Reflecting on What I Know - Chapter 10

How do you know that students understand a concept?

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When teaching a new concept to students, it is important that students really understand and know what they are learning about. Oftentimes, students simply want to memorize what is being taught just to pass the next test. This rote memorization should definitely not be a goal for teachers. Teachers should want to deepen the understanding of their students in order to ensure complete learning. One way that teachers can help to ensure that students truly understand a concept is through the use of graphic organizers. Graphic organizers have so many purposes, as evidenced by the various types of graphic organizers. Some graphic organizers, like the circular type, can show a cycle, like photosynthesis. When students see all the steps of photosynthesis in order and all of the steps in relation to one another, it will help them deepen their understanding of the concept. Timelines are also an example of how a graphic organizer can help bring about understanding. Timelines showcase key events and the order in which they occurred. Graphic organizers are a wonderful tool in helping to determine if students understand a concept.

How can you depict student misconceptions of key information?

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When students do not fully understand a concept, they probably have misconceptions about key information. In this situation, like the one above, graphic organizers are a great solution to this problem. When students create their own graphic organizers, they can show teachers where their misconceptions lie. For example, a simple KWL chart can help a student show a teacher exactly what they already know, what they would like to know, and eventually what they learned. This is the most obviously helpful graphic organizer in determining student misconceptions.

How can students capture and transfer brainstorming ideas into written thoughts?

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It is often difficult for students to put the thoughts that are floating around in their brain into written words on paper. I have noticed this firsthand during practicum teaching of a second grade class. An extremely beneficial solution to this dilemma are, yet again, graphic organizers. Graphic organizers provide visual organization for students to quickly jot down their thoughts or ideas in phrases or key words. When writing students can look back at their graphic organizers and reference them in preparing their written documents. These graphic organizers can essentially act in the same manner as an outline would for a paper or written project.