Rules and Procedures seems pretty straight forward. It's dealing with disruptive behavior that seems daunting to me going into the classroom. There are a lot of useful strategies here, many of which I learned in ETE 345 as well, but I still have this nagging anxiety about it. I know that, as a teacher, I will have to expect misbehavior to occur at some point in my career. After reading this, it seems like the best way to avoid as much misbehavior as possible is to plan accordingly.
Procedures are important. Something not mentioned extensively in the text is that students should be a part of the rule-making process. I like that the book mentioned starting with only a few core rules (i.e. be respectful, don't just leave class, don't steal things, etc.), but then I think the class needs to have a discussion about what the students feel is important enough to be included in the rules and procedures. I think it helps the students to feel like they are an important part of the class and it helps students to feel included and respected.
Either way, I think the most important aspect of effectively controlling a classroom is to create a friendly, inviting environment, where students feel safe and respected. As teachers, we should all be trying to foster an environment where students can put their best self forward. The authors have pointed out that the majority of misbehavior is due to students' needs not being met. Whether it's the result of a student finishing their work quickly and having nothing else to get them through the end of class, or whether it's the result of a student not having an interest in the subject, it's important that we consider our students when planning lessons and activities. Sometimes the best/easiest way to teach a lesson is not the same as the best way to learn the lesson from the perspective of the student.
One last point I want to make that I particularly enjoyed is the section where they discussed "why do we have to do this?" I thought it was very poignant that they pointed out the importance of not brushing such inquiries off, because it's a legitimate question that opens up opportunities to explore the importance of our subject matter and material. Never brush this question off. If it was important enough to the student for them to challenge the lesson in that way, then it's important enough to be addressed. Sometimes just discussing why a lesson is important opens up so many new doors to create future lessons and learning opportunities for all involved. I love when students ask me this question, and I'm glad the authors addressed it in the chapter.
Wednesday, May 28, 2014
Tuesday, May 27, 2014
Chapter Three
There was so much information in this chapter that it left my head spinning. I've had assignments involving questioning before, but this is the first time that I've seen it broken down to this degree. One thing that really caught my attention was how much the levels of questioning aligned with Bloom's Taxonomy. I can't imagine that was a coincidence. It's important that we align our questions with these objectives so that we can systematically build our inquiries in difficulties.
I think that the Socratic method discussed in the chapter has a lot to do with that building of questioning. Socrates started out with simple questions for his students, but he continued to build "whys" as he moved through the progression of questions. While we don't have to imitate Socrates all the time, it's important to use this type of questioning with students because it forces them to constantly evaluate their own answers. Look at it like this: we start with "in the box" questions about a subject, then we move to "out of the box" questions which require a student to support the answer, then we move to "about the box" questions that require the student to evaluate why they believe what they believe. This might be fairly new in the scope of educational questioning, but this was the Socratic method. It's still just as relevant today as it was then.
I love this concept. Looking back on my own schooling, questions too often focused on what we knew. At the highest level, we were only required to offer evidence to support our argument. But rarely, if ever, were we required to think about why we held certain beliefs or ideas. To put that into curriculum based examples, I remember learning about the Civil War in History class. We were always asked to identify the causes, but only on a basic level. It would result in answers like, "The North wanted to abolish slavery so the South rebelled." The effect was always war. But as I got older and started to really think deeply about the subject, I learned that the causes dated back decades—even as early as the War of 1812—and the effect wasn't always war. To move that to the highest level of thinking, I began questioning whether war really was unavoidable as I had been taught.
When you begin to see these examples on your own, it makes you begin to question a lot of what you've learned. If we can get our students doing this early on, we can really have amazing conversations about History. We can encourage students to think about what they've learned and whether they really believe what they believe. It can cause students to come forward with amazing questions, and can spark some very in depth conversations in the classroom. This is the highest level of thinking to me. It's about encouraging our students to question what they know and understand themselves better in the process. I think that's what the authors were eluding to in this chapter. They may have only discussed questioning, but the end result is always a better understanding of the world around them.
