wants to communicate with them! (intrinsic motivation)

2. Duolingo is fun and addicting because of its levels and badges you can achieve and earn! (extrinsic motivation)

For the past couple years I have actually had my students use Duolingo in class as a sponge activity to do for fun when they were done with all their work. And they loved it! I noticed that the badges and ability to level-up were motivating, but the most motivating factor seemed to be comparing scores and levels with each other. There is even an aspect within the game that allows people to see where they stack up to each other, which gives them a competitive reason to keep progressing. This may not be the best motivation, but according to Eric Anderson, a self-taught gamification educator, it works, and ultimately leads to students learning the required material. He has flipped and gamified his classroom, which is described in his TEDx talk. In this video he brings out some other great benefits in gamifying his classroom: 

• Students really liked being able to work at their own pace, and be challenged at the same time. (In other words, gamifying his class was a very effective way to differentiate instruction.)
• Having conditional assignments ("If you do/learn this, then you get...") help students take gradual steps in their learning.
• Students learn to learn. Instead of just doing what the teacher tells them to or hearing the teacher tell what the teacher read, students take more ownership of their learning and do more of the research themselves because they want to. The teacher becomes more of a guide on the side, not a sage on the stage.
• Since trying, failing, and repeating are inherent in video games, gamification in the classroom creates an environment in which students become more comfortable with learning from their mistakes. 

James Paul Gee, a psychologist, educator, and author of What Video Games Have to Teach Us About Learning and Literacy, said something in a video that really hit home with the value of gamification in the classroom. He said that "We [schools] have handed [students] the manuals without the games/[activities] to go with them." That really made me think of the traditional classroom that I grew up in versus the idea of using gamification in my current classroom. If I want to cause my students to be more motivated, learn better and at their own pace, and have FUN learning at school, I need to take gaming seriously!

For further info on gaming in the classroom, check out my Diigo "Education Gamification" Outliner, which has a bunch of great resources in addition to the above mentioned ones.

Web 2.0 Tools for the Classroom - Dropbox, GAFE & VoiceThread

For this week's focus in my Inquiry Based Learning class from Wilkes University, I looked at various Web 2.0 tools. According to Wikipedia (2016), Web 2.0 refers to websites that, "allow users to interact and collaborate with each other in a social media dialogue as creators of user-generated content in a virtual community, in contrast to Web sites where people are limited to the passive viewing of content. Examples of Web 2.0 include social networking sites, blogs, wikis, folksonomies, video sharing sites, hosted services, Web applications, collaborative consumption platforms, and mashups."

One of the resources I perused for Web 2.0 tools was Discovery Education, a multimedia site dedicated to helping teachers provide quality content and Web 2.0 capabilities to their classrooms. What was interesting about it was that some of the Web 2.0 tools contained on the site or referred to in the informational videos had either evolved significantly or shut down! The reason this was interesting was because the site was made in 2014, just two years ago! This is a clear reminder that you don't want to completely count on any Web 2.0 tool to stay the way you first learn how to use it, let alone keep operating. I know that is a bit frustrating, but usually the changes (updates) are needed and help improve the tool's use for the classroom. The downside to that (for cheap teachers like me) is when a Web 2.0 tool starts charging a subscription to use their tool.

The only tool I have actually felt was worth subscribing to, because I couldn't find a better (free) alternative, was Dropbox. I tried other cloud-based storage-sharing platforms, but none worked as smoothly as Dropbox. In my classroom it has been the easiest way to share files that are not created in GAFE, such as our Yearbook (using Adobe's InDesign) and the photos with it. Besides Dropbox, I feel that Google Apps for Education (GAFE) has supplied the Web 2.0 tools most helpful for my classroom. My students and I regularly use and collaborate with the following apps in GAFE:

1. Docs - writing assignments
2. Sheets - writing assignments, such as yearbook paragraphs
3. Drawing - art projects or visual aids for presentations
4. Slides - research presentations & music 
5. Classroom - writing prompt, assignment, & assessment platform; dialogue center
6. Blogger - daily classroom news & potential homework (communication to parents from the students and teacher)

I am confident that GAFE won't ever cost money, since Google is very supportive of education and has more money than they know what to do with.

