Results in learning: What are ways we can assess the impact to teaching and learning? #i11i #vanmeter

These are my notes from Jen Sigrist‘s presentation, “Results in learning: What are ways we can assess the impact to teaching and learning?” at the Iowa 1 to 1 Institute on April 7, 2010. MY THOUGHTS AND REFLECTIONS ARE IN ALL CAPS. Jen is with Van Community Schools in Iowa.

Results in learning: What are ways we can assess the impact to teaching and learning? Jen Sigrist, Director of Teaching and Learning, Van Meter CSD. Will highlight some different assessment initiatives occurring in the district.

Addition 21 Feb 2011: An audio podcast recording of this session is available on Fuel for Educational Change Agents.

40 Inspirational Speeches in 2 Minutes

OH I LOVE THIS VIDEO!!! WOW. I AM REALLY FIRED UP NOW FOR THIS SESSION 🙂

When we are talking about changing education, I often go back to this video

As the director of teaching and learning, I am frequently asked questions like:
– How will the computers make a difference to student achievement?
– How will we show the return on investment?
– What ways are the computers preparing kids better than before

1to1schools.wikispaces.com/why

Right now in K-6 we don’t have laptops
– we don’t tell parents “it’s about the computers” (MY PARAPHRASE: IT’S ABOUT THE PEOPLE, THE LEARNING, THE HIGH EXPECTATIONS, THE ENGAGEMENT)

Reasons to go to a 1:1 from CASTLE’s website
– none of these are to increase ITBS scores

We look at education at VanMeter as a whole new system
– our system needs to fit our kids, rather than trying to force our kids to fit the system

Van Meter’s Direction
– we envision a new educational system
– personalized learning
– connections, collaboration and creativity
– flexible in time and structure
– helps kids prepare for any post secondary option (join the military, become a plumber, go to college, etc)

If my kids can design iPhone apps to pay for their post-secondary education, so much the better

Very important book: Daniel Pink
– talking about the right brain skills

Tony Wagner: The Global Achievement Gap
– critical thinking and problem solving
– collaboration

Angela Maiers
– imagination, curiosity, perseverance, self-awareness, courage, adaptability
– filter, learn, unlearn, engage, network, trust

Our traditional system does a poor job with many of these skills

Discuss: What ways are you thinking about learning
– collaboration is becoming so important
– thinking globally
– kids taking control of their learning
– timing: it can be anytime throughout the day

GOOD DISCUSSION IN THE BREAK ABOUT WHETHER WE NEED TO TAKE UP LAPTOPS DURING THE SUMMER
– HOW CAN WE TAKE AWAY LAPTOPS FROM KIDS WHO ARE USING THEM AS FUNDAMENTAL PARTS OF HOW THEY LEARN

harnessing the natural creativity of students

I’ve been out of the classroom 5 years
– I really thought my role as a Social Studies teacher was for them NOT to embarrass me if Jay Leno interviewed them (it was all about me, that was my old way of thinking)

Where do you start?
– Determine your goal
– What does it look like?
– Make connections
– Empower

Our focus: THINK, LEAD, SERVE: What’s your passion?
– engage students with higher order thinking and tasks (notice we didn’t say “increase technology literacy with Apple applications”)
– a big pot of assessments
– professional learning communities (PLC’s)

Next year our focus will be PLCs (for all our teachers)

Our big pot of assessment is BALANCED ASSESSMENT
– Data collection and tests: Univ of Maine studies are probably best
– behavior data, attendance rates, graduation rates, achievement scores (writing, reading, math and science)
– Technology literacy *(NETS rubric)

We have 100% graduation rates now
– our ACT average score last year was 24.6 in math, we’re above state average in ACT and ITBS scores now
– those weren’t the reason we went 1:1

In Iowa you get to determine what the test is, and what the proficiencies are, for measuring 8th grade tech literacy
– we’re looking at using the NETS rubric now

THEY NEED TO FOLLOW THE LEAD OF NEW HAMPSHIRE AND USE ONLINE, DIGITAL PORTFOLIOS TO ASSESS TECH LITERACY

What do you think?
– what data do you currently collect
– what tests do you give?
– What thinking are you assessing?