I think that the Socratic method discussed in the chapter has a lot to do with that building of questioning. Socrates started out with simple questions for his students, but he continued to build "whys" as he moved through the progression of questions. While we don't have to imitate Socrates all the time, it's important to use this type of questioning with students because it forces them to constantly evaluate their own answers. Look at it like this: we start with "in the box" questions about a subject, then we move to "out of the box" questions which require a student to support the answer, then we move to "about the box" questions that require the student to evaluate why they believe what they believe. This might be fairly new in the scope of educational questioning, but this was the Socratic method. It's still just as relevant today as it was then.
I love this concept. Looking back on my own schooling, questions too often focused on what we knew. At the highest level, we were only required to offer evidence to support our argument. But rarely, if ever, were we required to think about why we held certain beliefs or ideas. To put that into curriculum based examples, I remember learning about the Civil War in History class. We were always asked to identify the causes, but only on a basic level. It would result in answers like, "The North wanted to abolish slavery so the South rebelled." The effect was always war. But as I got older and started to really think deeply about the subject, I learned that the causes dated back decades—even as early as the War of 1812—and the effect wasn't always war. To move that to the highest level of thinking, I began questioning whether war really was unavoidable as I had been taught.
When you begin to see these examples on your own, it makes you begin to question a lot of what you've learned. If we can get our students doing this early on, we can really have amazing conversations about History. We can encourage students to think about what they've learned and whether they really believe what they believe. It can cause students to come forward with amazing questions, and can spark some very in depth conversations in the classroom. This is the highest level of thinking to me. It's about encouraging our students to question what they know and understand themselves better in the process. I think that's what the authors were eluding to in this chapter. They may have only discussed questioning, but the end result is always a better understanding of the world around them.
Wednesday, May 21, 2014
Totally forgot the introduction!
I'm excited to dive into this class. Considering I'm already two chapters in, I kind of know what to expect, which is to learn a lot. I did my novice teaching in a middle school, and I wish I had taken this class first. While the experience went well, and was rewarding for me as a teacher, I think I could have made it that much better if I had known all of this going into it. Anyway, looking forward to being here and taking away many valuable lessons. A little about myself: I'm not a traditional student.
Becoming a teacher was a new and unexpected journey for me. I worked in the corporate world for over eight years. I started in graphic design, moved into marketing, and eventually became Director of Communications for a local non-profit until 2007 when donations took a hit. After that, I worked at Cat in their marketing department, spending my days trapped in front a computer working in dealer support. After less than a year there, I was ready to be done with marketing all together lest I go insane—at least marketing in the corporate world. I made the irrational decision to quit and live off of my savings for nearly nine months. During that time, I volunteered with a Bloomington-based non-profit called GOYA. They had a need, and I was able to fill it. It wasn't a paid position, but it was one of the most fulfilling jobs I'd ever had, and one I still volunteer for today. My job was to create and implement fund raising strategies, and create the materials necessary to spread the word of our organization.
As a company, we adopted the slum of Mitumba, outside of Nairobi, Kenya. We raised funds vigorously and, within the first year had dug three fresh water wells, built a medical facility, and teamed up with the ISU Mennonite College of Nursing to send nurses and doctors to Mitumba three times a year to treat the nearly 10,000 people that live there.
After only three years, we were able to build an elementary school and middle school, train teachers, and create nearly 100 jobs for the residents of Mitumba. My final hurrah there was moving forward on building a high school. In Kenya, high schools are traditionally boarding schools, which meant that we would have to hire staff to stay on the grounds 24/7, provide three meals a day, and have a dedicated medical facility on the grounds. The total cost of the project to build it, staff it, and maintain it for one year, was $250,000. Pennies by American standards for a school, but that's a fortune in Kenya. After nearly 20 months of working, we were finally able to purchase the land and begin construction on the school. It's still not open yet, but we are getting closer every day.
