Spearfishing, Culture, Reflection: New Video Story

A new story in The Ways series from Wisconsin Media Lab will help educators address statutory requirements to educate about Native American culture and sovereignity and assist with the goal of helping students understand themselves and others through exploring culture, identity, and tradition.

Engaging for grades 6-12, the video, “Spearfishing: A Living History,” examines this Ojibwe practice through the eyes of Jason Bisonette as he teaches his son to provide for his family.

Taking a fish from the lake “means I can be a contributing member of the community,” Bisonette explains in the piece. “We’ve fished for elders, we’ve fished for single mothers. We always try to give as much as we can away. There’s a lot of honor in that.”

The lake, sky, trees, and tools used for fishing come alive in the beautiful videography of the piece. “Even though our techniques have maybe changed a little bit ... that fish coming off a long winter is something that all the Ojibwe people that came before us since the creation of the world tasted...” Bisonette says.

Teaching guides are available. There is also an interactive online Native lands map activity. The entire resource is iPad compatible.

The Wisconsin Media Lab, the PK-12 arm of the Wisconsin Educational Communications Board, creates and curates resources to engage students on a wide range of subjects. The Ways is currently among 23 social studies offerings, both Wisconsin-focused and from sources elsewhere.

** This story was submitted by a DPI-ConnectEd subscriber! We are looking for your news of exciting programs, promising practices, initiatives that could benefit from publicity, or your questions about working with Wisconsin students. E-mail just a sentence or two to benson.gardner@dpi.wi.gov, with “Story Idea” in the subject line. 

Free Formative Assessment eLearning
On-Demand Webinar series

We are pleased to offer you a new free resource in Knowledge Academy, the NWEA eLearning platform. Introduction to Formative Assessment is a three-part on-demand webinar series with formative assessment expert Dylan Wiliam: 

Understanding Formative Assessment (45 min)

Formative Assessment Foundations (50 min)

How to Sustain the Development of Formative Assessment (48 min)

The webinars offer insight into classroom best practices that support teachers and students in reaching for challenging new standards. Our companion discussion guides help teams and educators unpack and apply formative assessment techniques in daily instruction.

Keeping informed.......................

Student Poverty Rate Continues to Climb

The percentage of Wisconsin public school students eligible for subsidized school meals increased for the current school year to 43.3 percent, continuing an upward climb that spans the decade.

What Students Think About Assessment  - Interesting |   Research Study Have you ever wondered what your students think – and know – about assessment? We wondered too. That’s why in our latest study of perceptions on assessment, we asked them – as well as teachers and district administrators.  What we learned is captured in the new report, Make Assessment Matter: Students and Educators Want Tests that Support Learning. The study is part of a Northwest Evaluation Association™ (NWEA™) multi-year public opinion research project to better understand how educators, parents, and students think about and use assessments. For the first time in any formal study, students were asked to share their thoughts on the merits of assessment. Their responses are making news across the country. Full report: Download Make Assessment Matter Infographic: Review the study data at a glance  In the media:  Read C.M. Rubin’s column in Huffington Post I found the information interesting and confirming.  As district administrators we do need to provide more training and support to our wonderful teachers on making assessment practices reasonable and efficient. To students we need to insure that we are using the data and that they understand the results and what they can do to continue to learn and grow.  Your thoughts........................a penny for your thoughts!  Kathy

FRIDAY, MAY 23 is the last day to assess your students

The PALS spring assessment window is open until  May 23. The spring assessment window in Wisconsin is April 28 through May 23. You may enter spring scores into the PALS Online System any time between April 28 and June 6. All students must be assessed during the spring window, regardless of their fall scores.  Updating records before spring score entry Remember to add any new students to your Class List. These students need to be assessed, even if they weren't assessed in the fall. It's okay to remove students who have moved away. Their data will be preserved.  Take note of any IEP updates that might require changes to students' accommodations and/or disability status in the PALS Online System. Make sure these changes are made before entering scores. Once scores have been entered, the disability field for that student is locked until the next screening window. You have everything you need for assessment in your Form A Teacher Set -- the same set you used in the fall.  Spring Assessment  Window First Grade: April 28 - May 23 4K and 5K: April 28 - May 23 Last day to enter scores: June 6 Quick Links: PALSWisconsin.info PALS Online Score Entry & Reporting System Online Courses Toll-Free Hotline: 888-924-7257 Email: support@palshelp.com

PALS spring reports During the PALS spring assessment window, the PALS Online Score Entry and Reporting System will only accept complete score entry; no required tasks may be omitted. Required tasks are outlined in each Administration & Scoring Guide and will be prompted during score entry into the Online System.   The PALS Online System offers several reports that are available only during the spring, which can be viewed on the History tab once logged into your PALS Online account. Notice also the various history and growth reports at the classroom level.   While all of your PALS data is permanently stored and available to you in future years through the Data Downloads, it's a good idea to print out any other reports in the spring that you may want to view in future years for data analysis, as some of them are only visible during the spring window of the school year in which the data was collected. This is also true for PALS Quick Check reports.

Just what is meant by Text Complexity in the CCSS

Text Complexity is one of the keys in understanding whether or not your the text you are working with  is "rigorous" enough for your learners, for your grade level common assessment work, etc.  Certainly the level of thinking or Depth of Knowledge is also key. DOK Question Stems  

Depth of Knowledge - Level 3 Questions 
• How is ____ related to ____?
• What conclusions can you draw _____?
• How would you adapt____to create a
different____?
• How would you test____?
• Can you predict the outcome if____?
• What is the best answer? Why?
• What conclusion can be drawn from
these three texts?
• What is your interpretation of this text?
Support your rationale.
• How would you describe the sequence
of____?
• What facts would you select to
support____?
• Can you elaborate on the reason____?
• What would happen if___?
• Can you formulate a theory for___?
• How would you test___?
• Can you elaborate on the reason___?
Depth of Knowledge - Level 4 Questions 
• Write a thesis, drawing conclusions from
multiple sources.
• Design and conduct an experiment.
Gather information to develop
alternative explanations for the results of
an experiment.
• Write a research paper on a topic.
• Apply information from one text to
another text to develop a persuasive
argument.
• What information can you gather to
support your idea about___?
• DOK 4 would most likely be the writing o