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Contents contributed and discussions participated by kimgrissom

kimgrissom

Implementation in Advocacy/Guidanace/Post-Secondary Preparation (Articles) - 0 views

  • we found that offering options to students also bears risk for the educators.
    • kimgrissom
       
      Wow. This is a great example of learning with student choice that has incredible value but this risk is real and a reason that many schools would likely shy away from this type of encouragement.
  • They also reached beyond the immediate Graham community to forge partnerships, potentially risking their original plan to unforeseen compromises and adaptations, leaving them-selves open to new opportunities.
    • kimgrissom
       
      As a parent, community member, and educator, I love this type of authentic learning. But how does this fit into the standards, required curriculum, high-stakes testing education system we have today? Do these partnerships with the community bring more support to schools or do they open up schools to even more criticism if test results aren't a piece of the puzzle?
  • Providing choice risks failure because when we, as teachers, make all the decisions for our students, lessons will proceed predictably in productive directions; however, when we remove the possibility of students choosing, and choosing wrongly, we fail to aid the students in becoming competent, thoughtful risk takers.
    • kimgrissom
       
      True of the system or district as well...
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  • An environment without risk fails to prepare students for life outside the classroom, a world of risk taking. Allowing students to experience measured risks, in a supportive community, models the real-world paradigm where choices naturally entail risk.
    • kimgrissom
       
      This makes perfect sense to me. It's guided my parenting style and it's a piece of how I have taught as well. It's just a different look at what the can mean.
  • Over 60% of students who eventually dropped out of high school failed at least25% of their credits in the ninth grade, while only 8% of their peers who eventually graduated had similar difficulty.”
    • kimgrissom
       
      This is an interesting statistic that makes me wonder how we can be both responsive to students in this situation and proactive in preventing these kinds of situations.
  • The Silent Epidemic estimates that the government would reap $45 billion in extra tax revenues and reduced costs in public health, crime, and welfare payments if the number of high school dropouts among 20-year olds in the U.S. today were cut in half.
    • kimgrissom
       
      Wow. That is staggering and something I don't think gets talked enough about when it comes to education and finances.
  • It also suggests that educators have not yet found a single approach that comprehensively addresses the needs of all at risk students.
    • kimgrissom
       
      This is true. I think our schools wants online learning to be the magic bullet, but the truth is that online learning is a really great option for some kids. But not all kids will be successful that way either. We need a variety of options for kids.
  • Instead of challenging students to raise their performance to the level they must reach to be successful, too often credit recovery “solutions” have lowered the bar for passing.
    • kimgrissom
       
      Yes. This is real
  • It was not that I didn’t want to go to the school; it was that there was nothing for me to go to.
    • kimgrissom
       
      I'm not sure this is true of all parents, but it's possible that we sell them short based on the little interaction we make possible for parents.
  • The sum of all these experiences was a prelude to his senior year, when he began the process of selecting colleges.
    • kimgrissom
       
      These experiences all sound amazing. But how do they fit into what is required of schools? Is all of this in addition to the learning of "traditional classes"? How does this impact algebra or government class or writing skills? I think it sounds great and would allow students to become well-rounded individuals, but it's hard to understand how a school uses their human and fiscal resources to make this kind of learning available to all students.
kimgrissom

PLE Articles - 3 views

  • I could stand to be more savvy in my own organizing of online learning and networking: I’ve been slow to use tools and develop skills for managing online resource, such as the use of vehicles like Symbaloo, Evernote, or Diigo, and I want to take inspiration from the 7th grade student in the video above to move forward in this way and learn and practive better these skills and with these tools.
    • kimgrissom
       
      This is true for a lot of teachers--I think we are often slow to set up our own professional learning tools whether that's joining a professional learning network via an LMS, Twitter, or just tools to help us organize our own resources.
  • Students engaging in networked learning have to learn to be more self-directed than in the typical classroom
    • kimgrissom
       
      Yes, passive learning doesn't get far in personal learning so we have to find ways to change the narrative and train learners to understand a new set of "success criteria." What used to look like being a good student won't work as well.
  • as an instructor, you can make a webmix quite interactive
    • kimgrissom
       
