Double Journal Entry # 9

“In an increasing number of kindergartens, teachers must follow scripts from which they may not deviate.”

This really shocked and saddened me. I have always wanted to teach kindergarten. One of the greatest things I remember about kindergarten is how fun it was. I just cannot imagine what kind of impression kindergarten would have made on me if I were forced to prepare for and take tests as a daily activity. I would have hated school right from the beginning! Standardized testing in kindergarten? The way I see it, this is essentially robbing children of an essential part of childhood. They have to grow up too fast as it is.

“Young children work hard at play. They invent scenes and stories, solve problems, and negotiate their way through social roadblocks. They know what they want to do and work diligently to do it. Because their motivation comes from within, they learn the powerful lesson of pursuing their own ideas to a successful conclusion.”

I have no doubt that there is much benefit to play. This quote struck me because it does an excellent job of summing up a set of essential life skills that have a foundation in play. Play fosters growth and stimulates cognitive development in ways that drill and kill and/or standardized testing cannot. It also serves as a sort of “release”. As children, we call this play, but as adults, we call them hobbies. I feel that all of us, even as adults, need an outlet. These outlets cleanse the mind and relieve stress. Play is intrinsically rewarding at any age. I feel we would be doing our students a great disservice if we squelched it right from the very beginning.

“Many affluent children now need help entering into creative play because of the surfeit of media and organized activities in their lives.”

I totally agree with this quote. However, I really don’t think it is just limited to affluent children. Children in general these days do not engage in play the way we did as kids. We were always outside, we were playing, we were using our imaginations, and so on. Children these days don’t have to do this. Video games, television, computers, iPods, etc. have taken the place of good old fashioned play. Our children don’t have to be creative anymore. We have relied on other things to do this for them. My children, for example, don’t really know how to play. If I were to ask them to play outside and give them nothing to use but their imaginations, they wouldn’t know where to begin.

“It is paradoxical that many educators and parents still differentiate between a time for learning and a time for play without seeing the vital connection between them.”

-Leo Buscaglia, author, educator

This Blog is full of great ideas and wonderful quotes about the importance of play. 

Sources:

Math Tutor Beverly Hills. (2010). Quotes on why children need play.

      Retrieved from

 http://www.mathtutorbeverlyhills.com/blog/2010/12/04/Quotes-on-Play-and-Learning.aspx Beverly Hills. (2010). Quotes on why children need play.

Miller, E., & Almon, J. (n.d). Crisis in Kindergarten: Why children need to play in school.

      Retrieved from:

https://online.fairmontstate.edu/webct/urw/lc1505011.tp0/cobaltMainFrame.dowebct

Double Entry Journal # 8

What are some challenges to inquiry approaches to learning?


One big challenge to inquiry approaches to learning is that the teachers do not always necessarily have the knowledge and the skills that are necessary to implement them. Educators must truly make an attempt understand logistics and complexities of these approaches and must not simply dismiss them as unstructured and therefore not useful. Teachers must support and model these approaches if they are to be of any use to the students.

Another challenge facing teachers when implementing these approaches is finding the time for extended inquiry and the development of new classroom management and techniques which may, essentially, require restructuring the way lessons are designed and lessons are approached.

Make connections between project-based learning and three research based strategies.


Cooperative learning is an important aspect of project-based learning because it allows students to work together to build on collaborative skills. They will learn decision making skills and the importance of interdependence as well as how to provide valuable and insightful feedback.

Simulation and games can offer students the opportunity to participate in authentic tasks which address real-world issues that may be relevant to them individually. “Serious games” may be used to help students develop a sense of what it is like in the real-world, allowing them to take train and hone necessary skills in a safe setting.

Non-linguistic representation allows students to demonstrate their understanding to a greater depth. This strategy affords students another way to acquire and store knowledge. It helps them to recognize related topics, generate and organize ideas, and recall what they have learned.

 Sources: 

Barron, B. (2208). Teaching for meaningful learning. Retrieved from

      http://www.edutopia.org/pdfs/edutopia-teaching-for-meaningful-  

      learning.pdf

Focus on effectiveness: research-based strategies. (2005). Retrieved Feb. 26, 2012, from

   http://www.netc.org/focus/strategies/summ.php

Double Journal Entry # 7

What "dominant paradigm" is showing signs of wear?  The old pattern or idea that the ideal instructional model is: teachers and textbooks (the source of all information) convey the information through lecture reading, discussion etc. Any type of innovative learning is absent in this environment.

 According to the research, how does Project-Based Learning support student learning better than traditional approaches? Describe three benefits and cite the studies.  Project-Based Learning helps students develop the higher order thinking skills by requiring them to engage in more meaningful and complex tasks that reflect authentic experiences that they will encounter in the real world. Three benefits of Project-Based Learning are: gains in factual learning that are equivalent or superior to those of students who engage in traditional forms of instruction (Shepherd Study), students perform better with conceptual problems (Boaler study), it enables students to transfer their learning to new kinds of situations and problems and to use knowledge more proficiently in performance situation and increases in students’ ability to define problems (Gallagher, Stephen, & Rosenthal).

