Table of Contents
Stage One |
. . .KWL Chart |
Stage Two |
. . .Content Map |
. . .Skills Map |
. . .Assessment Map |
Stage Three |
. . .Assessment #1 |
. . .Assessment #2 |
Summary |
Final KWL Chart |
KWL CHART USED FOR ANALYSIS
|
| What I Know | What I Want to Know | What I Learned |
|---|---|---|
| I begin each each course with a PreTest of the content that will be covered during the course | This provides a baseline for each class and assists in customizing course delivery. Each class of students brings their own special needs. | In theory the pretest is a great idea, but in practicality students don’t seem to take them seriously. In many cases they quickly answer questions without much thought just to complete the assessment. |
| The curriculum maps to the industry certification, listing the objectives that are to be covered in each chapter. | Does the student understand the importance of these objectives in successfully attaining the mapped certification? | Using the performance-based assessments did help to increase the validity of the assessments I received. There are still areas that I will continue to revise. |
| Each chapter has a set of lab exercises that apply the objectives to performance-based skills. | Can the student perform the defined skill with accuracy and understanding? | Students did well following the step-by-step lab instructions but could not always explain what they had done or the impact it had on the network. |
| Each section of labs concludes with a small number of lab questions. | Does the student understand why they performed an action, and the impact it had on the network. |
The lab questions were answered in their journals. Although it did help, the benefit was only on an individual student level. I will revise this assessment and incorporate a class wiki. |
| Each new lab builds on the last lab. Failure to follow instructions specifically will lead to flawed outcomes. | Can the student follow instructions? |
As we proceeded farther into the semester lab problems increased more frequently. Most of the problems were results of missing an instruction in an earlier lab. It did present some great learning in troubleshooting but was time consuming. |
| Labs are conducted in teams of two students. | How well can students work together to complete lab assignments. How well can students work together to communicate ideas and critically analyze problems. |
The students had to continually be rotating roles so that the same student wasn’t doing all the actual lab work. Often one student would read the lab manual instructions and the other would perform the actions. Then together they would analyze their work and journal their results. |
| Norm-referenced and criterion-referenced assessments are conducted online at the end of each chapter. | Does the student understand the terminology and content necessary to fulfill the objectives? |
This is where the reliability and validity of assessments becomes so important. Using assessments as tools of direction can assist the student in fulfilling the course objectives. Revising assessments to include higher order thinking skills and using performance-based assessments also greatly improves the student’s outcomes. Extra instruction is needed for those students lacking computer literacy. We have added an optional short-term course we call Computer Literacy 101. It has helped many of our older students returning to college for professional development or retraining. |
| Research papers or projects are used to support content knowledge and soft skills. | How well can the student communicate, present and defend an idea. How do I evaluate growth in this area. |
Soft skills are critical for students to be successful in life. However, they cannot be addressed in only one course. They must be incorporated into each course and become both a course and program outcome. To that end standardized assessments of soft skills are necessary. |