Cycle #2 - action (part II)

For my next action, I prepared the discussion board as previously described: 1) steps & timing of the protocol, including probing questions; 2) a link to a student draft of a feature article; 3) an attachment which contained the feature article rubric.

Week 4 - Writing Feature Articles
by Jennifer Whitney - Wednesday, 12 March 2008, 02:49 PM

FA_rubric.doc
Running Away!!! by SXXXX
Learning from Student Work protocol (10 min per step)
1. What do you see? Describe without judging.
2. From the writer's perspective, what is SXXXX working on? In other words, what does she understand or not understand? What is she most interested in? How did she interpret the assignment?
3. What are the implications of this work for teaching and assessment?
4. Written reflection (~5 min): Free-write about how you will use what you learned from your colleagues today in your teaching of Step 4, Writing Feature Articles. What can we learn from SXXXX and what will you focus on in your lessons to make sure students 'get it'?
P.S. You can compare SXXXX's writing with the attached Feature Article rubric for ideas!!!

We met to read the article together and discuss what we were seeing. I had intentionally chosen a student that was not in any of their classes so that they would not feel as if their teaching were being discussed or evaluated. I acted as the facilitator for the protocol; however, it occurred to me that perhaps next time the teachers would take more ownership of the process if I asked one of them to facilitate. I observed that although the teachers offered many comments to assess the student work (e.g. the research is vague, the organization needs some tweaking, this is cute), they still seemed hesitant when it came time to share their ideas about how this could impact their teaching. This tells me that they are growing as professionals (i.e. they are getting more comfortable collaborating around an artifact) but still have a ways to go in their confidence as instructors.

After our meeting, we agreed to revisit the work and post a reflection on the forum about how this student's work could inform our practice in the upcoming portion of the feature articles unit (crafting and organizing paragraphs). I was disappointed, although not surprised, that only three teachers responded (last two postings originate from same author). The lack of reflection on teaching and assessment, both in conversation and in reflective writing, seems to point to a continued uncertainty in their own ideas and plans as instructors. Here are the reflective postings:

Re: Week 4 - Writing Feature Articles
by XXXXXXX - Wednesday, 12 March 2008, 02:46 PM

One thing that we learned from SXXXX's writing today is that students need help organizing the body paragraphs of their feature articles to include subheadings, their own ideas, research and transitions in each section. Another thing that we could focus on in mini-lessons and conferences is writing a strong conclusion; SXXXX's FA seemed to lose momentum at the end.
Show parent Edit Split Delete Reply


Re: Week 4 - Writing Feature Articles
by XXXXXXXX - Thursday, 13 March 2008, 03:37 PM

After reading SXXXX's article, I am going to pay closer attention to teaching my students how to research, and how to present their research. I did something great in my PACE class last night, that I would love to do with my students. To teach them how to present their research, I am going to hand out samples of feature articles and teach my kids how to code. They can have different colored highlighters and they can code for research that is supported, research that is not, and quotes that are presented. I think it can be a really fun activity!
Show parent Edit Split Delete Reply


Re: Week 4 - Writing Feature Articles
by XXXXXXXXX - Friday, 14 March 2008, 02:08 PM

That sounds like a terrific idea - thanks for sharing! The highlighting could also be a way to teach into the organization of the article - making sure that each section has both their own ideas as well as research support.
Show parent Edit Split Delete Reply


Re: Week 4 - Writing Feature Articles
by XXXXXXXXX- Friday, 14 March 2008, 02:14 PM

Also, just FYI, if you are looking for more examples of FAs (other than the original Lesson 1.1 packet), check out the mentor texts in Professor P's office!
Show parent Edit Split Delete Reply

One thing that I think has been a great benefit to using technology to collaborate is the amount of paper we are saving. After only two meetings (looking at protocols, rubrics and pieces of student writing), traditional meeting methods would have required a minimum of 72 sheets of paper just to view all of the artifacts. Most of this paper is usually thrown in the trash after a meeting, with only some of it being recycled depending on the availability of a recycling bin. In addition, the use of technology saved the team a great deal of time by giving participants the capability to preview web-based meeting topics and content beforehand and creating flexible time for reflection afterward via virtual meeting spaces in discussion forums.