Monday, June 27, 2011

Understanding by Design Chapter 4 - #sbarbook Monday 6/27/2011

lmhenry9               Who's here for Ch 4 of #sbarbook?

fourkatie               Here (although not caught up) for Ch 4 of #sbarbook

jsb16                       I'm caught up with #sbarbook.

druinok                  @lmhenry9 I'm here!! #sbarbook

gwaddellnvhs      @lmhenry9 I am here for #sbarbook

druinok                  @fourkatie at least Ch 4 was easier to read than Ch 3 :)

lmhenry9               Yay! Glad to see we have our crew back for #sbarbook. Anyone have some place they'd like to start?

jrykse                      Here #sbarbook

druinok                  I had never realized how many ways we use the word "understand" until this chapter #sbarbook

Mr_Martenis       @lmhenry9 I'm here #sbarbook

jrykse                      Seemed to basically make the case for what is understanding and ways to show it. #sbarbook

jsb16                       I should probably blog as I go through #sbarbook. Lots of little insights that I don't want stuck in a notebook or lost among tweets.

druinok                  Y'all have no idea how much I missed you last week!  I was grateful for the transcript after I finished Ch 3 :) #sbarbook

gwaddellnvhs      @lmhenry9 #sbarbook I really was pulled by the importance of the 6 facts of understanding. It made so much sense, and is hard to accomplish.

druinok                  I really saw a lot of application for math in facets 1-3, not so much for 4&5 and some apps for students in 6 #sbarbook

lmhenry9               @jrykse I was debating (especially later in the ch) whether all 6 facets had to be present at once. #sbarbook

lmhenry9               @jsb16 I started writing in the margins later in this chapter of #sbarbook. That helped.

jsb16                       Liked "stdnts learn that they R not 'done' w/ a project [] simply bec they worked hard, followed dir, & turned in a product." #sbarbook p94

druinok                  @lmhenry9 I don't think all 6 have to be present - I think 4&5 are hard to see in a math classroom (more history?) #sbarbook

jsb16                       @lmhenry9 Cant write in the margins of #sbarbook: it's a library copy.

gwaddellnvhs      @lmhenry9 In our trainings, our leader encouraged us to really try hard to do SOME assign. with all 6 facets. #sbarbook

justbugnu             @lmhenry9 Im here ch 4 of #sbarbook

lmhenry9               @jsb16 Ohhhhh... Oops. I can see why you'd want to blog or make notes then as you are reading #sbarbook.

gwaddellnvhs      @druinok If you want to see some examples of all 6 in math, look specifically at the honeycomb activities. http://t.co/88MxTT1 #sbarbook

druinok                  @jsb16 blogging is a good idea!  I use sticky notes in my books (can't stand to write in them) #sbarbook

stardiverr              CHecking this out.  #sbarbook

jsb16                       @druinok Tried to come up with applications to physics for each facet.1-3 were easy. 4: perspective of traffic eng/plumber.

lmhenry9               @druinok I thought that too. I was hoping it just had to be part of the 6. #sbarbook

lmhenry9               @gwaddellnvhs Is that possible in math? I kept asking myself that, especially as I read 4 and 5. #sbarbook

druinok                  @gwaddellnvhs I wrote a few notes to myself on facet 1 and the AP exam :) #sbarbook

stardiverr              I only write i books I don't like but have to read.  #sbarbook

druinok                  @gwaddellnvhs thanks!!  I'll check it out #sbarbook

gwaddellnvhs      @druinok A typical honeycomb with all 6 facets may take 2 to 4 periods to finish. Not a one per., get it done type of exercise. #sbarbook

druinok                  @lmhenry9 I thought that 1-3 really had a lot of apps in rich problems, PBL, etc for math #sbarbook

jsb16                       @druinok 5: history &alternative theories, especially for geometry (spherical/plane/hyperbolic), number systems (when is 8+5!=12?) #sbarbook

jrykse                      @gwaddellnvhs @lmhenry9 I can see why they said only some assignments.  Developing them must have been a bear. #sbarbook

jsb16                       Facet 6 seems to be about having students self-assess, which is also part of SBAR, right? #sbarbook

druinok                  @gwaddellnvhs the best I could do with perspective was type i/ii errors - depends on which side you are on #sbarbook

jsb16                       #sbarbook Would having students identify appropriate assumptions &/or defend chosen assumptions be part of facet 4?

