August 25 2014
What do you wonder about IB?
– Does it work for every student
– Can you transfer out of IB
– Do you still gradate high school if you don’t pass your diploma
– How are grade 10’s learning about IB
– Can you drop out after grade 11
– Is the program so standardized around the world is it hard for a teacher to add their own influence/ interests to the program
– Are the class sizes the same as regular studies
– Is geography more focused on physical or is there a human aspect too?
– How are parents informed about IB for their children- is IB common knowledge for parents?
– How do schools deal with a lot of interest in IB- is their level of grades that have to be reached by grade 10
– What role do IBDP teachers have in helping student manage stress from being in an accelerated program, is placing students (youth) under high stress an effective way to teach?
AUGUST 26 2014
1) What is the role of the educator?
The role of the educator is to act as a guide and an ambassador to a student’s learning. The role includes being an impassioned leader that enables and inspires a student to desire to be a life-long learner. To me, being an educator means empowering people to seek new understanding through collaboration, to acknowledge difference by dialoguing with others and to encourage individual passions. Furthermore, it is important as an educator to understand that the role is fluid, shifting from student to educator constantly as we demonstrate life-long learning. An educator’s role also includes a willingness to adapt in a forever changing society with new beliefs.
2) What is the role of the student?
The role of the student is to have an open mind to learning new skills and concepts that will enable them to become a life-long learn that strives to better understand the world they are apart of. A student’s role includes inquiry, active participation in collaborating with others, and attempting to seek a deeper new understanding of the world they are apart of.
3) What is the significance of IBDP to the teacher?
The IBDP program is significant to the teacher because it allows them to work extensively with the same group of students for two years, allowing the teacher to be witness to the development of the student for an extended time. It is significant to the teacher because it provides the opportunity to enable a student to grow in a well-rounded way. Also, it is significant that an IBDP teacher gets to address global concerns and issues in meaningful ways with students.
– To the Student?
The IBDP program is significant to the student because it gives them the best practices in education that are available. The IBDP program is seen as the ‘gold standard’ of education and it allows the student to have the best chance at succeeding at the university level. It also is significant for the student because it prepares them for the stressors that come along with university life through the rigorous assessment of the program. Furthermore, IB students are encouraged to be well-rounded and active participants in their communities.
August 27 2014
I think that the beauty of inquiry as a method teaches students the skills and concepts to ask questions that enable them to be full participates in a democratic society. Students who inquire are open to asking questions about politics, religion, economics, and different ways of ways of life. I believe that through the practice of inquiry we are closer to finding best practice for teaching students to be ready for life after high school. I feel like I still have many inquiries into IB such as:
– Can you transfer out of IB?
– -Does it work for every student?
– Do you still gradate high school if you don’t pass your diploma?
– How is grade 10’s learning about IB?
o What does this out reach look like
o Are you be selected by your teachers
– Can you drop out after grade 11?
– Is the program so standardized around the world is it hard for a teacher to add their own influence/ interests to the program?
– are the class sizes the same as regular studies?
– is geography more focused on physical or is there a human aspect too?
– How do schools deal with a lot of interest in IB- is their level of grades that have to be reached by grade 10?
– What does the external marking process look like?
On another note, I found the different methods of teaching repetition today particularly interesting- examples of repetition without the student knowing (or being bored) was very helpful. I have been appreciating the practical in-class tips that are offered though out this week.
August 28, 2014: Field Trip Reflection:
1. What is art?
Art is define by the dictionary as “the expression or application of human creative skill and imagination, typically in a visual form such as painting or sculpture, producing works to be appreciated primarily for their beauty or emotional power”. I see art as anything that is created by someone who deems it art or others who see it who deem it art. Art is art if we believe it to be because it has reached an audience (even if it is just the artist) in some way. Usually art offers a perspective or interpretation on some aspect of life.
2. If an artist calls a piece of work art, is it therefore art?
Yes. I believe if someone believes something to be art, it becomes that to them. To me, the decision of whether the piece is art or not is in the eye of the beholder.
3. Are there any rules that must be followed to have a piece classified as art?
No, not whether it is art as a whole. I think creating rules for classifying whether something is art would hinder the creative process and nature of art. However, I believe there are many rules as to how a piece of art is classified within different categories of art.
