This year I have been going crazy with eDoctrina. For those of you who haven't heard of eDoctrina before, I blogged about it here , but in a nutshell it is a data management system that was locally created in the Buffalo, NY area and I can see it being the next great tool in education.      In the past teachers have been able to get item by item feedback about a test question by using scan forms such as Scantron and we have been able to see end of the year data correlated to the State Standards but that was it.  With eDoctrina the teacher can get feedback about each student individually, each class, each test or quiz question, all linked to the standards. I am a nut for data and helping my students so I am definitely hooked on this program.      Don't get me wrong, this doesn't do the work for you. It still requires a LOT of work upfront on the part of the teacher but once the bulk of the work is put in, it is re...

     Last year I was introduced to a fantastic web-based software known as eDoctrina .       If you're a data junkie like me, this program will fill your life with not only hours but days of enjoyment. Since I teach a New York State Regents-level biology class (The Living Environment) I have analyzed the BOCES statistics about every single question on every single exam but I was looking for a way to analyze the different components of the curriculum and my in class assessments. I am also an avid user of technology in my classroom and I want to be able to help every student in my class be the best they can be in the class...so this is how I got hooked on eDoctrina . They like to call people like me "Super-Users" but really I see myself as a "Heavy-User" it is actually more of an addiction than something I am forced to use. It is important for you to know that my district is supporting eDoctrina but is in no way forcing me to use it. ...

     I started by putting the main topic that we have been studying in class (in this case it was Transport) and  the main categories to get them started. put the main ideas of the concept map on the board Up at the board I placed 6 black expo dry erase markers like these:      I wanted everyone to have the same color so the focus was on the content, not how pretty it looked. My students use the computers almost everyday so I told them that while their computer was starting up  I wanted them to work together and build a "Silent Mind Map" for the unit. They were not allowed to talk.  All of the communication must happen in the writing on the board.  the beginning      Even after they started working online they would look up and still come up to the board and add something, or erase and change something. It was really amazing to see them all work together.      In m...

Charlotte Danielson's 2007 Framework for Teaching  and Index of posts from BallinwithBalling.blogspot.com Domain 1 - Planning and Preparation 1a: Demonstrating Knowledge of Content and Pedagogy (Knowledge of content and the structure of the discipline, Knowledge of prerequisite relationship, Knowledge of content-related pedagogy) BallinwithBiology posts:      Oneonta Biology Listserve 1b: Demonstrating Knowledge of Students (Knowledge of child and adolescent development, Knowledge of the learning process, Knowledge of students’ skills, knowledge, and language proficiency, Knowledge of students’ interests and cultural heritage, Knowledge of students’ special needs) BallinwithBalling posts:       Blood Model       Protein Model made with a baby toy 1c: Setting Instructional Outcomes (Value, sequence, and alignment, Clarity, Balance, Suitability for diverse learners) BallinwithBalling posts:       Kinesthe...

Many of you may know that I am a Biology teacher and in today's society it is a very stressful and demanding job. Constantly (even during vacations and weekends) I am working to improve the entire school experience for my students and to streamline the entire grading, learning, and evaluation part of my job. Very soon I will be evaluated as a teacher with the use of Charlotte Danielson's Framework for Teaching (2007).  The framework places an emphasis on four different domains of teaching... http://www.roe13.k12.il.us/Services/KeriKorn/HND12/Trover/FrameworkTeaching.pdf Even if you are a great teacher, most of the stuff you do isn't always visible in a 40 minute observation especially if you are teaching online or using technology in the classroom. In these blog postings I hope to document all of the different techniques and tricks that I use as a teacher and to help give others ideas that can be implemented in their own classrooms.  We are much better te...