EDUC 533 - Best Practices Research

One of the best practices that I came across in my search was from Teaching Today (http://www.glencoe.com/sec/teachingtoday/subject/meeting_ms_standards.phtml). It mentioned a strategy where the focus is on the student (student centered learning) and how the students should self-monitor themselves in their learning throughout any given day. By assessing themselves frequently, it allows the students to be more conscious of what they are taking in and what they still need to digest. I have a real life example for this type of learning where one of the science teachers that I work with currently does this with her students at least once a day. She uses smiley faces to determine students' feelings towards how they feel about the lesson that day. If a student feels confident about the material then he/she would draw a happy smiley face in a planner. If a student feels like he/she understood a lot of what was going on that day, but didn't grasp the entire picture, then the student would draw a smiley face that was neutral. Lastly, if the student felt like he/she was lost, then the student would draw a sad face. Overall, I believe by checking in with the students throughout the period is a great way to gauge where they are at, and more importantly have them check in and be honest with themselves.