4. Consider two pieces of work at the institute… one you liked and one you did not. Discuss why you chose those pieces.
The piece of art I disliked from the Rennie Museum was the “Oak Trees Red Bluff” by Rodney Graham. When I first put my bag away for the tour I noticed this black and white piece and loved it ascetically. I think this artwork by Rodney is visually beautiful and I probably would have concluded it as my favorite if I had not attended the guided tour. However, the explanation of the 8-piece set did not resonate with me. I could see the obvious effect of positioning the trees upside down created the appearance of the branches as roots, yet beyond this take on the North American landscape I did not find the piece particularly thought provoking. On the other hand, the piece of art I most liked was “The Gifted Amateur”, a backlit wall-size piece of the artist creating a painting. ‘The Gifted Amateur’ was inspired by a work done by Lewis Morris who created simplistic style pieces from which Rodney found humorous because people look at it and believe anyone (“even I”) could create it as if it didn’t involve much talent. In this cinematic art piece by Graham, the wealthy old man is creating a simplistic piece of art with a very nonchalant attitude (there is many cigarettes, his facial expression, cereal bowls…) however that image is contrasted to the many art books strew about the room suggesting that this artist has potentially researched and thought about this art work more than the art itself lets on. I think this is a clever piece that is witty and plays on real dialogue of contemporary art viewers. Overall, I found myself more drawn to the meaning of the art, rather than its initial ascetic appeal.
It was interesting today to go over the ways of knowing (language, reason, sense perception and emotion) in the context of Theory of Knowledge. I was unaware of TOK when I enrolled in IB and find it fascinating that there is a class that is devoted to tackling big issues and thinking about them through different ways of knowing and engaging through the method of inquiry. I think it will become very important to address how we come to our own situated knowledge with the students and to acknowledge our position in society as we discuss these big concepts. I think that by incorporating the lenses in which we view the world is as important as the topic itself (why might I have the opinion that I do? Do I come from a place of privilege or disadvantage?). It will also give students the opportunity to imagine how their race, gender, ethnicity, sexuality…etc has come to shape how their opinions are formed. In the TOK classroom I think it will become very important to develop a common non- discriminatory language that focuses on inclusivity. TOK seems like an awesome place to come together to not only challenge big topics but to also question how we might see these topics as individual members in a diverse world.
August 31 2014- First analysis of an Inquiry Question
What role do IBDP teachers have in helping student manage stress from being in an accelerated program, is placing students (youth) under high stress an effective way to teach?
As a future IB teacher I am worried that I will be in positions of dealing with students who are under immense pressure and therefore suffer negative psychological affects. I wonder, as IB teachers are there ways to negate the negative effects of a stressful program by adopting specific teaching strategies to help offset the stresses of demand.
According to a study in the Journal of Advanced Academics regarding IB and AP students’ stress, students in the accelerated programs did experience higher levels of stress and pressure compared to standard high school students, however the stress did not correlate to negative mental health outcomes. The same University of South Florida study suggests that the IB and AP students did not have more psychological issues and sleeping problems due to stress because they have better and more sophisticated means of coping with the pressures attached to IB. Some of the methods of dealing with stress this study mentions are “attachment to their teachers and school, as well as feelings of pride in what they were accomplishing in mastering their subject areas, motivated by their academic achievement and their hard work…by efficient time and task management along with turning to their families, to study groups and to their friends for support, when needed”.
What I noticed from these findings is that teachers in these programs must be creating learning environments that are supportive to stress and are balancing students stress with effective means of coping with it. How might I as an IB teacher adopt these strategies?
From a quick look at high school IB program webpages I found that the most common stressors on students come from large school projects, multiple tests/assignments due same day, heavy amount of homework, and feeling like there is not enough time. In dealing with these stressors teachers seem to encourage the students to do the following:
– Getting students to write everything down- Agendas/ day planners
– Helping students prioritize- writing down what’s due in order on the board
– Encouraging study methods like flash cards
– Getting students to work in groups and collaborate
– Creating a positive environment through the teacher’s attitude and encouragement
– Class rules developed by the class
I think that the following could also be helpful coping methods that could be adopted into the classroom
– Breathe work- taking a moment to relax the brain for learning and to clear it of negative thoughts
– Playing a quick game to get students to laugh
– A brisk walk
– Posting all the benefits of IB around the classroom for a reminder of why they are working so hard.
It seems the accelerated program does not hinder the student’s emotional and psychological well being. The students that par-take in IB thrive in the rigorous academic environment because they may learn and adopt coping methods quicker that standard students. However I wonder if these results are the same across schools that exclusively offer IB at the secondary level or schools that offer it as a choice program? Are all students ready to be part of this program; should there always be a choice in the school?
September 2 2014
What has inquiry got to do with teaching, learning and curriculum?