      I've used symbaloo as a way to organize myself and I've even put together webmixes on a specific professional development topic before. Reading about Symbaloo in this context makes me rethink how this tool might be helpful in personalized learning. Building in interaction is a really interesting idea I had never considered.
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  • Not every student is ready for this responsibility, so teachers need to have strategies in place to guide and support these learner
    • kimgrissom
       
      What does that look like? Explicit expectations for what learning looks like, encouragement, assistance and tutorials for tools, formative check-ins to see how things are going and offer guidance. There's a lot to think about .
kimgrissom

"Personalized" vs. "Personal" Learning - 2 views

  • because of the larger preoccupation with data data data data data
    • kimgrissom
       
      I love Alfie Kohn but this is a scathing assessment of the data-based movement. I get that not all things can and should be reduced to numbers and I tend to agree with his assessment of the dangers of these things being our focus. However, there has to be some way to see if we're making progress other than just individual feelings.
  • One final caveat: in the best student-centered, project-based education, kids spend much of their time learning with and from one another. Thus, while making sense of ideas is surely personal, it is not exclusively individual because it involves collaboration and takes place in a community.
    • kimgrissom
       
      I think this is a very important point as I think about personalized learning and what it might look like. My understanding of personalized doesn't exclude collaboration, but there are models that have the potential to be isolating.
  • We don’t need personalization as much as we need to promote and give opportunities for our kids to do personal learning. And while they come from the same root, those two words are vastly different. “Personalized” learning is something that we do to kids; “personal” learning is something they do for themselves.
    • kimgrissom
       
      To me, this is the most important point in all three of these articles. But this is such a complex issue in schools today. The pressure of all that students must learn and be prepared for has led us to a place where there is far less personal learning in schools. And at the same time, it would probably be more efficient (time-wise) to let project-based, personal learning meet the standards BUT we've also gotten to a place where funding cuts mean it's almost impossible to move away from the industrial model because the more personal project-based model requires more and different human resources. In other words, at the same time that there is more to learn and more concern about students having the engagement and perseverance to get there, we have less money to rebuild a system that currently gets us by with high student to teacher ratio.
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  • If we can’t engage our kids in ideas and explorations that require no technology, then we have surely lost our way. Big questions, passion, personal interest are what should drive our use of technology, not the other way around.
    • kimgrissom
       
      Yes. This. So much of this. To me, this is what I love about the Blend/Flip cohort and AIW. Both of these concepts start with the kids and the content and how to engage them in the real ideas at the heart of the matter and then look at the best way of getting students to that goal with or without technology.
kimgrissom

Technology in Education 2019: 5 Trends to Watch | Top Hat - 1 views

  • With this in mind, our technology in education 2019 predictions are less about exactly what emerging technologies will be—most of them exist already—but how they will be applied.
    • kimgrissom
       
      This seems on point as we reach a point where are our tools are far more than we can possibly use, but we are getting much better at being strategic selectors of tech tools.
  • meant to replace 4G/LTE, and it has two aims relevant to technology in education: it will be more robust for connecting large numbers of devices, and work equally well inside and outside of buildings.
    • kimgrissom
       
      Yes! We have one building in our district that basically has no mobile service. But even in other buildings, speed can be a big problem.
  • fewer spinning beach balls waiting for your learning management system to update.
    • kimgrissom
       
      This is huge--no one wants to wait with a classroom of students while the spinning rainbow circles.
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  • For instance, instead of holding regular in-person office hours, an educator could make him- or herself available on instant messaging apps such as WhatsApp or Signal.
  • Changes are already happening at simple levels. In November 2018, a Brooklyn-based man filed a lawsuit under the Americans With Disabilities Act against 50 colleges saying that their sites were not accessible to prospective students who need screen readers to navigate the web.
    • kimgrissom
       