That's a really long way of explaining why teaching is such an unexpected adventure. Making this jump into uncharted territory has been exciting and scary for the past four years. Honestly, my work with GOYA is why I'm here today. After working on this project, and spending so much time discussing education, meeting with teachers, and seeing the change a good education could bring, I knew I had to teach. I knew it was going to be the best way for me to use my knowledge and experiences, and hopefully inspire other people to close their eyes and jump. Sometimes we don't always know where we'll land, but that's okay. If I can use my experiences to inspire other people to jump too, then this will all have been worth it.
Anyway, that's my introduction.
Becoming a teacher was a new and unexpected journey for me. I worked in the corporate world for over eight years. I started in graphic design, moved into marketing, and eventually became Director of Communications for a local non-profit until 2007 when donations took a hit. After that, I worked at Cat in their marketing department, spending my days trapped in front a computer working in dealer support. After less than a year there, I was ready to be done with marketing all together lest I go insane—at least marketing in the corporate world. I made the irrational decision to quit and live off of my savings for nearly nine months. During that time, I volunteered with a Bloomington-based non-profit called GOYA. They had a need, and I was able to fill it. It wasn't a paid position, but it was one of the most fulfilling jobs I'd ever had, and one I still volunteer for today. My job was to create and implement fund raising strategies, and create the materials necessary to spread the word of our organization.
As a company, we adopted the slum of Mitumba, outside of Nairobi, Kenya. We raised funds vigorously and, within the first year had dug three fresh water wells, built a medical facility, and teamed up with the ISU Mennonite College of Nursing to send nurses and doctors to Mitumba three times a year to treat the nearly 10,000 people that live there.
After only three years, we were able to build an elementary school and middle school, train teachers, and create nearly 100 jobs for the residents of Mitumba. My final hurrah there was moving forward on building a high school. In Kenya, high schools are traditionally boarding schools, which meant that we would have to hire staff to stay on the grounds 24/7, provide three meals a day, and have a dedicated medical facility on the grounds. The total cost of the project to build it, staff it, and maintain it for one year, was $250,000. Pennies by American standards for a school, but that's a fortune in Kenya. After nearly 20 months of working, we were finally able to purchase the land and begin construction on the school. It's still not open yet, but we are getting closer every day.
That's a really long way of explaining why teaching is such an unexpected adventure. Making this jump into uncharted territory has been exciting and scary for the past four years. Honestly, my work with GOYA is why I'm here today. After working on this project, and spending so much time discussing education, meeting with teachers, and seeing the change a good education could bring, I knew I had to teach. I knew it was going to be the best way for me to use my knowledge and experiences, and hopefully inspire other people to close their eyes and jump. Sometimes we don't always know where we'll land, but that's okay. If I can use my experiences to inspire other people to jump too, then this will all have been worth it.
Anyway, that's my introduction.
Chapter Two
Dang! Talk about some valuable information! The entire section on using technology, field trips, guest speakers, etc., was fantastic! I remember when I was young, and we took a field trip to visit Lincoln's Cabin in Springfield. It was a fun trip, but it wasn't educational. I didn't notice at the time, but I've thought about it recently. Just last year, my oldest daughter took the same field trip. When I asked her what she learned, she didn't have much to say. There was no discussion afterward, no real take-aways. It was like the whole point of the field trip was to just go somewhere new.
It's important for us as teachers to remember that everything can be a lesson. Field trips aren't just fun outings, they're a way to teach something new. Guest speakers are a great way to let the students interact with experts on certain topics. When it comes to guest speakers, they can be effective if done right. I think it's important to prep students on what they're going to hear about, discuss some of the preconceived ideas about the topic, and encourage students to ask questions. It's just as important to bring in a guest speaker that can help to facilitate this process seamlessly, so that the guest speaker becomes a part of the lesson and not just an off-topic lecture.
