Teacher+Reflections

In terms of giving my students an alternate assessment and how well the majority of students did, I would tend to give students more project choices as a summative assignment. Most students seem to enjoy the opportunity to really shine when given a clear rubric. All student groups that participated in this summative assignment did very well, as indicated in the Data Table (Attachment 1) results comparing Quiz and Test grades. The quiz being a formative assessment, and the test the project assignment with rubric. Students do not perform well on standardized tests; this was evidenced by the majority of my students failing their end of course chemistry exam. However, assigning students authentic assessment, such as projects, gives them an opportunity to demonstrate their knowledge as well as allowing students that have alternate learning styles a chance to excel. All groups and students that participated in this two part (double test grade) assignment received passing grades due to their knowledge attainment and demonstrated skill use. Alternate assignment/assessments were created for students that did not have access to computers, and therefore, could not create a Prezi with technology. In those cases, students were graded on the same presentation requirements indicated in the rubric. Also, a modified grade structure was created for a group with individual education plans (IEPs). I learned that students can excel when self-directed and given an opportunity to create a project that demonstrates their knowledge and learning potential. Also, I will try to make sure that each marking period has a minimum of one hands-on or technology assessment to allow students to show their skills and flex their learning power.