      Yes, we're seeing this become a bigger issue in our district, but it was something that many didn't educators didn't know much about until recently.
  • It’s likely that in 2019, employers and higher education institutions alike will be increasingly asked to offer equity between in-person and online-only courses, and adapt any online courses to be pedagogically equivalent.
    • kimgrissom
       
      I would hope this is already starting to happen. This has been the biggest push in our district for our own online program rather than the purchased option we were using.
  • “We are a research institution, we are conducting world-class research daily and we don’t know what we don’t know in terms of who’s been impacted. The last thing we want to do is lose someone’s life’s work,”
    • kimgrissom
       
      Yikes. Yes, digital security continues to be a topic we keep learning more about (or new crimes continue to be created). Keeping students safe while keeping learning opportunities accessible will be key.
kimgrissom

ol101-f2019: Iowa Online Teaching Standards - 10 views

  • Creates a safe environment, managing conflict
    • kimgrissom
       
      This is key for any discussion thread in a blended or online course and it's something we really have to explicitly teach and address.
  • variety of assessments that meet course learning goals
    • kimgrissom
       
      Variety is key here. The teacher has to have a good idea of where the students are in understanding but formative opportunities have to be much more purposeful. Plus, I think self-assessment becomes even more crucial in online learning.
kimgrissom

ol101-f2019: Iowa Online Course Standards - 5 views

  • sufficient rigor, depth, and breadth
    • kimgrissom
       
      I think this is a part that lots of people doubt--that online learning can have as much rigor. But in our school, we've seen teachers incorporating more rigor with online work than maybe they had before because thinking about online learning sort of shakes up the way teachers do things and they have to think about how google will play into the learning.
  • access resources at a distance are sufficient and easy to understand.
    • kimgrissom
       
      This is also a key to success. There's a lot of tutorial work that has to be built into online learning--whether it's blended in the classroom or fully online. We can't just assume that kids know how to do or use things. I've used Diigo several times before and I still had to use those tutorial videos today to troubleshoot why mine wasn't working like I thought it should.
  • Specific and descriptive criteria, including rubrics, are provided for the evaluation of students’ work and participation
    • kimgrissom
       
      Rubrics, models, and clear success criteria take on a whole new meaning in online courses where teachers don't see the students working and students can't see what other students are doing. Clarity becomes really important.
kimgrissom

Article(s): Self- and Peer-Assessment Online - 0 views

  • The instructor models the technique (use of a checklist or rubric, for example); students then try the technique themselves; finally, students discuss whether and how well the technique worked and what to do differently next time.
    • kimgrissom
       
      This is really key. I found especially with HS kids, they can get easily frustrated with self-assessment because they've been trained to just turn it in and pray. Going through the process with them explicitly helps them feel more comfortable with the process.
  • increase student responsibility and autonomy • strive for a more advanced and deeper understanding of the subject matter, skills and processes • lift the role and status of the student from passive learner to active leaner and assessor (this also encourages a deeper approach to learning) • involve students in critical reflection • develop in students a better understanding of their own subjectivity and judgement.
    • kimgrissom
       
      All of these are worthy goals that I think almost every HS teacher I know would like to see more of in their students.
  • Students feel ill equipped to undertake the assessment.
    • kimgrissom
       
      This is really true. In teaching writing, I've found that having them do some peer assessment first gives them better perspective and fresh eyes to come back to their own writing. They have a much clearer view of their own strengths and weaknesses after seeing some of their peers' attempts at the same task.
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  • “The difference between self-assessment and giving the teacher what he or she wants was a recurring theme. A few students referred to self-assessment in terms of their own expectations. More often, however, students spoke of the tension between their own and the teacher’s expectations. … Over and over again, students rejected their own judgments of their work in favor of guessing how their teacher or professor would grade it.”
    • kimgrissom
       
      I've seen this a lot--especially in our best students. They have achieved so much in school because they've gotten good at giving teachers what they want. But learning to critically reflect on their own understanding or their own measure of quality is a skill we definitely need our best students to master.
  • my experience is that the points do not motivate the student to participate in the project on the front end, but more allows the other group members to express his or her dissatisfaction with the other group members lack of participation or cooperation.
    • kimgrissom
       
