"The hunger and thirst for knowledge, the keen delight in the chase, the good humored willingness to admit that the scent was false, the eager desire to get on with the work, the cheerful resolution to go back and begin again, the broad good sense, the unaffected modesty, the imperturbable temper, the gratitude for any little help that was given - all these will remain in my memory though I cannot paint them for others." Frederic William Maitland
Thursday, December 2, 2010
"The seemingly impossible is possible, we can have a good world!" ~Hans Rosling
Thought this was a direct refute to my last blog's attack on high stakes testing and numbers... fun with statistics, and the possibility of it all!
http://www.wimp.com/countriesyears/
Monday, November 1, 2010
How will IBL and PBL effect high stakes assessment?
What I found in researching this project reaffirmed a belief I've learned through working at Tarrant City Schools. If we teach to a level that is higher than what is expected, the students will perform at that level and beyond. We must expect more in order to get more.
There are days that are tough and there are days that reaffirm all the possibility that lies in the youth. You may have a fight in your class that is so brutal, one might give up on the humanity of man; however, you also may discuss the American Dream in the next class. You see the American Dream in the face of students learning and in the face of students crying and yelling about making their family proud. It's terrifying, rigorous, but absolutely the most pressing issue of Modern America. You see the failures and the possibilities in your face and a teacher is met with the challenge of making those faces believe that their dreams are possible while Time Magazine's cover, "Restoring the American Dream," describes most Americans as "glum, dispirited and angry." You see the American Dream in its rawest form: imperfect, stubborn, failing, and disappointing.
High-stakes assessments effect us all. It causes stress, and it causes more work which at times seems unnecessary. However, assessment gives us a benchmark for how our schools are doing. With the criticism of Bush's No Child Left Behind, the effects are evident, but it seems also a de jeure remedy to a much deeper problem with the American system. As Mayor Cory Booker observed of the New York Public School systems, "The struggles I see they shouldn’t be the struggles we see in modern America…We should not live in a country where your destiny is determined by how much money you have in your pocket, by what zip code you live in, or by the pick of a ball." Our lives have become about test scores but with all the stress, I think we as educators must take a moment to realize the infinite magnitude which lies in what we do as part of the educational field. While a politician's quick fix will always be with us, we must strive for more and expect this from our students. We are in the business of the American Dream which has never been easy.
By focusing on what’s possible, the end result being the dream, that was all the effect on testing I needed. If we as teachers constantly choose innovative teaching methods, the students will rise to the occasion. Teaching students to ask questions and work through problems are clear life skills which make sense. The question became the difference in scores and dreams. We must understand why students are where they are, meet them there, and move them forward. For too long, many students have believed that average is acceptable, that just passing is ok, and that they aren't going anywhere. However, I believe it's because they see their dreams so far out of their reach, they simply resign. As one of my students responded to my inquiry in defining the American Dream, "People lower their standards on what life they want to have for themselves and it is saddening. People have reduced it to nothing.”
Below are some relevant articles on the controversy of high stakes testing:
http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2007-01-07-no-child_x.htm
http://www.fairtest.org/arn/caseagainst.html
There are days that are tough and there are days that reaffirm all the possibility that lies in the youth. You may have a fight in your class that is so brutal, one might give up on the humanity of man; however, you also may discuss the American Dream in the next class. You see the American Dream in the face of students learning and in the face of students crying and yelling about making their family proud. It's terrifying, rigorous, but absolutely the most pressing issue of Modern America. You see the failures and the possibilities in your face and a teacher is met with the challenge of making those faces believe that their dreams are possible while Time Magazine's cover, "Restoring the American Dream," describes most Americans as "glum, dispirited and angry." You see the American Dream in its rawest form: imperfect, stubborn, failing, and disappointing.
High-stakes assessments effect us all. It causes stress, and it causes more work which at times seems unnecessary. However, assessment gives us a benchmark for how our schools are doing. With the criticism of Bush's No Child Left Behind, the effects are evident, but it seems also a de jeure remedy to a much deeper problem with the American system. As Mayor Cory Booker observed of the New York Public School systems, "The struggles I see they shouldn’t be the struggles we see in modern America…We should not live in a country where your destiny is determined by how much money you have in your pocket, by what zip code you live in, or by the pick of a ball." Our lives have become about test scores but with all the stress, I think we as educators must take a moment to realize the infinite magnitude which lies in what we do as part of the educational field. While a politician's quick fix will always be with us, we must strive for more and expect this from our students. We are in the business of the American Dream which has never been easy.
By focusing on what’s possible, the end result being the dream, that was all the effect on testing I needed. If we as teachers constantly choose innovative teaching methods, the students will rise to the occasion. Teaching students to ask questions and work through problems are clear life skills which make sense. The question became the difference in scores and dreams. We must understand why students are where they are, meet them there, and move them forward. For too long, many students have believed that average is acceptable, that just passing is ok, and that they aren't going anywhere. However, I believe it's because they see their dreams so far out of their reach, they simply resign. As one of my students responded to my inquiry in defining the American Dream, "People lower their standards on what life they want to have for themselves and it is saddening. People have reduced it to nothing.”
