Point of Inflection |

The traditional model for grades in a class lacks the flexibility required to reflect what I really think of a student.  When I used weighted categories (e.g. 50% exams, 30% homework, 20% class participation), I found that some of the students passing my class didn’t really seem to deserve it, and some of the students [...]

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Feb/10

4

Why CPM is killing my blog

First of all, I should say that I am not getting paid by CPM in any way (except for in the free sample books that they’re happy to send out to anyone who asks).  I’m about to give it a pretty freaking positive review, tainted only by the melancholy of knowing a superior.  CPM, if [...]

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So, get this: I’m writing my own grading software.  This is largely because I really like computer programming and I want to try out some new technologies, but it’s also because I have found existing grading software severely lacking (especially now that I use this skill-centered grading that is not focused so much on deadlines).
If [...]

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It takes a lot of class time to have students build models, but here’s what I’m almost ready to call a pro tip: people love building models.  I wanted to bring Algebra kids from an understanding of the typical calculus box (cut 4 squares out of the corners of a rectangular piece of…) to a [...]

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Jan/10

16

You can’t sit next to me!

A colleague of mine, D, has a theory that makes a lot of sense: when a teacher helps a student work on something all the way to its completion, the student associates the final success with the presence of the teacher. I used to help my students all the way through a math problem [...]

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Jan/10

15

Yikes

Grades after the first week, students by rows, skills by column.  Really disappointing, especially since I thought my lessons went well this week.

Do you ever give tests that pretty much everyone fails?

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Jan/10

14

Flash Presentations

Flash as in really fast! I used a period today to assign a group project. I gave the kids (in teams of 3 or 4) about 40 minutes to:

Pick a function from a list (e.g. u(x)=2*sqrt(10-x^2)+5)
Figure out how to graph it in geogebra (the “sqrt” command was not obvious to them)
Figure out how to [...]

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If you went to summer camp as a kid and felt it change your life, you already know what I’m talking about.  The community that forms when you face a challenge – a real, fundamental, spiritually intrinsic challenge – with a group of peers and let it change you into a group of close friends. [...]

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Jan/10

10

How to create a skills list

My last post focused on three major mistakes I made in my first semester of skill-focused, mastery-based assessment: separating skills into chunks that were impractically small, choosing some skills that were too simple (almost trivial), and neglecting to plan for the end of the semester.  This post will focus on my process creating the skills list [...]

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I made some rookie mistakes with my Algebra 2 skills checklist in semester one this year.  I have invented a word to describe each problem.
Hyperseparation
In my enthusiasm for separating skills, I gave determinants of 2×2 matrices and determinants of 3×3 matrices each their own spot on the list.  They should have been combined.  I also [...]

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