Objective Assessments

It is vital that today’s educator assess students in objective and unbiased manners using a multitude of evaluation techniques. Diversity is common in the contemporary classroom which necessitates even more importance on impartial testing methods. Teachers must be fair, neutral, and sensitive to the needs of their students in order to generate the most successful learning outcomes. Fair evaluation demands the reduction of elements that can skew the results of a given assessment. The most important criteria entailed in this endeavor is creating assessments that are dependable, authentic, and fair. For an assessment to be fair it should provide equal opportunities for all students to succeed and demonstrate ability or skills, regardless of gender, culture, and learning preferences. Impartiality can be threatened if there is bias in the evaluation or expressed by the teacher.

If having students learn the required class curriculum and content in ways that are meaningful and aid in retention is the ultimate goal of the professional educator, then teachers need to think of ways to give every student a chance to succeed at assessments. There are numerous ways to accomplish this end beyond formal assessment and tests. Resourceful educators have the potential to assess students in a myriad of objective approaches.

Any evaluation technique can be objective if the teacher is cognizant of the potential for bias and takes measure to ensure personal perspective is excluded from their judgment. Valuing the process over the product over an extended period of time is an excellent way to assess students fairly. Another way to acknowledge and accommodate diverse learners is to plan assessments that value a variety of learning styles and abilities. It is imperative that teachers match assessments to appropriate learning activities. (Chilisa, 2000) Some examples besides formal tests would be:

Portfolios
Peer Review
Blogs
Exhibitions
Simulations
Exit Tickets
Games
Independent Study
Observation
Essays
Performance Tasks
Interviews
Surveys
Checklists
….and numerous others

Almost any task has the potential to provide meaningful data that can assist the professional educator as they determine the progress, strengths, and weaknesses of their students to communicate these results. (Chilisa, 2000) This information can be utilized to improve instruction and make it meaningful and impactful for each individual learner. “…a student is more likely to perceive a grade as fair if the student believes that fair procedures were used to reach that grade regardless of the value of that grade.” (Pepper & Pathak, 2008, p.361) It is my belief that it is not the modality of assessment that determines bias but the approach of the teacher to the administration of the evaluation and the collection of data. “Regardless of how important graded class contribution might appear to student learning, the fairness of the grading procedure is paramount for its effectiveness.” (Pepper & Pathak, 2008, p.361) The teacher must reject stereotypes, preconceived ideas or judgments about students, and value each individual student’s unique talents, gifts, strengths, and weaknesses. If we value our students for their diversity and their distinctive capacities, our perspective changes and makes each assessment tool as valuable and objective as formal testing.




Chilisa, B. (2000). Towards Equity in Assessment: crafting gender-fair assessment. Assessment In Education: Principles, Policy & Practice, 7(1), 61.

Pepper, M. B., & Pathak, S. (2008). Classroom Contribution: What Do Students Perceive as Fair Assessment?. Journal Of Education For Business, 83(6), 360-368.

The Technology-Infused Classroom

Fully integrating technology into the classroom promotes learning through understanding, and amalgamates with a student-centered constructivist approach. (Laucho, 2006) However, the professional educator must skillfully employ the available technology for meaningful learning. To me, the technology-infused classroom is an atmosphere that enthralls students by fully integrating technology into lessons and pushes the available technological tools to their creative potential. “…a student centered constructivist technology infused classroom is one where meaningful learning is improved and developed through the use of technology in students’ hands. Once technology is in the hands of a student how does that technology then foster meaningful learning?” (Laucho, 2006, para. 3)

Student users of technology should be able to produce, create, design, explore, analyze, evaluate, and discover. The technology must meet the needs of the user by meeting the student’s learning preferences and style, as well as their individual capacities. When I think of the technology-infused classroom I envision all students having their individual needs and preferences met. Technology has the capacity to reach at-risk students, special education students, mainstream students, and gifted students. Lessons presented on a technological platform can be differentiated to any number of levels. (Barlow & Wetherill, 2005) To accomplish these goals teachers need to teach how to use the technology and teach with the technology, giving students ample time to practice.

Throughout planning the teacher must ask themselves, “Which available technologies can I employ to improve learning for my students? The technology infused classroom is limited only by the ingenuity and creativity of the teacher in charge, as well as the resources available to the district. “Effective use of technology in educational environments and its successful integration increases the productivity of instructional processes.” (Ersti, et al., 2012) Here are some questions that can guide planning in the technology infused classroom:

1. Does the technology that I am using in this lesson plan enhance learning for my students?
2. Are the technologies I am integrating clearly linked to the learning outcomes and the learning environment?
3. Will the use of technology improve the engagement of my students?
4. Does the technology that I am using make learning more fun and meaningful for my students?
5. Are there opportunities to differentiate learning for the students using this technology?
6. How can I reach all of the various learning styles represented in my classroom using this technology?
7. Do I need to make accommodations for any of my students when employing this technology?
8. How will the students become proficient using the technology?

In my mind, the technology-infused classroom is the ideal teaching environment. The teacher would have ample resources to provide for the students. Newest technological advances are increasingly available for classroom usage. Tools are working and accessible to afford students to create in new and ingenuitive ways that foster independent thinking, problem solving, resourcefulness, and imagination. I get excited thinking about a classroom with endless possibilities…the technology-infused classroom! To conclude this video makes some amazing points about how we currently use technology in the classroom and what our goal in creating technology-infused classrooms ideally should be. It is a bit long, but I believe it is worthwhile!

