Meta-Reflection: American Education Past and Present

Before taking this course, I had a limited knowledge of the history of education from some classes that I had taken during my undergraduate studies.  EDU6120 American Education Past and Present traced the history of education in America.  This class addressed Standard 12 of Professional Citizenship which states, “Willingly engages in dialogue that transcends the individual classroom, taking informed, coherent positions on important matters of educational policy and practice” (Curriculum and Instruction Program Standards, 2012).  As I traced American education from the 1600s to today in this class, I was able to see that many of the political, moral, and social principles that guide me in my job today have been foundational to the decisions that have brought us to where we are today.  In addition, the central challenges that I face as an educator are not new to me today and in fact are greatly lessened to what educators and students have faced throughout the history of American education.

One of the original purposes of education that still exists today is economic and citizenship preparation.  “Education in a democracy, both within and without the school, should develop in each individual the knowledge, interests, ideas, habits, and powers whereby he will find his place and use the place to shape both himself and society toward ever nobler ends” (Fraser, 2010, p. 167). Education should prepare students for a future career and to be active participants in our government.

Horace Mann was the founder of the common school. Mann wanted to systematize the government so that schools are equal.  He believed that if children received an education, they could become leaders.  Mann wanted education to be equal and to accomplish this aided by the state (Urban & Wagoner, 2009, p. 123).  This began the battle between state vs. school district.  I think that this still exists today as we consider the Common Core and other state standards that all schools in the state follow (Cavanagh, 2012).  I think that schools can be most successful when there is a balance.  Every school shouldn’t reinvent the wheel all the time but it is important that each school district and more specifically school meets the individual needs of their students.

Not everyone agreed with Mann’s ideas.  One group that was not for this universal schooling was Catholics (Urban & Wagoner, 2009, p. 132).  They felt that teachers looked down at their students in the classroom.  Textbooks were against Catholics and the schools were using the Bible as a textbook, which the Catholics believed only the priest should read and interpret.  “For these reasons, and others of the same kind, you petitioners cannot, in conscience, and consistently with their sense of duty to God, and their offspring, entrust the Public School Society with the office of giving ‘a right direction to the mind of their children’” (Fraser, 2010, p. 71).

In my Educational Platform, I outline what I believe the purpose of education is as well as how this is supported and influenced by historical and contemporary thinkers.

Throughout the history of education, there have been many reform movements that the system has gone through.  One of the big issues in education has been who should have access to education.  While everyone is now guaranteed access to a free education, equality is still something that we need to fight for.  One of the key social principles that guides my teaching is equality of opportunity.  I want to make sure that each of my students receives an equal chance to access information as they move through their educational careers. Unfortunately, this was not the case in the history of American education and is not always the case the today.  By the 1950s, the Civil Rights movement had begun and people were beginning to fight to have desegregated schools.  “We conclude that in the field of public education the doctrine of ‘separate but equal’ has no place.  Separate educational facilities are inherently unequal” (Urban & Wagoner, 2009, p. 341).  This famous quote was from the Brown vs. the Board of Education case, the famous ruling that ended segregation in schools, legally at least.  However this did not end segregation or racism.

References

Meta-Reflection: Instructional Technology

We are teaching classrooms of “digital natives,” more familiar than any other group of students that we have seen so far with the most current technology (Blanchard & Farstrup, 2011, p. 286).  Teaching in a technology-rich district, I am blessed to have access to a lot of technology to use in my classroom.  We have ActivBoards, Activotes, document cameras, a Learning Management System, and this year all of our students received their own laptops to use for school.  However, before taking EDTC6536, I did not know about the NETS-S standards and how I could integrate them into what I am doing in my classroom along side the content standards that I already address.

