Day 83

Student contribution by Michelle C

I am doing my checklist every time it’s due. I almost always have turned it on time. I make sure I know it and if I don’t I try to go back and redo it. I participate in every activity even if I’m not feeling well. I help my group with little bits of information and then we piece it together. I understand some of the stuff we do, but it’s hard to recall all of it. I really feel like I have learned in this class. Even on tests, I do not do as bad as I thought I would.

Suggestions

During class I feel like it would benefit me to explain things a simpler way and not complex. I need to be able to recall things which is quite difficult when there is a lot of stuff. Also if we could break stuff down to a really simple way and learn how to do that for the test.

I wish we did more stimulus based questions to help us on the AP test. I also feel like if the videos for the check lists had captioning I would know it better since I can remember what I read.

Next Steps

I had a student last year who was transcribing the videos so I could put subtitles on them. It was a tedious process and she was amazing. She wanted to help her classmates and future students who she would never meet. Then, it was announced that the course was changing and I wouldn’t know what content would be used for next year. I told her to stop because it was likely I would have to redo the videos. Sorry for the side story, I was just remembering this has come up before.

I wish I could break historical concepts into smaller steps. Truth is, I already have. I boiled the French Revolution into a two-minute video. I’m working on it. I have an idea for tomorrow that will help condense the industrial revolution into something that is –hopefully– meaningful to them. I’ll write more about that tomorrow.

As for her reflection. She is highlighting who she is as a person and a learner.

• She is a social learner.
• She is connected to her classmates.
• She is attentive to the work in class.
• She is timely.
• She is reflective on what she does and does not know.
• She is persistence. She goes back to concepts she doesn’t know.

I’m always happier after readingtheir reflection. This blog has served as a forum for me to know my students not only as learners, but as people. As for next steps, I need to keep doing what I’m doing: Listen, reflection, and change.