Catlin Tucker

NOVEMBER 13, 2020

As I’ve said in previous blog posts, teaching in a concurrent classroom is the most challenging teaching assignment I can imagine. What questions or suggestions do they have? Teachers can create a simple Google Form to collect quick formative assessment data and create an avenue for students to ask questions or request help.

Evaluation 546

Evaluation Feedback Writing Assignments 546

Catlin Tucker

OCTOBER 29, 2020

Too often, a teacher’s questions in a video conferencing session are met with long silences. ” First, it is important to remember that participating in a real-time discussion is scary and feels like a risk for students who are shy, anxious, or need more time to process the questions. Facilitating Online Discussions.

Discussions 546

Discussions Participation Questions Assignments 546

Ask a Tech Teacher

JULY 9, 2024

I didn’t think PDF annotation grading tools would work, not even a little but, so when my colleague, George, introduced them in his online history class, I watched amazed at how seamlessly George could highlight key points, strike through errors, and add personalized feedback on student assignments. x Interested?

Assignments 166

Assignments Grades Feedback Evaluation 166

Edsurge

JULY 21, 2022

—From Brian Plummer, adjunct history professor at Vanguard University Dear Brian, You have posed such vital questions. Your pursuit of this kind of assignment reminds me of an interview I did for the Teaching in Higher Ed podcast with Ken Bain , author of "What the Best College Teachers Do."

Assignments 196

Assignments Grades History Ethics 196

Catlin Tucker

SEPTEMBER 18, 2023

It is a process where students evaluate their work, reflecting on what they’ve learned, how well they’ve understood complex concepts, how much progress they’ve made toward mastering key skills, and where they may need to invest time and energy to improve their concept knowledge and skill set.

Evaluation 428

Evaluation Assignments Failure Discussions 428

eSchool News

APRIL 25, 2025

The Gems evaluate the uploaded information and offer a review of the district’s current curriculum. Students also use Gemini for real-time academic help, such as asking follow-up questions and details about a particular topic. Chicago Public Schools (CPS) is using NotebookLM and Gemini for curriculum review and district guidance.

Education 196

Education Quizzes Coaching Special Education 196

Edsurge

MARCH 15, 2024

This fall, after a restless night overthinking an assignment for my upcoming class and drinking three cups of not-strong-enough coffee, I added the final touch on my latest assignment for students in my World History II class. I like to think of this shift as a transition from content-based to issues-based curriculum.

Assignments 205

Assignments Essay History Social Studies 205

Ask a Tech Teacher

JULY 6, 2022

It’s always a challenge to evaluate teachers. But Christian Miraglia, Education Consultant and part of the Ask a Tech Teacher crew, suggests asking students to evaluate the teacher. Here’s how that would work: A Teacher’s Best Evaluator. So I was prompted to think about teacher evaluations and their effectiveness.

Evaluation 155

Evaluation Feedback Curriculum Assignments 155

Catlin Tucker

JULY 25, 2016

The texts are paired with Think Questions and writing prompts that I can use or adapt. Instead of marching lockstep through information as a class, I will assign a video for homework and use class time for practice. StudySync has freed me from the limitations of our school book room.

Online Learning 420

Online Learning Technology Blended Learning English 420

Catlin Tucker

DECEMBER 22, 2021

Understanding what teachers find cognitively engaging in their work can help them 1) evaluate where they are investing their time and energy resources, 2) reflect on whether those tasks are energizing or draining, and 3) make adjustments in their approach to workflows that they find mentally draining. What did they do well?

Blended Learning 535

Blended Learning Teachers Learning Grades 535

eSchool News

OCTOBER 13, 2023

Key points: ChatGPT is here to stay, and it’s wise to now consider it a part of learning In fact, every assignment moving forward must be graded with ChatGPT in mind See related article: How educators can navigate AI-driven plagiarism You may have heard of ChatGPT. How do we evaluate their knowledge? The answer: we ask them.

Essay 338

Essay Plagiarism Assignments Learning 338

eSchool News

SEPTEMBER 28, 2023

Many teachers already are rethinking assessments and assignments to shift the question from how students will use AI to cheat, to how students can learn to use AI responsibly. Assignments that ask students to produce answers using AI can encourage students to critically consider the information provided.

