Surface or Substance?

Some of the content this week came from 'Why use an Eportfolio' http://www.harapnuik.org/?page_id=6063.

This image and the message it gives is all I could think of.

My kids are more than a test score. My kids are more than a test score! I often feel like being forced to teach to the test forces my kids to be surface learners. They gain knowledge and temporary skills that do not transfer to real world life applications. They are unable to actually recall the lesson being given and see how they can use or apply it. It is a cycle of regurgitating information to pass a class or grade level. I wonder how much more of an impact teachers could/would have in the lives of their students if the actual reflection took place.

I am a member of the AVID site team at my campus so I get some freedom to engage students in different methods of learning during my writing classes. We have what is called a Read, Think, Write prompt system but it is limited to a time length due to the class structure. Some of the ideals I read about tough on this and I instantly though of was to adopt it in the class room even more. The reflection diagram was awesome. I actually plan to use it next week during our writing workshop. I am going to have my students reflect on the topic and connect to real world situations before they read whatever is in the box. I am excited to see what they will come up with.

The idea of constant project based learning also came into mind. Students who are involved in the curriculum and are encouraged to learn in a manner that is most beneficial to them seem to do better. With an ePortfolio it looks like a great way to do just that. Students can decide what they want to share and how they want to display their learning. I presume there is always a basic guideline yet autonomy to design is theirs. I am starting to see how this will keep students from simply following the assignment based method of learning to satisfy what the teacher is asking for. I am also seeing how students can determine the data that is being collected and hold teachers accountable to model that which they have done or are willing to do themselves.

A concern is still accessibility for every student. In my community my kids are not one to one with technology and often do not get more than 15 minutes in the morning or afterschool to use the lab or library if they are not currently enrolled in a computer class for the semester. This is cumbersome to a degree because how do you encourage the use of technology and ePortfolios when you know there are students who will be left behind.

All in all students will not become the lifelong learners we want them to become without reflection before implementation. It is a necessary component to the depth of man. Everyone should strive to move beyond the surface and tap into a greater understand than 20 multiple choice questions, 3 passages in 4 hours, or a ranking scale or approaches, meets, masters.