In the context of Inquiry Based Learning, I am excited to incorporate VoiceThread into my Web 2.0 toolbox this coming year (pending our amount & access to Chromebooks). Here is an introduction to VoiceThread, in case you haven't used it before:



I played with it a little this week and re-discovered how easy it is to use, and how wonderful it is for giving and receiving feedback on presentations. I see it as a very effective tool for my students to share their investigations; explain their results with evidence using pictures, video clips, and comments; and then critique each other's. I could even have parents and real scientists log in and critique students' presentations! So, depending on how I end up using it with my students, it may be worth subscribing to for a classroom version that would help me moderate my students' work easier. Here is a VoiceThread explaining the benefits of the classroom version.



I particularly like the idea of my students being able to collaborate with students around the world in the education version of VoiceThread, because it would be a very safe, controlled environment with quality accountability. What do you think of VoiceThread?

Sources
Stacey. (2015). The Influence of Web 2.0 on Marketing and Sales - Part 2. [Infographic]. Retrieved from https://www.onehourtranslation.com/translation/blog/influence-web-20-marketing-and-sales-part-2

Web 2.0. (2016, July 20). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 18:52, July 24, 2016, fromhttps://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Web_2.0&oldid=730638388

#flipclass = Flipped Classroom Resources on Twitter

Strayer, J. (2011). The Flipped Classroom. Knewton. Retrieved from https://www.knewton.com/infographics/flipped-classroom/

When I looked up the #flipclass hashtag in Twitter, I found a never ending list of ideas, resources, and passionate teachers implementing a flipped learning experience in their classrooms! It was hard to stop clicking, reading, and getting inspired! That is sort of the way Twitter is like (similar to Facebook), so a bit of self-control needs to be exercised to maintain a balanced life.

Using Diigo, I bookmarked all the resources I found most useful for defining, showcasing, and defending a flipped classroom learning experience. Below are those bookmarks, which I organized within Diigo's Outliner tool. You can also view my Flipped Classroom bookmarks within Diigo here.

Flipped Classroom Bookmarks

• Flipping the Elementary Classroom – Flipped Learning Simplified
  Flipping expert Jon Bergmann lists some tips for first-time flippers
  • Five Reasons Why Elementary Teachers Should Flip Math First – Flipped Learning Simplified
    Why Math is a great subject to flip
• What Is This Flipping Method? - FLIPPING AWESOME TEACHING
  Helpful look 'inside' a flipped learning classroom
  • So ... let's talk about the in-class flip - FLIPPING AWESOME TEACHING
    Expresses disagreement with using in-class flipped videos Explains his intentions for using flipped learning.
• Flipping Your Class is Not About The Video - Lindsay Stephenson
  Purpose of Flipping a Class What it is and isn't Flipped Learning Definition & Outcomes
• Mark Janke - Flipping My Classroom Experiment
  How flipping his Geometry class improved student learning
  • Flipped Classroom - MarkGeekTeach
    Mark Janke's Flipped Classroom Playlist (tips for successfully implementing a flipped or blended learning environment)
• 54 Flipped Classroom Tools For Teachers And Students -
  • I used #46, Doceri, to flip my 5th-8th grade math lessons

I stumbled across the flipped clasroom idea a few years ago, and was very intrigued by it. But I didn't know how or if I should implement it in my 5th-8th multi-grade classroom in a small private school. First of all, most of the community didn't exactly like the idea of adding 'homework' to a student's workload. As their teacher, I agreed with them because some students already had the normal math work they didn't complete at school, as well as the monthly book reports I assigned. Plus, after 6.5 hours of learning and 'working' at school, I like the idea of parents being able to spend quality time with their kids doing non-school activities.

Then I got an iPad for my classroom and discovered that I could screencast my math teaching lessons. So, using an app called Doceri, I screencasted most of my math lessons for all 4 levels of math I taught. What's different about my process is that I recorded the videos with my students as they sat at the group table with me. I didn't do this because I thought it was better than the more common method of a teacher recording their video lessons alone, but because it was a convenient way to archive all my lessons that I was going to be teaching anyways. The only difference from the past was that instead of writing the math steps on whiteboards or papers and throwing them away, I was documenting all the lessons. Plus, the iPad (with Doceri), has some very helpful backgrounds, like graphs, to help produce neat, organized lessons. I also required my students to write in their math journals the same thing that I wrote/drew on the iPad.

Here is one of those lessons that I screencasted with my 5th graders from a Saxon Intermediate 5 math book. The topic was "Fractions and Mixed Numbers on a Number Line."

Several benefits came from screencasting my math lessons, which I made accessible to students and their parents.