lmhenry9               I marked pg. 89 "We value good storytellers...previously seemed to be abstract or irrelevent" with @ddmeyer #wcydwt #anyqs by it. #sbarbook

druinok                  building arguments and supporting their answer is a weakness in general - I see lots of facet 1 possibilities #sbarbook

gwaddellnvhs      @jrykse Yes, very tough. Our leader suggested to save them for the really big ideas that need to carry over. #sbarbook

justbugnu             Taught 7th math last yr n tried to do extended response for application n always a disaster. They struggle with that facet

druinok                  @justbugnu what type of extended response did you try?  that's one area (of many) I gwaddellnvhs                                  @mrhodotnet @druinok I have others that I have not uploaded. I will work on that as I talk. #sbarbook refresh the page to see them!

druinok                  @lmhenry9 I also tagged that with @ddmeyer's name :) #sbarbook

want to work on #sbarbook

Mr_Martenis       @druinok I agree - it's hard to see how to asses perspective and empathy in science/math classes #sbarbook

jsb16                       I've thinking that asking students to redesign a lab with more/less tech might help with empathy. Thoughts? #sbarbook

stardiverr              @druinok thanks.  Interesting.  Does anyone here teach anything but math?

druinok                  @jsb16 I thought the same thing about 6 - it was more about knowing yourself as a learner #sbarbook

lmhenry9               pg.97 "For that matter, what were the orig thinkers...To what extent do textbooks distort...audiences?" Do we have this in math? #sbarbook

jrykse                      @jsb16 I can see that for #4.  Similar to saying why use certain method for solving a quadratic? Pros/cons to certain method. #sbarbook

jsb16                       @stardiverr Physics, here.

lmhenry9               @stardiverr There are a lot of math teachers here. W/ doing UbD, we have some science tchrs also. Had some other interest as well. #sbarbook

stardiverr              Facets are having a somewhat different meaning to me as I apply them to math.  #sbarbook

justbugnu             @druinok I did real world situations that required them to answer in multiple steps but use the content we covered in that chapter.

jsb16                       @lmhenry9 Yes, you have that in math! There are other possible number systems. Mayans used 16? #sbarbook

druinok                  @lmhenry9 I wondered that as well - I thought the excerpt from the CAN text was an interesting perspective on Amer History #sbarbook

gwaddellnvhs      @lmhenry9 #sbarbook Questions like "how does the elimination method feel about the substitution method" get to the issue of empathy.

lmhenry9               @druinok I did too - really liked that and will probably point that out to the history teacher at school in my PLC we're starting. #sbarbook

druinok                  @stardiverr mostly math and science teachers - grades 6-12 #sbarbook

gwaddellnvhs      @lmhenry9 It seems like an odd question to a math teacher, but to answer it requires a deep understanding and creativity. #sbarbook

lmhenry9               @gwaddellnvhs Okay, I chuckled at that one. Just can't "see' the elimination method having feelings... #mathisnonemotional,right? #sbarbook

druinok                  @jrykse interesting :)  can a question fit multiple facets? re: "why use certain method" #sbarbook

jsb16                       #sbarbook Ask students to imagine living in a society that used a different base: French Revolution tried to go to 10-day week.

lmhenry9               @gwaddellnvhs It does, and I bet there would be a kid who was really well-rounded who would have a field day with it. #sbarbook

druinok                  @justbugnu I want to create more authentic situations, but not sure where to start #sbarbook

Mr_Martenis       I'm attempting to find a use for empathy in science/math... #sbarbook

druinok                  @gwaddellnvhs eager to hear your answer - how does the elimination method feel? :) #sbarbook

stardiverr              @Mr_Martenis Me too.  #empathy  #sbarbook

jrykse                      Wondering when I have kids do application just how diverse or not ordinary the problems we do are. Will need to watch those. #sbarbook

Mr_Martenis       Perhaps ask students who declare a lack of interest to figure out why some people *are* fascinated by the subject #sbarbook

jsb16                       .@Mr_Martenis Trying to get Aristotelian thinkers to imagine being Newtonians is half my job as physics teacher. #sbarbook

lmhenry9               But I thought this was relevant to math: pg100 "To ensure greater understanding of abstract ideas...txtbk-driven courses allow." #sbarbook

lmhenry9               Followed by the intellectual Outward Bound comment. #sbarbook

gwaddellnvhs      @lmhenry9 Honestly, top kids hated the question bcs they have think math is not emotional. The lower level kids really excelled! #sbarbook

druinok                  @Mr_Martenis I figure if I can get more usage of 1-3, I'm doing better than I currently am :) #sbarbook

lmhenry9               @gwaddellnvhs I can see that - many of those kids are stronger in more "creative" areas than the top kids. #sbarbook

lmhenry9               @druinok I'd agree with that comment. #sbarbook

jsb16                       Also for empathy, trying to redesign experiment to be carried out without tech we have or with tech we don't have? #sbarbook

gwaddellnvhs      @druinok LOL. One answer I got was "happy bcs substitution fills holes in the equations when something is removed." #sbarbook

stardiverr              Had success with empathy in bioethics, I think.  #sbarbook

gwaddellnvhs      @mrhodotnet #sbarbook I just added some additional files I have.

