Wednesday, January 29, 2020
The Ins and Outs of Assessment Essay Example for Free
The Ins and Outs of Assessment Essay What is an Assessment? As I ask myself this question, memories from my educational experience pass through my mind. I am forced to recall many tests, quizzes and fear that have embedded my mind with a horrific sense of anxiety. The fear, I believe, is the cause of the thought that I may not excel in the lesson that I had been taught. Then I ask myself, is that what an assessment was meant to accomplish? Through my readings, I have learned that an assessment is an educational process that requires documentation of knowledge that a student has received from a lesson. The documentation of the assessment can be based on the individual student or the class as a whole. Assessments are a collection of data in order to improve upon the educational development of a learner. Assessments also help improve the learning standards and benchmarks within the classroom. This practice will allow me, as a teacher, to improve my teaching ability and evolve as a better educator. I have also learned, through my readings, what an assessment is not. An assessment is not an end goal that determines a student’s educational worth in a subject area. Assessments are not the only data that is used in evaluating the progress of a student in a particular program of study. The process of assessing students’ progress is only useless when the evaluation is done poorly. If this practice does not reflect goals and values of particular disciplines, the assessment should be reevaluated. There are two main categories of assessment: summative and formative. Summative assessments are used to evaluate how effective an instructional program has been to student. This assessment is typically given at the end of a particular lesson, unit or academic year. Summative assessments are used to make a judgment of the competency of a student after a particular lesson has been completed. This evaluation is issued to determine if a learner has mastered a specific standard or benchmark. It is also administered in order to identify areas of instruction that may need additional attention or modification. Such assessments are given in the form of standardized test that typically have a single score. Summative assessments are typically a good evaluation for educators and school systems, however; such data does not individually reflect the misunderstandings that may hinder a learner’s potential evolvement. Formative assessment is used to improve instructional methods and student feedback throughout the teaching and learning process. Formative evaluations are performed in a gradual, step-by-step procedure in order to observe a student’s grasp of a concept. This process is demonstrated by on-going assessments, as well as, reviews and observations in the classroom setting. Through an educators observations, the teacher can reconstruct the instructional strategy sooner rather than later, in order to insure the validation on the lesson. Formative assessments may be administered in the form of quizzes or performance tasks in the classroom. Assessing a learner formatively allows for more retention of the instructional material, and a better grasp on building upon that material. Assessment expectations desired by instructors are the effectiveness of the outcome. I think that a teacher should strive for every student’s ability. In reaching this goal, instructors must set realistic expectations for the students that one may teach. In setting goals for the students, students must have a clear understanding of what is expected of the instruction and lessons. I believe that each expectation that is set for a student should resemble that particular child’s ability and need. Each expectation should be a reflection of a student’s prior knowledge and the instructional connection between concept and practice. Exercising realistic expectations within the classroom can be easily established through the purposes of assessments. Instructors give assessments to students to identify areas of weakness which can result in the determination to give better teaching instruction. There are four purposes for assessment of students: Monitoring student progress, making instructional decisions, evaluating student achievement and evaluating progress. The first purpose of assessment is monitoring student progress. After setting realistic expectations, data should be compiled to give the student and instructor feedback about the progression of the expectations that were set. This assessment purpose is a continual process that may result in formal or informal data. This data, however; can lead to the individual progression of each student. The second purpose for assessment is making instructional decisions. Instructors will use collected data of students’ understanding to modify teaching processes in order to give better instruction to the student. In order for the teacher to modify the instructional tasks for a student, the teacher will observe the student. This observation will allow the instructor to understand the way the particular student thinks and applies instruction; therefore, making the instruction fit the child, rather than fitting the child to the instruction. The third purpose for assessment is evaluating student achievement. In evaluating a student’s achievement, an instructor will examine the student and make an informed judgment on the progress the student is obtaining. The judgment is based on the abilities of that certain student rather than in comparison to other students in the class. This allows the student to receive a more individualized evaluation that reflects on the goals that are set for him or her. The fourth purpose for assessment is evaluating programs. This assessment is a compiled evaluation of the class, as a whole, in order to make modifications to the instruction given to the students. These modifications will allow students to, not only set high expectations, but meet high expectations as well. It is my opinion that changes in assessments need to develop in order to keep such evaluations in line with reform efforts. Some of the assessments that are used today seem dated and may not give correct validation of a student’s understanding. Assessing a student’s educational potential is a group effort for all that are involved in the education of a child. Assessments for observing students’ education, making instructional judgments, and evaluating a student’s achievements have been in the hands of classroom teachers, whereas assessments for gaging programs have been supported by agencies outside the classroom. I believe that assessments for all purposes need to be more vulnerable and mutual; meaning, instructors should be involved in the assessment process for all purposes. The primary responsibility for assessment must be a shared effort if it is to meet the needs of today’s students.
