In the last class of this semester in EDCI 336 we started by finishing the last of the tech presentations, which included place-based education, coding, podcasts, GarageBand, and FreshGrade. I found all of these presentations very informative and helped me dive deeper into topics I was already curious about, and I found it was worthwhile. The presentation I found most interesting was FreshGrade because assessment is something that has peaked my interest throughout this course. It was something I want to look into in the future because it is something that is being reconsidered in the education system now. Even after working with coding during the presentation, I still have many questions. The one takeaway is that the basics of coding are much more simple than I originally thought. Overall, each of the presentations I thoroughly enjoyed, and I’m really impressed with my peers. The presentations took up most of the block because we had five different showcases. After the presentations wrapped up we went straight into a brief overview of augmented reality. I never thought of augmented reality as a teaching tool, but after watching a quick video of how it can be used as a learning tool in chemistry it became clear. The remainder of class was a brief discussing about HP reveal, QR codes, and an app Skitch. HP reveal is an app that you can create an ora to a number of words or objects that can be linked to different websites for further information. I had previous knowledge on QR codes, but I never thought of them in an educational sense. It was fascinating to hear about different ways to use them as a teacher: bulletin boards, worksheets, and professional development connections. QR codes are very assessable and help direct someone to a deeper understanding of the topic. Lastly we touched on Skitch, and it is an app used to blur faces for privacy reasons, and it seems very useful going forward. I had a blast coming into every lesson this semester knowing that I was slowly growing so much in my own tech abilities. I am going to miss this course, but I will try to keep up on technology myself.
Category: assessment
Ian Landy: Formative Assessment
In our weekly EDCI 336 class I had the opportunity to video chat with Ian Landy the Principal from Edgehill Elementary School in Powell River. During the hour long video conference, Ian discussed formative assessment and what that looked like to him. I found the conversation to be very eye-opening in the way I think about assessment in general for a couple reasons. The main point being that report cards don’t show the full outcomes of student learning. For me personally, growing up with report cards and that type of assessment was the norm, and it was phenomenal to see it done a different way completely. The idea of E-Portfolios that Ian pitched and explained how it works in a practical setting made so much sense, and changed the way I look at formative assessment. Now, what are E-Portfolios one might ask? E-Portfolios are a type of assessment to create a better understanding of where certain grades are coming from, and the justification which is proved by adding student work, sort of like a showcase all in one place. The other focus of the conference call was how student engagement increased after implementing E-Portfolios because it reflected progress in student development, as well as the final product. I love how E-Portfolios focus on the individual learner instead of the class as a whole. After this video conference I am at ease knowing that there are educators like Ian Landy that are pushing everyday to create a better method for assessment.
Blog by Alyssa Lloyd 