  According to the research, how does Problem-Based Learning support student learning better than traditional approaches? Describe three benefits and cite the studies. Problem-Based Learning supports student learning better because the problems are more realistic allowing students to solve problems in a variety of ways. Students can also reflect upon their work from multiple perspectives. Problem-Based Leaning supports flexible problem solving, application of knowledge, and hypothesis generation. Three benefits of Problem-Based Learning are: Case-based approaches help students learn to analyze complex and multifaceted situations, they help guide decision making, and they help learners apply theory to practical knowledge. Studies within the medical field, business, law, and teacher education bring these benefits to light.

 According to the research, how does Learning by Design support student learning better than traditional approaches? Describe three benefits and cite the studies.  Learning by design supports student learning better than traditional approaches because it supports repetition and revision and it allows students to create, assess, and redesign their projects. It promotes collaboration and specific roles for students that allow them to “shine” in particular areas. Three benefits of Learning by Design are: Better learner outcomes, better understandings of complex systems (Hello, Holton, and Colander), a positive effect on motivation and sense of ownership over designs among both individuals and groups (Fortes and colleagues).

 What are the differences between the three approaches? Project-Based Learning- designed with a project or product in mind, requires research and designing and creating an end product. Problem-Based Learning- Students are presented with a problem and must plan, call upon prior knowledge and organize new information. Learning by Design- Students design and create an artifact, revising as necessary with the goal of becoming “experts”.

In your opinion, what is the most important benefit to learning that is common across the three types of inquiry-based learning approaches? I feel the most important benefit to learning that is common across all three types is the allowing for real-world practice and application. This will only serve to benefit students in the future. Often, students complain don't see a connection between what they are being taught and how they will ever use it in the future. This is very discouraging for them. Real-world application is great for building both skills and confidence.

Source:

Barron, B. (2208). Teaching for meaningful learning. Retrieved from

      http://www.edutopia.org/pdfs/edutopia-teaching-for-meaningful-learning.pdf

                                              

Research Based Strategies: Summarizing and Note Taking

          I feel that summarizing and note taking are truly essential to the success of students. I take notes meticulously. I find it extremely helpful when I can look at my notes and find the essential information needed to either prepare for a test or just familiarize myself with the concepts discussed.  

          I do not think that these are skills that come automatically for most students. Summarizing and note taking, for the most part, requires the student to be able to discern and pull out the most important bits of information from a text or a lecture. Then they must learn how to make these notes meaningful to them in a personal way.

          The article states that summarizing and notes taking “includes analyzing information, identifying key concepts, and defining extraneous information”. (“Summarizing and Note Taking”, 2005) What does a student do, however, if he/she is not an effective note taker? What if he/she was never instructed on how to take notes? The student, unfortunately, would most likely get lost in the quagmire of information and just give up. This article asserts that teachers should be instilling these valuable skills in their students. Sadly, however, most teachers just assume that students can do this on their own and these skills are never addressed.

          The PowerPoint activity did not really support the strategy of summarizing and note taking. If we are assuming that this is a new activity for the students, then the students should have received some instruction ahead of time on how to use PowerPoint and should have been allowed to take notes throughout the whole process to which they could refer (or even study and practice with). Yes, the students were presented with notes (instructions really) that the teacher had developed; but if the students had been allowed to use their own notes on how to navigate and use PowerPoint, perhaps they would not have felt so lost and confused.

          How could this activity have been modified to reflect the research based strategy of summarizing and note taking? The teacher could have given one or more very similar activities to the students and walked them through each step, allowing the students to take notes as needed. The students could have used their notes and modify them each time they went through the process. As stated in the article, the teacher should be encouraging the students to review and refine their notes and even encourage the students to use pictures, symbols, and diagrams when taking notes. These techniques would have been particularly effective for this assignment.

Summarizing and note taking. (2005). Retrieved Feb. 19, 2012, from

   http://www.netc.org/focus/strategies/summ.php

Double Journal Entry # 6

Speaker 1

1. Why is this video helpful for teaching in West Virginia? This video is helpful for teaching In West Virginia because the research-based strategies mentioned in the video extend to anyone who speaks and writes in everyday language different than Standard English.

2. What evidence is presented that supports the credibility of the speaker? Rebecca Wheeler is an Associate Professor of English Language and Literature and co-author of the book “Code Switching”. She is a literacy consultant for the National Council for Teachers of English; she has a BA from the University of Virginia and an MS from Georgetown, and a PHD for the University of Chicago in linguistics.

3. Describe the traditional approach to responding to student writing. The traditional approach is to respond by finding and correcting errors in student writing. Teachers often focus on what the student is not doing

4. Why does the traditional approach not work in improving student writing? The traditional approach does not work because with this approach the teacher is too busy looking at what they are not doing and not really looking at what the student IS doing. However, these issues are following the students up through the grades; therefore it obviously does not work.

