Action Research Project from a former university student

1. What is the problem?

Kindergarten students are have difficulty recognizing word families and rhyming words in text.

2. What is the rational for the project?

Instead of using an overdone version of phonics that will create many syllables to a word with few syllables, students can use rhyming games to recognize word families and rhyming words. Though this skill is not necessarily part of the WESTEST, it has been identified in the school's Strategic Plan.

3. What strategy will be used to address the problem?

The researcher wishes to implement a variety of rhyming games through group and independent practice. Some of the games include "Odd Word Out" and "Go Rhyme Fish". The researcher plans to select games that best match to their student's abilities and learning styles.

4. What is the question?

How can I use a variety of rhyming games to help my students recognize rhyme and word families in text?         

Will the rhyming strategies change student attitudes about reading instruction?

5. What evidence is presented that the strategy will work?

Using rhyme and word families are shown to have helped students decode new or difficult words. Games like "Odd Word Out" help students recognize patterns in literature. Studies have shown that many of the rhyming games mentioned do actually aid in helping students recognize rhymes and spelling patterns.

6. How will data be collected?

The researcher will use a checklist that assesses each student's progress while observing the students play the games. There will be a pre-test and a post-test to evaluate the impact the games have had. 

The students are to play the rhyming games for 20 minutes daily. Group read aloud and study of Dr. Seuss's books that emphasize rhyme will also occur daily. This group reading will be observed, and participation shall be noted. The researcher will use these observations to adjust the focus of their project as needed.

Action Research by Teachers

1. What is the title of the project?

Making Meaning Through Written Response

2. What is the Question? (two research questions in this case)

How do reading journals guide instruction to improve student learning?

How do readers with varying abilities respond to literature?

3. What strategy is being used to address?

 Noting similarities and differences between students and note taking were the two main strategies being used in this research project. The students were being assessed with the journals by practicing a note taking strategy and answering the prompts, which were questions..

4. What evidence is presented that the strategy will work?

Similarities and differences in high level readers and low level readers will provide data about what high level readers are achieving and how. Studies show that reading journals show evidence of student comprehension (versus multiple choice) and construction of meaning. 

Teacher journals were used by teachers performing the research as a scheduled reflective time to better discuss their findings with each other. In these teacher journals, the instructors could write down the similarities and differences in the reading levels as they observed them.

5. How will data be collected to determine if the strategy will work?

Data was collected and separated into categories,  such as summarizing the text, opinion, real life connections, etc. Summarizing the text was discouraged, but the wider variety of categories addressed in the journals was considered a good indicator of comprehension. 

The students were also separated into 3 categories from high to low levels of reading. This allowed teachers to compare students in the groups, so the differences between learning styles and how students responded to literature became apparent. 

Changing around subtle techniques like teacher prompts and student prompts caused teachers to better examine the effect that reading journals have on student learning. 

6. How was the data analyzed?

The data was analyzed by noting that average and lower level reading students were more likely to summarize the text and not justify their answers. The higher level reading students used opinion and real life connections along with a variety of other ideas in their reading journal. Higher level reading students were also more comfortable with creating their own prompts. 

7. What were the results?

Learning is guided by using reading journals to link real world scenarios to the written text. Higher level reading students used what researchers called "higher thinking skills". Teachers wondered if they could instruct lower lever reading students to use these methods and create these wide varieties of structures in their reading journals. 

8. How do the results inform teacher practice?

The teachers from this research project wish to implement reading journals every year, now that there is evidence that it does guide instruction. It also informs instructors about how their students react to literature and on what reading level. This instructional tool is possible to implement in many classrooms and this project shows that the data can be used to get to know your students and spot comprehension difficulties. 

My Webquest Process Page

Here is the link to my Process page that was downloaded onto a Google Doc.


Here is the link to my Process Page directly to my Webquest.

Double Entry Journal #17: Venn Diagram of Assessment

Related Art Webquests and Anchor Videos

To tell the truth, I did not find any particular pottery webquest in which students make pottery. I did find some webquests with interesting introductions I can reference though.
 (Link to a related webquest here)
Here is a pottery webquest about different cultures:
(Link to another pottery webquest here)
I find it sad that some webquests treat art as if it is not relevant to students. And it seems a shame to have to write so many papers about art instead of experiencing it hands on, which would make the material much more memorable.


