Standard 2.4 Higher Order Thinking Skills
Candidates model and facilitate the effective use of digital tools and resources to support and enhance higher order thinking skills (e.g., analyze, evaluate, and create); processes (e.g., problem-solving, decision-making); and mental habits of mind (e.g., critical thinking, creative thinking, metacognition, self-regulation, and reflection). (PSC 2.4/ISTE 2d)
Artifacts: Internet Lesson Plan
Reflection:
The artifact that best exemplifies the standard for higher order thinking is the Internet lesson plan that I created with an advanced anatomy and physiology teacher, Ms. Hartley-Lewis at Marietta High School for ITEC 7430. One of our goals as a collaborative team was to take a lesson that we had created and implemented in the past that combined content standards with student technology standards and increase the learning outcome by creating a more authentic lesson. We wanted the students to use digital tools and resources to analyze, evaluate, and create their cell magazines. Students working in differentiated groups of 3-4, were to create/design a magazine or journal that is informative and creative with a focus on the cell, tissues and histology. There was to be a minimum of 5 major informative articles (2 or more pages) and 5 short stories (a page or less). It needed to have: Cover Page, Table of Content, Editorials (letters to and from the editor), Articles, Advertisements, and Graphics. All communication and article sharing was completed in Google Drive and a webquest on Weebly was provided that included instructions for creating this project and resources to use for both research and technology. http://mariettamediacenter.weebly.com/index.html
This project demonstrates mastery of higher order thinking skills both in its research and creation components. Students are provided various links to science based research databases and websites that they are to peruse for information that will help them write the content to include in their magazine entries. They are to evaluate and analyze the information they have found to create their articles. Students in this class have completed research projects before so, modeling how to complete an assignment like this was briefly touched on in the first class meeting. Facilitation for research was available both in the classroom and in the library.
The creation of this magazine/journal was a collaborative effort of the students in each group. They were given various software resources and tutorials to help with this process. The students were allowed to choose the resources that they felt best matched their skills and needs. In the Weebly there is a page that lists different options and the students were also encouraged to use other programs if they meet the rubric criteria.
As stated before this lesson is one that Ms. Hartley-Lewis and I have completed before (this is our 3rd year), each time we notice different items in our reflection that we would like to change for next year. Last year our goal was to create a more authentic lesson. I feel like we meet this goal and that the learning improved. One thing that we both noticed and would like to work on is the dynamics of student group collaboration. While we did allow the students to anonymously grade each other with a rubric, we found that many students felt that their peers did not pull their weight in completing the assignment. We are looking forward to adding a brief lesson on how groups work together for next year’s implementation.
The creation of this artifact had a direct impact on student learning. The impact was assessed in the final product grades the students received. The magazine/journals that the students created contained thoughtful in-depth, information on cells and the creativity was phenomenal.
The artifact that best exemplifies the standard for higher order thinking is the Internet lesson plan that I created with an advanced anatomy and physiology teacher, Ms. Hartley-Lewis at Marietta High School for ITEC 7430. One of our goals as a collaborative team was to take a lesson that we had created and implemented in the past that combined content standards with student technology standards and increase the learning outcome by creating a more authentic lesson. We wanted the students to use digital tools and resources to analyze, evaluate, and create their cell magazines. Students working in differentiated groups of 3-4, were to create/design a magazine or journal that is informative and creative with a focus on the cell, tissues and histology. There was to be a minimum of 5 major informative articles (2 or more pages) and 5 short stories (a page or less). It needed to have: Cover Page, Table of Content, Editorials (letters to and from the editor), Articles, Advertisements, and Graphics. All communication and article sharing was completed in Google Drive and a webquest on Weebly was provided that included instructions for creating this project and resources to use for both research and technology. http://mariettamediacenter.weebly.com/index.html
This project demonstrates mastery of higher order thinking skills both in its research and creation components. Students are provided various links to science based research databases and websites that they are to peruse for information that will help them write the content to include in their magazine entries. They are to evaluate and analyze the information they have found to create their articles. Students in this class have completed research projects before so, modeling how to complete an assignment like this was briefly touched on in the first class meeting. Facilitation for research was available both in the classroom and in the library.
The creation of this magazine/journal was a collaborative effort of the students in each group. They were given various software resources and tutorials to help with this process. The students were allowed to choose the resources that they felt best matched their skills and needs. In the Weebly there is a page that lists different options and the students were also encouraged to use other programs if they meet the rubric criteria.
As stated before this lesson is one that Ms. Hartley-Lewis and I have completed before (this is our 3rd year), each time we notice different items in our reflection that we would like to change for next year. Last year our goal was to create a more authentic lesson. I feel like we meet this goal and that the learning improved. One thing that we both noticed and would like to work on is the dynamics of student group collaboration. While we did allow the students to anonymously grade each other with a rubric, we found that many students felt that their peers did not pull their weight in completing the assignment. We are looking forward to adding a brief lesson on how groups work together for next year’s implementation.
The creation of this artifact had a direct impact on student learning. The impact was assessed in the final product grades the students received. The magazine/journals that the students created contained thoughtful in-depth, information on cells and the creativity was phenomenal.