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I am a Music teacher trainer at the Lisbon School of Education. My lesson plan is for 1st-year students of an undergraduate programme of study part of the  Initial Teacher Training of Primary School Teacher. See my learning context.

There are different methods to teach music. I use a comprehensive method called CLASP (Composing, Literature, Appraising, Skills, and Performance). See what it is about.

Where does my lesson plan fit in the 7 phases of the learning scenario development process (LSDV) mentioned in module 2.4? Depending on the perspective:

one can compare the whole CLASP 6 weeks to the LSDV 12 weeks, and in that case my Composing lesson plan fit in step 4 “make: develop or create a product, or practice an activity”.

on can also analyse the Composing classroom activity itself, with its own development process, from the starting point to the final performance, and this close-up perspective will reveal that all the 7 phases of the LSDV are exactly the same as the development process of the Composing classroom activity.

The content of the Composition is a tale The Tortoise and the Hare so I planned a collaboration with the English teacher to analyse the text.

Collaboration skills are assessed using Co-Lab checklist for peer assessment and the composition is assessed using a rubric constructed by me using RubiStar.

Finally is the link to my lesson plan (67% Collaboration, 33% Acquisition) https://v.gd/p9qnmS

Thank you,

Mário Relvas, Portugal - Music

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Where are the teachers from these countries?

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Where are the teachers from these countries?

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One thing that I noticed in the map with participants its the absence from many countries: Spain, France, Germany, Swiss, Holland, Denmark, Czech Republic, Poland, Norway, Sweden, Finland. Why?

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(M4-4.5) Use ICT to collaborate with other teachers

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(M4-4.5) Use ICT to collaborate with other teachers

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We use Google Docs to collaborate in writing research proposals, and courses' syllabi. Sometimes Google Sheets for grading.

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https://v.gd/p9qnmS

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(M3-3.6) Give weight to self-assessment?

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(M3-3.6) Give weight to self-assessment?

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I have no doubts that self- and peer-assessment have all the qualitative benefits presented by Doctor Valente (building rubrics and checklists with students and handing in these tools to them). But in a classroom situation there is no possibility teachers can follow in a practical way every single student when they are filling the self-assessment, so this rise me some concern about the tool validity and assigning a percentage weight to individual assessment as part of the summative assessment.

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Q2 - Only when reading the CO-LAB Guidelines for Assessing CL in the Classroom I realised students play different roles — Leader, Reporter — inside their groups. Are these fixed, take turns, or are features that all members should display at some point in time during the project? Thank you.

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This course is my introduction to collaborative learning so I have never used rubrics or checklists for this purpose. I have used these two assessment tools extensively for other purposes and despite I always shared them with students at the beginning of the learning process, I have never involved them in the design of the assessment tools.

The tips, guidelines, and examples, are of great utility to improve my constructing process.

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Q1 - Considering that self-assessment is one of the three types of collaborative learning assessment, what research evidence we have about its validity and reliability? Thank you.

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Assess collaboration between group members implies a permanent observation of the whole process. As has been proven in other scenarios, the presence of an observer will influence the way students participate, namely, inhibit students. On this in mind, the next question is what to observe, what to look for. The answer is in the features of collaborative learning itself:

listen to each other and give feedback;

members of the group make substantive decisions about the content, the process, and the product;

what they are working on is so much interdependent that each piece depends on the other for its actual successful completion.

These 3 features are all in the same medium: verbal communication. So, to assess collaboration we have to observe language and communication interactions between group elements (Vygotsky and Engeström).

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I find it difficult to assess the individual student attitudes toward their work, because the self-assessment checklist seems prone to many influences, and biased, with low reliability. That is why I do not use the self-assessment and I prefer the other two methods, formative and summative. I agree with Chrysa that students have to be informed about the evaluation criteria at the beginning of the activity, and coming back to it during the process.

We can find the answer to the final question she asks in her own words: “I had to implement an assessment method that relates individual and group outcomes and practices.” For instance two rubrics one for individual technique, and other to individual contributions to the group.

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(M3-3.1) Assessment to promote collaboration

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(M3-3.1) Assessment to promote collaboration

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Playing music in a group is an intrinsically collaborative activity, that is, collaboration is in its nature (ontology). So things are already there and I, as a teacher, just need to make things clear, that is, to create a set of expectations for individual as well as for group. I use rubrics with criteria and a progress of expectations with performance descriptors. As an higher education professional in a college of education I am responsible for the courses I teach, so I take into fully account the  learning outcomes related to collaborative work in terms of results, not project work.

