Chapter 6 reading reflection

Before and after a project students should complete a self- evaluation that allows them to be reflective and evaluate their strengths. The self-evaluation at the end of the project should have students reflect on experience that helped them grow. There are certain technologies that can help student’s reflections such as a blog. Students can see their progress over time and can look back at everything they have learned. ProfilerPro is a website that surveys students to find their interests, strengths and weaknesses. These can be taken throughout the project to keep track of the skills they have learned. A survey website such as SurveyMonkey can allow students to see how their self-evaluation compares to other students in the class. There are several ways to get students’ mind ready for a project. A project should always start by seeing what students already know about the subject. This can be done with a K-W-L chart. Their thinking should be challenged to generate deeper questioning. Teachers should have an “attention grabber” to get students excited about the project. Every day the teacher should bring up the topic to allow excitement to build and to get them to think about the project. To teach the fundamentals first teachers should set the stage for independent inquiry. A good way to do this is by having students fill out the K-W-L chart. Through this students can become aware of what they do and do not know and it can serve as a starting point. Students are encouraged to think deeper about the things they are investigating. Teachers should also share the assessment rubric. Students will know what is expected of them and serves as a “road map.” Technology should not be the project, but it should be an aid to do the project. The first step should be to determine what technology will be the best to use in a particular project. Once a device has been picked out and before showing students how to use it, it is a good activity to have them learn among themselves and to problem solves. It is important to observe the students to see where a demonstration is needed. Students need to know the expectation for each technologies use and the purpose. A project log or a journal helps students stay on track and see their progress. Sometimes a demonstration needs to be done for the students. If a teacher is not comfortable doing a demonstration a technology specialist or another teacher can help. To promote inquiry and deep learning students should be guided as they choose a question and plan an investigation. Questions that students want to investigate may need to be altered to promote deeper learning. For example “what is money made of?” could be asked as “what is the process of making money and is it the same everywhere?” The concepts in this chapter will help us determine the best technology to use for our project. It also shows ways to track students’ progress throughout the project.