Action Research Reflection

Action Research Reflection

My mini action research question was: How can I create more meaningful assessments in my visual arts classroom?  As I began my research on this topic, I soon realized that there are so many variations of assessment and I really had my work cut out for me!  The first change that I made in my classroom was to provide my students with more formative assessment - I had been doing this beforehand, however, once I learned more about formative assessments and how to use them effectively in my classroom, I began utilizing them more often.

Some examples of formative assessments that I have begun using throughout my research are: exit slips, table/group worksheets, partner questions, group discussions, fist-to-five, among others.  With the use of formative assessments, I am able to gain important information about my students in a rather short amount of time.  I have started using a worksheet with my fifth grades students to complete in their table groups during our color theory unit.  I introduce and review a lot of material in this unit and I was searching for a way to help students through this learning process.  I use the worksheet to get students thinking and talking about the material with their peers, without the pressure of answering questions out loud in front of the entire class.  I purposefully added questions that force students to really think back on the material discussed the previous day, and ensure to them that if they cannot answer all of the questions, that’s okay.  I am able to see what material students are struggling with by looking at the questions that they are unable to answer.  I have found it very beneficial to use formative assessments with my students so that I can learn where they are at: what they still need help with and what they know well, in a short amount of time (not to mention I don’t have to add another grade to the grade book!).  

Summative assessment is also an important aspect of the art grading process and I spent a lot of my time researching various ways in which to do this in my art classroom.  One way I attempted to make my assessments more meaningful to my students was simply to explain the grading rubric to them and allow them time to ask questions.  There are times that I forgot to do this step and if students had had at least one rubric explained to them prior, they understood it better.  On the other hand, if they did not have a rubric explained to them prior, they didn’t understand it as well therefore it didn’t mean much to them.  Based on a student survey I gave to one of my fifth grade classes, 85% of the class found it helpful to hear about the grading rubric ahead of time; 10% of the students didn’t mind either way, and 5% of students did not respond.  

Data collection was a struggle for me during this research, so this is an area that I would definitely like to improve on in the future.  I plan on continuing this research topic into the beginning of the 2014-15 school year and I would like to continue to collect data with all of my middle school classes (grades 5-8).  One way in which I hope to collect data from my classes is to get their input on what type(s) of summative assessment they prefer (percentage, total points, letter grade, checklist, rubric).   I will need to decide what other data I will collect throughout a more extensive research on this topic as well.  Another aspect of this research that I would like to explore more deeply is the importance of formative assessments - I did not conduct much research on this topic of assessment, however I feel that it is a very important type of assessment to use in my classroom, so I would love to learn more about specific formative assessments in the art room.

Although I feel that I learned a great deal about creating more meaningful assessments for my students, I have decided that I will continue with this topic for the upcoming year.  I have been doing a lot of reading on this topic and have learned much more since the completion of this mini action research and I am looking forward to taking time this summer to conduct additional research on this topic and create some surveys for the kids to get their input.  

Community Art

I have been working on a very exciting collaborative project with Matt Weyers, a sixth grade teacher at BMS.  Sixth grade students have been very busy creating sculptures for Byron businesses.  Students chose an area business and called them to see if they would be willing to display a hand-made sculpture for approximately two weeks.  They were very nervous but excited to contact businesses and start getting the okay to start planning and building their sculptures.

Students began their planning process with a pencil sketch of their sculpture.  They then had to decide what materials they would like to use to create their 3D sculptures.  Materials used included: wood, wire, chicken wire, paper mache, clay, cardboard, paper, paint, and so much more!  We all learned a lot while going through this process and the end products show how hard these kids worked to complete their sculptures for our Byron businesses!  

Two students work on their clay sculpture for the Bear's Den.

These ladies are working on their toothbrush and toothpaste sculpture for Byron Dental Group.

This group of sculptors are busy preparing their mailbox for the Byron Post Office.

These gentleman are preparing sculptures for Gamez & More and Ace Hardware.

Students created "Spot" the dalmatian for the Byron Fire Department.

Here is the whole group with all of their fabulous sculptures!!

Making Changes in the Classroom

Apply a strategy you picked up from our f2f collaboration time - From Tates's 20 Strategies

Brainstorming and Discussion - I always allow time for students to brainstorm their ideas and often require students create a sketch of their work, whether it’s 2D or 3D.  What I have started to incorporate more into my teaching is student discussions about the concepts they are learning.  Recently I have implemented this into my fifth grade classroom; students were instructed to get with a partner and show each other their one-point perspective drawings.  Each student was then to point out where the horizon line, vanishing point and orthogonal lines.  They were also instructed to find evidence of areas that their partner used a ruler in their drawing.  The last question I asked students to discuss with their partner was why it is important for us to learn about perspective drawing, what does it help us do?

The conversations that students were having during this time were fantastic!  After their partner discussions I brought them back together in a large group to review what they had just talked about.  I noticed a large increase in student participation during our large group discussion after they had been given time to review the information with a partner.  I will definitely be using this brain-based teaching strategy for more assignments and classes.

7 Principles to Inspire Success

1.	Believe in yourself. Always stay true to what makes you unique and trust your gut. See your differences as strengths rather than handicaps. And, instead of comparing yourself to others…be inspired by them!
2.	Work hard. Pure and simple. Ideas aren't worth anything unless you put them to work. You have to be responsible, dependable, disciplined and never stop learning or growing.
3.	Take risks. It's O.K. to be afraid but you just have to plunge in anyway. This isn’t easy, especially when it feels like the tide is against you, but it’s just necessary to take risks in order to stay fresh and relevant. You will make mistakes but your efforts will also make a difference. Just take a deep breath and step out of that comfort zone!
4.	Keep an open mind. Be willing to adapt and change when you need to. Adjust your sails to catch that wind. Be strong…yet flexible and resilient…like bamboo…and bend rather than break.
5.	Accept your limitation. Be willing to ask for help…and be able to say “no”. There’s no way you can be everything to everybody all the time! Surround yourself with good people and enlist their help when you need it most.
6.	Treat others with respect and kindness. That golden rule never, ever goes out of style.
7.	Never stop dreaming. Your visions can guide you to great things…but you need to be patient and don’t give up on yourself or on an idea that might seem slow in coming. It just might need a little more time to germinate and become strong. I have chosen to include all seven of the "Principles to Inspire Students". I feel that they each bring something very important to my art classroom and I try hard to incorporate each of the listed principles into the lessons that I teach. So many of the principles listed are what I tell many of my students on a daily basis! I love to see them on one comprehensive list!