Marking Session

I just completed a two week training session in Montreal. 

25 teachers were invited from around the province to attend.  Each day we read, evaluated and discussed the Secondary Five exams which were written by students in May.  The exams were articles (not essays) and they all addressed the same topic: “Youth Culture: Empowerment or Manipulation.”

From the ministry’s perspective, the event was a step towards standardization of graduation examinations, whereby all the exams will be marked by teams at a few centralized cities.  We’re not there yet.  This year was a dry run, and a chance to train and educate teachers about the process.  Next spring will be the real deal.

The training was quite enlightening.  I had the opportunity to hear the opinions of several colleagues.  There were many lengthy animated conversations about the minute details of how English writing ought to be assessed.

Having the opportunity to personally read and discuss about 200 exams, sampled from across the province, was a real eye-opener for me.  It provided me with a unique insight into the quality of writing of our students and the topics that are on the minds of modern teens.  It also forced me to examine closely the qualities of good writing and to ruminate on how I will teach these skills to my students next year.

Thanks to Anne Doucet for making the whole event possible and thanks to all the helpful, friendly teachers who attended.

Photo by gmayster01.

More Nostalgia

… and here is a blog that I worked on with my students during my final year in the North.  And, lots of photos.

Nostalgia

It’s funny how things on the internet seem to never die. 

I just stumbled on a website I made in 2006, for the school at which I was then working.  I doubt this site has had a single visitor for years.  Me, I had totally forgotten about it.  But here it is, photos and all.  Enjoy.

Pobediteli

Here is a nicely crafted website and a great resource that provides an animated chronology of WWII; specifically, from the point of view of Russia.  It is called Pobediteli.

Videos

An idea I have for next year is to show a short introductory video at the beginning of each class, or most classes.  I think it is a good way to get the students thinking about the day’s topic, more than a simple lecture could.

There are websites that allow you to collect and categorize online videos.  For example, Yubby and Popscreen.

Reflections

It has been almost two months since my previous submission.

I'm not sure why. I suppose I had nothing to say.

Busy. Exams. End of the school year.

This is the time when teachers contemplate on their year. What did I do right? What did I do wrong? What will I change and what will I continue next year?

There are four things I have in mind to improve next year.

1. Balance IT. I resolve to temper my usage of the computer with tradition pen and paper activities. My students and parents are not ready for a paperless classroom quite yet. As well, I believe that writing with a pencil develops thinking skills that are different than those that come with keyboarding. It is not difficult to notice that modern students have lower attention spans, more distractions than previous generations. The notion of curling up for a few hours with a good book is almost inconceivable.

2. Cross-curricular literacy. Related to the previous topic, I resolve to have my students engage in more writing activities in other subject-areas. English should be the backbone of History and Geography. I hesitate to say that I will be teaching to the exam; however, I do want to acknowledge that it is my charge to prepare the students for the exam and I do want to take some proactive, pragmatic steps in this direction.

3. Observational measurement. I want to utilize a more structured, scientific approach towards student assessment. I want to find ways to collect student data in formalized manners. There is traditional testing, of course, but there are other ways too. I'm not very knowledgeable in this field. I will be attending a workshop concerning this topic in September. Solid assessment data is useful when interacting with parents and administrators.

4. Organization. Staying organized is the bane of every teacher. My organizational skills are not bad, but there is always room for improvement. Specifically, I intend to keep a binder for each subject that will mirror in content each student's binder.

For now, I resolve to relax, recharge, and enjoy summer.

Photo by James-Hetherington.

Capzles

Capzles is a neat, unique website. It bills itself as a timeline, but I would describe it as a slideshow.

Users can upload photos or videos, or link to photos and videos on the net. Users can write details to accompany each item.

In History, the students used Capzles to create presentations.