Peer Feedback in the Classroom - Participants are responsible for obtaining their own copy of this month's text prior to the beginning of the book study. Click Peer Feedback in the Classroom to view the book.
In Peer Feedback in the Classroom, National Board Certified Teacher Starr Sackstein explores the powerful role peer feedback can play in learning and teaching. Peer feedback gives students control over their learning, increases their engagement and self-awareness as learners, and frees up the teacher to provide targeted support where it's needed. Drawing from the author's successful classroom practices, this compelling book will help you gain a deeper understanding of what meaningful feedback looks like and how it can be used as a tool for learning, establish a respectful, student-led learning environment that supports risk taking and honest sharing, teach students to be adept peer strategists who can pinpoint areas of needed growth and move forward with specific strategies for improvement, develop cooperative student expert groups to help sustain effective peer feedback throughout the year and use technology to enhance collaboration, streamline the learning and revision process, and strengthen students' digital citizenship skills.
Course Basics: The Learning Management System, Schoology, is used to house discussion board conversations and group materials. Book Club is facilitated by Nicole Nowlin, Sixth-grade teacher, Lee's Summit School District and MSTA member.
Each Friday morning, discussion board questions are posted in the Schoology group. These discussion board questions provide an opportunity for participants to connect, share, and reflect on that week's reading. Participants are expected to allot time each week to visit the discussion board often to encourage and learn from each other. Additionally, participants must comment on the posts of two other participants.
Virtual live meetings occur two Thursday nights within the month at 7:00 pm (CST). These virtual meetings use either Google Meet or Zoom to discuss the learning and application of the reading to our classrooms and students.
Attendance for BTAP participants ONLY: BTAP participants must fully participate in all discussion board sessions in Schoology (typically consists of 3 discussion board prompts, initial response and two comments on peer responses. In addition, BTAP participants are expected to fully participate in the virtual live Thursday meetings (posting in the chat box, participating in breakout sessions, and in the main room session). Recognizing there might be a time when a BTAP participant must miss a Thursday night live meeting an alternate reflection assignment will be assigned for the participant to complete. However, BTAP participants are allowed to miss only one (1) Thursday Virtual Live Meeting. Missing more than one virtual meeting (even with completing the alternate assignment) will result in non-completion of the course for BTAP purposes. BTAP Participants must notify Dr. Layton at dlayton@msta.org if missing a Thursday Virtual Live meeting.
PD Certification: At the end of the month, participation hours will be calculated and participants will be emailed a certificate of completion. PD certificates will be emailed to all participants.