      This doesn't seem to reach the goals of self and peer assessment this lesson has been focusing on. In fact, it would likely have a negative impact on the class culture.
kimgrissom

ollie-afe-2019: Article: Attributes from Effective Formative Assessment (CCSSO) - 0 views

  • informal observations and conversations to purposefully planned instructionally embedded techniques designed to elicit evidence of student learning
    • kimgrissom
       
      Many teachers do a lot of formative assessment in the way of observation, listening, even questioning. In an online setting, this is the part that harder. But as standards move more to skills and concepts rather than just knowledge, those "embedded techniques" might be a piece that's missing. Many times when students "miss the mark" on the test, it's because there was a disconnect in what they thought they were supposed to know or lack of feedback on what they were supposed to do.
  • offers enough substantive information to allow the student an opportunity to identify ways to move learning forward.
    • kimgrissom
       
      The use of models here is the key though. Sometimes this info isn't enough if they have seen or heard many speeches that do this (and most kids haven't).
  • they can take an active role in planning, monitoring, and evaluating their own progress.
    • kimgrissom
       
      I've always felt that one of the biggest benefits of peer-assessment has nothing to do with the feedback--it has to do with perspective. When a student sees how another student approached a writing prompt or a problem or a process, it allows them to look differently at their own work. If the only thing students ever see is the the teacher's thinking and their own, it can limit their understanding.
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  • supporting students as they monitor and take responsibility for their own learning
    • kimgrissom
       
      This is something almost all teachers would like more of, but it's hard for students to do that if we don't give them the success criteria, vocabulary, and feedback to help them be more independent in reaching our expectations.
kimgrissom

ollie-afe-2019: Building a Better Mousetrap - 1 views

  • However, for the student to successfully use a rubric this way, the criteria must be made clear to them and the jargon used must not only be understandable to the student but also be linked specifically to classroom instructio
    • kimgrissom
       
      I think this is really key, especially the part aobut being linked to classroom instruction. I've used rubrics by introducing them at the beginning and then using them to score at the end--and felt like students never looked at them and therefore got very little out of them. The key was when I used the rubric during instruction--as an explanation tool, as a peer reflection and self-assessment tool. We just have to be really deliberate and explicit and pulling it out and using it in instruction if we really want students to use it in their process.
  • maintains the traditional gap between what the teacher knows and what the student knows.
    • kimgrissom
       
      Yes, and some students have more ability to bridge that gap than others. I think this is where we get into equity problems--some students are better equipped (by home life or personality/strength) for school and intellectual processes. In other words, they are more insightful and therefore better "guessers" of what teachers want.
  • non-traditional, unsuccessful, or under-prepared students, who tend to miss many of the implied expectations of a college instructor, expectations that better prepared, traditional students readily internalize.
    • kimgrissom
       
      Yes, exactly! We can even the playing field for students by being explicit in our expectations.
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  • Pilot test your rubric or checklist on actual samples of student work.
    • kimgrissom
       
      This is a helpful step because one of the downfalls of a rubric is not rewarding something students do well (because it's not on the rubric) or unintentionally rewarding something you don't want students to do.
kimgrissom

ollie-afe-2019: Educational Leadership: The Quest for Quality--article - 6 views

  • The assessor must begin with a clear picture of why he or she is conducting the assessment.
    • kimgrissom
       
      I think a lot of times we default to "for a grade" but there are lots of other reasons to consider.
  • Selecting an assessment method that is incapable of reflecting the intended learning will compromise the accuracy of the results.
    • kimgrissom
       
      I thought the assessment brainstorming we did at the end of last week with ways to assess face-to-face vs. online was an interesting way to think of all the ways we can assess. I think as teachers we often default to a couple content-specific norms and it would be good to open up to other alternatives on occasion.
  • This means that teachers need to write learning targets in terms that students will understand.
    • kimgrissom
       
      I was a part of a John Hattie book study this year. In Visible Learning he talks a lot about success criteria being so clear that students can accurately self-assess their work. I think that's a really great goal for any rubric or learning target.
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