It has been almost a month since I have been in Maryland. After numerous outings, gatherings, and tons of good food (the crab cakes at Annapolis were heavenly), I finally attended the two courses I applied at UMD. One was a course for preservice teachers on Teaching and Learning Science, the other is a graduate level course on Applied Measurement.
The courses were interesting to say the least. I never had much love for math, much less statistics. But when it comes to measurement and testing as mentioned by my professor in my Applied Measurement course, the results of the test should relate to the behavior we want to measure through some mathematical equation. And statistics will help us describe and compare this data across different students. I realised in order for us to design suitable tests, we need to be very clear what we want to measure, and how the data collected in the test relate to the construct or behavior we want to measure. I hope after this course, I will be better equipped and have more understanding about assessment in the classroom. I also found that testing agencies are a big thing in the US. Teachers that got tired of being in classrooms can opt to work in these testing agencies.
The other course was a class for seniors who are about to graduate as science teachers. It was fun for me to see them learning and getting ready to go into the classrooms. It reminded me of my own journey as a student-teacher, learning the theory of different pedagogies at the National Institute of Education in Singapore and my 8-week practicum at a Singapore secondary school. I felt honored that my professor thought I could assist her in the class and that I have things I can contribute to the class. I guess I will learn more about US teacher training and professional development as I spend more time here.
Overall, I think the conversations here at UMD will continue and my teaching and learning will be enriched through the experience.
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