Barlow, C. L., & Wetherill, K. S. (2005). TECHNOLOGY + IMAGINATION = RESULTS. T H E Journal, 33(3), 20-26.

Erişti, S., Kurt, A., & Dindar, M. (2012). Teachers' Views about Effective Use of Technology in Classrooms. Turkish Online Journal Of Qualitative Inquiry, 3(2), 30-41.

Laucho, R. (2006). Infusing Technology into Your Classroom. Retrieved from http://people.emich.edu/rlauchu/samples/EDMT%20602%20Final%20Paper.htm

Visual literacy and the use of the internet can have a tremendous impact on student learning and construction of knowledge. These strategies and tools can benefit the contemporary student by making learning accessible, relevant, and illuminating new ideas and processes. It is vital that students be both visually literate and technologically competent.

As technology becomes more prevailing students are expected to cultivate applicable marketable skills. Thus, the internet becomes a genuine instrument to develop multidisciplinary skills. The possibilities are so extensive. Teachers can integrate visuals, media, games, research, networking and numerous other devices to amplify the learning experience. The internet accommodates a myriad of learning styles, as well as developing a classroom environment that employs authentic learning methodology. Students have access to any content imaginable.

            “As we shift from an educational system which promotes teaching to one that supports learning, additional methods of accessing education will be required (Shimic, 2008). The Internet is a fast, efficient, and readily available modality for promoting technology based learning thus increasing educational access. The learning process is changing in all organizations. Collaboration, intercultural communication, accessibility and relevancy are all concepts promoted in organizations, including higher education institutions. There is push to increase the efficiency of learning and the transfer and facilitation of knowledge. Technology enhanced learning environments improve the learning experience by promoting cooperation, collaboration and self-sufficiency in learners.” (Tucker & Courts, 2010, pg. 38)

In my personal classroom I want the internet to play a significant role in delivering information to my students. I envision an atmosphere where students conduct independent studies online, connect with students located in diverse geographical regions using Skype, upload podcasts for listening to with iTunes, create annotated bibliographies with http://www.delicious.com, watch animations on http://www.brainpop.com, and play games on http://www.funbrain.com.  I am committed to staying current and aware of fresh new technologies in order to make the most positive impact on my students.

Visual literacy can be taught in conjunction with technology and internet to make considerable advances in the students’ overall literacy and competency. Both input and output strategies are vital in education. I believe that they are equally as important as each other and should both be included in regular instruction because one helps the student decode and the other aids them in encoding. Some strategies that can improve visual literacy and I would personally implement in my own classroom are:

Discussing images

Critiquing images

Thinking critically about images

Creating images

Selecting images for presentation

Sequencing

In conclusion I would like to leave you with a quote that I feel summarizes the main purpose of remaining abreast of technological advances for classroom usage. “The idea of integrating technology into the classroom is not a new concept. As new technologies emerge, educators are often eager to find methods of assimilating these technologies in their classrooms. These same educators often find it difficult to connect new technologies to the traditional view of classroom learning that concentrates on a fixed curriculum which focuses on learning through repetition and memorization. In order for the integration of technology into the classroom to be successful, teaching must be viewed as a way of facilitating learning, and view learning as series of processes which lead us to adapt behavior in a quest to acquire new knowledge. Using the Internet as a transferring mechanism to deliver multimedia rich content from the facilitator to the learner is one method of designing a dynamic classroom experience.” (Tucker & Courts, 2010, pg. 41-42)

Tucker, J., & Courts, B. (2010). Utilizing The Internet To Facilitate Classroom Learning. Journal Of College Teaching & Learning, 7(7), 36-43.

The Necessity of Varied Instructional Practice and the Integration of Technology

The responsibility of the professional educator is to support students on their journey to acquire necessary abilities to competently navigate their world in familial, social, and vocational spheres. To prepare contemporary students, the integration of technology and a variety of instructional strategies is vital to fully prepare them to enter into a digitally connected communication age. The best reason to incorporate a multitude of instructional strategies and valuable technology is because students learn and retain material best when they exercise an array of senses and have diverse experiences.

            There is an abundance of strategies that can be integrated into the classroom to vary the connections students are making to the newly introduced subject matter. An excellent website that lists potential instructional strategies alphabetically as well as by the classification of experience that you would like the students to participate in is available via this link: http://olc.spsd.sk.ca/de/pd/instr/alpha.html. The purpose of varying instructional strategies is to give a variety of learners with a multitude of learning styles the opportunity to take a role in constructing their own learning by making personal connections to the presentation of new content knowledge.

Technology is essential in the implementation of a range of instructional strategies because the modern student needs to be technological literate simultaneously whilst learning new material. The contemporary student relates to this mode of presentation because their lives are saturated in digital advances, social media, and the latest innovative equipment. Employing technology in the classroom promotes achievement because it is adaptive, diverse, and relevant to the 21^st century learner.

My keen understanding of the positive impact of technology and utilizing a variety of instructional strategies in the contemporary classroom qualifies me to effectively reach the modern student. It is important for me, as a professional educator to evolve as technology progresses to be effective in preparing my students to engage in society as productive contributors and valid intellectuals. The process of accomplishing this goal is determining the needs of my students, staying technologically current, and dedicating the time and effort necessary to plan curriculum that parallels the required content with a myriad of educational experiences to reach every learner represented in my classroom.