Below are some relevant articles on the controversy of high stakes testing:
http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2007-01-07-no-child_x.htm
http://www.fairtest.org/arn/caseagainst.html
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Problem ID Reflection
Throughout the process of completing the problem ID assignment, I found an array of interesting information along with many real life examples that proved that these methods can work in high school classrooms. It was interesting also to read about other subjects that I do not teach such as Economics and Math and how these would apply in those fields of study. I found both problem-based learning and inquiry-based learning to be effective and innovative practices in teaching. Both seem to give students real life skills which makes learning more authentic.
I also enjoyed beginning to use these ideas in my classroom. The Sophomores had a great conversation about The Great Gatsby using quality question stems which led to us transferring knowledge of the text to making comparisons to the West Egg and East Egg of Birmingham, reading and listening to the lyrics of "Empire State of Mind," and character analysis of many characters who up until this conversation many of the students did not connect to. I was also extremely proud when one student remarked confidently after discussing the character of Tom Buchanan that hitting a woman was never right. We did a similar "seminar" style in studying for nine weeks test, and they did so well with creating questions that I used some of their questions on the actual exam.
At first, inquiry can be uncomfortable. I was a little upset at how absent the sense of wonder seemed to be when I asked the students to ask questions. However, once they saw their work being included authentically, the questions and discussion were amazing.
I will also never forget Myca's version of "In Newww Yorkkkk."
I also enjoyed beginning to use these ideas in my classroom. The Sophomores had a great conversation about The Great Gatsby using quality question stems which led to us transferring knowledge of the text to making comparisons to the West Egg and East Egg of Birmingham, reading and listening to the lyrics of "Empire State of Mind," and character analysis of many characters who up until this conversation many of the students did not connect to. I was also extremely proud when one student remarked confidently after discussing the character of Tom Buchanan that hitting a woman was never right. We did a similar "seminar" style in studying for nine weeks test, and they did so well with creating questions that I used some of their questions on the actual exam.
At first, inquiry can be uncomfortable. I was a little upset at how absent the sense of wonder seemed to be when I asked the students to ask questions. However, once they saw their work being included authentically, the questions and discussion were amazing.
I will also never forget Myca's version of "In Newww Yorkkkk."
Monday, September 20, 2010
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Formative Assessment
This month's focus for the Powerful Conversations Network was on formative assessment. This emphasis aligns directly with using problem based or inquiry based learning in the classroom. Formative assessment is a shared process between student and teacher. The teacher gives constant feedback as the student "forms" his or her knowledge. This type of assessment is essential to guiding students along the path of learning. Formative assessment is the "practice" and it is what makes learning authentic, real, and metacognitive.
Examples of formative assessment: Exit Slips, Polls, Thumbs up, down, sideways, Parking Lot/ Post it, Anticipation Guides, Think Pair, Share, Observation, Peer Evaluation, Reflection, Diagnostic Tests, Journaling
Our principal shared this video as an example of the complexities and importance of formative assessment... if we don't use it, we set ourselves and the students up for failure or in this case scraping ice on another car:
Inquiry Based Learning
"Tell me, I forget. Show me, and I remember. Involve me and I understand."
Inquiry based learning is learning that is driven through questioning. Essentially it reveals the way in which an individual processes knowledge and supports this process through the learning. Through asking questions, students become the masters of their knowledge. Socratically, students question and the teacher continues to fuel this inquiry through a facilitated learning environment. Inquiry-based learning asks students to conjecture, analyze, argue, critique, and to prove or disprove. IBL functions under the concept that learning requires doing and thinking and this is an antecedent for learning. This model for learning continuously asks why, promotes students working together, allows for take home test, and regular quizzes.
This makes sense because it gets to the process of learning itself and makes learning authentic. Why do we learn? Because we ask questions. How do we learn more? Ask more questions. While inquiry is at times open-ended and difficult to track, it instills in students an essential skill to learning which is to become curious and understand how to follow that inquiry.
A study that shows an example of implementation in a calculus class:
http://www.eric.ed.gov/PDFS/ED506294.pdf
Helpful websites for starting this type of module in your class:
http://www.thirteen.org/edonline/concept2class/inquiry/index.html
http://www.garlikov.com/Soc_Meth.html
Problem Based Learning
The University of Delaware defines problem based learning as, "an instructional method characterized by the use of real world problems as a context for students to learn critical thinking and problem solving skills." This type of learning gives students a problem and asks them to solve through a concentrated or more specific path than IBL. Steps for PBL include: entry, problem framing, knowledge inventory, problem research, resources, problem twist, problem log, problem exit, problem debriefing. The teacher becomes the facilitator to learning that is authentic, real world and engaging. Students use real world problems as context for creating knowledge, applying learning, and solving problems. This method seeks to create active learners and trains them in problem solving and critical thinking.
This method make sense because it gives students real world applications for learning and teaches them how to be problem solvers. Students are engaged by being given a problem, a direction, and they become the drivers of their learning. Ownership? Yes. Metacognitive? Yes again. Empowering? Definitely.
Below is a study of the implementaion of PBL in an Economics classroom:
http://www.eric.ed.gov/PDFS/ED511228.pdf
Also helpful websites include:
http://www.udel.edu/pbl/cte/jan95-what.html
http://www.ntlf.com/html/pi/9812/pbl_1.htm
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