5. Name the 3 stages associated with the linguistic approach to writing instruction? Applying the scientific method to grammar discovery, contrastive analysis (comparing and contrasting in order to discover the pattern of formal English), and using code switching as Meta cognition

6. How do you know the cat and Taylor go together? The pattern of the owner and what they own. The pattern is owner + what they own (informal) or owner + ‘s + what they own (formal)

7. What is the difference between the two patterns of possessives for informal and formal English? The difference is that the pattern for formal English requires another step  ( + and ‘s)

8. What strategy is being used for teaching the second grade students the different patterns between informal and formal English? Comparing and contrasting or looking for what changed between the two patterns.

9. Describe how the scientific method is used to teach students to code switch. The students look at the pattern, collect data, observe data and seek a pattern, hypothesize and then check and revise

10. What question is being asked to engage students in the comparison and contrast strategy? The teacher asked them “What has changed?”  The students will recognize a pattern by realizing elements of the pattern that are different.

 11. How does code switching support Meta cognition?  When students begin to think about what they know, they begin to realize what they need to do. They use this Meta cognition to learn code switching. They will own the language and chose the language to fit the setting.

12. What evidence is presented that the code switching approach works? Describe one of the studies.  (Taylor 1991) In this study where Taylor built two composition classrooms during the course of one semester.  One used the traditional approach and there was an 8% increase in vernacular features. The other used the comparison approach and produced a 59% decrease.

Speaker 2

1. How did the students respond when asked how the felt about being corrected when they talked? Mostly they felt angry, stupid and confused. They did not feel they were being helped at all.

2. Give an example of a “fund of knowledge” the teacher drew on to help students learn to code switch. The teacher used the idea of dressing up (formal) and not dressing up (informal) or formal and informal places to help them understand the connection to code switching.

3. What are some added benefits from raising test scores that stem from using contrastive analysis? Some added benefits include student realization that though we may all speak differently, it does not reflect their intelligence.  Students will also begin to identify patterns in everyday life and use comparative/ contrastive skills to recognize differences.

Now:

Explain how contrastive analysis for writing is an example of each of these research-based strategies.

Generating and testing hypothesis:  Contrastive analysis is used to generate good questions, make predictions, and look at the results, identify patterns and use the results to solve/correct.

Identifying difference and similarity: Contrastive analysis is used to compare things that are similar and contrast things that are different. This allows them to make more complicated cognitive connections.

PhotoStory Where I am from rough draft

Double Journal Entry # 5

What does research say about the impact of negative teacher attitudes about students’ ethnicity and language variations on student learning?

Studies show that the attitudes that a teacher has toward students from different ethnicities and students whose are “linguistically diverse”, whether intentional or not, is not only conveyed to his/her students but it also affects the way the teacher teaches and assesses the students and performance of the students themselves. That is to say, a positive and open attitude can lead to positive outcomes and performances from the students. Negative attitudes on the other hand, can lead to lack of interest/enthusiasm for learning and poor attitudes from the students.

What are some assessment pitfalls?

First of all, teacher stereotypes affect how they choose to assess their students. This means that attitudes toward students can affect how assessments are prepared, how they are carried out, what the teacher may or may not expect of the students etc. Also, teachers may lack the confidence that he or she is capable of preparing adequate assessments. Ultimately, this becomes quite a problem for the students.

What 3 approaches can be used to transform students’ dialectal diversity into an asset (funds of knowledge) rather than a liability (cultural deficit)?

1. The Awareness Approach: This approach attempt to study dialects and their origin and encouraging expression in areas such as music composition. Also, this dialect is examined in comparison to “standard English”.

2. Critical Pedagogy: This approach asserts that language is tightly intertwined with the culture of the student. Therefore, the focus is on changing the social order instead of expecting the student to make changes that will allow them to blend in to the current social order.

3. The Critical Awareness Approach: This approach is a combination of the first two approaches. While students are taught “standard English”, they are also taught to celebrate their non-standard dialect as a reflection of their culture and are given the opportunity to find constructive ways to play on the strengths of that dialect.

How prepared do you feel to teach in a culturally diverse classroom?

I feel like I keep telling myself that this will not be as much of an issue in this particular area. I realize, however, that cultural diversity in the classroom is on the rise. Though I may not feel like I have ALL of the training that I need in this area, I am planning on treating every one of my students the same, not labeling or stereotyping them but attempting to teach each and every one of them in a way that is best to help them learn. In other words, I want every child to succeed and I am open to trying whatever it takes to make that happen

First Draft of "Where I am From" poem

I am from the old dairy farm
I am from rolling hills and lush valleys
and watching summer storms from my back porch

I am from a long dirt road
I am from honeysuckle days and firefly nights
and a dog named Kitty, who was my best friend


I am from Billy Joel, "The Outsiders" and "The Color Purple"

From Barbies and Big Wheels
and my mother's crazy Halloween costumes

I am from Price and Vincent
From the strength and dignity of my mother
and the quiet morality of my father

I am from cops and robbers with my brother
Superman and Wonder Woman together
Worst enemies ant yet great friends
I am from aunt Paula
Who always loved me like her own

I am from heartbreak.....and loss
But I am also from triumph
and discovering new talents

I am from my children and they are from me
I am from faith
and the promise of a better love

I am from everything
Everyone who has touched my life
and shaped who I am

I am from continuing to grow......