[etni] :נושא [etni] Re: Log vs Test
- From: Kobi Lavy <kobilavy@xxxxxxx>
- To: rlewen@xxxxxxxxx, mckopels@xxxxxxxxx
- Date: Sun, 05 Jun 2011 13:52:00 +0300
I have a big question ( having read all that's being said about log vs exam) I
always felt that preparing students for the lit exam or the log has to be the
exact same thing since they learn the same pieces of lit they have to write the
same amount of writing otherwise how could they be prepared to write it on the
day of the bagrut? We prepae them to success don't we? As far as the administry
is concerned wouldn't it be much problematic if the exam results come back with
low grades? Wouldn't that still be our problem. At least with the log we are
the ones who give the grade.
It seems to me that the same amount of work has to be put in it's only the
final work that is different. Or am I getting this whole thing wrong?
Kobi
Sent from Cellcom email services
Rivka Lewenstein <rlewen@xxxxxxxxx> כתב:
>Dear Ariella,
>
>Thanks for being so candid about your experiences with the log. I was actually
>planning to post about my own experiences with the log this year, which are
>thankfully rather different than yours, but had planned to wait till after our
>inspector came to see the logs in two weeks' time and make sure they passed
>the
>inspection before writing anything. Your letter made me rethink that.
>
>First, I want to clarify that I absolutely don't think that the log is
>suitable
>for every school - as others have written, if strong parental pressure
>regarding
>grades and / or administrative pressure (as you described) exists, that is
>sure
>to cause major problems in implementing the log. Fortunately, neither is a
>problem in my school, which allowed me to choose the log without worry.
>
>I did it with this year's 11th grade - a class of mixed 4-5-pointers. It was
>more a pilot for myself than for them, but to be truthful, it was the perfect
>class to do a pilot run with, since it is not only a small class, but also a
>very motivated one. I did give them a choice between the log and the old D / F
>exams (not being the log and the literature exam, since that was never an
>option
>for me). They all preferred to do the literature log.
>
>
>We ended up spending the entire year - as well as some extra lessons right
>before the Bagrut so we could finish up - on the pieces for the D log, since I
>needed to hand them in this moed (long story which I'm not going into). My
>students worked EXTREMELY hard - I don't think I've ever had a class work
>harder, and produced beautifully. I'm not saying I never had to run after them
>for a piece of work, but not too much. It helps that I did all the work in
>class
>- including post-reading tasks, reflections, etc. - did you? (Because if you
>did, it makes no sense that two students haven't handed anything in yet.) At
>some point, when we were sitting and finishing up a last poem on the day of
>the
>Bagrut, I kid you not, I saw my students comparing themselves to their friends
>in the 3-4-point group who were only taking Module B that day as well as their
>friends in other grades who came in, took a test or two, and went home. There
>was no question of who had worked and was working harder - much harder - and I
>wondered if they regretted their decision to do the log. When I asked them
>that,
>the answer was an emphatic NO. They felt that they had gained so much from all
>the literature we had learned and from all the writing they had done (although
>they could have done without the reflections) - not one of them was sorry that
>she hadn't chosen to take the regular modular exam.
>
>I, too, am very happy that I chose to do the log, even though it is certainly
>plenty of work (so is the exam, of course) - I really felt that teaching the
>literature I enjoyed enriched my students, and the program caused us to dig
>much
>more deeply into each piece than I had ever done in the past. My students'
>written and oral skills (thanks to all the writing tasks and discussions on
>literature) show a marked improvement. Best of all, my students are so PROUD
>of
>what they've accomplished this year, and I am so proud of them. As for grades
>(which definitely is part of what made them happy about their choice to do the
>log), the lowest was 82 (for the weakest student), the highest 95, and almost
>all were over 90. And believe me that they all deserved the marks they got!
>
>
>One last point about saving work over 3 years: I personally collected each
>unit
>in the log after we finished that unit, and kept them in a safe place, so I
>wouldn't have to worry about students losing their work. I highly recommend
>that
>all schools doing the log do the same - get the principal set aside a locked
>closet for this purpose. If your principal is on your side, that shouldn't be
>a
>problem. If not, you will have plenty of other issues, as you noted in your
>letter.
>
>
>To summarize, I loved doing the log and my students and I found it to be a
>very
>positive experience. Next year I will have a much bigger class (one I am less
>familiar with, so I don't know how high their motivation is) and hope that I
>will still stay feel the same way at the end of the year. Having said that,
>there are definitely situations where the log is not a good fit for a school.
>But if you can get your administration on board with you, I think you can
>solve
>many if not most of your problems.
>
>All the best,
>Rivka
>
>
>Dear All,
>
>I have just completed my second year working on the Log, and after much
>thought, plan to switch to the test with next year's tenth graders. All of
>the
>problems that I worried about connected to the Log are coming to light and
>I'm
>not happy about it. I teach the 5 point class, and have several students who
>have not completed part of their Log and 2 who have yet to hand in a thing.
>One
>of them has already gone to the assistant principal with "crocodile tears"
>about how the log is going to prevent him from receiving his Bagrut
>certificate; and of course, she told him that since the program is not yet
>"official" for his class - of course he can take the "F" exam next year. He
>came back to me with a triumphant grin and told me that he was going to take
>the exam & there was nothing I could do about it. Oh, he also plans to
>spread
>the word to his classmates that it is still an option.
>
>The four point class is a disaster. Over half of the kids are failing
>because
>they haven't given in the work. My colleague is under a great deal of
>pressure
>from our administration to drop the Log and let the kids take "D". We haven't
>given any work that is out of the ordinary. Both of us have taught Literature
>successfully for years, and we see many positive points to doing the Log. We
>also have received great support from our madricha, Aviva & I know that Avi
>is
>willing to go to bat for me with the administration, but I feel like I am
>between a rock and a hard place.
>
>I have already gotten many phone calls from parents who are furious that I
>expect their children to save their work for three years. I am under a
>pressure
>from the principle and the home room teachers to let kids make up last year's
>work and not to stick to my "overly-strict" schedule. (You know that handing
>in
>work on time is not fashionable, and it is much easier to do when you can
>copy
>from someone else who has already gotten a grade.) After all I have nothing
>else to do this summer but tutor these kids, who couldn't be bothered in
>class,
>to make sure they will get a "good" grade.
>
>
>So from next year I want to teach the set program & the kids will have to
>manage with the test. Do I think they will do as well as with the log? No, I
>don't. But I have enough difficulty with the powers that be and the parents
>over the yearly grades, I really don't have the strength to deal with this as
>well.
>
>
>I love Literature & will continue to teach it. I think it helps to expand
>the
>student's horizons and develops their prespective of the world beyond our
>little country; but as long as the Bagrut is a numbers game, and the school
>is
>more concerned with statistics, I am going to tow the party line and have the
>students sit for the Lit exam.
>
>Shabbat Shalom,
>Ariella Kopels
>
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