After taking the self assessment and learning more about the NETS-T and NETS-S, I noticed that I was using technology as a one-way outlet of communication with my classes.  I posted weekly schedules and attached assignments on our Learning Management System.  I used PowerPoints in class to show the daily schedule and review vocabulary and grammar concepts, but there was no back and forth.  My students were using technology to type papers or create PowerPoints for presentations but again these get turned out to be like a paper rather than changing and transforming through collaboration. I realized through this class that I wanted technology to be more interactive in my classroom.  I wanted to use it to engage students in conversation, giving and receiving feedback, and taking assessments using technology. This course focused on Standard 10 Technology which states, “Integrates current technology into instruction and professional communication/collaboration activities where appropriate.” (Curriculum and Instruction Program Standards, 2012). During this course, I focused specifically on using technology for collaboration as evidenced in this overview of the way that I integrated what I was learning in the course into my classroomIn EDTC6538, we were exposed to different technologies each week.  We not only saw how they were used, but we also took the time try them out.  Our class sessions were centered around the topics such as communication, presentation, collaboration, and creativity guided by the NETS-S and NETS-T.  Through this class, I created a podcast, a glogster, a video, a prezi presentation and a wiki.  Before trying them out myself, I was unsure of how I would use them in my classroom and I hadn’t taken the time to explore them.  After familiarizing myself with theses mediums, I took these tools into my classroom.  My students participated in discussion boards, surveys, online homework assignments, and collaborated on a wiki to create a presentation for class.  It was cool to see what I was learning about put into practice in my classroom.

Since taking this class, I have continued to integrate technology into my class as I have gained experience and resources.  This year my students each received their own laptop for school use, which made technology in and outside of school much more accessible to all of my students.  Benefits of this program include increased communication, problem solving, critical thinking, accountability, individuality, and data (Blanchard & Farstrup, 2011, p. 304).  At the beginning of the year, we talked about how to use online tools as well as digital citizenship.  This helped to set up my classroom for success as I integrated technology into my classroom.

“Research indicated that the use of technology can best affect student learning when learning goals are clearly stated beforehand (Pitler, Hubbell, & Kuhn, 2012, p. 3).  I now tie our learning activities both to the content standards and to the NETS standards.  For example as students worked on their Social Studies Classroom Based Assessments, they were hitting the Social Studies standards that states “I can describe key ideals and principles outlined in the Declaration of Independence, including life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” (“Social Studies,” 2012) and the NETS standard which states “I can locate, organize, analyze, evaluate, and ethically use information from a variety of sources and media” (“NETS,” 2012).

I have used our Learning Management System for assessments, discussion boards, and as a place to give and receive feedback.  Our French curriculum has an online textbook so students are able to access this on their laptops and get immediate feedback on activities in the textbook as well as hear the pronunciation of the vocabulary and watch videos that support the content.  I also project this in front of the classroom every day as I am teaching.  The Learning Management System has helped me to integrate technology into my assessments.  I use this especially for pre-assessments, formative assessments, and reflections to get a quick gauge of students’ understanding of the learning targets.  This helps me to know when to go on and when additional review is needed.

References

Meta-Reflection: Educating Exceptional Students

As part of my teaching assignment, I frequently attend IEP and 504 meetings with parents, students, teachers and counselors.  I use IEP goals to make instructional decisions for students with the help of the student’s special ed teacher.  However, before taking EDSP6644 Educating Exceptional Students, I had a limited understanding of specific disabilities and while I modified assignments and followed IEP/504 guidelines for extra time and support, I had a narrow range of ideas for accomplishing this.  In this class, I learned about specific disabilities and how I could help students with these disabilities better access the information.  This course focused on Standard 8 Exceptionality which states, “Addresses the unique learning and behavioral needs of all children, collaborating with other educators and professionals where necessary” (Curriculum and Instruction Program Standards, 2012).

One disability that I was very interested in and chose to study in more depth while taking this course was autism.  My interest in autism has been peaked over the last couple of years because there is a high number of students who are on the autism spectrum at my school.  “Autism is a developmental disability described as significantly affecting verbal communication, non-verbal communication, and social interaction, thereby influencing the child’s educational performance (Lewis & Doorlag, 2011, p. 265).  1/110 of people between the ages of 0 and 21 has been diagnosed with autism; however half of these cases are mild forms of the disability (Isbell, 2011).  This year my 7^th grade LA/SS students read a book called Rules in which the main character has autism.  Before we began the book, we explored autism through videos, articles, personal experiences and the autism specialist from our school district came and spoke to my class. Please take a look at this artifact to see some of the activities that my class participated in before beginning this unit.  This course helped me be prepared to lead a discussion like this in my classroom.

