point of view and multiple choice questions

I know writers of multiple choice questions cover themselves by including verbiage such as: which choice best identifies...

Even so, I wonder how aligned that kind of question is to the spirit of a lot of good literature.

I just finished reading Mockingjay. It's intense, ambiguous in some ways, very rich material for discussing what one would do in one of the many difficult, no-win situations in the story.

So I started thinking about Suzanne Collins's point of view and purpose-- how she might express these if she were talking about her work, and how a multiple choice question writer for a major high-stakes standardized test would write a question... and how the multiple choice question writer would decide to write the correct answer, the one that best identifies the author's purpose (in one question) and point of view (in another).

And why it is considered valuable for a student to "correctly" choose the question-writer's best answer and not be allowed to compose a response that states and explains what the student sees as the author's positions.  Of course that kind of stuff can't be graded by a machine and it allows for too much difference of opinion.

I'm kind of rambling here, but the thought that started this is:

I think lots of good fiction writers write to tell a great story and also to get their readers to think about ways of being and thinking vicariously. A reader's readiness ( on innumerable levels) will affect a reader's responses.

Our education system, our assessment "system" is obsessed with what isn't worth measuring (or isn't measurable), but is immeasurably worth pondering and discussing.

I wonder what Suzanne Collins would say about this, about why she wrote these three powerful books.
a) to make readers distrust absolute authority
b) to make readers shun violence as a solution
c) to make lots of money and increase her fame
d) to make readers value the lives they have and live them as fully as possible

Why our students don't learn what we think we teach

one of the most important videos I've ever seen.

why our students don't learn what we think we teach

entry table

Joy, in reading older posts you write of placing table by door for hand-outs and such. Thank you for recording that seemingly inconsequential item. Tomorrow I shall sit in my room and stare at the entry to determine how I might best develop it for procedures that work and for saving the precious commodity of time. I know a wall juts into the room, but I need to find a way. I liked having a table for them to sign out, write passes and such, but never thought of the entry routine.

I need to earn a Smart board.

First week with students

I am wondering what we will do and if we will try to do some of the same lessons. Last year Francis did the mandala and they were really nice. I've done the paragraph about coming back, a bag o'm thing with speech, and last year jumped in to a novel. What to try this year? In addition, I am fortunate to have 5 advanced classes. I need to turn up the heat the challenge from day 1.

Since I have only 1 ave. I can give away some of my Rev it Up books to Tricia. I need vocab for the adv.

web sites and quotes for moodling

This entry is simply a repository of sites, ideas and or quotes for convenient reference.

wordle
prezi
glogster
diigo
survey monkey  ms lowell campbellls' annees
open office

testing scribefire

I learned about this on Twitter from following David Warlick.
http://davidwarlick.com/2cents/

master learner

not just a trendy phrase

but an attitude
an accomplishment
and an aspiration

how I learn and why I'll talk more about it in 2010-11

just had a realization as I read

Medium does matter. And the textbook is generally a medium that inspires neither motivation nor imagination.

Increase Student Engagement by Getting Rid of Textbooks

In this new school year, I decide that I will consistently pursue reference to my learning online as often as possible, coupled with discussion opps for how and what students learn (& wish to learn) online.

Last year I remember thinking quickly, should I talk about my own learning? I usually decided No, since it was "off topic."

But I think learning is always "on topic" so I am going to follow my gut and use my own examples to spark students' interest and action.