From Julie Graber (a participant, during our conversation in the session)
– Discussing Grapplings Technology and Learning Spectrum (developed by Bernajean Porter)
– Jerry Valentine’s “Instructional Practices Inventory”
– measures engagement
— do 100 walkthroughs and assess levels of use
– also an assessment from METRI: Technology Integration Assessment

A lot of these assessments for kids can get really EXPENSIVE

now showing draft of ISTE rubric

IS THIS REALLY A RUBRIC, OR IS THIS MORE STANDARDS WITH MORE ELABORATION?

in our balanced assessment, we also look at Perceptions and Beliefs
– student perceptions, parent perceptions, 1 and 5 year post VM (graduate survey)
– administrator reflections on professional learning
– teacher reflections on professional learning

Our question: How do you know the $100K you are spending each year is making a difference?
– so strange: How we ever assessed how well your pencil is working, your overhead projector, your electronic whiteboard?

This kind of qualitative data is still very valuable in showing the picture

Questions for discussion:
– What ways do you ask learners to reflect on their learning?
– How do students feel about their learning experiences? How do you know?

Asked about how you see your students collaborating after school
– story from a participant: 7th grade parent went up to their son’s bedroom in the evening, and he was having a 3 way video chat (on iChat) about that day’s math assignment

MY COMMENT IN THE SESSION: SO YOU NEED TO GET YOUR KIDS TO MAKE VIDEOS ABOUT STORIES LIKE THIS, AND THEN SHARE THEM ONLINE, AS WELL AS WITH YOUR COMMUNITY

Big takeaway: You cannot quantify the type of learning you see kids doing
– you have to be a PR manager for your district

Participant comment: We have a TNT Night at our school (Tips and Technology)
– kids share for parents, they get extra credit
– that gives kids a stage

Product and performance assessments
– administrator walk throughs (aligned to Iowa Core Curriculum – Characteristics of Effective Instruction)
– Instructional Practice Inventory (Jerry Valentine work)
– student examples
– student and teacher digital portfolios

We were trained on “eWalk”
– there are some templates out there
– we go as 4 administrator teams
– teachers as well as students have now gotten used to large numbers of classroom visitors (regularly)

Big question: What does it really look like when students are engaged?
– How do you know if you saw differentiated learning / differentiated instruction

Our staff is still nervous about all this observation: Most want to know (like the kids) “What was my grade?!”

Seeing examples of “essential questions” on classroom wiki of teacher
– bringing teachers into walkthroughs as administrators has been VERY valuable in terms of how

This research out of Univ of Missouri College of Education on Instructional Practices Inventory is CRITICAL
– you can be disengaged with or without a computer
– it may be more visible with a computer
– classroom management takes on a different

IPI Observation Rubric (in PDF format)

Walk Through Template
– Teaching for Understanding
– Student-Centered Classrooms
– Rigorous and Relevant Curriculum
– Assessment for Learning
– Van Meter DNA
— 21st Century Skills from Iowa Core Curriculum
— Integration of Technology to enhance learning
— Cross-curricular
— Evidence of CRISS strategies (scaffolding, graphic organizers, author’s craft, etc)
— Evidence of CRISS principles (background knowledge, metacognition, purpose setting)

THESE LOOK LIKE GREAT RUBRICS FOR WALKTHROUGHS!!! JENNIFER HAS THIS ON GOOGLE DOCS. I’D LOVE TO GET A LINK TO THE FULL DOC.

CRISS strategies are about helping students become independent learners

Great discussion questions:
– how do you assess creativity?

I SHARED WITH JULIE OUR OKLAHOMA CREATIVITY PROJECT. I DON’T THINK WE’RE DOING A GOOD JOB IN OKLAHOMA, HOWEVER (EVEN GIVEN THIS GREAT PROJECT / INITIATIVE) HELPING EDUCATORS ASSESS CREATIVITY, UNDERSTAND CREATIVITY, SUPPORT CREATIVITY…. WE NEED TO WORK ON THIS.

Participant sharing the value of a student video/iMovie about their passion, what they love

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