I also learned how important it is to consider student’s development and how it affects instruction.  Jean Piaget researched and developed a theory about intellectual development and the stages that people move through.  He found that children move on at different rates of development, but there is an order to the progression.  He created a list of stages that each has natural distinctions (Crain, 2011).  “Piaget believed that at each period there is a general correspondence between scientific and social thinking” (Crain, 2011, p. 133).  Because students move through these stages at different paces, it is important to be aware of this as a teacher and work to meet the needs of individual students.  This will help to make students aware of what they need and what their reactions mean to help them understand and maintain control of themselves.

Evidence of my understanding and growth through this course can be seen through an example of the work that I have done with a student who has a 504.  Earlier in the year, I attended a 504 meeting with her mom, her counselor, and her other general education teachers.  This student has been diagnosed with ADHD but does not take medication.  She has trouble with concentration, task completion and organization.  I had offered her a variety of supports but I found that she was often resistant to work during class.

I anticipated that she may have problems with the most recent essay in which students were to describe an upcoming break or holiday and what they were going to do during that time in French.  I predicted that she would have trouble generating ideas and organizing her ideas into sentences and paragraphs, but I wanted her to begin on her own.  I allowed her to begin with the prewrite and as I circulated the room, I noticed that she was having trouble coming up with ideas.  I sat down with her and asked her some questions to help her get ideas flowing but most questions led to dead ends and I noticed that the noisy environment of the classroom was distracting for her.  Before beginning this project, I created a paragraph helper to help students like her come up with ideas and organize their essays.  I presented this to her and her spirits perked.  I found a quiet place for her to work and she quickly began to work on this, filling in the blanks with a great sense of accomplishment.  She completed this and was able to create a rough draft and final draft and submit it on time with the other students.  I could sense that she had great pride in her work.  “The major approach to adapting instruction for students with ADHD is to increase the structure of the classroom learning environment.  In addition, the teacher attempts to decrease the source of distraction within the room, and at the same time, make learning maters and activities more powerful so they will attract and sustain the students’ attention” (Lewis & Doorlag, 2011, p. 207).  This is a model that I will continue to use with this student as we work through the next chapters.

References

Meta-Reflection: Assessment

I was excited to begin EDU 6613 Standards-based Assessment because this is the direction that our school district is going but I began the class with a limited understanding of standards-based assessment and Common Core Standards. Before taking this class, I read Formative Assessment & Standards-Based Grading by Robert J. Marzano as a part of a course offered through my school district to prepare us for this transition.  This book got me interested in this grading system and helped me understand the rational, but I was excited to try it out through this course.  This course focused on Standard 5 Assessment which states, “Assess students’ mastery of curriculum and modifies instruction to maximize learning” (Curriculum and Instruction Program Standards, 2012).  Through this class I was able to learn more about the benefits of this grading system as well as understand how to implement the learning into my classroom. “Grades should be effective communication vehicles, and the method used to determine them need to provide optimum opportunities for student success and to encourage learning” (O”Connor, 2010, p. 47).

This year we have been receiving trainings about the Common Core and Standards-based Assessments and we have been given some time to implement our learning.  The 7^th Grade LA team met to create Standards-based assessments based on the Common Core Standards before we began to teach the book Freak the Mighty.  By taking a look at our meeting notes and the unit we created, you can see how we implemented our learning about Common Core Standards and Standards-based Assessments into our classrooms.

This unit will last five weeks and for each chunk of text students will describe the setting, characters, plot, conflict, and make connections.  They will answer a question for each selection based on the learning target.  The learning targets will focus on elements of the story, character relationships, and making connections to oneself and the world.  In addition, they will explore vocabulary needed for this selection.  They will demonstrate their learning through a vocabulary quiz and a Lit Circle in addition to the formative work that they are doing as they read the selection.  These activities will give students multiple opportunities to demonstrate their understanding.  Marzano (2010) says, “In general, student achievement benefits when assessment is given relatively frequently as opposed to infrequently” (Chapter 1, Paragraph 6).  By creating multiple ways for our students to demonstrate their understanding throughout the unit, we are setting our students up to succeed and walk away with a greater understanding because they are able to receive frequent feedback.

