Adventures in Chemistryland

I found this challenge to be very difficult for me. It was about using the interactive whiteboard as an instrument of reflection and a way for students to create/add to an e-portfolio. These are areas in which I struggle. I know I should have my students reflect on their learning, and I should have them create e-portfolios, but I never know quite how to do it. I thought long and hard before I decided how I could use this challenge to help me achieve those goals.

I finally decided to use the results of Challenge 5 for this assignment. I had the students evaluate the self-correcting quizzes on the atom that they had already made. My idea was that they could reflect on what they knew about the atom at that moment in time, and also what they knew about making the self-correcting quizzes. I had each student take everyone else’s quiz, so I also thought they might have found new ideas on other people’s quizzes that would help them improve their own. In addition, since some time had passed since they made the quizzes, they could evaluate what they had learned since they made the quizzes, and see the progress of their learning.

The students’ evaluations ran the gamut from superficial to detailed, and I think, next time I do this, I will have to give them a specific rubric for evaluating their work. However, I do think it was a good idea, and one I will continue to use. Chemistry is a challenging subject, and the students often get discouraged. I think having them periodically stop and think about what they know and how far they’ve come will keep them from feeling they will “never get it” and giving up. All of these assignments can build into a portfolio, showing that growing knowledge.