A The lesson I taught explored how technology, and warfare generally had changed

during the First World War. As a way of applying this new knowledge I wanted
students to apply how that technological change might affect perceptions of war.
The first half of the assignment students were asked to analyze a poem from the
Napoleonic era, only looking at key themes. Students then shared out their
thoughts. It was expected that students either responded to the questions, or were
engaged in the conversation so that if they did not have the prior knowledge to
answer the question they could gain it from their fellow students. This was followed
by lectures and films on the First World War and the changes that took place. At the
end of the lecture students looked at a second poem written during the war by
Wilfred Owen. There is a very stark difference between the two poems with one
describing the glories of war, and the other describing it in very negative terms.
Students were asked to identify the change and state what they thought was the
most important factor in causing the change. Students who exceeded expectations
would answer the third question which asked them to predict the idea of
appeasement during the build-up to the Second World War.
The standard students were working towards was standard 2: The key concepts of
continuity and change, cause and effect, complexity, unity and diversity over time
A student who is proficient on the assignment would have answered the first two
questions at the end of the class and supported their answer with evidence. A
student who exceeded expectations would have also answered the third answer
with evidence. A student who did not meet the objectives would have either failed
to answer the first two questions, or did not support their answer with evidence.
Exceeded Expectations

Met Expectations

Miranda
James
Tyson
Triniti
Amy

Michael
Kiki
Evan
Grant
Lena
Kayla
Anna
Sophia
Kaleb
Kierra
Claire

Did not meet

expectations
Nate
Khoyier
John

The key difference between students that did not meet expectations and those who
did is that their answers who vaguer then I would have liked. I asked in my question
that I wanted a specific example and they spoke generally. The main difference
between those who met expectations and those who exceeded them was the level
of detail and depth to their answers. Overall it is clear from the student responses
that most students understood the learning target and the content that was being
covered.

Exceeded Expectations

Met Expectations

These students may have

benefitted from a
question that asked them
to question the sources.
Perhaps to look at the
authors of the works and
see if that is affecting the
content of the poems.
Students may also have
benefited from a question
that asked them to
consider other
perspectives, such as
what a German poet
might have thought of
the war. It is important to
not just give these
students busy work.

These students would

have benefitted for more
clear instructions of what
was expected in their
answers. Many of the
students in this category
answered the question
but did not fully explain
it. Therefore, if there was
more scaffolding for the
activity these students
may have done better.
For instance, if I had
support your answer with
two pieces of evidence
these students would
have had a clearer idea of
what the expectations
were.

Did not meet

expectations
Knowing these students
many of them are very
bright, but shy away from
doing busy work.
Therefore, these students
may have needed a
greater amount of
accountability for the
assignment. Perhaps if
the assignment was used
to build towards a unit
project. These students
also would have
benefitted from the
scaffolding given to those
students who met
expectations.