This week, I read an article titled, “Inquiry into Assessment Strategies: From Kidwatching to Responsive Teaching” by Heidi Mills and Tim O’Keefe. This article offered many strategies regarding using inquiry for assessment; however, I would like to focus this blog on the concept of “kidwatching.” This entire article is based off of the teaching strategies and data collected from the classroom of the author. Therefore, O’Keefe uses the strategy of “kidwatching” in his classroom. O’Keefe practices kidwatching by, “gathering information that reflects his students’ strengths, needs, and interests as readers and writers” (Mills & O’Keefe, 2011, p.3). In other words, he “watches” or observes his students and takes a strong interest into who they are individually (personally and academically) and uses this information to guide him to make decisions for his class like what books the class will read, what strategies he will use to teach certain content, or what activity he will align with a certain book (Mills & O’Keefe, 2011, p.3). However, I am going to put my own spin on the concept of kidwatching in comparison to how it was implemented in this article.
I find this concept of kidwatching to be extremely important for a teacher to practice in any subject, not just reading and English. As the article states, “it is through careful kidwatching over extended periods of time that teachers truly get to know their students” (Mills & O’Keefe, 2011, p.2). I believe that the difference between a good teacher and a great teacher is that the great teacher takes the time to know each student through his or her personal interests, strengths and places of development, and the student’s needs. Of course it is important for a teacher to recognize a student’s strengths, weaknesses, and needs, but I strongly believe that knowing the students’ personal interests is just as important. Focusing on students in middle school as this is my certification area, these students yearn for a purpose and something to relate to. When those students are sitting at a desk for 7 hours a day, 5 days a week, and 180 days a year, they need to know that what they are learning is important and has a purpose. If a teacher can find a way to relate the content to something the student can relate to or even to a real-world example, then the student will recognize that purpose. I recently used the example in one of my courses where if a student is being taught how to multiply percents in a math class, the teacher can relate that content to a specific student’s interest in shopping. Then the next time the student goes shopping with her mom, she will be able to calculate what 50% off $20.00 is for a shirt she wants in front of her mom. Therefore, this student just found a connection between the “boring” content and one of her favorite activities: shopping. Not only did this student just see that what she is learning in school can be applied to her everyday life, but she also just made her mom proud.
Again, I think that giving the students a purpose for what they are learning will come a long way. Kidwatching grants the teacher a great opportunity to determine this information which can guide the teacher to make educational decisions based on this data. In any subject, teachers can note that a certain student wears NHL jerseys every day, one student has horses on her notebook, a group of students are talking about their orchestra concert, two girls are planning a big shopping spree, and so much more. These interests are so important to the students, so why not include them in their learning? By practicing good kidwatching and recognizing these things, the students will then know and understand that what they are learning has a purpose, and they will feel accepted in the classroom.
Reference:
Mills, H., & O’Keefe, T. (2011). Inquiry into assessment strategies: From kidwatching to responsive teaching. Talking Points 22(2), 2-8. retrieved from http://www.ncte.org/library/NCTEFiles/Resources/Journals/TP/0222-may2011/TP0222Inquiry.pdf
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