• Sick/absent students could watch my math lesson, work on their math at home, and not get behind. 
• Parents could watch my teaching video to better understand and help their child with math homework or studying for a test.
• Students could review past lessons by watching the video and reviewing their notes they took in their math journals. 
• Substitute teachers could simply play my teaching videos for my students during math class (especially if they were uncomfortable with teaching the concepts).

During the following year when I had all the videos already created, some students enjoyed the freedom to watch lessons ahead of time, so that when they came to the math table to be taught, they already had an idea of the concept.

As a 4th grade teacher in a new school, I'm not sure if or how I will use any elements of the flipped classroom, but will definitely keep it in mind!

Chromebooks and/or iPads in the Classroom?

Fernando. (2014). iPad vs chromebook. [Graphic]. Retrieved from http://fernandotech.com/?p=42

Students need to be taught to confidently use technology to create, share, buy/sell communicate, and safely & respectfully participate in our global, online world. Having a 1:1 ratio of devices to students in a classroom is an efficient, if not obligatory duty, to help them achieve the above skills. The main question to ask yourself when heading towards a 1:1 digital environment is what device to get.

Chris Casal, a very qualified & experienced technology director, does a great job of approaching this debate from a non-biased perspective where his goal is to help educators make decisions based on what their goals are for using the technology, not what's "better" or "cheaper." He appreciates the benefits of using each one, and continually experiments with what accomplishes his school's learning outcomes best:

Chromebook vs iPads: What's best for your school or classroom needs? from Christopher Casal

I reached out to Mr. Casal and emailed him the following message. I am hoping to hear back from him soon:

"Mr. Casal,

I just looked through your  Chromebook vs iPads: What's best for your school or classroom needs?

presentation and thought it was very insightful. Thanks so much for sharing it! 

I am a 4th grade teacher that currently has access to a mobile cart of chromebooks shared with the 5th & 6th grade classrooms. There are enough for each of my students to use one. I plan on scheduling time for them to use them each day for typing, spellingcity, and ALEKS math facts. I haven't thought beyond that for how to use them, since I will be sharing them and don't know how much or how often the other classrooms will be using them. If they were permanently in my classroom though, I would suspect that I would utilize them for more activities such as research, typing writing assignments with GAFE, coding, designing stuff for our 3D printer, and creating original music, videos, and presentations. I also want to create a makerspace focused on STEAM activities. So my question for you is, if I had enough money to get enough iPads or chromebooks for all of my students to permanently stay in the classroom, what would you recommend and why?

Sincerely,

Chris Duckett

4th Grade Teacher (newly hired)

Sacramento Adventist Academy"

I sent the same message to two other prominent technology educators, and look forward to receiving their responses to it. 

One was Pamela Jimison, M.Ed., who has 25+ years of experience in the K-12 classroom and has been a technology coordinator and principal. She wrote a great article for ISTE in 2014 titled, Are tablets better than laptops for 1:1? You should read it to find out her recommendations! The neat thing about her is that I realized that she lives only 30min from me, so it might be possible to go learn from her in person at some point!

Pamela actually responded to my email within minutes! Here is her response:

The other person I sent the message to was Eric Fulkert, a technical CEO. Although he is not a teacher in a 1:1 environment, he gives some helpful information on the topic from his unique perspective as a business leader. After reading his article, Ipad vs Chromebook in the classroom is only part of the debate, I commented below the article.

In continuing my quest to figure out which device would be best for my classroom, I came across this informative chart. Although this infographic is from 2013, the comparisons are still relatively similar and relevant.

Rao, A. (2013). iPad vs. Chromebook: A Comparison of Key Features. [Infographic]. Retrieved from https://teachbytes.com/category/11/

After becoming more informed on the pros and cons of each type of device, I figured that in order to make a decision (were I the one to even make it), I would need to know several important things:

1. What technology do I already have, and how will this new purchase complement that as far a student learning outcomes?
2. What can my school afford? (Or should I propose a fundraising campaign?)
3. What specific activities and learning outcomes do I want my students to accomplish with the device?
1. In other words, do I want a device more as a supplemental, artistic (A/V), interactive, hands-on, offline or online, creative tool with tons of apps to choose from (iPad), or do I want more of an all-purpose, research-friendly, typing, online dependent, collaborative, creating, and standard workhorse tool (chromebook)?
4. Do I care about battery life or physical space it takes up?
5. Will students need to input various media into it?