Inquiry is a teaching method that is considered best practice in teaching because it engages students to be active members of their classrooms and communities. By teaching through inquiry you are creating a space that is conversational, creative and challenging. Recall and memorization are not effective teaching methods long term, instead students need the opportunity to develop inquiry and problem solving skills that enable a student to further their own knowledge along with their self-confidence and positive learning attitudes. Though the process of inquiry teaching moves from teacher-centered to student- centered that inspires young people to take responsibility for their own learning. Today when I presented my inquiry question, I did not use inquiry methods- instead I rushed though my question and answer. I learned by teaching using inquiry the teacher needs to slow down, feel confident and open up the floor by engaging the classroom all throughout the lesson- not just at the end. Watching Josh today was inspiring because I can see how he really incorporated inquiry as much as he could while still getting though a lot of material. His presentation stood out above those who didn’t engage as much, like myself. My one concern with inquiry is how much longer it takes to get through the material. IB has high-stake tests and I wonder if it is a challenge balancing inquiry methods into all lessons when there is extensive material for the teacher to relay- I am interested to see how the teachers in our placements do this.
-What do I know about inquiry methods- asking questions, activities, small groups, and presentations.
I really like lessons that are activity based. I think it forces me to think creatively and gives me a chance to try out some ideas. I definitely like the idea of doing more than one activity in a class. It is easy to disengage if one activity doesn’t grab you, but having two or more (if timing allows) offers different ways for students to participate and acknowledge how they relate to the topic. Being a new teacher I am interested in trying out new activity based lessons because I imagine my expectations for my planned activities will be changed and challenged.
September 4 2014
The tea presentations in today’s class were very interesting to me because of the different levels of inquiry techniques used by each group. Groups that used maximum level of engagement throughout the whole presentation were far more interesting and engaging than other groups. However, they were also much longer. The purpose of the assignment was collaboration- which always presents challenges ex. Getting everyone to participate and making sure everyone gets heard. I focused on what Isobel was doing by walking around the class answering questions and redirecting some groups. I think the presence of having the teacher nearby is comforting for students in collaborative work, especially if there are group conflicts or inconsistent opinions. I liked the fact that at the beginning of the assignment we were told that we were going to have to present- I think it gave a sense of purpose and urgency to the goals of the project, I would make sure I gave the task a purpose if I were to do this in a high school classroom.
In the second half of the class, marking the essay was extremely difficult. The process is a subjective and emotional task. I found it stressful that there were big differences between us. I am interested in talking about this paper further because I am concerned with the topic the student chose- why would their advisor let them chose such a topic and why were they not directed to have more scientific reasoning and logic incorporated into their paper? To me the paper seemed to be a failure on the behalf of the advisor. I am now much more interested in the role of the advisor and to the extent of advice they are allowed to offer an IB student.
September 11 2014
I enjoyed watching Steven and Irit present today- however I found that the rubric provided had way too many categories to critique on. I could not watch the presentation and think about that many elements (authenticity, academic rigor, assessment, beyond the school, appropriate use of technology, active exploration, connecting with expertise and elaborated communication) to provide feedback on at once. I think a more concise set of criteria on the rubric would allow me to think more thoroughly about the presentation and provide more meaningful and focused feedback. As a teacher watching multiple oral presentations on the same day I think having less criteria in your rubric would be even more important and helpful, otherwise I get lost in it. This is obviously different if you are providing an evaluation on a paper or written assignment. For both Steven and Irit’s lesson plan presentations I gave them overall scores of developing. I believe, based on the criteria, that the presentations both met most of the developing category on the rubric. Watching their presentations made me go back and revise my presentation because I got the chance to view the rubric while watching their presentations before I preform. This reinforced to me how essential it is to always provide our students with rubrics before they present because it really does affect they way they build the assignment. Communication becomes much clearer.
October 7 2014 First School Visit- Mulgrave School
-one to one interactions
-Better able to gear your instruction for your students- a personalization of learning which seemed to make less intimidating for students to talk in front of the class
-Praised in public- need to work up to knowing your students before you point them out individually before their class
-Ms. Morgan- very engaging and made the students think outside of the box, encouraged everyone but in a genuine way. Ms. Morgan is very inspiring- the students were very drawn to her
-the cross collaboration meetings created a sense of community- especially in the MYP program, in the DP program the subjects are a bit more separated
-TOK class with Brad- had specific roles for each student- a lot of technology which I found somewhat distracting to the interesting conversation he was having.