Through this class, I learned a lot about learning targets, formative assessments, and Standards-based grading.  I believe that that clear learning targets help students understand where they are going and why they are headed there.  Chappuis, Stiggins, Chappuis, and Arter (2012) compare learning targets to a GPS system.  “Just as the GPS we use in our cars relies on an accurate map to accomplish its task, effective formative and summative assessment depends on the clear roadmap to important learning that a good curriculum provides” (p. 42).  I heard this described last year in a course called “Checking for Understanding” that I took through my school district on formative assessment. I applied this by creating Learning Target Roadmaps for my students so that they can see where were are and where we are headed.  Throughout this journey, I check for understanding so I know what I need to reteach and when I can move on.  A big move that we are making next year as we move to standards-based assessments is having a rubric or a criteria to justify the grade that we give to our students.  The second guideline that O’Connor gives in his book How to Grade for Learning is “Use criterion-referenced performance standards as a reference point to determine grades” (O’Connor, 2009, p.63).  This is important because it ensures equity for all students and when used by all teachers, it ensures that students in all classes are being assessed the same. I believe that this is very compelling.  Next year, we will be using the Angoff method to assign find our students’ scores.  We used this method to create a criteria to grade the work that we did on our Freak the Mighty unit.  “There is no single right way to do it; however, whatever is done needs to reflect evidence of students’ level of mastery of the target of instruction” (O’Connor, 2009, p. 170). This class helped me prepare for the changes that will be happening next year and helped me understand the rationale for these new practices before they are implemented into my school.

References

Meta-Reflection: Human Development and Principles of Learning

As I entered this class, I did not have a broad understanding of human development and the affect that it has on my classroom.  While I had learned briefly about this in my undergraduate classes, I was excited to know more about the dynamics present in my room.  Through reading The Jossey-Bass Reader along with a variety of articles and through discussing the principles presented in the texts, I left with a much stronger understanding of how the learning environment affects different students and what I can do to make sure that the learning environment encourages all students to learn and succeed.  This class focused on Standard 2 of Learning Environment which states, “Creates and maintains school-wide and classroom environments that are safe, stable and empowering” (Curriculum and Instruction Graduate Standards, 2012).

One thing that stood out to me right away in this course was how different cultures interact socially and how this affects dynamics in the classroom.  For example, collectivist cultures promote collective goals and individualism cultures favor individual rights (Hofstede, 2001). This greatly impacts the classroom environment when particular learning activities make some students feel very uncomfortable, while others feel right at home. A barrier for students in the classroom can be prior knowledge. “For example, if a learner has more prior knowledge of a topic area he/she might meet less difficulty when learning through the learning object, and vice versa” (Qi & Boyle, p. 3). Culture may also affect access to technology.  If student are required to use technology to complete work, they may not be familiar with the programs or have access to the necessary devices.

In order to create a safe, respectful, positive learning environment, I start out the year by having students get to know each other through a couple of projects.  Students created t-shirts that represent their interests, culture, beliefs, and family.

They then used these to share about themselves with the class.  The “Citizenship Project” allows students to express who they are as individuals and what they contribute to the whole. Students begin by creating and individual block that examines who they are as an individual. They then meet with a group of four and explain who they are by describing what the images on the block represent. Next they glue their four small blocks on a larger piece of paper. This piece of paper describes the school. Each group discusses and then draws images that represent what they contribute to the school. The following day, they glue this piece of paper that represents the school onto an even larger piece of paper that represents the United States. The group meets to talk about the United States including the past, present, future, symbols, and figures of the country. Last students individually reflect on this process, considering who they are as individuals and how they fit into whole both as a member of our school & a member of our country.  I think this helps to build a sense of community and helps students realize that even though their experiences may be different, they are valid and we can all learn something from their culture.  I believe that it is important to be aware of these differences and work to be sensitive to all students’ backgrounds and needs while also help them to be successful in the society that they live in and will work in.  By beginning with these conversations, respect and trust is built which helps as we move forward and continually make connections and comparisons to what we are learning about.  This sometimes occurs in my classroom through students’ journals and classroom discussion.