druinok                  @jsb16 I can see that - asking kids how they would design it if they didn't have the access #sbarbook

druinok                  @stardiverr bioethics could get into a lot of interesting discussions, including the "perspectives" facet #sbarbook

jsb16                       .@druinok Especially because Aristotle, Galileo, Newton, et al didn't have Logger Pro! #sbarbook

druinok                  @justbugnu but based on the rubric in ch 3, isn't that part of problem solving? tackling something unlike your experience? #sbarbook

Mr_Martenis       @druinok Oh, it's a reach. I wasn't seriously suggesting doing it, just trying to figure whether I understand the empathy facet. #sbarbook

stardiverr              @druinok As well as #6.  Students learn that they want to make responsible decisions for self, family, society.  #sbarbook

stardiverr              In Chemistry, it's been tough to get 4, 5, 6. #sbarbook

druinok                  @jsb16 LOL :)  or given certain tools, what data could you have collected? could you have repeated the experiment? #sbarbook

lmhenry9               @stardiverr I think that's the case in math also, although if students are reflecting on their learning somehow, 6 is possible. #sbarbook

stardiverr              @Mr_Martenis what about empathy with scientists and mathematicians? #sbarbook

jsb16                       .@stardiverr For 4: how does a HazMat team use this info? Poison Control? #sbarbook

druinok                  @stardiverr I am guessing you are a science person? :)  glad you found us!  always appreciate a new perspective #sbarbook

stardiverr              @lmhenry9 students assessing their own learning by describing, in their own voice, is very powerful. #sbarbook

jsb16                       #sbarbook I think the catchall for 4 is identifying assumptions made for math/science. For physics, usually lack of friction.

stardiverr              @druinok Currently, science.  Math, in the past. #sbarbook

druinok                  glancing ahead, it does appear that the future chapters are more concrete - looking forward to reading about EQs next #sbarbook

lmhenry9               @druinok I felt *finally* like we are heading into something more concrete next chapter rather than more theory. #sbarbook

lmhenry9               @druinok Although this theory wasn't as tough as chapter 3 of #sbarbook.

gwaddellnvhs      @lmhenry9  #sbarbook Yes, chap 5 is where the idea for the "honeycomb" questions came from. pg 120.

stardiverr              @jsb16 also - household uses, cooking, household cleaners, paints #sbarbook

druinok                  @lmhenry9 I think they alluded to that too at the end of this chapter - so ready to go more concrete! #sbarbook

sciteacheraker    Jumping on the bandwagon about empathy...  how about studies of persecuted scientists whose thinking was radical for times #sbarbook

jsb16                       Itching to get started applying the theory. I have units to design! #sbarbook

stardiverr              @druinok Used EQs in a PLC in my last building.  Powerful.  #sbarbook

sciteacheraker    And that empathy discussion would lead to discussion of the value of skepticism in science #sbarbook

fourkatie               @druinok @lmhenry9 definitely ready for concrete.  understanding about understanding. my brain needs some examples. #sbarbook

jrykse                      @lmhenry9 @druinok ditto that.  Got a couple sbg books you did last year. Find myself skimming.  #sbarbook

sciteacheraker    Oh yeah, and what is #sbarbook? :-)

gwaddellnvhs      @sciteacheraker  #sbarbook that would be a terrific empathy question. Lots of empathy questions could be related to the history of math.

stardiverr              @sciteacheraker works well with chemists and the early old-earth guys .  #sbarbook

stardiverr              @sciteacheraker works well with chemists and the early old-earth guys .  #sbarbook

druinok                  @fourkatie yes!!!  so far, this book has been pretty heavy, not what I was expecting :) #sbarbook

stardiverr              @sciteacheraker I am SO glad you are here!  #sbarbook

jsb16                       @sciteacheraker #sbarbook is currently Understanding by Design. Book discussion 'club' for ed geeks. :)

lmhenry9               @sciteacheraker Understanding by Design by Wiggins and McTighe is #sbarbook this time around.

