PEER COACHING REFLECTIONSNancy Toll, Technology Coordinator

Hudson School District

May 2011

MAIN FEATURES OF IMPROVED LESSON

Goals:Students will better understand

locations of countries and cities in SE Asia

Students will have a better understanding of SE Asian culture

Develop a more motivating lessonIntegrate technology into existing

curriculum

WHAT WE DID

Decided wanted more than a typical scavenger hunt

Developed project-based lesson using http://tripline.net (An example at: http://tripline.net/trip/A_trip_to_Asia-32344703454310038854BCE18CB696D3 )

Students worked in groups of 4 to plan a vacation to SE Asia that they had to try and sale to the rest of the class

Students had individual jobs but had to work as a team to pull it all together (leader, tripline master, photographer, music/sounds, narrative, cartographer, budget, air travel, hotel/restaurants)

GREATEST STRENGTHS OF NEW LESSON

Used a real-world problem Incorporated Web 2.0 application Worked on collaboration and teamwork Students became more aware of the

geography of SE Asia and locations in respect to Wisconsin

Students became more aware of real-world costs associated with travel

ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENTS

Could use some examples to model with for students as far as how to present material

Stick to time limits first set Communicate better with parents and

students on how a group project can be graded fairly

Make sure students logs are kept and turned in

Making sure teachers understand how the same material can be covered in many different ways and can still lead to common assessments

WHAT LEARNING HAVE I GAINED AS A COACH?

You don’t have to have all the answers right away.

It’s important that the teacher feels like they are a part of the plan and go with their needs – not your own ideas of how you think it should be.

Make sure teachers understand that timelines need to be flexible when dealing with technology.

Sometimes students don’t have the skills you think they’re going to have coming in.

I have found some great resources to pass on to others.