Assessing and Evaluating Students' Learning: How Do You Know What They Have Learned?

The first thing I enjoyed about this particular text is the case narrative it starts off with. As a student teacher, it's a lot easier for me to relate to another student teacher's experiences, as opposed to a veteran teacher. Because student teachers are in the same situation as I am, they can provide insight into the difficulties of developing assessment. I know that I have felt the way Heidi Murphy has felt because I have also seen how my cooperating teacher's assessment methods differ from what I've seen in the past. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but it's something I have to consider as I work alongside her. What's great about this connection is that it made me think about my upcoming lessons, and how I can develop assessments for my students to make sure they are getting out of literature what I would like to see them get.
For example, I am going to be working with students on the elements of literature, such as plot, conflict, resolution, etc. While I do need to help them understand the academic language of the content, I would also like to help them think critically of the short stories we will be reading, so I will have to be able to teach to standards involving critical thinking and also be able to reliably assess that critical thinking. I feel that the "correct answer" style of assessment isn't as effective as it could be due to its limitation on testing student cognitive abilities. Therefore, I feel developing assessments that involve students developing their own ideas or applying concepts in an assignment in their own words is far more effective due to the effort students will have to put in to complete the assignments with proficiency.
What's great about this text is that it also provides some interpretive strategies I can ask students to use in their assignments in order to test their cognitive skills in a variety of ways. I definitely plan on using these in the classroom, as they will be a great measuring tool for student proficiency.

2014 Washington State Teacher of the Year Katie Brown

Having looked into an op-ed by Katie Brown published in the Seattle Times newspaper, I was able to learn quite a bit about Katie's views on teaching and what sort of instructor she is. In particular, I found her statement that "where you grow up, what language you speak, how much money you have or what state you live in should not determine your opportunity to learn" resonates with me, since I would like to teach at a Title I school. Her philosophy in teaching Common Core State Standards makes me feel reassured that they can be used effectively and with a high level of cultural awareness. 

Her educational background is also interesting, part of her degree was cultural anthropology, which led her to work as a teacher for AmeriCorps in Alaska. Her teaching position led her to work with children of the Tlingit and Haida Native American tribes, which gave her a lot of experience in working with students from other cultures. Katie's involvement in her students' culture impresses me, and shows a level of dedication that goes above and beyond what I'd seen from a lot of teachers in my academic career. 

As a whole, I can see why she was voted 2014 Washington State Teacher of the Year. She makes use of effective teaching strategies that are both culturally aware and standards-based, and she's shown she does this quite well. Her ability to connect to her students and engage them in her lessons shows her mastery of the teaching profession in what are arguably some of the toughest teaching environments around.

Questions:
What led you to become interested in teaching ELL?
What are some techniques you use to connect with students who are from a different culture?
How do you establish community with the families of your students when their culture is very different from yours? How do you bring them together when your students' families come from different cultures as well?

Links:

http://www.whatcomtalk.com/2014/06/01/washington-state-teacher-of-the-year-katie-brown/

http://seattletimes.com/html/opinion/2023193286_katiebrownopedcommoncore22xml.html