All Classes, Tuesday, 1/19

In all classes, we spent some time discussing the NWEA results. I shared the national norm data chart and we reviewed how these scores are calculated and what they mean. Since data analysis is one of our math standards, I thought this would be a good "teachable moment."
NWEA results on Friday were strange -- many students gained or lost a lot of points, which is unusual. At 7th and 8th grade, we look for an increase of about two or three points for 1/2 a year. We had most students scores change by more than this --and many of them went down. I don't really think any students have been un-learning so there is clearly something else going on. We talked about the factors, in addition to how much math a student knows, that might influence the score. Our thoughts include:
luck -- some questions, even at the same grade level, will be easier or more difficult for any given student to answer correctly. However, this should average out when looking at the whole group.
physical factors -- students who are tired, hungry, or feeling bad won't do very well
emotional factors -- students who are thinking about something (good or bad) that has nothing to do with math are distracted and won't do well
motivation -- which influences how much concentration and focus a student will have. Some students eliminate two of four answers and then guess, others will keep working on it.
day of the week -- most students agreed that Friday is not their best day for this activity.
for the algebra class -- they might be getting a lot of 8th grade level questions and, since we've been focusing on higher level math, they are rusty on these skills and didn't do so well.

Before the final NWEA in spring -- we'll chat again and make sure as many of these factors as possible will be working in our favor!!

We also updated our folders and paid special attention to the results of our recent basic skills check. I've asked each student to THINK ABOUT which one or two areas they'd be willing to work on to improve and which one or two areas they'd be willing to help others improve on. I'll collect and collate this information tomorrow and set up some study buddies. I'll also offer bonus points for those who take this activity seriously and make improvements.

In ALGEBRA CLASS, students also need to complete their REVIEW ASSIGNMENT ON MEASUREMENT (handout) and, if they didn't complete it already, FINISH THE REVIEW ASSIGNMENT ON SCIENTIFIC NOTATION, which we talked about today (and reviewed 8 answers).