It is important that all students are challenged and some students need additional support to make sure that this happens.  For gifted and talented students, extensions may be needed to challenge them when they finish a task or to help them dig deeper rather than racing to the finish line.  I believe that it is also important to encourage these student to look outside of themselves and help others, whether this be something that happens inside of your classroom or not  (Brazelton & Greenspan, 2006).  Through this, students are given the opportunity to develop cognitively, morally, and develop the ability to self-regulate (Cross, 2001)

References

Meta-Reflection: Multicultural Education

I entered this class with a strong desire for all my students to feel respected and appreciated and get the most out of my classes no matter what their background or diverse needs, but I was not completely sure how to do it.  I teach in a very ethnically diverse school.  At the beginning of the school year, I give a Language Learner Survey where students describe what languages and cultures they have experienced at home or have had exposure to through travel, camps, classes, or friends.  This helps to set the stage for my class, making them feel valued and helps them to feel comfortable opening up and making comparisons or sharing experiences as they relate to what we are studying whether it is in French, Language Arts or Social Studies.  This class aligns itself with Standard 9 of Cultural Sensitivity which says, “Establishes a culturally inclusive learning climate that facilitates academic engagement and success for all students” (Curriculum and Instruction Graduate Standards, 2012).

As I journeyed through this class, reading Banks’ text Multicultural Education: Transformative Knowledge & Action along with other articles, I learned many strategies that can help me make my class more multicultural.  A theme that was continually reiterated in this class was that one of the main purposes for education is to preserve and promote the democracy of this country (Banks, 1996, p. 17).  All students have access to education and through this they can learn skills that will help them to be successful as citizens and in the global workforce.

After taking this class, I realized that there were some changes that I needed to make to my classroom right away.  One strategy that I will continue to make sure to integrate into my practice is connecting current learning to students’ prior knowledge, experiences, and interests.  By helping students connect to the texts or activities that I am doing in class, students are able to see the relevance of what they are doing.  This will help them to value the tasks even when they are difficult (Guthrie & McRae, 2011, p. 135).  I will also integrate more multicultural literature into my classroom and increase the comparisons that we make between different sources (Tatum, 2011, p. 431).  Through comparing mainstream accounts of an event with transformative accounts of the same event, students can discuss why there are differences and why some voices may remain invisible in history (Banks, 1998, p. 343).  In addition, I will increase collaborative learning and different discussion styles, which has been shown to be culturally appropriate for many groups of minority students such as African American but also successful for all students (Gay, 2010).  I also give students choice of the product or content for projects to help students with diverse learning characteristics be successful.  Lastly, I would like to try a Citizen Action Project with my students in which they could choose a project that they would like to do based on the guidelines provided.

Please take a look at my prezi that chronicles my learning in this course.

References

Meta-Reflection: Curriculum Design

EDU 6524 Curriculum Design guided us through the steps of Backwards Design of curriculum.   The idea of Backwards Design was not completely new to me.  This past school year, I had begun creating Learning Target Road Map in which I introduced students to the destination, or what they would be able to do by the end of the unit, and then I introduced them to each learning target as we went.   This helped students understand the long-term and short-term goals.  However, I did not know the steps to follow to create a truly backwards-designed unit.  This course focused on Standard 1 and Standard 3 of the Curriculum and Instruction Master’s program.  Standard 1 focuses on Instructional Planning and states, “Designs and monitors long and short-term plans for students academic success.” Standard 3 focuses on Curriculum and states, “Provides knowledge and skills that bring academic subjects to life and are aligned with state content standards” (Curriculum and Instruction Graduate Standards, 2012).

I was excited about this course because next year I have the opportunity to develop the curriculum for a new class that I am co-teaching with one of the Spanish teachers called “Introduction to World Language.”  I am very excited for this challenge and opportunity to step up to more of a leadership role.  “In order to be a successful teacher leader one has to stay true to one’s beliefs, coupling confidence with humility, and being willing to work with colleagues to improve student learning” (Ackerman, 2010, p.15).  With this kind out outlook, teacher leaders can have a huge impact.

One thing that I really picked up from this class is the importance of authenticity.  How can we make what we do in the classroom really transfer into our students’ real lives?  From the beginning of each unit, I try to help students make connections between their lives and the content.  This helps them understand the authenticity of what is going on in the classroom. Some features of authentic learning include a supportive learning environment, curriculum alignment, thoughtful discourse, cooperative learning, and goal-oriented assessments (Parkay, Hass, & Anctil, 2010, p. 320).  Another aspect of authentic learning is using technology in the classroom.  This is what students will interact with in their real worlds and in the workplace. As Marc Prensky states in Parkay, resisting the technology of today ‘will be truly lethal to our children’s education’” (Prensky, 2010, p 320).

