August 3

2 Days of Relationships Building – But, why?

A colleague of mine once taught in a school where teachers received a directive to spend the first two days of school working exclusively on relationships.   Why?

Yale educated child psychologist James Comer claimed that “no significant learning can occur without a significant relationship.”  I believe that truth and hold it as a personal value.  Might I suggest, however, that relationships are even MORE important now than in generations past?  

If you haven’t noticed there has been a MONUMENTAL shift in education.  After all, for most of the history of American schooling has been centered around providing, what was deemed, important information.  In the era of the internet, students find themselves with a plentiful supply of information.   It is readily available at overwhelming quantities and speed.  That being said, the lower parts of Bloom’s Taxonomy are becoming increasingly less relevant.  Rather, the world and workplace demands we ask students to engage with information at much higher levels.   Consider the 4 Cs of the 21st Century Skills and how they might influence the value of interpersonal relationships in the classroom.

Collaboration  I’m sure when the great minds behind the Partnership for 21st Century Learning formulated the 21st Century Skills, they did not simply intend for students to sit in close approximation while independently looking at their phones or working on their projects.  Rather, they envisioned lively debate, discussion, and a greater product for having worked together.  Asking students to engage at this level is no easy task.  However it begins with building relationships.  After all, I do not risk sharing ideas, let alone dare to disagree with others, if I do not feel the trust and safety to do so.  Think of your best collaborative piece of work.  Did you accomplish it with virtual strangers? OR people with whom you shared a trusting relationship?

Critical Thinking  In the CCSS Mathematical Practices, this might manifest itself in the 3rd Mathematical Practice which includes “critiquing the reasoning of others.”  Yep!  I’m not doing that! I don’t feel comfortable correcting the work of a complete stranger.  Might they be offended?  Will I look like a know it all?  The safety to do so, my fellow educators, is a culture we must build in our classrooms.  We must communicate to students that whether they be right or wrong, we debate ideas.  This is a safe place to do so.  We must have an engineering mindset.  Let’s share ideas and then improve upon them with each iteration!

Creativity Let’s face it–we need people to find solutions to serious problems we face.   Information is not the problem.  We need people who can look at them with a new and creative lens.  That being said, some ideas will sound crazy–until they are crazy good. Someone will have to be the first to throw the spaghetti on the wall to see if it sticks.  After all, Rutherford B. Hayes scoffed at Alexander Graham Bell’s telephone, saying “Who would ever want to use such a thing!”   Your classroom has to be a safe place to openly share ideas.  Oftentimes, the most creative people are often the most quiet in the classroom.  Getting them to speak and risk the sharing of ideas, will take some cajoling on both the part of the teacher and encouraging peers.  We must daily put relational deposits in the emotional bank of introverts.

Communication After 23 1/2 years of marriage, I think my husband and I have mastered communication.  It took about 10 of those years for us to really make it work.  It’s getting more difficult now that we are both older and our hearing is waning.  It is not unusual to hear one of us screaming “What?” from another room.  That being said, communication is one of the most relevant skills for one’s personal and work life.  It allows us to deeply know and understand another person and their ideas.  It also helps us to accurately communicate our thoughts and feelings, in order to avoid the unnecessary and emotionally draining drama of being misunderstood.  That being said, face-to-face communication is becoming a lost art.  I’m not judging.  I, too, have caught the smart phone bug.   As educators, we must realize as information has become more accessible, opportunities for our students to engage in face-to-face communication is decreasing at alarming rates; and not without consequence.   Our classrooms are a laboratory for practicing this essential life skill to build both empathy and understanding.   On this particular “C”  I would say the needs are flip-flopped.  You don’t need relationships to build communication as much as you need communication to build relationships.