In conclusion, since I already have access to a 1:1 chromebook environment for part of the day, I think that my classroom would most benefit from more chromebooks that could be permanently housed in our classroom AS WELL AS some iPads. 

Yes, you read correctly....I would like BOTH! :) Why enjoy the benefits of just one type of device when we might be able to benefit from both! I'm not a teacher dedicated to using only products from one type of organization, I'm a use-what-would-be-most-beneficial-when-possible type of teacher!

Inquiry Based Learning - Week 3 Thoughts

Its been fun learning about Inquiry Based Learning (IBL) so far this summer, and I'm feeling more confident about using it more intentionally in my classroom now. Being a visual person, I learn and remember things well when I can see it in action. For example, my Master's classmates and I got to watch a video of a high school class learning about optics through inquiry.

Video link.

It was very helpful for me to see a real teacher using it, and it looked very effective. If you go watch it, you'll notice how the teacher empowers and challenges the students to take ownership of their learning (my favorite part of IBL). And when they ask him questions, he doesn't just answer them, but asks them questions to help them discover the answers for themselves. Plus, instead of just modeling how to work with optics, he puts the objects and tools in their hands and lets them investigate how to do it themselves. From my experience as a student and teacher (learner in both cases), any hands-on learning is more effective than lecture learning.


I love this picture below because it helps me visualize some of the understandings essential for IBL.

Inquiry Learning. (2016). Retrieved from http://inquirylearning428.weebly.com/uploads/1/8/8/3/18830120/9931927.jpg?312

My teacher, Professor Karen Johnson (2016), lists these understandings. Here are a few that can be supported from the above graphic:

• Different kinds of questions suggest different kinds of investigations.
• Current knowledge and understanding guide investigations.
• Investigations sometimes result in new ideas and phenomena for study, generate new methods or procedures for an investigation, or develop new technologies.

As you can see, IBL encourages a variety of ways to achieve the learning goals. It is in a way like differentiating instruction because it allows students to sometimes dictate their own learning path, which can tap into their learning style, interests, and/or abilities. Not only that, but IBL in its freest sense (open inquiry) lets students investigate their own questions. Now when the teacher gives the context for those investigations, students, like these arrows, can arrive at similar conclusions even though they've asked unique questions that led to unique investigations.

Here is a great infographic that helps in simply describing the IBL process:

IBLibrary. (2015). The Cycle of Inquiry-based Learning. [Infographic]. Retrieved from http://www.peoplemagazines.net/wp-content/plugins/RSSPoster_PRO/cache/cdd5d_TheCycleofInquirybasedlearning.jpg

Here is another helpful graphic that lists questions for each category to help the participants know if they are thoroughly accomplishing each process.

The Inquiry Process. (2016). Planning for Inquiry Based Learning. [Infographic]. Retrieved from http://titleiidgrants.wikispaces.com/Planning+for+Inquiry-based+Learning

 The main questions I have in regards to IBL at this point in my understanding of it are "What are the roadblocks to successfully implementing IBL in the classroom?" and "What specific rubrics and/or formative assessments can I get my hands on to use in my classroom?"
What brought about these questions was an Inquiry Learning (2016) website that has a page dedicated to the limitations of IBL. Here is what caught my eye:
"During IBL, the learning is student centered and the teacher works only as a facilitator, suggesting that students may stray  from the task at hand. To combat this, it is suggested that teachers monitor all students during the investigations, ensuring students are staying on task and are heading in the right direction. 

In conducting an inquiry based investigation, teachers should be very prepared to meet students' needs during the investigation which involves a lot of preparation and planning time. Assessing the students who are conducting IBL can be very difficult, as all students can take their investigations to new places and go above and beyond the expected requirements. It is essential that students are given a rubric that can guide their learning and help them determine how successful they will be in their investigations."

I hope specific ideas to combat these challenges and ways to confidently assess IBL in the classroom will be addressed in the upcoming weeks of this class.


Sources

Annenberg Learning Center. (2000).The Physics of Optics. Retrieved July 7, 2016 from http://www.learner.org/vod/vod_window.html?pid=1414

Inquiry Learning. (2016). Limitations of Inquiry Based Learning. Retrieved from http://inquirylearning428.weebly.com/limitations-of-inquiry-based-learning.html

Johnson, K. (2016). Topic A: Abilities, Understandings and Process Skills in the Classroom. Retrieved form https://live.wilkes.edu/d2l/le/content/216356/viewContent/2262979/View