In my classroom I need to be looking for evidence that my students understand the content.  We need to focus on “evidence of transferability based on big ideas in how to use knowledge and skills effectively” (Wiggins & McTighe, 2005, p. 150).  These types of evidence can include performance tasks, academic prompts, quizzes and tests and informal checks for understanding.  “Effective assessment is more like a scrapbook of mementos and pictures than a single snapshot” (Wiggins & McTighe, 2005, p. 152).  Because I like to make books of collages, notes, pictures, and keepsakes, this analogy makes so much sense to me and is something that I feel that I could genuinely transfer to my students.

The most powerful part of this course was taking what we were reading about and learning about to create our own unit plans and publishing them after a period of peer review.  Please take a look at my Curriculum Design and my Calendar of the first unit of instruction for my 7th grade Social Studies class to see how I have taken what I learned in this class and plan to put it into practice this year.

References

Meta-Reflection: Instructional Strategies

EDU 6526 Survey of Instructional Strategies offered a toolbox of strategies that we can use to better engage students in learning and help to inspire them to be the drivers of their education.  This course focused on Standard 4 of the Curriculum and Instruction Master’s program.  This standard is Pedagogy and states, “Engages students in learning experiences that are meaningful, stimulating, and empirically proven to promote intellectual growth” (Curriculum and Instruction Program Standards, 2012).

Before taking this course, I had a handful of strategies that I used in my classroom, but feeling comfortable with these routines, I did not stray too far.  In this course we focused on seven specific instructional strategies (Induction/Inquiry, Concept Attainment, Advance Organizers, Cooperative Learning and Constructivism, Learner-Centered Approaches, Values and Citizenship education, and Direct Instruction) and also surveyed many more.  We each chose three strategies that we wanted to implement in our classrooms next year and created an implementation plan for each of these.  By digging into a few instructional strategies that I would like to use in my classroom and developing a plan for implementation, I am excited to incorporate these strategies into my bag of tricks next year.

Nonlinguistic representation was one instructional strategy that I would like to use in my classroom.  Nonlinguistic Representation forces students to step into the learning experience and experience what they are learning about. This strategy asks students to visualize what they are learning.  It prompts them to see, hear, taste, and feel the situation or the item.  These activities help to increase memory (Marzano, Pickering& Pollock).  By creating concept maps, drawings, graphic organizers, and acting new ideas out, students cement the new information in their minds in a meaningful way (“Nonlinguistic Representation,” 2012).  I plan to use this next year in my 7^th grade Social Studies class to teach empathy and cause and effect during the American Revolution as well as in my Introduction to World Languages class to help students memorize new vocabulary.  This is a strategy that I will introduce and use in my classroom throughout the year, but I will also remind students that if this is a strategy that works well for them, it is always available to them in my class and others. At times, I will allow students to choose the strategy that they would like to use, allowing them to initiate the learning and use the strategy that is most effective for them.  Check out Nonlinguistic Representation and Implementation to learn more.

Another strategy that I would like to try in my classroom next year is Setting Objectives and Providing Feedback.  Setting objectives and providing feedback are fundamental to the classroom.  Setting objectives helps students know where they are and where they are headed.  It serves as a roadmap for understanding.  When students begin to set their own personal objectives, they gain more intrinsic motivation.  Giving feedback on these specific goals help students to change what they are doing before the summative assessment.  “Providing feedback specific to learning objectives helps students improve their performance and solidify their understanding” (Dean, Hubbell, Pitler, & Stone, 2012, p. 2).  I would like to try this strategy in my French classroom as well as in my 7^th grade Language Arts classroom.  Check out Setting Objectives and Providing Feedback  and Implementation to learn more.