Plagiarism 332

Plagiarism Education Assignments Essay 332

Catlin Tucker

JUNE 18, 2023

However, I often hear the question, “Can I use the flipped classroom if I don’t assign homework?” Some teachers do not assign homework. Despite these potential pitfalls, flipped instruction retains its value even when videos are not assigned for homework. This encourages brainstorming and prediction.

Lecturing 433

Lecturing Knowledge Assignments Writing 433

eSchool News

APRIL 23, 2025

Every test score, attendance log, learning app, or digital assignment generates data. Do they know how to question a graph they see on social media? They can explore questions like, What trends do we see in this data? Our classrooms are data-rich, but are we data-literate? Teachers use data dashboards to track student progress.

Ethics 278

Ethics Education Culture Social Studies 278

Catlin Tucker

JUNE 14, 2021

The 5Es instructional model is composed of the following stages: 1) Engage, 2) Explore, 3) Explain, 4) Elaborate, and 5) Evaluate. Engage : Develop a Question to Drive Your Inquiry Cycle. What is challenging about their teaching assignments? Evaluate: Assess the Effectiveness. What are they curious about or wondering?

Teachers 427

Teachers Blended Learning Learning Evaluation 427

eSchool News

JUNE 28, 2024

It takes only seconds to plug a writing prompt into a generative AI tool and receive a completed assignment. The bottom line: When students are confident in their writing skills, they will be less tempted to run directly to AI to generate a writing assignment.

Writing 329

Writing Essay Plagiarism Assignments 329

Catlin Tucker

MAY 23, 2017

If a teacher uses percentages, then the student may not even understand why a particular assignment impacted their overall grade in the way it did. Ironically, students are rarely asked to evaluate their work and reflect on what is says about their learning. That’s a problem. Grades shouldn’t be a surprise.

Grades 420

Grades Assignments Skills English 420

Catlin Tucker

APRIL 11, 2021

I fear schools will revert to what is comfortable and what aligns with existing mental models instead of questioning the status quo, taking inventory of the lessons learned this year, and paving a new path forward. All students in a class should complete the same assignments. Yet, I worry that won’t happen.

Mental Models 541

Mental Models Education Hybrid Learning Blended Learning 541

Faculty Focus

OCTOBER 11, 2022

It has been estimated that college students across the globe devote in excess of a billion hours per year to “disposable” assignments (Wiley, 2016). Moving from essential to “renewable” assignments means that the students see the tasks as sufficiently meaningful to be kept and even passed on to others. What a waste!

Assignments 131

Assignments Motivation Science Study 131

eSchool News

DECEMBER 23, 2024

As a digital learning team, we were assigned the responsibility of exploring the full spectrum of AI in education. Our AI guiding principles started this process of building an ethical AI mindset, which provided pathways to critically question AI in our system.

Ethics 327

Ethics Education Intelligence Culture 327

eSchool News

NOVEMBER 8, 2024

Media literacy empowers students to critically evaluate sources, assess the intent behind content, and engage with diverse perspectives. Numerous applications and platforms can facilitate engaged learning and critical thinking , helping students consume information and analyze, evaluate, and create content responsibly.

Skills 310

Skills Ethics Critical Thinking Evaluation 310

Catlin Tucker

OCTOBER 3, 2016

Then each student shared their ongoing assessment document with his/her parents as a “Comment only” document, so parents could follow their child’s progress and post questions. Students are able to post comments and questions in response to our feedback and this often leads to a conversation about how to improve.

Grades 420

Grades Feedback English Evaluation 420

eSchool News

OCTOBER 10, 2023

However, as students leverage generative AI for assignments and “Cheat detectors” prove ineffective in detecting AI-generated output, school administrators must take proactive measures to safeguard the authenticity of student assignments and promote ethical use. Certainly, none of us want to create additional digital inequities.

Academic Integrity 309

Academic Integrity Ethics Assignments Evaluation 309

Catlin Tucker

APRIL 10, 2018

Too often students become overwhelmed by all of the work teachers assign and lose sight of what they would like to achieve. My teaching team places an equal emphasis on evaluating the development of soft skills because our program is project-based. The ongoing assessment has a section for soft skills and a section for academic skills.

Students 420

Students Grades Achievement Evaluation 420

Catlin Tucker

DECEMBER 4, 2014

Extend PBL (project based learning) assignments beyond the classroom so group mates can connect and work asynchronously. Connect lab groups outside of the classroom, so they can discuss the results of labs/experiments, ask questions and get support. Facilitate peer feedback. Practice an oral presentation and get feedback.