So, let’s start there.  Let’s communicate with our students and give  them ample time to communicate thoughts and ideas with one another.  We can teach them the art of active listening, talk moves in response and academic risk taking.  It’s an exciting time to be a teacher, but the demands are different.  Let’s teach them the 4 Cs in the context of our content.  Let them talk about math, create solutions to the world’s science-related problems, let them communicate their thoughts and ideas about the Civil Rights Movement.  All of this will happen more powerfully if we invest in the building of relationships.

If you’re on board but you want some new ideas on how to build those relationships…I’m working on that post next!  If you have ideas, please share!  Just for fun, here’s a fun 4 Cs Poster for your classroom from the Partnership for 21st Century Learning.

References 

Curley, R. (2010). The 100 Most Influential Innovators of All Time. New York, NY: Britannical Educational Publishing .

Scherer, M. (1998, December). Is school the place for spirituality? A conversation with Rabbi Harold KushnerEducational Leadership, 56(4), 18–22.

 

 

July 30

My 8 Pillars of Assessment–for now…

I am instructional coach and challenging thoughts about practice because “that’s what we’ve always done” is part of my job.  I start with my own.  I’m a product of 16 years of traditional US education and, let me tell you, I was GREAT at it.  I loved grades.  They were part of my identity:  hard working, law abiding, bright girl.  How many of my views about grading came simply from my experience?

Assessment is a hot topic at school.  People are asking good questions, but change is scary–and we don’t want to change things for the worse!  It’s time for a thoughtful look at assessment.  To that end, I spent the summer taking an online course on assessment.   My last assignment was to develop my personal philosophy of assessment.

  1.  Grades should measure student performance towards achieving the standards and not behaviors.  To that end, standards must be made clear to students and should be an integral part of the instructional process.  Students learn best what they are expected to learn is clear and they can assess their own progress towards the goal.  That being said, grades should be assigned at the end of learning, that is, for summative assessments, alone.  In addition, since behaviors have nothing to do with the standards, including them in the grade would taint the accuracy of the measure.  Such behaviors include, but are not limited to, late work, absenteeism, and cheating.  Those behaviors deserve a behavioral consequence.
  2. Students should be given ample opportunities to demonstrate their learning.  The shop for learning should remain open as long as is feasibly possible for the teacher and student.  That is, I believe in retakes at any time.  I believe students must earn the right to retake by showing they have done sufficient work to be able to demonstrate mastery for the standard that they were unable to perform previously.  I believe in using a four point scale over 100 since there is greater inter-rater reliability.
  3. Frequent, clear and positive feedback and student reflection are essential to learning.  Formative assessment should be ungraded, provide feedback that a student can act upon, and positive in nature.  It is our instinct to find errors and correct them, and that is important.  However, feedback, particularly in standards that are demonstrated best by writing or presentation, can actually be more powerful when a teacher highlights the strengths of the student’s performance and then make suggestions towards improvement.  Formative feedback may be simply a conversation between teacher and student (conferencing) or can be written feedback on a formative assessment.  Providing time and a structure for student reflection towards his/her own progress towards the standard is a powerful tool for the future, teaching students how to monitor their own learning throughout their lives.
  4. When it comes to standards, less is more.  US math text books contain 175% of the number of German standards and 350% of what Japanese texts cover.  Both countries outperform the US in math (Schmoker).  That being said, we should carefully select which standards are essential for student learning and report on those standards alone.   If time is prioritized to treat each standard with due diligence, students will be able to access the standard at a level of greater understanding and rigor.
  5. Standards should be assessed at an appropriate level of Depth of Knowledge.  If the standard is “to make inferences,” for example, simply identifying a correct inference from a select response item is not asking students to perform the standard as intended.  Rather, asking students to read a passage and then, make an inference providing evidence for their reasoning from the text, is better suited to the standard.
  6. Assessment is best when it is authentic.   For example, asking students to compare and contrast two different systems of government is best done in either a presentation or written form, not a standardized multiple choice test.  When assessing speaking and listening skills, students should be assessed performing those skills in a manner they might be expected to in the future—before a real audience outside the classroom would be even more powerful and would motivate students.   Standards should be assessed more than once and by a variety of means.  In fact, a standard assessed by three different means is ideal and is referred to as a “triangulation of data.”  In addition to written exams, portfolios, blogs, videos, essays, presentations, projects are all viable methods of assessment.
  7. Growth mindset goes hand in hand with standards based assessment.  Students must know that all formative work is to prepare them to master the target.  The focus should be on learning and not on “point getting.”  Initially failing to meet a standard while learning, is expected and normal.  In addition, allowing students to retake assessments in order to improve their performance provides hope and motivation for them to continue to learn.
  8. Differentiation is important for student learning.  That being said, students who are working toward standards that are above or below his/her grade level standard is appropriate, but should be denoted when reporting out to universities.   High school level students who are working towards grade school standards should be measured against those standards alone.  However, it should be noted that they are working at grade 6 standards, for example, on their report card.  Likewise, students taking courses that require students to master more difficult or additional standards should be rewarded as well.  This has traditionally happened through a GPA bump.   **Note:  I’m not sure how grades for special needs students are reported at my school.  This are my thoughts alone.