The third strategy that I plan to implement in my classroom next year is Cues, Questions, and Advance Organizers.  Cues, Questions, and Advance Organizers are used in many classrooms to set the stage for learning and help students make connections within the content.  Cues and Questions may seem like some of the most obvious instructional strategies around.  “Observers noted cueing and questioning as the primary instructional strategies in 21 percent of the observations” (Dean, Hubbell, Pitler, & Stone, 2012, p. 50). Advance organizers “allow students to develop understand of the structure behind a subject or content area-the hierarchy” (Dell’Olio & Donk, 2007, p.   394).   Advance organizers can be used at the beginning of a unit to help the teacher see what students know and do not yet understand and they can be used to help students to organize the content that they are learning and make connections.  I plan to try this out in my French and 7^th grade Social Studies classes.  Check out Cues, Questions, and Advance Organizers and Implementation to learn more.

References

Exploring Elementary, Middle, and High School

Parkay, Hass, & Anctil (2010) say, “Curriculum leaders should be acquainted with educational programs at all levels, regardless of the level at which they work” (p. 413).  This week we had the opportunity to read a little bit more specifically about elementary, middle school, and high school curriculum.  Then we discussed all three levels, learning from the experience of those who teach at each level and building the knowledge of those who teach at different levels.

In the elementary school discussion board, it was interesting to hear about one teacher’s experience in a multi-age classroom as a student.  She said that in this arrangement, it was understood that everyone would be at a different spot and therefore no one felt like they were in the “low” group.  When I was reading the elementary portion of Curriculum Leadership, I found it interesting to hear about team teaching.  This is something that we are going to incorporate into our middle school model next year to help bridge the gap between elementary school and middle school.  This model can be used both to split subjects and to split abilities.  This mix may be the best for student achievement and self-esteem.

When we consider middle school, it is important that we try to understand where middle school students are, which can be difficult. Parkay, Hass, & Anctil (2010) say, “Social, psychological, and cognitive maturation are usually not in step with physical maturation. Many pressures in modern society tend to force the social, psychological, and cognitive changes of this period on the young person ahead of the biological” (p. 466). Students are at a time in their lives of search and discovery. They are trying to figure out their place in the world while they are feeling different pressures from all around them. What this means to me is that as teachers of these students we need to be consistent, strong role models available to help them as they find their way.  M.Q. said that during her student teacher, her mentor teacher described middle school age as the ‘last chance age.’ While this sounds a little negative what she meant was this was the time for teachers to really help and foster the growth of middle schoolers. It was teachers’ last chance to catch those who may be headed down the wrong path because we all know how impressionable this age can be. I think that the “last chance” idea is why I love teaching middle school so much.  They are at such a formative age and you really get to be a part of that.

One of the neatest parts of teaching high school is that you are able to begin to make connections between school and real life for students.  This doesn’t reveal itself to all students until later, but many begin to think about what they want to do after school and how what they are learning in school applies to that.  Like D.W. said in his post, it is import that we “prepare students to be successful in the world after school.”

Resources

Character Education

This week we focused on moral and character education.  RCW 28A.150.211 mandates some form of character or moral education must be included in Washington schools (Williams).  It gives the responsibility and decision making to the local level.  This week we discussed what this looks like in our schools.

A.M. said, “teaching about morality is part of the ‘hidden curriculum.’” In her classroom she weaves it into her English classroom through choosing literature that promotes discussion of values.  S. M. said, “In my class, teaching citizenship means treating everyone I meet with respect and kindness. Students pick up this modeling. Furthermore, we generate expectations together in kid-friendly language. Kids love this! In one foul swoop, the students think through expectations everyone will abide by, and the justifications behind it. They actually end up mirroring the 8 values/traits mentioned in the lecture.”   Kirk (1987) promotes the idea that values are “caught not taught”.  The idea that values are “caught not taught” shifts the “center of gravity from ‘taught’ (teacher) to ‘caught’ (learner)” (“Values, Citizenship, and Moral Education”).  The student needs to get involved and take responsibility and they need to make decisions about the way they want to live.

C. L. discussed the fact that citizenship should be modeled from the moment students walk in the door.  This includes the norms and expectations that we set.  This got me excited because as I think about the beginning of the new school year, I have the opportunity to think through I will set up my classroom to promote these values.  I want to make sure that my students are a part of setting up the norms and expectations.  I believe that his ownership helps students understand the “why” behind rules and helps them take the expectations to heart.

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