Zeros don’t make much sense, do they? It certainly comes down to philosophy – many teachers give zeros based on “principle” and justify it by reminding us how kids have to learn to complete assignments on time if they’re going to be successful adults. I think the more critical point is knowing whether or not our students understand what it is we want them to know. Our learning objectives should drive assessment. Connect assignments to the objectives and most students will find their completion relevant and worthwhile.

Regarding your RTI PLC – I guess when you’re told what to do and who to do it with, the “professional” is kinda removed from “PLC.”

I agree that curriculum development is more successful and meaningful when conducted collaboratively. The consideration of universal design adds some complexity to unit development, and having teachers with varied backgrounds and expertise can immediately improve the quality of the product.

FYI – the MLTI has set the purpose of the high school teacher MacBooks in the context of PLCs. The goal is to engage high school teachers in statewide, Web-based PLCs through Studywiz and NoteShare. I am hopeful that the MLTI will continue to expand…and reach grade 6 in the not-too-distant future.

Regarding the check-off list, it is only meant to track my observations and conversations during class sessions. Not having something checked off on that list doesn’t mean that you haven’t demonstrated achievement – it likely means that I haven’t gotten around to checking off the box!

The remaining objective that I’d like you to reflect upon is that related to what we are now examining – accessible content media. Your reviews of the articles were excellent and I gleaned lots of insight about what you have learned, but information about how you will be applying that to your unit is the final frontier of the course!

Cynthia