stardiverr              @druinok This book takes a pretty simple concept and makes you think.  A lot.  #sbarbook

sciteacheraker    @lmhenry9 Ah cool.  Just found all of the tweets in my #sbar column on Tweetdeck. :-) #sbarbook

jrykse                      You all have done great job of blogging your sbg trials & tribulations, find myself saying "already know that". #sbarbook

stardiverr              I'm not sure I am am edgeek..... #sbarbook

justbugnu             @druinok yes I'm ready to get into concrete things I can sink my teeth into. Lol #sbarbook

lmhenry9               @stardiverr @druinok I would definitely agree with that. I have thought *so* much reading this #sbarbook. May want a break after this one.

lmhenry9               @jrykse That's a good thing. Makes the reading go easier. #sbarbook

druinok                  @sciteacheraker its an online book club :)  we are currently reading Understanding by Design #sbarbook

stardiverr              What have you read previously? #sbarbook

lmhenry9               Since we are winding down on Chapter 4 of #sbarbook - when do you want to do the next one?

gwaddellnvhs      @lmhenry9  #sbarbook I think this book is very dense. It definitely is not new teacher reading. W/o experience it is gibberish.

fourkatie               I read an outline of book from a colleague to fill in as I catch up, so I may be missing stuff. but abstract/theoretical so far #sbarbook

lmhenry9               @gwaddellnvhs W/out discussion and experience #sbarbook (UbD) is gibberish I think.

justbugnu             @druinok yes for first part of year anyway n then could use for summative later. Lots to think about....#sbarbook

druinok                  @gwaddellnvhs the empathy question (based on @sciteacheraker's comment) ties into #statbook too #sbarbook

stardiverr              Thanks for letting me hang out ;)  #sbarbook

jsb16                       #sbarbook Friday for next chapter?

gwaddellnvhs      @druinok  #statbook #sbarbook completely agree. I am really going to push that this year.

lmhenry9               @stardiverr You are welcome anytime to #sbarbook.

sciteacheraker    I'll definitely check in next Friday!  Thanks for letting me eavesdrop. :-)  #sbarbook

lmhenry9               Thu or Fri for #sbarbook?

gwaddellnvhs      @lmhenry9  #sbarbook I am at another baseball game on thursday, but can catch up later with the blog if we go thursday.

druinok                  @stardiverr that can be tough for my summer brain :) heheheh  but definitely getting a lot out of it #sbarbook

stardiverr              I'll check in on Friday.  At workshop on Thursday. Been awhile since I could be on the other side of the table. #sbarbook

druinok                  @lmhenry9 I'm free for either - whatever is good for the rest #sbarbook

lmhenry9               We could do Chapter 5 Friday 7/1 and Chapter 6 Wednesday 7/6 as a possibility for #sbarbook.

jrykse                      @lmhenry9 Can do either. #sbarbook

fourkatie               I've got book club in real life Friday, but will catch up for next week #sbarbook

lmhenry9               Let's go with this schedule for the moment: Chapter 5 Friday 7/1 Chapter 6 Wednesday 7/6 both at 9:30p est. #sbarbook

justbugnu             I need more time too...if I could only get one more month of planning I would rock in the classroom! Lol.#sbarbook

gwaddellnvhs      @lmhenry9  #sbarbook I am in for that schedule.

lmhenry9               FYI - I will have a hard time being on for #sbarbook between Thu 7/7 & Mon 7/11 and will be looking @ Ch 7 to be either Tue 7/12 or Wed 7/13

lmhenry9               Thanks everyone for a good conversation tonight. Will get transcript up shortly. #sbarbook

druinok                  @lmhenry9 Now that summer is here, would it be easier to go a bit later?  would that help with scheduling conflicts? #sbarbook

lmhenry9               @druinok It won't make a difference for me. I can do later if others want. Maybe 10p est? #sbarbook

gwaddellnvhs      @druinok #sbarbook Agreed. I would like some time to make some more honeycombs and rainbow questions and get them uploaded!

druinok                  Very eager to read about EQs - they talked about them some at the AVID workshop last week #sbarbook

lmhenry9               So can we do Ch 5 Fri 7/1 and Ch 6 Wed 7/6 at 10p est? #sbarbook

gwaddellnvhs      @druinok @lmhenry9 #sbarbook sounds great to me.

