Driving Question:
In what ways is my co-teacher using technology and digital tools to amplify their student engagement, how does that compare to my use of technology and where are my opportunities for improvement?
Where am I going?
I would like to view another teacher's class and observe how they teach and engage their students. After viewing their class I would like to compare the things we are doing differently to engage our students and deliver course content.
If I find something that I believe I could work into my course or change about my own classroom management, I will do so!
HOW CAN i CLOSE THE GAP BETWEEN WHERE i AM AND WHERE i WANT TO BE?
​Over the course of this semester, I will be observing other teachers to get a gauge of how our course engagement compares and contrasts. After observing, I will be planning how I can adjust my class to increase engagement in a natural and fluid way. To measure my engagement I will be plotting how many times I have students active in course discussions, answering questions, and making/doing something that we will then reflect on. If I can increase engagement in my classroom and still complete all academic content I will know I have succeeded.
​What actions will you take to promote success for your historically underserved students?
Having more engaging lessons effectively increases inclusivity as long as the engagement is accessible to all students. Underserved students are commonly unheard, of and not given the opportunity to share and be involved. In my quest to make my class more engaging it will also become more accessible. As always, I will strive to use inclusive language, use universal design, eliminate unnecessary complexity, and use think-pair-share strategies and multiple exposures.
Reflection:
After observing and comparing my class with my co-teacher, there are a few changes I would like to implement into my lessons. I am confident that using quick polls in the Zoom feature will be helpful, quick, and an easy check for understanding! It also shows me who is engaged in class and lets me know if I need to reach out to some students to make sure they are in class. I love that the teacher asked for students who want to read at the beginning of class to volunteer so he knew to call on later. This saves time and makes sure he is allowing students who wish to be heard to shine and those who wish to be observers, to simply listen and absorb. This teacher uses Sway instead of slides, which is really fun, but I think I will stick with google slides and it integrates well with the rest of my platforms used (Schoology, EdPuzzle, etc.)