This is my CURRENT philosophy on assessment.  It is organic and a work in progress.  I’d love to hear from you–feedback?  Questions?  Thoughts?

Bibliography

Schmoker, M. J. (2011). Focus: elevating the essentials to radically improve student learning. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

September 11

Time Flies When You’re Having Fun!

“What?  Class is almost over?” 

If I heard that from a student, I knew that we were heading in the right direction.  Psychologists call it “flow.”  I’m sure you’ve experienced it.  That moment when you realized that you’ve lost several hours because you became so caught up in your work or play.  Mihály Csíkszentmihályi, who is most identified with Flow Theory described  “flow” as  “An optimal psychological state that people experience when engaged in an activity that is both appropriately challenging to one’s skill level, often resulting in immersion and concentrated focus on a task. This can result in deep learning and high levels of personal and work satisfaction.”

Yes!  “High levels of personal and work satisfaction.”  Exactly!  But how do we get our students to a state of flow?  Here are a few thoughts I’ve been tossing around:

Give the students the PlayDoh.  Let me explain.  I think that the content we hope to impart to our students IS the PlayDoh.  If we hold it in front of the room, explain how it feels, describe its general shape and color, our students will learn a few things about it.  Imagine, instead, that we give them each their own PlayDoh.  They feel it in their hands, pull it to see how far it will stretch, create new things out of it, then surely they will have a greater sense of what they are holding in their hands.  They may get so caught up with it, they forget to pack up their bags before the bell rings.  That’s flow!

Plan the party.  Okay, is it wrong to have two metaphors in one post?  Well, I’m gonna…When you plan a party you need to create an environment of structured freedom.  That may sound like an oxymoron.  You wouldn’t invite 10 eight year olds to a party and say “Have at it!”  They might get bored or worse-naughty!  We plan games, activities and we manage them loosely so as to not be the party police.  We structure the play, but let them play!

Likewise, in order to send students in the right direction and give them an opportunity to play with our content in a productive way, we have to use some sound research-based structures:  collaboration (“Let’s talk about the Playdoh and make a plan to build something great.”), asking higher order thinking questions (“What impact has Playdoh had on children around the world?”),  and graphic organizers (“How does this Playdoh experience relate to other information I know?”).    One caveat:  Your activities must be “appropriately challenging to one’s skill level.”  Be mindful of that when you’re planning the party.  You wouldn’t plan a rollerskating party for toddlers.  You wouldn’t, right?

Watch it unfold.  Usually it looks busy.   It can be loud.  It’s marked by “high levels of personal and work satisfaction.” Personally, this is the point where I find greatest joy in my teaching.  Ironically, students oftentimes forget you are there. Don’t feel as though you aren’t working.  You’ve done amazing work behind the scenes, Party Planner!  As long as they have “Playdoh” in their hands and they are talking about it, writing about it and playing with it.  Your mission is accomplished!  They’ll be late to their next class because they lost track of time.  That’s okay.  Your class wins!  They’ll be sad the party’s over.