Here are my anchor videos. They are also posted on my webquest. Though this video has examples of African Pottery, and not Indian, this has some examples of pattern. This video also shows how different cultures use clay to make amazing things, from decorative jugs to whole houses.

Schunior, A. (Producer). (2009).Crafts & culture: pottery. [Web Video]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgvmNzMQ_JI

This is a video I found of a class making pottery using coils of clay. They are using air-dry clay much like the class I am doing this pottery lesson with, hence there is no need to use a kiln.

Bradshaw, M. (Producer). (2010).Fun with coil pots. wee little arts class.. [Web Video]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NDN6kQLvGpw

Double Entry Journal #15: Assessment and PBL

This article is referenced for this journal entry: (link right here)
1. Give an example of an authentic form of assessment the students engaged in a PBL performed well on?

 Eighth graders at a racially diverse, inner city school in Boston that had worked with a PBL had the second highest scores in the district on the Standard 9 Open Ended Reading Assessment (Thomas 2000).

2. How does project based learning promote intrinsic motivation?

Learning and motivation is sustained when students choose topics in which they are genuinely interested in and address real life topics. Students get the chance to explore problems that occur outside the small sphere of the classroom. Motivation can also be boosted by showing an audience of peers or adults student understanding of the project, though this is not necessarily intrinsic motivation.

3. What do students who experience PBL do better than student who receive traditional direct instruction?

Students who receive PBL instruction are able to apply strategies from one problem to the next to find a solution. The students are able to engage in critical thinking and create their own goals. Traditional direct instruction does not connect knowledge as well to real problems or situations, nor does it teach student cooperation and collaboration. PBLs also teach students about technology and communication through web design and interactive media like wikis and animated powerpoints.

4. How does PBL align with John Dewey's philosophy of education?

John Dewey wished for students to not go though mundane readings of the textbook, but to train for work that was current. He believes that teaching from just the text does not address student's individual educational needs. PBL actively engages students in what they are learning and provides skills for the current era. PBL also develops students' individual skills and areas for improvement.

5. Why do our assessment practices need to change if we are going to prepare students for the 21st century?

Assessment practices need to change because assessments are designed to gain certificates, not judge real world readiness. The questions are made to be easy to create and grade, because there is a right answer and wrong answers. Assessments are designed to save money and time by allowing them to be graded by machines and not people who are critiquing answers and working overtime. The current way of assessment has nothing to do with the students. (Though there are some exceptions)

Reference:
Thomas, J. W. 2000. A review of research on PBL. http://www.
bobpearlman.org/BestPractices/PBL Research.pdf (accessed Febru-
ary 28, 2009).

Not really a struggling student, but a student with a difference

Since my classmates are focusing on struggling students, I will blog about a student with a difference.
The PBL activity I am doing now is with a fourth grade art class. One of my students is blind. My host teacher does a lot of 2-dimensional artwork that requires lesson adjustment so the blind student can create something similar to everyone else. I am not sure if she likes or dislikes this.

This student works with an Aide while in the art room, and she and the host teacher collaborate to make paper projects with string instead of lines, and fabric pictures instead of drawn and shaded pictures.

By some lucky happenstance, my PBL involves kinesthetic artwork when I had no idea she was going to be in the class I was teaching (I see a variety of classes, Preschool-4th)
I am doing a pottery lesson, and by another stroke of luck I had brought both real examples that the students could pass around and touch, and visual examples.

She was completely elated about the project. Smiling, she explained to me all of her plans about what she was going to make, the handles were going to be wing-shaped like a bird, there were going to be human-like designs on the side of her pot, etc. She was so excited, explaining to me all the interesting things she was going to design. Normally, she and the Aide talk quietly in the corner while they do projects, so they seemed a bit isolated from the rest of the class. I was very happy for her that she was able to do the same project at the same time everyone else was. I think she liked that.