Monday, January 20, 2020
Who Do We Think We Are? :: essays research papers fc
                                             1 Who Do We Think We Are?      Capital Punishment is the penalty of death for a crime. The most common criminals who are executed are convicted murderers. What message is that sending? The use of capital punishment sends the message that murder is okay, as long as it is applied to the right person. The application of capital punishment in our society is hypocritical. It has no place in the judicial system.      The way we handle the punishment of capital crimes is pathetic! There are other ways to punish criminals outside of taking their lives, but we, for some reason, feel the need to play the exterminator. The people who commit capital crimes are not animals to be exterminated. They are human. They deserve the same breath that everyone else takes. If a person commits a heinous crime then that person is obviously not normal. That person is obviously in need of mental help and, we should help these criminals instead of hurting them (religioustolerance.org).      Criminals have families and friends who care about them. Why should the innocent bystanders be punished because of another's actions? Killing anyone, for any reason, only brings on more pain and suffering than is necessary. We should recognize the problems in                                                             2 our society and heal those problems instead of placing a temporary fix on a permanent problem.      Capital punishment is excessive and unnecessary. Killing a criminal only solves one problem and causes many more. The one problem it solves is the criminal is no longer walking the streets. Encarceration would serve the same purpose. If the criminal is encarcerated then he/she no longer poses a direct threat to society, so killing him/her would be overkill (pardon the pun). It causes other problems because the criminal was executed merely out of retribution. Sort of an eye for an eye. Actions like this only keep hatred and condemnation flowing in society (progress.org).      A punishment can only be called a deterrent if it is performed consistantly and promptly. There are three reasons why capital punishment cannot be performed with any consistancy or promptness. 1) The number of convicted murderers sentenced to death are small, and of that number, an even smaller number are actually executed 2)Manditory death sentences are unconstitutional (Woodson v. North Carolina, 1976). 3)A considerable time between the imposition of the death sentence and the actual execution is unavoidable.      If a person is going to premeditate a capital crime, he/she is not going to be
Sunday, January 12, 2020
Fireweed Case Study Essay
Introduction Fireweed is a short story written by Skye Brannon about a special day in Baluta’s life. Baluta is an uneducated carpenter in U.S.A, and lives with his brother Jato and the brother’s wife Sama. Baluta has had a rough background, he was witness to his father and sisters death, and had to flee to America, from Libya from war and hate. Main Theme There are several themes in the story, such as, culture difference, racism and poverty, but all these, are sub-themes. The overall main theme of this short story must be to cherish the present, and take nothing for granted. The fact that Baluta saw his dad getting killed and his sister raped and killed, is a view into an absurd world of violence and hate, described without many feelings. â€Å"He saw his father, swinging from a tree, on a rope†[1], and â€Å"He saw little Alonso’s ten-year old body, limp, naked in the sun, being passed from one soldier to another, his pants mingling with the dust.†[2] This is a matter of course that he will never take anything for granted, because he has learned that he will never know when it’s going to stop. A more positive sign on the main them, of this short story, is that he is actually having a better life now, in America. And he won’t take that for granted even though, there are a lot of other people with muc h better conditions, like Tiffany. The way the story is structured Fireweed is written with a third person narrator who is omniscient. All the actions are seen from Baluta’s point of view. â€Å"Cold like Kpatawee Falls back home, Baluta thought. Yes, today would be a remembering day†page 9, line 9. In this quote it’s clear that the narrator is omniscient since he knows what Baluta thinks. The story is told in the past tense, except for the quotes which are in present. The short story is simple to read, because of the uncomplicated language that is being used. It also makes it easier to read when something in the text that catches your attention, like the dialogs between the two brothers, Baluta and Jato, because they speak with an African accent. â€Å"†Dese Americans,†Jato said, â€Å"if you tell dem your mandika name, dey look loke you’ve given dem a riddle††.