Learner Agency
The successful online educator:
Includes students in creating goals and opportunities to self-assess progress in the course.
Gives students voice and choice in how they learn.
Standards:NSQOT: D2, F7, G8 OTS: 2.7
D2
At the beginning of the semester I spoke with parents by phone and in a zoom session, first about my plan for working through the Spanish course then later how to help students that are struggling. For the first assignment students were asked to make a recording of them telling me in English a little about them, their likes and anything they wanted to share. This gave me insight into how I could incorporate student interests into lessons and how I could meet student goals.
I also attended our weekly team teacher meetings for suggestions of alternate activities and assessment. What I found that worked the best for my students was to give them autonomy over their learning. One simple activity and also an alternate for assignments was to ask students to make recordings in Spanish telling me at least three Spanish words they learned in the lesson and something they were going to work on. Students are encouraged to use drawings and objects in their recordings. For example, the lesson on colors could be the student holding their favorite toy and saying the colors in Spanish. For students having difficulty with the media tool I made a screencast and shared in announcements as well as in our zoom meetings.
F7
My main source for reaching students is by making screencasts for content as well as ‘how to’s’ that appeal to learners from various backgrounds. Videos include visuals and audio young learners can identify with including a variety of colors, shapes, images and sound. I have recently begun working with powtoons to create learning tools through animation with voice overs, movement and music. I would also like to become familiar with more web tools that appeal to young learners.
G8
Our Spanish Wednesday zoom sessions are the main course of action for language learning. This is where both individual and group practice takes place as students become aware, making distinctions in sound and meaning. For self assessment we use the thumbs up/down and hand sideways gestures with Spanish cue words to indicate how students are doing. For example, I ask how everyone is doing, checking to see if they understand and ready to move on, or if they need more practice and at a slower pace. I also began using what I call the tacomoji’s in my slides as a student gauge for their comfort level though I would like input on how to use more visuals and graphic organizers, including tokens in our virtual meetings.
Reflection: Explain what you have done in your professional experience to address these indicators and include reasoning for why you chose this evidence.
Where are you now in reaching proficiency in these indicators? Explain your reasoning.
Approaching / Meeting / Exceeding
I am meeting mastery for the Learners Agency indicators. I believe one of my strengths is being able to create content that is engaging and supports student learning. In regard to struggling students, I am confident in communicating and adapting instruction to student needs and interests as well as reaching out to families and school support. In the second indicator I am meeting proficiency by using technology to create lessons that support diverse learners and to strengthen their talents and skills while providing opportunity for reflection and self-assessment through graphic organizers and video projects.
