Because of the
rotating nature of my focus class, it was hard to follow individual
students. What I did notice from the
pre/post VTS writings was that more students seemed to be backing up what they
were saying in comparison to the beginning of the semester. I know that Mary continues to VTS with these
students when class fell outside of my rotation, but I am still very impressed
with their overall growth. Offering
evidence for their observations is a great skill that will serve them well in
and outside of the classroom. A number
of students fell in their overall word count.
I feel this may have been due to the closeness/sameness in nature of the
original assignment. Sometimes student
do not like to do the same assignment over again, especially if it’s not for a
grade. Nonetheless, based on their
writing, they seemed to take it seriously.
It turns out that
VTS has not only affected my focus class, but also myself holistically. I speak, write, and listen differently all
from facilitating and studying it this semester. Through it’s simple yet profound questions,
the process has gently presented me with more possibilities to wonder and
explore more deeply. The structure of
VTS creates a container that is safe and inviting for everyone to slow down and
“break-open” art together. I really
enjoy this communal aspect of it. For me,
this is where the true magic of VTS unfolds, and deep learning with our peers
happens. I am incredibly impressed by
VTS, and I will continue to use this method with my students in the future.
Your reflections are insightful and honest. When pre and post assessments are given so close together and, as you wisely pointed out, not for a grade, motivation to outdo previous performance suffers. My research indicates that boys, in particular, need relevance. We could have introduced the assessment by saying that we wanted to see how much they had learned and grown so far in VTS, but that may have prejudiced and skewed the data. What I wanted you to get from this assessment, more than anything, was experience administering it and regardless of the results, you did that. I feel confident you will be able to assess your own students in this way in the future (and possibly even add or change categories based on your experience and in order to make the assessment more meaningful for you.) Glad to read that you've been impacted by VTS. It's changed the way I teach; my only regret is that I didn't discover it years before I did!
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