Exams 325

Exams Feedback Assignments English 325

Catlin Tucker

SEPTEMBER 20, 2021

The variety of products they create causes many teachers to question how they should assess this work since it takes many forms. Instead of assigning all students a single subject or issue to focus on for their argument, you can provide a list of topics and encourage students to select one of interest.

Blended Learning 521

Blended Learning Essay Feedback Writing 521

eSchool News

SEPTEMBER 5, 2018

Following are five valuable tips for choosing best-in-class learning content that meets the need of teachers and aligns with the criteria many IT leaders and administrators look for when evaluating digital learning resources for schools: 1. Is the content mapped to curriculum standards?

Questions 220

Questions Teachers Elementary School Elementary School 220

eSchool News

JANUARY 16, 2025

Teachers should ensure students are using AI as a thought partner and for instant feedback, not simply to obtain answers to questions. Guiding questions for an AI-infused classroom include: How do we inspire students to value authentic expression in an era where AI often does the writing for them? is a requirement for AI literacy.

Ethics 337

Ethics Feedback Evaluation Assignments 337

eSchool News

APRIL 2, 2024

As a digital learning team, we were assigned the responsibility of exploring the full spectrum of AI in education. Our AI guiding principles started this process of building an ethical AI mindset, which provided pathways to critically question AI in our system.

Ethics 334

Ethics Education Intelligence Culture 334

Faculty Focus

JUNE 1, 2025

Each assignment has 1-10 points, with a total of 100 points. In my more recent students evaluations, students say they are less stressed, they are more motivated, and they understand assignment expectations at the beginning of the semester. What a good question.

Grades 68

Grades Evaluation Assignments Instructors 68

Catlin Tucker

NOVEMBER 6, 2023

Focus on Process-based Feedback Process feedback focuses on evaluating and improving the steps, strategies, or techniques that students employ during the learning process. The first question Hattie poses is deceptively simple yet profoundly significant: Where am I going? The second question is, How am I going there?

Feedback 363

Feedback Blended Learning Metacognitive Skills Failure 363

Catlin Tucker

APRIL 22, 2024

Unlike summative assessment, which typically occurs at the end of a learning cycle to evaluate students’ overall progress toward the unit’s desired results, formative assessment is ongoing and designed to inform instruction, indicate areas where additional differentiation is needed, and guide learning. Check for understanding.

Feedback 431

Feedback Quizzes Coaching Discussions 431

Ask a Tech Teacher

MAY 22, 2020

The first evaluates the big picture. I won’t even open the app unless it passes these three questions: Is it free or a small fee? Most of these perform multiple functions such as assigning homework, planning lessons, collecting work, and grading it. What’s your secret for evaluating new webtools, apps, or programs?

Evaluation 158

Evaluation Assignments Testing Critical Thinking 158

Catlin Tucker

MARCH 11, 2019

Classically, the transfer of information has occurred in class via lecture and practice has been assigned for homework. Begin with a collaborative offline activity designed to pique student interest or get them generating questions about a topic. First, teachers need to create context. Second, flip and engage.

Multiple Choice Questions 420

Multiple Choice Questions Lecturing Blended Learning Evaluation 420

eSchool News

FEBRUARY 15, 2024

Paymo provides a centralized workspace where teacher teams clarify roles within their group, assign tasks to individuals, and track progress over time. Here’s how it works: a user enters a question they want the group to consider. Conceptboard’s template is just as straightforward as the evaluation model.

Teachers 333

Teachers Feedback Evaluation Intelligence 333

eSchool News

OCTOBER 3, 2018

Students need to locate reliable sources, evaluate the effectiveness of said reliable sources to answer a teacher- or student-driven research question, integrate the research from various sources in a way that makes sense for the audience, and properly cite the sources they’ve used while maintaining a specific format.

English 279

English Evaluation Students Assignments 279

Faculty Focus

NOVEMBER 9, 2023

A first-year seminar provides a perfect structure for this assignment, but it could be used in a variety of courses. In this first-year seminar course students get the usual instruction on learning strategies, but more importantly they complete an assignment in the seminar called a Strategy Project Assignment.

Exams 103

Exams Assignments Study Evaluation 103