Rationale+after

In looking at my unit again, there were many things that I changed. The first thing I did was to create a wiki space for the class. It was to act like a one-stop shopping zone for students, parents and other educators to see all that I had to offer in my course. It included an online calendar for assignments and important dates, contact information, state standards information and a place for students to submit ‘best works’ for public display. As far as instruction is concerned, I changed from following all the sections of the book to exclude two pieces which were not in the algebra state standards. This allowed time for an extra inquiry-based activity where the students could create their own problem or take examples from the web to solve. Since quadratic equations can be solved in many ways, students were given the choice to find their own solutions. Inquiry-based and collaborative learning are more effective methods to promote problem solving according to Linda Darling-Hammond. For the review activity, students were given the choice of (low tech) butcher paper and magic marker or (high tech) power point presentations. “Responsive or differentiated teaching means a teacher is attuned to students’ varied learning needs.” (Tomlinson, 2006 p. 18) Just like with the different ways to solve quadratic equations, different students will produce valid responses using different media. As far as assessments are concerned, the policy for retakes was changed. Quizzes and tests could now be retaken, but not before mistakes were corrected. After reading Stiggins, I realized it was important to "help students learn to improve their work one key attribute of success at a time". (Stiggins). By giving students the opportunity to redo quizzes and correct mistakes, they were revisiting the original learning objectives, focusing in the specific place they went wrong, and showing them they could correct themselves which is empowering.

=Bibliography= Darling-Hammond, L. (n.d.). //Powerful Learning: Studies Show Deep Understanding Derives from Collaborative Methods.// Retrieved February 14, 2011, from edutopia.org: http://www.edutopia.org/inquiry-project-learning-research Stiggins, R. (n.d.). //Assessment for Student Learning.// Retrieved March 18, 2011, from Assessment for Student Learning: http://www.assessmentinst.com/sites/default/files/Article-RickS-JamesPop-4-08.pdf Tomlinson, C. A. (2006). //Integrating differentiated instruction and understanding by design.// Alexandria, VA: ASCD.