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(M2-2.5) My two learning activities coded

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(M2-2.5) My two learning activities coded

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I now realise that my Learning Activity from Module 1.6 was in fact an anticipation of this 2.5 Learning Activity in that I used my own coding of High or Low levels of Collaboration :) Because I have to choose to code only 2 of the 5 musical activities I mentioned then, I will choose Composing in Groups and Performing Solo.

In Performing Solo… students do not work in group, so hands down, Code 1.

When I create composing learning experiences for beginners (of all ages), I organise students in small groups, set a common goal (for instance, compose a musical landscape for a given image), ask them to listen to each other musical ideas, work through trial and error, make suggestions on how to improve other’s ideas. I observe from a distance, and only intervene when groups go rogue or when they look for my help. They have to come up with solutions for their musical problems, and work interdependent, like when one musical idea is better rendered (played) by a different member of the group than by the one who had the idea, and this judgement and decision are made by the whole group. So, definitively Code 5.

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I started by reading the scenario that focus on my area, Music. Because I know the subject, and because the scenario has an introduction that gives context to it, I can say it is a good example. When reading the other scenarios, things were not as clear. I really missed the context. But I think I will be OK for the final learning activity of this course with just one scenario and the template. By the way, all scenarios take a minimum of 12 weeks to implement. Am I right?

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(M2-2.3) 21st Century Learning Design Rubric

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(M2-2.3) 21st Century Learning Design Rubric

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Rubrics are very useful because the process of building them — the writing of the descriptors — makes us reflect on our teaching practice. I use rubrics a lot to assess musical activities and I find them very helpful for the students as a means of formative assessment.

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WHAT IT MEANS:

What working together means? It means that they:

discuss an issue;

solve a problem; and

create a product.

What shared responsibility means? It means that they:

work in pairs or groups;

have a common product, or common design they are working on, or common response to something; and

collectively own the work, and are mutually responsible for its outcomes.

What make substantive decisions means? It means that they:

have to resolve important issues (about the content, the process, or the product)  that will guide their work together.

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(M2-2.1) How to embed collaborative learning into lesson design

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(M2-2.1) How to embed collaborative learning into lesson design

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It is of utmost importance to build a common understanding of what really means to develop each of the collaborative skills. Otherwise we certainly will have bitter surprises when confronting our work with work from other teachers.

If there is a field where myths and fallacies spread easily, and where beliefs and attitudes are cornerstone, this field is Education. And so the importance of research like Innovative Teaching and Learning (2011) that shows that if we design learning activities that demand the use of these skills, students will develop them. If we design learning activities that don’t demand the use of these skills, students won’t develop them by osmosis.

When talking about Technology in Education, I always remember that it amplifies everything, the good and the bad, alike. So I could not agree more with the words of Arthur C. Clark in 1980:

"Any teacher that can be replaced by a machine should be!"

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I teach Music within a musical development theory called CLASP. Composing, Literature, Appraising, Skills, and Performing. Each of these 5 activities require and promote different levels of collaborative learning:

C - As a music teacher I believe that everyone can compose (as they can draw, paint, dance, or write. If it is good or bad, that is a matter of judgement). When I create composing learning experiences for beginners (of all ages), I set a common goal, organise students in small groups, ask them to listen to each other musical ideas, work through trial and error, make suggestions on how to improve other’s ideas, in fact I believe they compose collaboratively. And despite the fact that composing is not a frequent activity that students’ are asked to carry out (unfortunately, in my view), the ones that experience a composing activity managed this way, will always remember their creation, as well as the process.

L - in small groups they search online different interpretations of the same musical work, or other musics from the same composer, and  use Google Docs to collect the information from web pages, and Google Presentation for… support their presentation to the class.

A - listening with understanding, in semi-circle assembly, to give their opinion, talk about how they relate to that specific version of the musical work;

S - rehearse, instrumental technique in semi-circle assembly;

P - alone or in small groups like in a band, in this case they better collaborate or their rendition of the musical work will be flawed.

To better understand how CLASP activities promote and require collaborative engagement, please refer to the picture below (note: I had to transform the table in a picture as Padlet does not allow tables in its posts).

