The Aviator Compass
Empowering teachers to grow EVERY child every day.
NOVEMBER - 2018
Introduction
Project-Based Learning
Three Ways to Boost Collaboration in Student Projects
by: John Spencer
We’ve all been there before when we were students. You’d hear the dreaded words “group project,” and immediately begin calculating the additional work that you would need to do to keep the group afloat; especially if the teacher chose the members. You check the list of names on the board. You’ll be with the drifter, who wanders around the class chatting with friends. You’ll have the needy student who wants to ask the teacher questions before making any decisions. Then you’ll have the feisty fighter who picks arguments because he’s bored.
But then as a teacher, you see a new perspective. That floater is actually avoiding work because she’s scared of doing it wrong. She’s been burned too many times in group projects where she tried to contribute only to have other members redo her work. Might as well give up. And that needy student is also scared — of getting it wrong, of doing something embarrassing, of letting down his teacher. And that feisty fighter has such a drive for autonomy and such potential to lead but is still learning what it means to work collaboratively.
It’s no wonder that you end up with group dynamics where members split up or where one member does all the work. Collaborative work is hard. Really hard. But it’s also vital for life. Despite the myth of the lone artist or inventor toiling away in isolation, creative work is often rooted in community. If we want students to think like artists, engineers, architects, makers, and problem-solvers, they’ll need to learn how to work collaboratively.
Click on the link to read more on how to encourage collaboration!
F.I.P.
The new research that's emerging suggests that when hope is off the table, when students feel like the best they could do is less than an "A", it becomes difficult to pull students forward. So every time we give an assessment, students should know more about their strengths than about their weaknesses.A good assessment doesn't close the door to mastery at a later date.
Efficacy is when students get to know themselves following their assessments. They begin to understand their strengths as learners, their stretch points and their opportunities to continue to grow. They develop that growth mindset and that learning skill set to be the instructional decision-makers. They're willing to stay in the game because they believe they have the capacity to close the gap.
For far too long, we have used assessments to rank in order rather than to increase achievement. We want our assessments to help students monitor growth over time. At the building level and in the individual classroom, we need a learning-rich culture that provides opportunities for students to take risks, to make mistakes, to have productive failures and then to ultimately get to that big picture of success. A summative assessment should be an opportunity for a student to celebrate how much they have learned. Every student should walk into that summative experience already believing success is imminent because they've been tracking their progress and because they've not been held hostage to the mistakes that they've made along the way.
Culturally Responsive Practices
SNAPSHOT: The Whole Child in Ohio
As we take a look into families living in poverty this year, it is important to consider the WHOLE child. Do you ever wonder how many children are in poverty in Ohio? What does the whole child look like in Ohio compared to other states? How healthy are our children in Ohio? How safe are our children are feeling? How engaged are they? How supported do they feel? How challenged are they? What can I do as an educator to meet my student's comprehensive needs?Making Name Pronunciation a Priority in K12 Education
For more information regarding the responses to the above quiz...check out the article:
Say My Name by Matt ZalaznickPronouncing students' names correctly is crucial to making them feel included.
TESTING UPDATES
Sycamore Community Schools Testing Calendar
Elementary Schools Testing Dates
Greene Intermediate Testing Dates
ODE has released new support documents for the AIR Assessments:
AIR Test Specifications and updated
Blueprints:
https://oh.portal.airast.org/resources/general-resources/
Other resources for Math and ELA AIR Assessments:
http://education.ohio.gov/Topics/Learning-in-Ohio/Mathematics/Assessments-in-Mathematics
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Develop Career Ready Students - Ohio Dept. of Education
OH Dept of Education (@OHEducation)
️ @infohio has announced a new career module, Develop Career Ready Students, in Success in Six, a self-paced online learning platform for educators!
Check out this free resource and earn contact hours: bit.ly/2S1Vukb #INFOhioWorks #OhioEd pic.twitter.com/zcJQ9wSMKL
MOTIVATION in EDUCATION CONFERENCE - January 26, 2019
Keynote Speaker:
Chris Ulmer, motivational speaker, special ed professional and creator of Special Books By special Kids, will inspire us all with his approach to educating and connecting with extraordinary students. Breakout sessions will focus on best practices and new ideas for students of all abilities; attendees will walk away with easy-to-implement teaching tactics and real ways to make a difference in the classroom.
Sponsored by the Down Syndrome Association of Greater Cincinnati
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