RUNNING HEAD: Portfolio Reflection Point 3

Portfolio Reflection: Point 3

Teacher as Designer of Curriculum & Assessment
Catherine Fahey
George Mason University

Portfolio Reflection

As I ventured through the course EDUC 614, I became Teacher as Designer of Curriculum &
Assessment. When I first enter the course, my classroom was a typical first grade classroom that
followed objectives and made goals for students. I believe I was differentiating and assessing to
meet the needs and goals of all students and quickly learned through the technology of videoing
my lessons that I needed to do more. The readings and projects gave me new ideas to think
about and try to improve my teaching and my students experiences. In the following one will
learn how the coursework, related readings, and products in EDUC 614 have led me to think
more deeply about the design of curriculum and assessment in my classroom having learned
lessons based on the outcomes of the course which include:
A. Engage the 21st century skills paradigm to plan and implement effective, culturally
relevant, differentiated instruction for their students (ASTL Outcomes 1, 2, 6) (IB Adv Cert
Domains 1.1, 2.1, 2.3, 3.2).
B. Determine appropriate technologies for instruction and utilize those technologies to
achieve instructional goals and facilitate student learning (ASTL Outcomes 2, 6, 8) (IB Adv
Cert Domains 1.2, 2.1, 3.2, 3.3).
C. Design, create, and implement appropriate assessments that ascertain what students
know, understand, and are able to do related to the curricular standards of their professional
setting (ASTL Outcomes 1, 2, 3, 6) (IB Adv Cert Domains 3.2, 2.1).
D. Analyze assessment data to understand student learning and drive future instruction
(ASTL Outcomes 2, 3, 4) (IB Adv Cert Domains 2.2, 4.2, 4.4).
EDUC 614 gave me the opportunity to engage the 21st century skills paradigm to plan and
implement effective, culturally relevant, differentiated instruction for their students (ASTL
Outcomes 1, 2, 6) (IB Adv Cert Domains 1.1, 2.1, 2.3, 3.2). This was accomplished through
looking at my classroom and my teaching style to analyze how I differentiated instruction. I was
able to learn new teaching strategies to apply in the classroom that expanded where I currently
was. I have always been an advocate for teaching to each students developmental level and
differentiating as needed, but this course gave me new strategies to explore and improve upon.
Not only did I learn more information on how to differentiate but I learned how to make
education more meaningful. It is important to give students a purpose for assignments. A
project is meaningful if it fulfills two criteria. First, students must perceive the work as
personally meaningful, as a task that matters and that they want to do well. Second, a meaningful
project fulfills an educational purpose (Larmer and Mergendoller, p.35). Giving the students
purpose gives them ownership therefore will enjoy what is being taught. To implement this type
of style I practiced the Think-Puzzle-Explore strategy in Ritchhart, R., Church, M., & Morrison,
K. (2011). Making thinking visible: How to promote engagement, understanding, and
independence for all learners. This strategy allowed students to design their learning on our unit
of time. They were able to ask questions and think of ways to answer the questions. I found this
to be an exciting lesson that not only had great end results but gave the students opportunities to
design their learning experience.
In addition to differentiation, I was able to explore assessment in new ways by designing,
creating, and implementing appropriate assessments that ascertain what students know,
understand, and are able to do related to the curricular standards of their professional setting
(ASTL Outcomes 1, 2, 3, 6) (IB Adv Cert Domains 3.2, 2.1). When looking at the objectives
and standards needed to be accomplished in the school system for writing, there are many to
accomplish but it is also subjective to how to grade. I was able to develop an assessment rubric

Portfolio Reflection

that allowed me to look at my students writing in a different way. I was able to assess based on
their skill level instead of against each other. This gave me the opportunity to differentiate my
grading to appropriately fit each student. Differentiation shouldnt end with planning but
should continue as teachers adapt their instruction during lessons( Parsons, Dodman, and
Burrowbridge, p. 38). I had created a great assessment tool that could be used to grade my
students in writing that was a more concrete score that really showed the area of strength and
need. As a result of my better knowledge of how to create and use assessments, I see my
classroom expanding into a new realm of ideas and projects.
Communication in todays world is complex, fast-paced, and conveyed through
sophisticated media. People are bombarded with multimedia messages that they need to be able
to interpret to gain a deeper understanding of the information(Lemke and Coughlin, p.58). It is
our job as educators to help student learn how to fit into the ever-changing world of technology
by providing them with the tools and knowledge. The students we have today are going to have
jobs that have not even been created yet, and we need to guide and instruct them to have the
executive functioning skills and knowledge to be successful. Having taken EDUC 614, I have a
better understanding and appreciation of the development of assessments that meet the needs of
student and to help guide my instruction.

Portfolio Reflection

4
Resources

Dunn, K., & Rakes, G. (2010). Learner-centeredness and teacher efficacy: Predicting teachers
consequence concerns regarding the use of technology in the classroom. Journal of
Technology and Teacher Education, 18(1), 57-83.
Ertmer, P. A., & Ottenbreit-Leftwich, A. T. (2010). Teacher technology change: How knowledge,
confidence, beliefs, and culture intersect. Journal Of Research On Technology In
Education, 42(3), 255-284.
Hockett, J. A., & Doubet, K. J. (2013). Turning on the lights: What pre-assessments can do.
Educational Leadership, 71(4), 50-54.
Lemke, C., & Coughlin, E. (2009). The change agents. Educational Leadership, 67(1), 54-59.
Parsons, S. A., Dodman, S. L., & Cohen Burrowbridge, S. (2013). Broadening the view of
differentiated instruction. Phi Delta Kappan, 95(1), 38-42.
Ritchhart, R., Church, M., & Morrison, K. (2011). Making thinking visible: How to promote
engagement, understanding, and independence for all learners. San Francisco, CA:
Jossey-Bass.
Tomlinson, C. A. (1999). Mapping a route toward differentiated instruction. Educational
Leadership, 57(1), 12-16.