VI: Analysis of Student Learning-Showcase Lesson Whole Class Data:

Students:
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 (High Performer) 27 (Average Performer) 28 (Low Performing) Class Average:

Pre-Assessment Grades:
3 4 4 3 3 2 4 4 3 2 2 3 2 3 4 4 4 2 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 4 4 2.14

During-Assessment Grades
3 3 3 3 3 3 3 4 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 2 3 3 2 2 2 2 3 4 4 4 2.96

Post-Assessment Grades
3 4 4 0 3 4 2 2 4 3 3 3 2 3 3 3 3 2 2 4 4 2 3 3 4 4 3 2 3.11

Key: 0-did not turn in All other scores are based off of TWS #5 Rubrics

The graph above shows the results of the pre, during, and post assessments for the twenty-eight students who were present for my lesson. The learning objective for this lesson was: After listening to and taking notes on a PowerPoint lecture, reading slave codes pre-Civil War, and watching a short video on the growth of the abolitionist movement, students should be able to act as an abolitionist in order to write a letter to the governor of South Carolina explaining why these codes are unfair and what should be done about them. The assessments for this lesson were: For the pre-assessment, students divided a piece of notebook paper in half and wrote slave codes on the left and abolition on the right. Students had two minutes to write down everything they knew about each subject. The instructor then went over what the students had written down. The during-assessment for this lesson was probing questions asked by the instructor to the students after looking at Southern slave codes. The students also helped the instructor write a sample letter to the governor about slave codes for which the students could use as an example when completing the post-assessment. The post-assessment activity was for students to write their own letter to the governor of South Carolina explaining why they believe slave codes are harsh and what should be done about them. The pre-assessment activity was graded based off of a table created by the instructor (see TWS 5). The during-assessment activity was assessed off of student participation in the question and answer portion of class as well as on student participation in making the class letter. The letter created by the class is below.

Dear Mr. Governor, My name is Ms. Cheek and I am writing this letter to inform you that I want plantation owners to stop bullying slaves. I also want you to put an end to torturing the slaves. I am horrified at how the masters burn disobedient slaves. I am angry that slaves do not have freedom. Slave should be able to read, write, drink, own their own property, smoke, marry who they want to marry, live where they want to live, and be able to protect themselves. Slaves should not be judged by their skin color. If you are going to allow slavery then the slaves should be given pay for their work. Slaves should not be punished as harshly for disobeying. I believe slaves should not be beaten with whips or shot with guns. It is unfair that slaves have to have written permission to leave the plantations. I believe it is wrong that they are told what to do and if they disobey then slave owners should not be allowed to take off body parts. The plantation owners should not be allowed to hang slaves. Slaves should also be allowed to protect their selves if needed for self-defense. Slaves should have less working hours. The slaves should be treated like equals to the white man. Slaves should have plenty of rest. Slaves should also be allowed to carry firearms. If the following requirements are not met, we as Abolitionist are going to begin protesting violently. If the slaves feel like they should not have to work then they should not have to. If the slaves are sick then they should not have to work. I believe slaves should be free at any time. I believe masters should have the right to free their own slaves if they want. Sincerely, Ms. Cheek

The post-assessment was graded with a letter rubric created by the instructor. The students were allowed to use the sample letter (above) as an example to create their own individual letters to the governor of South Carolina explaining why he/she was a part of the abolitionist movement. In order to write the letter, the students had to understand the material given to them on slave codes and the abolition movement. The students performed on a lower average range for the pre-assessment. However, the number is only low simply because students had obviously not heard of the word abolition before. Before the lesson, I explained to them that it was alright if they did not know anything about the topic. However, I instructed them to at least try to answer it. The score ranges of 2-3 are extremely acceptable in this case.

For the during-assessment, most of the students talked during the making of the letter as a class. Student participation was great among those who tend to speak out more than the others in the classroom. An average of three is acceptable in this case. For the post-assessment, students were instructed to make a letter acting as if he/she is an abolitionist. These letters were taken up and accessed by a rubric (provided in the TWS #4). The students who scored lower on this activity are the students who either do not do their work no matter how much you encourage them or they are 1 of 10 students who are in the class as an inclusion class and all have their own IEPs. Most of these ten students have an average IQ of 70.