Lastly, I really enjoyed reading about the various philosophies of teaching. To me, the teaching methods seemed to just be a reflection of the kind of person the teacher is. If they lecture a lot, maybe they don't like challenges or maybe they just like to talk a lot. It was interesting to see this type of philosophy related to what the teacher seeks from the students. In the case of lecturing, the instructor is seeking to introduce new ideas into the subconscious. That's a different way of looking at it than I had previously thought. It helps to explain why lecturing can be an effective tool sometimes as well; it helps to introduce new ideas. It doesn't mean we can't discuss them, just that the material needs to be taught before it can be discussed. Yes, I know this is combining the two ideas.
Really, the cognitive-experimental does seem to incorporate these two ideas though. I think that's why I related so much to that. This style allows for so much variation in teaching strategy, and allows the students to really grasp those "big picture" ideas as opposed to just remembering whatever the teacher said. It's interesting to think about the classes I've enjoyed the most/least, and compare the teaching style to these philosophies. It makes me realize a lot more about myself than I had expected going into this chapter.
It's important for us as teachers to remember that everything can be a lesson. Field trips aren't just fun outings, they're a way to teach something new. Guest speakers are a great way to let the students interact with experts on certain topics. When it comes to guest speakers, they can be effective if done right. I think it's important to prep students on what they're going to hear about, discuss some of the preconceived ideas about the topic, and encourage students to ask questions. It's just as important to bring in a guest speaker that can help to facilitate this process seamlessly, so that the guest speaker becomes a part of the lesson and not just an off-topic lecture.
Lastly, I really enjoyed reading about the various philosophies of teaching. To me, the teaching methods seemed to just be a reflection of the kind of person the teacher is. If they lecture a lot, maybe they don't like challenges or maybe they just like to talk a lot. It was interesting to see this type of philosophy related to what the teacher seeks from the students. In the case of lecturing, the instructor is seeking to introduce new ideas into the subconscious. That's a different way of looking at it than I had previously thought. It helps to explain why lecturing can be an effective tool sometimes as well; it helps to introduce new ideas. It doesn't mean we can't discuss them, just that the material needs to be taught before it can be discussed. Yes, I know this is combining the two ideas.
Really, the cognitive-experimental does seem to incorporate these two ideas though. I think that's why I related so much to that. This style allows for so much variation in teaching strategy, and allows the students to really grasp those "big picture" ideas as opposed to just remembering whatever the teacher said. It's interesting to think about the classes I've enjoyed the most/least, and compare the teaching style to these philosophies. It makes me realize a lot more about myself than I had expected going into this chapter.
Tuesday, May 20, 2014
Chapter One
While I was reading through the list of developmental changes that students are experiencing at this age, I was amazed to see just how much is going on. I always like the middle grades when teaching because the students were "different" than the other grades. I always said this is a time when they're figuring out who they are and what they believe. This is such a crucial time, and it's important that these students have good teachers to help guide them.
There was one point which discussed students making choices that could have lifelong impacts on their academic success. It's crazy to think that decisions we make at 12 or 13 could have such immense repercussions. But at the same time, it makes sense; if this is the point in life where students are figuring out who they are and how they imagine themselves to be, this is where they begin their journey. This is where they find the fork in the road and have to decide which road to take. I think it's important for all of us as teachers to know and understand these dramatic changes so that we can act as a beacon to help guide our students as best we can. It's a scary thought though.
There was one point which discussed students making choices that could have lifelong impacts on their academic success. It's crazy to think that decisions we make at 12 or 13 could have such immense repercussions. But at the same time, it makes sense; if this is the point in life where students are figuring out who they are and how they imagine themselves to be, this is where they begin their journey. This is where they find the fork in the road and have to decide which road to take. I think it's important for all of us as teachers to know and understand these dramatic changes so that we can act as a beacon to help guide our students as best we can. It's a scary thought though.
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