Building Language into Lessons and Assessments
In chapter nine, “Building Language into Lessons and Assessments”, Zwiers mentions some ways in which we can build thinking and language into the way we design our lessons and ultimately assess our students. The topic of assessment is of great importance and I believe it to be one of the most difficult aspects I will face as a teacher. It seems at present that there is a movement towards changing assessment strategies from the more conventional test methods to allowing the students more options for which to present their knowledge. I agree that we need to allow the students options from which to present their knowledge; however, I also feel that tests benefit some students. Therefore I feel that we as future teachers must find the balance between how students are graded at present and at the same time combine new strategies to help properly assess students who don’t perform well in test/exam situations.
Another important issue which I think needs to be addressed is the importance of clarifying exactly what we as teachers expect from our students. We must provide our students with clearly laid out instructions, as well as examples (when possible) of the project or work expected. I can recall many times during my high school days where I was left somewhat confused as to what exactly was expected of me by the teacher. I want to make sure that my students don’t have the same negative experiences with unclear expectations as I had.