Here are my thoughts about the last session:
1) Did the information presented today make sense? If not, what would have helped? What do you still need?
The information presented on del.icio.us was very interesting and useful. It really helps to see what websites other people have found that are valuable. It makes sense to share that information within a department although coordinating the use of del.icio.us might take a little time. It will still take some playing around with to see how it can be most useful in the classroom, but I definitely think it will be useful. When discussing grading in our small groups there were many ideas that made sense and can be incorporated into the overall process of evaluating grading. We just need more time and discussion to share information.
2) Were the activities today well-planned and meaningful? Be specific. If they were not, what suggestions would you make?
While I know we needed to have a meeting on our inservice day during conferences, it was still difficult because everyone was so tired with so much going on during the week. It seemed that mentors and mentees were in agreement at the end to cut their meeting time short and talk some other time. It sure gave me empathy for my students and reminded me that flexibility is important. Having said that, the time we spent in small group discussion was very valuable as it always is. It really helps to hear the ideas of other teachers. I felt like, since we focused on Tony Winger’s presentation, we didn’t really discuss the articles that we read. Since we took the time to read them, it would have been worthwhile to set the expectation that the discussion of the articles be incorporated into our small group activity.
3) What potential do you see in the information presented today for your possible use?
The idea of the “Gallery Walk” is one technique that could be incorporated into classroom instruction. As stated above, del.icio.us will be very useful in the classroom and the department. The idea of reevaluating grading is definitely something to think about and I am in the process of deciding what is important to me and what I can do differently.
4) What else do you want the planning team to know?
Personally, I value small and large group discussion in our sessions more than time to explore the Fischbowl because I can always do work on the computer at home. Thank you for all your hard work!
1) Did the information presented today make sense? If not, what would have helped? What do you still need?
The information presented on del.icio.us was very interesting and useful. It really helps to see what websites other people have found that are valuable. It makes sense to share that information within a department although coordinating the use of del.icio.us might take a little time. It will still take some playing around with to see how it can be most useful in the classroom, but I definitely think it will be useful. When discussing grading in our small groups there were many ideas that made sense and can be incorporated into the overall process of evaluating grading. We just need more time and discussion to share information.
2) Were the activities today well-planned and meaningful? Be specific. If they were not, what suggestions would you make?
While I know we needed to have a meeting on our inservice day during conferences, it was still difficult because everyone was so tired with so much going on during the week. It seemed that mentors and mentees were in agreement at the end to cut their meeting time short and talk some other time. It sure gave me empathy for my students and reminded me that flexibility is important. Having said that, the time we spent in small group discussion was very valuable as it always is. It really helps to hear the ideas of other teachers. I felt like, since we focused on Tony Winger’s presentation, we didn’t really discuss the articles that we read. Since we took the time to read them, it would have been worthwhile to set the expectation that the discussion of the articles be incorporated into our small group activity.
3) What potential do you see in the information presented today for your possible use?
The idea of the “Gallery Walk” is one technique that could be incorporated into classroom instruction. As stated above, del.icio.us will be very useful in the classroom and the department. The idea of reevaluating grading is definitely something to think about and I am in the process of deciding what is important to me and what I can do differently.
4) What else do you want the planning team to know?
Personally, I value small and large group discussion in our sessions more than time to explore the Fischbowl because I can always do work on the computer at home. Thank you for all your hard work!
posted by 21cmelin at 12:43 PM
1 Comments:
Thanks for the feedback.
Yes, we knew it would be a tough day. Conferences the night before, faculty meeting, then two PLC's (not that we knew that part ahead of time), then our 3-hour session, then more conferences. The trade-off is, of course, is that if we don't meet that day then we either need to meet some other "off" day - like Friday - or have you miss another day of class. But I think we'll have to think some more about this for next year to see if it's worth having a session on this day.
As far as not specifically discussing the articles, that's probably my fault for not emphasizing that to Ray - and also clarifying that for you guys. The idea was that the articles would help stimulate your thinking for the assessment discussion, and could certainly be incorporated in the discussion, but we didn't want them to necessarily be the focus of the discussion. But I don't think I did a good job of clarifying that with either cohort 2 or with Ray (who was in Spain until just before the session). Sorry about that.
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