-Inquiry is only a part of concept-based learning
-Definitely need to build up to a classroom “feel”, the teachers knew their students well
-I felt the note taking through twitter was distracting and I’m not sure that all the technology in Brad’s TOK lesson was necessary.
-Small class sizes were so nice
– There was a community through the whole school
-I really liked the newspaper events, the teacher expected a lot from the students- they needed to field 3 questions about the article.
-I felt a bit under prepared in terms of knowing the IB syllabus.
Michele Sims examines the question why do middle school students with average intelligence struggle with comprehension in reading? She conducted a self, teacher research project with a student in her class. She found her questions evolved throughout the process into “how can I meet the needs of my more quiet students while productive channeling the energy of my more aggressive students. With the student she worked with she found that he was excited about learning but was afraid to be wrong and because of this missed more and more in class and found he struggled more comprehension. As an educator asking questions and constantly examining your teaching is imperative. Also the article shows to not make assumptions about intelligence and interest it may be linked to broader considerations or issues.
October 16 2014
DON’T SAY YOU GUYS! – On another note, Today we went over the learner profile- Wow repetition and collaboration need to be fun- way more successful this way!
I have been interested this week in ESL learners and standardized test. One question that I have been thinking about was sparked by the quote “the gravest error that universities make is to assume that a certain TOEFL score, say 550, is equated to the ability to comprehend text in a particular academic area, even though the TOEFL is used by almost all English-speaking college and university faculties to judge students’ preparation for studies”. I find it so interesting that there has not been more conversation about this ineffective testing, how can we make this testing better, or improve the system so that students are set up for success in their to universities pursuits?
October 23 2014
I think it would be really helpful to get a basic overview of the expectations different cultures have on the educator and education system, albeit I know what can be offered is only a very narrow widow onto the topic. I think it is really interesting that there is an assumption that the classroom, and the school itself is a neutral, politics-free environment. This assumption has been addressed in nearly every one of my classes this term, most often discussing that the classroom is a small, but relatively accurate representation of what happens in society at large. Moreover, teachers are likely to teach to the dominant or mainstream perspective that center around European values and beliefs. I find this fascinating that this steadfast white- western ideology is as present as it is considering the diversity of the lower-mainland in BC. I am excited to be in the school system over my practicum and bear witness to what is being said, and how teachers, students and parents address cultural goals and expectation of education in the school setting. Until I am in a classroom I don’t think I will fully be able to understand what it means to be a teacher in relation to the cultural complexities of the classroom. However, I do have a bit of anxiety around culturally sensitive approaches I have heard about especially those focused on having a male speak on behalf of a women teacher in need be, I wonder if this is common and to what extent. Although being culturally sensitive it is not something I feel uncomfortable with.
There will undoubtedly be many cultures present in our classrooms all of the time and that “culture” means different things to different people, even people within the same culture. Teachers need to respect that there is a large variety of backgrounds within their classrooms and understand their own position within such a setting- as someone who can, but doesn’t have to, reproduce the dominate/ mainstream political systems of domination. Social studies and geography are subjects that are particularly vulnerable to holding tightly to dominate European ideals because the objectives of the discipline are closely tied to Canadian notions of what is means to be a ‘good citizen’. I look forward to classes that offer a wide and diverse student body and considering my own role in creating a classroom that is unapologetically a political space.
November 7 2014
Management Strategies I observed over the course of my practicum included
• Silence- waiting
• Moving students to separate them
• Proximity of teacher to the students
• Constant, clear, instructions- not too many at once
• Setting up a respectful classrooms- raising your hand, or writing hands on the board, or the student talking gets to pick the next student to talk
• Being respectful to them- treating them positively, kind, with dignity
• Don’t smile until Christmas
• Using humor
• Assign marks for participation
• Don’t let them sit without talking for too long- mix up the assignments
• Cell phone policy- no cell in the classroom at all
I really enjoyed the IB Conference for Churchill Students today- I was so inspired by the program and so happy to see the pride the students felt to the event. Days like to today really make me “buy-in” to an IB education.
This article points out the obvious hypocrisy of those who would state that Muslim terrorists represent islam, while european or american terrorists do not represent their culture. The example given is that Christian terrorists known as “Christian Warriors” or Hutaree have been labeled as “not real Christians.” I’m not really sure that this article provides any new insights or is representative of how the majority of people think. He presents the opinions of Glenn Beck and Ann coulter and then tears them right down again. People like this make for highly flammable straw-men.