lmhenry9               I'm getting a mixed bag at the moment. We'll keep Ch 5 on Fri 7/1 at 9:30p est & see what people think about Wed 7/6 (Ch 6) then. #sbarbook


Thursday, June 23, 2011

SBG Gala #6

Welcome to the 6th installment of the Standards-Based Grading Gala! If you are finding this for the first time, here are the previous installments:
#1 at MeTA musings (July 20, 2010)
#2 at Always Formative (September 6, 2010)
#3 at Teaching Chemistry (October 21, 2010)
#4 at Action-Reaction (December 23, 2010)
#5 at Quantum Progress (February 18, 2011)

If you are new to SBG, it is worth your time to go back and read the previous SBG Galas, for we have some of the same people and you can see how SBG has grown and changed for them.

When I posted the original call for posts, I asked for some posts of how SBG has worked (or not worked) in your classroom. I have noticed more and more people in the twitter-blogosphere looking at SBG and I know I'm looking at making changes myself. Personally, I know that reading what others have done with SBG helped me immensely in setting up SBG in my classroom, so I hope that we can help others who are trying to do the same. One last thing to add, make sure you take the time to read the comments in these posts too. Sometimes there are some even better pearls of wisdom from others there. Without any further ado, I bring you the blog posts for this version of the SBG Gala:

SBG Year in Review/Reflections

Chris Ludwig (Science Education on the Edge) brings us 2010-2011: My Standards-Based Grading Year in Review.

Newcomer Roger Wistar (Abort, Retry, Succeed?) shares with us his first year with SBG in Reflections on SBG.

Geoff Schmidt (Pedagogue Padawan) is Looking Back Before SBG in his post.

Scott Schaefer (I Taught My Dog to Whistle) shares with us The Evolution of my Grading Practices.

Amber Caldwell (Maximizing Learning) blogs about her second year with SBG in SBG: The Pied Piper.

@druinok (Teaching Statistics) shares her first year reflections in SBG: Reflections on SY 2010/11.

Lisa Henry (An "Old Math Dog" Learning New Tricks) did an analysis of students who reassessed as a part of her SBG year in review in SBG Analysis.

Tweaking SBG

Andy Rundquist (SuperFly Physics) reviews his SBG year and offers his revisions for next year in SBG with Voice Revisions.

Kelly O'Shea (Physics! Blog!) shares how her SBG system and is trying to figure out how to handle Those Darn Quarter Grades in her post.

Dan Anderson (A Recursive Process) made a change mid-year and shares the results in A Small Tweak and a Feedback Inequality.

Lisa Henry (An "Old Math Dog" Learning New Tricks) reviews her first year with SBG and is pondering several tweaks for next year in Time to Tweak.

Other SBG Stuff

Shawn Cornally (Think Thank Thunk) fights for the assessment soul of a student in Standards-Based Grading: Passive Aggression.

Bret Benesh (Solvable by Radicals) ponders whether SBG should be SBF in his post.

Sam Shah (Continuous Everywhere But Differentiable Nowhere) shares how he asks his students to request reassessment in To Reassess (or, how to make more work for me).

Cheesemonkeysf (Cheesemonkey wonders) in her Mathematical Language Manfesto talks about including mathematical language skills in SBG.

Stuff from my Google Reader

Blog Carnival (which is what we use to collect submissions), went flaky during this round of the SBG Gala. So, here are some posts from my Google Reader that are SBG related that you may find interesting. Please understand they were not submitted, but I am hoping that you find them helpful.

Jason Buell (Always Formative) shares thoughts how SBG can be used to inform decisions in Flow Control.

Tracie Schroeder (Adventures with the Lower Level) reflects on her first year with SBG in SBG and the Nightmare that is Grading.

Bret Benesh (Solvable by Radicals) didn't submit this one, but I think it is equally as valuable as the other post he submitted. In SBG Reflections, he reflects on his year with SBG in a college classroom.

Nick Yates (Maryland Math Madness) shares how his year went with SBG, including the revisions he made, in SBG Update.

I stumbled on Standards-Based Grading: the parent dividend from Edward Zuber (exzuberant) from Twitter after the deadline. He talks about the benefits SBG has for parents from his experiences during parent-teacher night. Also on his blog, I found Would you like 2 yaks or 3 yaks with that test? to be an interesting approach to assessment with SBG. Some good stuff to be found on this blog, I think.

Thanks so much for reading! Look for SBG Gala #7 sometime toward the end of summer - it'll surface on Twitter eventually.