References 

Flow (Csíkszentmihályi) – Learning Theories. (2016). Retrieved September 11, 2016, from https://www.learning-theories.com/flow-csikszentmihalyi.html

 

 

 

September 28

My 10 Commandments of Teaching and Learning

This year I have a student teacher.  She’s fabulous–eager, positive, motivated!  One of her assignments was to ask my partner in crime and I about our “philosophy of teaching.”  I told her, “Actually–I wrote a paper as an assignment for a graduate class I took several years ago!”  Bringing it up again, it remains true today.  I have changed A LOT of things about my instructional strategies but these values I still hold true.

  1. Students must believe that you care.  By way of introduction, in my class, I tell all students that I am a member of their team.  Their success is my success and vice versa.  It is amazing to me that any student would think that a teacher is “out to get them.”  I want my students to believe that, more than anything, I want them to shine.  If I can get each one of them to believe that he or she is my favorite, I’ve done just that!
  2. Active students are thinking students.  Although I avoid lecture as much as absolutely possible, there are times when I believe direct instruction is the clearest method of instruction.  I want students to be sorting, moving, thinking, describing, hypothesizing…active!
  3. Never waste a minute.  In my classroom, everyone (including me) is working hard from bell to bell.  There is so much to think about and discuss, I don’t want to waste even a minute…and I don’t!  When students say that my class is the fastest class in the day, I know that I must be doing something right.  After all, time flies when you’re having fun.
  4. Students want to succeed.  Many of my colleagues have said that students don’t care.  They are lazy and uncooperative.  On the contrary, every student I have ever had has wanted to learn.  Some students have become experts at masking the desire to learn because they’ve been unsuccessful for so long, it is easier to pretend like you don’t care than to admit failure.  I truly believe that if students are convinced that you believe they can learn, they’ll start believing, too.
  5. Students have learned when they can show you they have learned.  Over the years I have become a huge advocate of the use of exit slips.  In my class, I refer to them as the “Ticket to Leave.”  I tie the question strictly to the objective for the day.  The exit slips have become an accurate litmus test regarding the success or failure of all of my instruction.  I also love being able to have one on one contact with each and every student.
  6. Be silly!  Though I am, without a doubt, a type A person, I am also very silly—particularly in front of my students.  When I let my guard down, so do they and we become like family.  By the end of each year, I truly love my students and I’m convinced I will never love another group as much…that is, until next year.
  7. Love what you do and you’ll never work a day in your life.  I’m not sure who first coined the phrase, but I believe it!  Shhh!  Don’t tell my boss, but there are days that I think I’d do my job for free.  Everyday, I have eager students with a desire to learn and provide me with more encouragement that any person deserves.  I hope my students can find a similar passion in life.
  8. Everything that is self-fulfilling follows hard work.  I might have been a Puritan in another life.  I believe in a hard day’s work and feeling good after a hard day’s work. Sure, my students can take an easy class where they can simply breathe and earn an A or they can challenge themselves.  Though it may require more work, in the end, the payoff is a better education and the ability to think critically.
  9. Model good character.  I’m certainly not perfect, nor do I pretend to be.  However, I believe maturity is measured by progress in the qualities of goodness, honesty, integrity and humility.  In addition to the Pythagorean Theorem Corollary, I would hope my students would walk away from my classroom with a lesson on these critical character traits.
  10. Praise!  Praise!  Praise!  While I don’t feel students should receive hollow compliments, a thoughtful word of encouragement can change someone’s life.  Critics of this generation say that they’ve received too much praise.  I disagree.  The truth is that the world regularly beats us down.  We never feel smart or attractive enough.  Insecurity is the unfortunate mantra of every teenager.  During a time when parent-child relationships are strained, an uplifting word from a trusted adult is just what the doctor ordered!

How about you?  What would you add as one of your Ten Commandments?