EDUC 510 Jarod Rollins Blog

As a teacher, I know I will have students of all backgrounds with varying learning needs. I anticipate having many students that are English Language Learners (ELL) or students that are not classified as such, but struggle with language. There are many migrant farm worker families in my community, and this is the main reason for that struggle. Beyond that, I know there will be some students with physical and mental disabilities and there will be challenges in helping them learn effectively. Most of all, I know there will be challenges that I haven’t thought of. For students with Individual Education Plans (IEP’s) and 504’s, my goal is to plan ahead and prepare to meet these students needs long before they enter my classroom for the first time. I will seek out other teachers that have worked with them to get advice on how to best help them. I will also study their IEP or 504 plans and make special arrangements such as considering where to place them in the classroom, who should sit by...

  The most surprising thing to me about this week’s content was all the effort and preparation that goes into creating assessments. As a student, I never realized the amount of work that goes into something like a test. In the objective test, performance task, and informal questions, it took a lot of time and effort to come up with the learning targets and then create good questions that would be valid and reliable. Not to mention, all the techniques that go into developing a multiple-choice test. As I think about what role assessments will play in my classes, I’m realizing I’m going to be spending a lot of time and effort to get them right in the beginning. I now understand though, why they are important and how they can help my teaching and my student’s learning. I look forward to having them to guide my instruction and measure my student’s proficiency. There are several things that are challenging about creating assessments. First, we as teachers must decide what proficiency i...

  1.      In your experience, how does assessment determine what a student learns and doesn't learn?   Assessments are an opportunity for the teacher to receive data about student knowledge and abilities. In a pre-assessment the teacher can see what learning targets have already been met or may need extra attention, this shapes what areas are covered and how deeply they are taught, which ultimately shapes student learning. Formative assessments help teachers create a road map for learning. Each student will understand the curriculum and progress towards the learning targets at different speeds and in different ways. This means that the teachers will need to make adjustments and accommodations to help each student along the way so that by the end of the unit every student has achieved the learning target and standards. Summative assessments are a confirmation of this and hopefully show that each student has reached the goal. Assuming that the assessment...