I chose professional context redesign because throughout my journey as a teacher, I have always been reflecting on areas of improvement. Through this week's learning, I have discovered areas where I can do better in the next academic year. I particularly resonate with what Shepard, L mentions in the article "The role of assessment in a learning culture" that: “the importance of being able to ask the right questions at the right time, anticipate conceptual pitfalls, and have a repertoire of tasks that will help students progress, which requires deep subject matter knowledge” (Shepard, L.2000). During my initial years of teaching, I focused on what students needed to learn from me and how they could acquire the knowledge, but I overlooked a crucial aspect of education—how to think and what to think. How can I guide students to ask questions and attempt to solve problems on their own, rather than me constantly leading the instruction? How can my classroom assessments prompt students to reflect on their own areas of weakness, rather than just telling me where they need improvement? Unleashing students' subjective agency and fostering deeper levels of thinking are what I pursue now and in the future. So, in class assessments, I would have students check each other's work. Firstly, through the process of debate and discussion, students deepen their understanding of the knowledge. Secondly, for those students who may be sensitive about their mistakes, this approach allows us to take their emotions into consideration, as they may prefer not to have their errors noticed by the teacher. Lastly, it also provides the teacher with more time to assist students who genuinely need help.
In the article "Inside the black box: raising standards through classroom assessment", it mentions: "to begin at the beginning, the choice of tasks for classroom work and homework is important. Tasks have to be justified in terms of the learning aims that they serve, and they can work well only if opportunities for pupils to communicate their evolving understanding are built into the planning" (Black P., & Wiliam, D. 1998). In the past academic year, I spent a significant amount of time and effort making meticulous revisions to math lesson plans, teaching materials, in-class workbooks, and homework. As I mentioned in the professional context redesign, activities must help students grasp the knowledge, and the teacher's assessment must effectively measure students' learning outcomes. Additionally, classroom exercises and homework must be closely connected to the classroom content. Only in this way can students find meaning in doing exercises and completing homework, rather than considering them as busy work. Furthermore, it is through assessing students' completion of tasks and adjusting teaching strategies accordingly that the true significance of assessment is revealed.
References:
Black P., & Wiliam, D. (1998, October). Inside the black box: raising standards through classroom assessment. Phi Delta Kappan, 80(2), 139-148.
Shepard, L. (2000). The role of assessment in a learning culture. Educational Researcher, 29(7), 4-14.