Monthly Archives: January 2016

Sketching, Reflecting, and Asking Questions

This week I taught a lesson centered around the visual art journal again. This second opportunity to teach a similar lesson provided several important opportunities: a chance for my students to deepen their knowledge and understanding of this lesson, the ability to make adjustments to my execution of the lesson plan last week, and the chance to engage in formative assessment. For my formative assessment I looked through each student’s sketches and wrote comments for myself based on the lesson objectives: making a personal connection to art and sketching is different than making a good copy. I then took my comments and wrote questions to each student on a sticky note rather than the statements. Writing the questions on a sticky note ensures that the artwork is not wrecked. By writing questions to the students this gives them something to think about to improve without making them feel insecure. Statements could make the students feel criticized whereas the questions bring the students into a conversation with me about their work. I can then use those questions to discuss their work with them. Next week the students will be sketching once again and checking for simple, specific criteria. They will then choose one or more of their sketches to upload to Fresh Grade. They will then self-reflect on their sketches thinking about the question on the sticky note as well as a few questions that we will brainstorm together. The art journals in combination with the use of technology will allow students to look back on their journey in improving on sketching and making personal connections to a picture. Already I can see improvements in some of the student’s sketches. I hope to use some of the student’s pictures who demonstrate a strong understanding of sketching to help other students understand how to sketch.

Inquiry Proposal

Bibliography

Morning Sketches

Yesterday I introduced a new concept to my students through the morning activity. We opened the morning with a visual journaling art activity. In the activity, I showed the students a picture from a book, Owl Moon, and discussed with the students that they would be making personal connections to the picture. The instructions were given on our carpet area which allowed us to have a more intimate conversation about the activity. I asked the students to tell me some of their ideas about what sketching might entail. They were encouraged to not use erasers as this was not supposed to result in a perfect, final product. Finally, we discussed the learning goals for the activity, making personal connections to a picture and sketching.

When I sent the student’s back to their desks to begin working, there seemed to still be some confusion about the activity. I reworded the objection from “make personal connections” to “What does this picture make you think of?” With prompting from my SA I wrote this question up on the board as a reminder. I decided to wait a minute before giving further instructions about the activity as I noted that 90% of the students seemed to have begun to work. Quickly after, the students got down to work. The room was completely silent and the students were engaged in their sketches. I took this opportunity to walk around the room and ask students to explain their sketches to me. I also helped guide a few students when they got stuck. The students were open to sharing their sketches to me and I heard many great stories and connections to the picture.

In my lesson plan, I had decided that I wanted to play classical music. In the past when I have played music, I have started the music as soon as the instructions have been given. In this instance, I turned the music on after the students were settled and working. This time, the atmosphere did not change in the sense that students continued to be focused on their work. I discussed with my SA how the music provided an even safer environment for the students to share their sketches with me.

Once the students understood the activity, they far exceeded my expectations in making connections and creating sketches. One aspect of the activity that the students were challenged by was the notion that they would not be able to go back to their sketches and “finish” them. My SA and I discussed how they are used to creating a rough draft that leads to a final product. I explained to the students that we would keep their sketches in their art journals but they would not be taking them home or be given time to complete them. This was a great growth opportunity for students as it encouraged them to use their time well but did not force them to have a finished product at the end of the lesson. By placing the sketches in the art journal this will allow students to look back on their sketches and reflect on their progress throughout the year.

My SA and I decided that this lesson was successful and that the students enjoyed the activity. We decided that I would teach this lesson again next week, using a different picture. This will ensure that the learning goals introduced in the lesson will be remembered by the students and become familiar. This activity provides a creative way for them to be creative and get their brains going in the morning. Often morning activities involve writing which can be stressful for some students, particularly my students who need learning support in writing and reading. The students will continue to sketch in their art journals which will create a learning journey in art. For my own learning journey, teaching this lesson again will allow me to make modifications, reflect on how to enhance the assessment aspect, and continue to make personal connections with my students.

Killing the Notion that Assessment Kills Creativity

Does assessment kill creativity? This is the question I am asking myself as I think about how technology can enhance formative assessment. My exploration of this inquiry question has opened up a huge can of worms. We know that assessment is a necessary part of education, but how can we ensure that this assessment is meaningful for our students? How can we encourage creativity in our classrooms? What kind of messages are our assessment goals sending? How can technology help enhance my assessment goals? Does technology kill or promote creativity?

Some of these difficult questions are explored by Ronald Beghetto in “Does Assessment Kill Student Creativity?” Beghetto challenges teachers to consider what the goals of assessment are: outperformance or self-improvement. Beghetto explains that a performance goal structure stresses “avoiding making mistakes, besting others, getting the highest grades, and demonstrating one’s ability in relation to others (p. 257-258).” On the other hand, Beghetto emphasizes that mastery goal assessment focuses on “self-improvement, skill development, creativity, and understanding (p. 258).” When we focus our assessment on helping our students improve and grow as learners we allow them to be creative!

Assessment doesn’t necessarily diminish creativity, rather, students need to perceive that feedback and assessment are useful, meaningful, and provide good feedback. Beghetto tells us: “When assessing students, teachers can protect creativity by recognizing and appreciating creative expression. This doesn’t mean that teachers should throw out standards or provide empty praise for inappropriate ideas. If responses are not appropriate, teachers should provide suggestions on how students might adapt the idea so that it is useful while still preserving the novelty (p. 261).” As teachers we want to allow creativity to flow in a useful, productive manner. If assessment focuses on feedback for students and self-improvement, assessment can be much more conducive to creativity.

As technology grows rapidly, it is important to consider how it can be used as more than just a tool in the classroom. How can we use technology to encourage and strengthen creativity? How can it be used to enhance assessment? If we are trying to promote personalized learning, self-improvement, creativity, and understanding through our assessment we can consider how technology allows our students to document and reflect on their learning. Encouraging students to pursue their creative ideas will often involving using technology to take that idea to the next level. Through technology our students can document their creative process, reflect on that process, and share that process with their teacher. I believe that assessment, technology, and creativity do not have to be mutually exclusive. Instead, through thoughtful inquiry, I think it is possible to encourage creativity through well-thought out assessment and support that creativity and assessment with technology. I look forward to exploring these thoughts throughout my teaching and learning journey!

Beghetto, R. A. (2005). Does Assessment Kill Student Creativity? The Educational Forum, 69:3, 254-263.