Monday, August 27, 2018

My Inquiry half way checkpoint




As part of the Manaiakalani Hui I got to present where is am up to in my Inquiry.
I have been trialing a range of different assessments with student at Sommerville and in our COL schools.

Tuesday, August 21, 2018

Latest update from MOE around assessment requirements


Literacy and mathematics remain the key areas for teaching, learning and assessment as they are fundamental tools to enable students to access skills and knowledge across the curriculum. 
It's important that data about student progress and achievement can be collated and analysed at a class and cohort level, to allow for the identification of students who are not making sufficient progress or who have special needs. This data may also identify aspects of the curriculum that require attention: for example, extra professional learning and development in a particular curriculum area. You can find lots of information on gathering and analysing data in the Using evidence for learning section of this website.
To support teachers to better understand and use the broad statements in the curriculum, our profession has developed sound, research-based fine-grained progressions of learning in the foundation areas of literacy and mathematics.
However, think carefully about your purposes for assessment. Assess only when the information will be used to improve teaching and learning. Do not over assess.

Literacy

Progressions of learning: Progressions of learning act as planning, teaching and assessment resources.
There are several iterations of our understanding of the progressions of learning in literacy up to level 5 of the curriculum. 
Assessment tools: Several of the available assessment tools provide what next strategies so that they can be used as teaching resources as well as assessment resources. The following tools are the commonly used in NZ schools.
  • e-asTTle reading and writing
  • PAT reading comprehension, reading vocabulary, listening comprehension, punctuation and grammar
  • STAR – supplementary test of reading
  • Observation survey of early literacy achievement (aka Six Year Net)
  • Assessment Resource Bank (ARBs)
  • Record of Oral Language
  • Junior Oral Language Screening Tool
Consult the Assessment tool selector for all available assessment tools in reading, writing and oral language.

Mathematics:

Progressions of learning: Progressions of learning act as planning, teaching and assessment resources.
As in literacy, there are several iterations of the progressions of learning in mathematics up to level 5 of the curriculum. Maths progressions illustrate discrete skills that build on each other to show progression.
  • Numeracy Project resources
  • National Standards descriptors and exemplars
  • Learning Progression Frameworks and Progress and Consistency Tool (PaCT)
  • Resources on NZ Maths on TKI
Assessment tools: Several of the available assessment tools provide what next strategies so that they can be used as teaching resources as well as assessment resources. The following tools are the most commonly used in NZ schools:
  • e-asTTle maths
  • PAT maths
  • Numeracy Project assessment tools
  • Assessment Resource Banks (ARBs)


What about our ORs students and those who have complex needs ?
- I dont believe that these tools are as finegrained as they need to be.

Sunday, August 19, 2018

Is lack of visual tracking skills getting in the way of your learners progress?


I have recently been testing some students who are struggling in reading and writing.
My detailed testing has shown that they struggle with visual tracking and scanning.




Vision and visual tracking are activities that happen automatically without us really focusing on it.  The brain recognises our eyes are moving, tracking, scanning, focusing, pursuing, and accommodating without us even realising.  

What is Visual Tracking?

Visual tracking is often defined as the ability to efficiently move the eyes from left to right (or right to left, up and down, and circular motions) OR focusing on an object as it moves across a person’s visual field. This  is important for lots  of our daily activities, including reading, writing, using scissors, drawing, and playing.  

Researchers says that the  typical development of visual processing, the ability to visually track objects emerges in children around the age of five.  

Difficulties in Visual Tracking

Your learning might have difficulties in some of the following areas if they have challenges with visual tracking:
  • Losing place when reading.  Re-reads or skips words or lines.  
  • Omits, substitutes, repeats, or confuses similar words when reading.
  • Must use finger to keep place when reading.
  • Poor reading comprehension.
  • Short attention span.
  • Difficulty comprehending or remembering what is read.
  • Confusion with interpreting or following written directions.
  • Writing on a slat, up or down hill, spacing letters and words irregularly.
  • Confusion with left/right directions.
  • Persistent reversals of letters (b, d, p, q) when naming letters.
  • Errors when copying from the board or book to paper.


Formal testing is required to determine if they is a visual tracking or scanning issue.




Visual perceptual skills require the ability to see, organize and interpret visual information.  Visual tracking is one type of visual perceptual skills.  Visual tracking is the ability to control the eye movements using the oculomotor system (vision and eye muscles working together). There are two types of visual tracking: maintaining your focus on a moving object and switching your focus between two objects.


Possible activities to support our learners:








Activities to promote eye tracking:

  • Complete puzzles.
  • Word finds
  • Find as many things as you can see of a certain shape (circle, square, rectangle, triangle) in the room.
  • Copy a series of motor movements made by someone else.
  • Perform dot-to-dot pictures.
  • Find the mistakes in “What’s Wrong with this Picture?” pictures.
  • Sort playing cards in different ways (color, suit, number), or use playing cards to find two with matching numbers.
  • Solve mazes.
  • Play “I Spy.”
  • Play balloon toss.
  • Use tracing paper to trace and color simple pictures.
  • Perceptual motor programmes 

Monday, August 13, 2018

Teacher's receiving feedback.



Receiving Feedback on our teaching practice can be difficult. We need to change how we react to feedback from others and use this feedback as a great opportunity to learn and grow as teachers.

We give feedback to our learners in our classroom everyday. We expect them to use this feedback to develop new skills - new learning.
Why as an adult is it hard to receive feedback?

Watch this TED talk  by  Sheila, I found it interesting.





How to use others' feedback to learn and grow | Sheila Heen