418+Module+7+Sp2012


 * // 1. Holler If You Hear Me - Due March 19 //**


 * Before you read:** This module focuses on assessment. At the heart of assessment is a sense of what matters -- what's worth measuring or evaluating. One of the complications of teaching, however, is that "what matters" is almost always a contested idea. Assessment is further complicated by the reality that each student is operating within a unique constellation of a thousand variables affecting his/her performance at school. Although not directly, chapter seven of //Holler// can be read as an assessment story. One of the themes of the chapter is students and teachers assessing each other and not always seeing eye to eye.


 * As you're reading**, (pages 119-134) pay particular attention to moments in the story that teach your something about assessment broadly defined. What does this chapter have to say about what matters, who cares, and who gets to decide?


 * After reading, please do the following two tasks.**
 * Choose __two__ of the student writing samples to respond to (p. 119 by anonymous, 121-122 by Samuel, and 124-125 by Ruby). Pretend you are the teacher the writing is addressed to. In your googledocs journal, write about the different ways you could respond/give feedback to this writing. What could you say about 1) the content of the writing, 2) the organization, 3) the grammar/spelling/mechanics, 4) the overall communication? First, briefly discuss what you //could say// to the student in regards to each of these areas. Then explain what you //would// //say// if the writer was your student attempting to communicate with you.
 * As you think about the chapter, what moved you? In your journal, write a paragraph describing something (an event, a character, or an idea) that touched you in some way. What did you learn? What do you want to remember?

2. Readings on Assessment - Due March 19
Read Faltis, chapter 8 and Samway & McKeon, chapter 7. Based on your reading, respond to the following prompts in your journal (1-2 paragraphs per question). When relevant, refer to particular passages from the readings.

1) What is complex about assessing ELLs and their work? 2) When you consider your future work with ELLs, **what** do you think you'll be assessing, **why** do you think you'll assess it, and **how** do you plan to do it? 3) Based on your reading, please identify five guiding principles you could use to guide your assessment work. (You might think of this as "Five things I want to remember about assessing English Learners."

**3. Writing Across the Curriculum - Due March 19**
1. What types of writing typically happens in your discipline? Make a list. (Think beyond the classroom - e.g. what do mathematicians, biologists, coaches, historians, etc write?) 2. What types of writing typically happen in classrooms in your subject area? Make a list. 3. Since you're not the English teacher, how do you see your role in regards to teaching writing and having students write in your class? (one paragraph) 4. What excites you about having students write in your classes? (a paragraph or list) 5. What worries you about having students write in your classes? (a paragraph or list)

6. Read the following short articles. As you're reading pay attention to reasons why it might be worthwhile to have your students write.

[] - Math teacher

[] - Writing consultant

[] - Social studies teacher

[] - Science writing

7. Inspired by what you just read and your own ideas, make a list of reasons why you might choose to have students write in your future classes.

8. Read this link. Mark up sections that seem particularly useful to you. Also, jot down questions that arise. [|http://www.ttms.org/PDFs/06%20Writing%20Across%20the%20Curriculum%20v001%20(Full).pdf]

4. Designing a Writing Task - Due March 26
//* I suggest that you start thinking about this now, but wait until after Mar 19 to finish it. In our March 19th class, I'll give more specific instructions and show some examples.//

Think about a lesson or unit you can imagine teaching. How could you incorporate writing into your instruction? Your task is to design two writing tasks to support learning of the content. One task should be a "writing to learn" task. This will be a less-formal task that helps students process and deepen their understanding of the content. (In the article above, this is referred to as "casual writing." The second task is a "writing to show learning" task. This will be a formal task that is designed to help students demonstrate their knowledge. (In the article, this is called "formal writing.")

A. For each task, please respond to the following prompts in about one page for each writing activity. This is intended to be a clear description of the task and your rationale for your decision based on your professional knowledge. 1. What is the task? 2. Why did you choose this task? 3. How does this task support content learning? 4. Who is the audience for the writing? 5. How will you scaffold the process for your students? 6. How will the writing be assessed?

B. Design a one-page handout for each task that you could give to students. The handout should explain the task and reason for doing it in student-friendly language. It should also include information about how the task will be graded. It might also include some examples or models and if applicable, the format (e.g. relevant charts, etc.)

http://gonzagateach.wikispaces.com/Writing+Assignments
 * For more information about writing across the curriculum, browse this page - **