Graph of Student Performance:

20 18 16 14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0 0 1 2 3 4 Pre-Assessment During-Assessment Post-Assessment

Individual Data:
26-Jake (High Performer) 27-Sarah (Average Performer) 28-Bishop (Low Performing) Class Average: 4 4 4 2.14 4 4 4 2.96 4 3 2 3.11

Key: 0-did not turn in All other scores are based off of TWS #5 Rubrics

The high performing student in this class is student number 26. Student 26 performed at the highest level possible on all three assessments. Jakes bell ringer answers were: Slave Codes 1.) Slaves could not congregate without the presence of a white man 2.) Could not leave the plantation without a note or white man. Abolition 1.) To abolish slavery

Student 26 participated well in the class discussion and came up with great ideas to contribute to the class outline on the board. Student 26 also helped put the letter together with tremendous detail. Although in the letter, student 26 had a few misspelled words, he made valid points in his letter. His opening and closing were right and he also used correct pargarph formatting. Student 26s final letter read: Dear Mr. Governor, My name is Student 26 and I am disgusted by how the slaves are treated in the South. First off, slaves should not be branded (especially on the face) under any circumstances. Second, slaves have the right as human beings to were nice clothes as others do. Third, slaves should practice their religion of choice. So think about it Mr. Governor, youre a Christian man right? Think what would Jesus do? Do you really think this is right? Sincerely, Student Number 26

My average performing student in the class is student 27. Student 27 wrote in her bell ringer: Slavery Slaves were punished if they refused to or disobeyed their owners. slaves cound carry a gun without Abolition To get rid of slavery

their owners promition.

In this bell ringer, there are some misspelled words but she made two valid points and she also gave the definition of abolition. Overall, this was a good bell ringer. Most of the bell ringers in the class looked similar to student 27. During the during-assessment, student 27 performed much like student number 26 (the high performing student). Student 27 was active in class discussion and helped make the outline as well as the letter as a class. Student 27 worked diligently on her individual letter and wrote the final letter in cursive hand-writing. It read: Dear Governor, My name is Student 27. Im conserved about slavery. My slaves dont work as well if they are beign whipped, shot, put in pirson, and im loosing slaves because of them being hung and if we cut of a certain part of their body they often die a couple days latter from staff infection. As a slave owner I think slaves should be treated better or they should have punishments that are less cruel. If our slaves are hung we have to wait for one of our slaves to have children but then we have to wait a couple of years for them to work. We should be able to give our slaves more freedom. Overall, with the exception of four students, most of this class is a lower-level history class. The ten students with IEPs are very low. However, in this class average would be considered in most classes low. As you can tell by this example, student 27 has some issues with spelling and grammar. Student 27 does not end the letter like instructed. She makes valid points and even ties it into staph infection which was not covered in class. However, the usage of misspelling can be problematic at a higher grade level. Student 28 is a student who has an IEP and is a part of this class in Inclusion. Student 28 however, did exceptionally well on this assessment. Student 28 stated during the lesson that he

had been reading about the Underground Railroad and was able to use that information to relate it to our lesson on slave codes and abolition. His bell ringer read: Slavery Restrict Could not read or write They could not go where they wanted to go They couldnt stay out late Abolition To get rid of slavery

During our discussion of the pre-assessment, Student 28 was the first to raise his hand and tell me what abolition meant. I was very impressed. Student 28 was very active during the during-assessment with making the letter. He was not afraid to speak up which was good. For his post-assessment letter he wrote: Dear Mr. Governor, My name is Student 28 and I am writing this letter to inform you that slavery needs too stop! One reason why slavery needs to stop is that its cruel to beat other people with whips, shot them, and kill them. Also plantation owners are taking slavery a little too far.

Student 28 made attempted to write this letter on his own without the help of another teacher. By his letter, you can tell he understood the material; he just had a hard time putting it into words. But that is ok. The purpose of these three assessments was to see if students understood the material presented to them and to see how well the students could put what I had just taught them into their own words. In the first lesson on Pirates, students simply copied down exactly what I wrote or exactly what the computer wrote. This assignment, however, allowed them to think on their

own while still being guided but without copying exact words. The three students works showed that they understood the material however they have problems with grammar and spelling. The purpose of this lesson was for students to understand slave codes and the growth of the abolition movement. From the data gathered, students answered at 90% accuracy. Graph of Individual Student Performance:

4.5 4 3.5 3 2.5 2 1.5 1 0.5 0 Student 26 Student 27 Student 28 Pre-Assessment During-Assessment Post-Assessment