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(M1-1.1) What is collaborative learning?

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(M1-1.1) What is collaborative learning?

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As a music teacher I believe that everyone can compose (as they can draw, paint, dance, or write. If it is good or bad, that is a matter of judgement). When I create composing learning experiences for beginners (of all ages), I set a common goal, organise students in small groups, ask them to listen to each other musical ideas, work through trial and error, make suggestions on how to improve other’s ideas, in fact I believe they compose collaboratively. And despite the fact that composing is not a frequent activity that students’ are asked to carry out (unfortunately, in my view), the ones that experience a composing activity managed this way, will always remember their creation, as well as the process. And for me, this proofs that students’ attitudes toward making music improves, as well as engagement (it is their own music), and retention (they opt for Music courses when available).

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(M1-1.2) Collaborative learning in a flexible classroom

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(M1-1.2) Collaborative learning in a flexible classroom

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I teach Music within a musical development theory called CLASP. Composing, Literature, Appraising, Skills, and Performing. These 5 activities require different classroom seating arrangements, teachers and students’ roles, and ICT’s uses:

C - in small groups (up to 5);

L - (research online different interpretations of the same musical work, or other musics from the same composer), in pairs in front of a computer;

A - (listening with understanding) in semi-circle assembly;

S - (rehearse, instrumental technique) in semi-circle assembly;

P - alone, small groups or in semi-circle assembly.

ICT is mainly used in Literature, and they use Google Doc to collect the information from web pages, and Google Presentation for… support their presentation to the class.

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(M1-1.1) What is collaborative learning (CL)?

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(M1-1.1) What is collaborative learning (CL)?

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Features of CL:

students work small groups;

common goal;

listen to each other and give feedback;

members of the group make substantive decisions about the content, the process, and the product;

what they are working on is so much interdependent that each piece depends on the other for its actual successful completion.

Skills developed by CL:

negotiation;

feedback;

listening;

consensus.

CL fosters among students:

positive interdependence;

individual accountability;

interpersonal.

Teachers’ role in CL:

develop students ability to learn;

serve as a facilitator for learning;

create meaningful learning experiences (real-world problems);

Overall benefits of CL:

academic achievement;

student attitudes;

engagement and retention enhanced.

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Collaborative teaching & learning | M1 What is collaborative learning?

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1. In each module I have to cover videos introducing key ideas, reflection and discussion activities, and learning activity;
2. The code of conduct applies everywhere;
3. in doubt, check the FAQ;
4. Visit all sections, submit the lesson plan, and peer-review other participants lesson plans;
5. Final date: november, the 8th
6. Full calendar

List of Modules

1 | What is collaborative learning? | 25 sept
2 | How can you design collaborative learning in the classroom? | 02 octo
3 | How can you assess collaborative learning? | 09 octo
4 | How can teacher collaboration facilitate collaborative learning? | 16 octo

Two live events

1. Q&A webinar on Collaborative Learning Assessment | 09 octo
2. TeachMeet on good practices from the course’s participants | 16 octo

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Travel and visit other cities (mostly).

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Have dinner parties with my long time friends from primary school (that is me in red polo)

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Hi, let me introduce myself. My name is Relvas.... Mário Relvas. I am 55 and a father of two.

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Hi, let me introduce myself. My name is Relvas.... Mário Relvas. I am 55 and a father of two.

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We live in Lisbon, Portugal, and our free time is usually by the sea.

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The Lisbon School of Education (ESELx), part of Lisbon Polytechnic Institute, offers graduate and undergraduate programmes of study in Initial Teacher Training (ITT).

I Co-ordinate the Master of Arts in Music Teaching in Basic Education (music specialist) where I am responsible and teach several courses: Music and Technologies, Supervising Teaching Practice, Music Education Methodologies, and Philosophy of Music Education. I also teach courses on Music, and Didactics of Music in Primary Teachers ITT (see my Resumé in English)

I use technology (ICT) extensively since 1989, inside and outside the classroom, from music software to programming Learning Objects. My last paper on the subject is "e-learning in the classroom?". You can listen score edited traditional portuguese songs, and watch videocast episodes about on-line music applications, done by my undergraduate students, freshman and sophomores.

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Spot Politécnico de Lisboa Somos Ciência e Arte, Somos Sabedoria e Prática Créditos: kygo feat. conrad firestone instrumental