478 Week Five Overall Reflection

This week I took a bit of a risk and implemented a new form of assessment that I

had not tried before. I created a lesson for a philosophical chairs discussion in order to

assess my students learning for the Industrial Revolution unit. The philosophical chairs

discussion requires my students to prepare evidence and take an agree or disagree

position on the statement- the Industrial Revolution had a positive effect on society. The

classroom was split into two different sections, the agree and disagree side. I think this

form of assessment was a new, unique way for my students to convey their learning

and understanding of the impact of the Industrial Revolution, using evidence they have

learned throughout the unit. It was a bit of a risk to take since I was not sure how my

students would handle given this opportunity, but I think it was well worth the risk. My

students did a great job at preparing and participating in the discussion, and it is

something that I would want to continue to implement in the future.

Also this week, I introduced a new unit on imperialism, which has been a difficult

subject to enter. The imperialism unit focuses on the European superiority and racism

that developed during this time period, and has my students come face to face with

difficult and uncomfortable topics. I made sure to tell my students that they would need

to handle this subject with maturity and tolerance. As an educator, I want to create

relevancy for my students between history and modern day, so I want to create

connections between issues today and imperialism of the past. This focus helps me

develop in the area of TPE 1 engaging and supporting all students in learning, such as

connecting subject matter to their interests and real life context.