[3] The story also contains a few flashbacks which might get a bit confusing. It is not possible to figure out the story before the end, because a lot of important details are revealed that you won’t be able to guess. It keeps the author’s attention, and helps out to keep the story exciting and interesting. A Characterization of Baluta/Joel Baluta/Joel is a person that doesn’t seek conflicts or controversies with other people which you can see on page 9, line 17 â€Å"Baluta felt awful for this, but he had to work to get a car, and needed a car to get to work†and again at page 10 when Tiffany asks Baluta to smash down some dirt which in the theory isn’t his job, but he just says â€Å"Sure, miss†because he is a nice person. â€Å"Could you please smash down that pile of dirt?†Another example of Baluta trying to fit into the new society that he is in, is shown by him changing his name from Baluta to Joel, just so he won’t be a victim of racism. The fact that Baluta fled from Liberia to a country where he has all these opportunities, that U.S.A provides, makes him not take anything for granted, and I think that Skye Brannon took Tiffany into the story on purpose because she is the exact opposite of Baluta, a rich, white, lady. â€Å"†This has got to be fixed.†She looked at Baluta for confirmation. Baluta nodded, but saw nothing wrong. The cabinet was of beautiful hardwood.†[4] This quote helps to characterize both Baluta and Tiffany. The Setting The story is built up around three environments; the first one is in America, where Baluta lives with his brother and the sister in law. They live very poorly, with cold water in the shower and a car in bad condition, which they don’t have enough money to fix. â€Å"When he was several numbers away, he took his foot off the gas. He hoped he could glide to a stop in front of the correct house, otherwise, the Swiss Chevy would let out a loud squeal when he hit the brake.†[5] This quote shows that they have to take a lot of alternative methods in use, to make it through the day, like saving money on the car. The next environment is even poorer, we hear about his life in Libya. â€Å"When they would get back to their hut, a square in the shanty-town quilt shadowed by a mountain, Alonso would always tell Grandma Awa that Baluta had caught some fish.†[6] Even though Baluta lives in the lower economic class in the U.S, it’s still far better than what he would have obtained in Libya. The last environment is at Tiffany’s house, where Baluta has a job to do. She is a rich woman with a big house, big lawn, and apparently also big signs of prejudices against African people. â€Å"When he got out of the car, he noticed a frightened look on her face and that she clutched a phone in her hand†.[7]In this quote it is easy to see that, because she belongs to the upper-class, she feels that poorer people might only be here to steal. This is important because it proves the point of one of the story’s theme, racism.
Saturday, January 4, 2020
Similarities between Eveline and Hills like White...
Similarities between â€Å"Eveline†and â€Å"Hills like White Elephants†In both â€Å"Eveline†by James Joyce and â€Å"Hills like White Elephants†by Ernest Hemmingway, the characters are forced to make important life changing decisions. This is just one of the many similarities between stories. One thing that was obvious to me while reading each of these short stories was the presence of a dominant male antagonist in each story; The father in â€Å"Eveline†and the American in â€Å"Hills like White Elephants.†These two characters have many of the same traits and motives. Another thing these two stories have in common is the how the setting of each story affects the storyline directly. The authors portray these, along with many other concerts, in great†¦show more content†¦The pregnancy or baby can be seen as the â€Å"elephant†in the room. This couple is trying to decide whether or not to get an abortion. The antagoni st in this short story is the male the main character (Jig) is taking to at a bar in a train station. In the story this male character is simply referred to as the American. The American does many things that make us believe he is mainly the decision maker in their relationship. He is in charge of their luggage as well as the destination of their travels. This implies a sense of control and dominance. The American is very supportive saying, â€Å"If you don’t want to you don’t have to. I wouldn’t have you do it if you didn’t want to†(227). Despite the support he shows, throughout the story the reader can see that the decision of the women depends greatly on the American’s feelings and views. The settings of these two short stories have a lot of impact of the characters and the plot. The setting of â€Å"Hills like White Elephants†is at a bar in a train station. This helps to highlight the fact that the relationship between the American man and the girl is at a crossroads. This crossroad is due to the severity of the dilemma they are faced with. The couple must choose a path to take and deal with the consequences of that choice. In this time period abortions were rarely heard of. Because of the lack of knowledge of abortions in this time period, the decision becomes much harder for the couple to make. Jig is afraid of what
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