Reflection #1

NEUROPLASTICITY

• "Research suggests although each student has individual learning preferences, all students learn best when taught in a variety of modalities. The best modalities to use will vary from concept to concept. Teachers should differentiate based on content, not learning style" (Whitman & Kelleher, 2016, location 392).
• "As a student learns, some neurons are triggered and others are not. The pathways of those that are used get strengthened, other neural connections are formed, and pathways that are not used get weakened or pruned away—'use it or lose it'" (Whitman & Kelleher, 2016, location 828).

How this Applies to my Job

• "We do not give pop quizzes that can impact the grade. Research says they do not help learning; research also says that formative assessments do" (Whitman & Kelleher, 2016, location 585).
• "Students need to use knowledge soon after encountering it to help them store it in their long-term memory" (Whitman & Kelleher, 2016, location 590).
• "Class periods should be designed with an understanding that what students will recall most is what takes place in the first part of the class and what students will recall second most will take place in the closing minutes of class. Students should be given more frequent, formative, low-stakes assessments of learning" (Whitman & Kelleher, 2016, location 651).

What my Project Taught me

• There are a lot of variables that need to be considered when requesting new technology.
• It helps to have throughly researched the benefit of any new purchase in order to get approved.

My Project and my Job

• I am excited to see how well my requested software meets our needs and the needs of the students.
• I see the beginnings of a research project about RTI software and its effectiveness in assessing ELs

Apps that I Will Use Again

• Haiku Deck
• Padlet
• Venngage
• Hopefully, I will learn many others...

What I Need to Change in my Classroom

• • No pop quizzes • Do not start class by going over homework. • Do not end a class by teaching all the way to the bell. • Do not encourage students to review for a test by reading notes or a textbook. • Understand that students do not learn in just one style. • Do not label students. • Understand that kids do not have a set ability. • Avoid lecturing. • Do not assess just with multiple choice tests. Adapted from (Whitman & Kelleher, 2016, location 632).

Reference

• Whitman, G., & Kelleher, I. (2016). Neuroteach: Brain science and the future of education [Kindle iPad]. Retrieved from http://www.amazon.com