EdTech Reflections for preservice teachers:
This article talks about the use of technology in the classroom. It mentions using tools as a means of achieving specified educational goals, I.e. As educators we need to think about the skills and learning the student has to master and then choose the right tools for the task. It is important to choose the right technology for the right reasons rather than choosing a technological tool then teaching through it. The article also mentions how students do not really care about the technology used in the class but just need effective means of learning and making a difference around them. They do not need to be taught how to use a piece or tool of technology – students are curious and explorative to figure things out on their own. They will learn more about the technology if given the opportunity to explore on their own. The final point the article talks about is that what is available today may not really be available/accessible/free tomorrow. Hence we need to keep evolving and adapting. If things do not work out, servers are down, or things go wrong, we need to be flexible educators. Keep in mind the amount of funding a school has.
Every student performs differently and functions at different levels in various subject areas, similarly, they also function at different levels when it comes to discipline. This article looks at the work of Lawrence Kohlberg who:
“studied stages of moral and ethical reasoning in youngsters from the United States, Taiwan, Mexico, Turkey, and Yucatan. One important fact that surfaced in his research is that everyone, regardless of culture, race, or sex, goes through these stages. Although the progression from stage to stage is the same, the rate varies from person to person. It is for this reason that we need to be prepared to address discipline in our classrooms at different levels.”
Stage 1: Recalcitrant Behavior
The Power Stage: Might Makes Right!
lowest stage
ages less than 5 mostly, but few older students still function at this level
students refuse to follow directions
students are defiant, require a lot of attention
have few personal rules, follow the rules of others, little concern for the feeling of others
seek extension of power: pencils, scissors, rulers become weapons
power stage: imbalance of power between the child and the person in authority; e.g. child and parent when the child is young, but diminishes as the child grows up.
need assertive teachers with a constant eye on these students to keep them in line
Stage 2: Self-Serving Behavior
The Reward/Punishment Stage: “What’s in It for Me?”
students with individualistic morality – self centered
reward and punishment stage: students behave because they expect to be rewarded for good behaviour, or because they fear punishment.
very little sense of self-discipline. need constant supervision.
Stage 3: Interpersonal Discipline
The Mutual Interpersonal Stage: “How Can I Please You?”
most of the youngsters in middle and junior high
start to develop a sense of discipline
they care what others think of them and want you to like them.
need gentle reminders
Commonalities amongst teaching theories:
Creativity-Innovation (Number one trend in education)
Personalisation-Differentiation (students progress at their own rates, different levels of instruction in one class)
Higher level learning
Student centered
Application of understanding
Synthesis of information
Teamwork
Communication skills
Problem solving
Peer-to-peer learning
Teacher acts as a facilitator of learning
Development of research skills
Critical thinking and problem solving
Technology and flipped learning
Collaboration for student success
Empowering students
Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation
Encouraging students to want to continue to learn
Backward design
Scaffolding
Assignment Expectations:
1. What is the purpose of assignments? Gain and demonstrate knowledge. Assessment. Evaluate progress. Build your skills set (ex: presentations). Self-learning and applying knowledge. Engage different learning styles.
2. How are types of assignments chosen? Depends on the skills you are looking to develop. Depends on the content. Depends on the goal of the assessment (formative or summative). To reach different types of learners. Change the rhythm with a variety.
3. Are most open-ended questions? Yes, in IB. Best is to scaffold. Challenge critical thinking with open-ended but then also need more specific questions to achieve a specific goal so having a mix is good. A more fact-based knowledge foundation is important to start with. Inquiry assignment can take longer so if short on time might not be the best option. Small groups of inquiry may be better to avoid passive learners. Depends on subject (ex: inquiry can be more difficult in math).
4. What outcomes are expected? As a student, what you did has to be relevant. You achieve knowledge and understanding of the subject. Applying knowledge gained. Evaluating and interpreting knowledge.
5. Types of feedback: Positive vs negative. Written comments, oral reinforcement, scaffolding (guiding learning vs perfect!), peer-review, ask to elaborate or give more detail, self-evaluation
– I observed many different classrooms for the majority of the first week. These classes included a Spanish, film, drama, English, PE, math, socials and along with multiple TOK classes. During the majority of my second week I spent most of my time involved in the classes of my school advisor. Along with observations in the second week, I was privileged in teaching 3 different lessons, twice each. My lessons included map scales, map legends and primary/ secondary sources. Outside of the classroom I observed a Remembrance Day ceremony, a staff meeting, a Halloween dance, staff collaboration time and students auditions for the school play.
– I believe I have a good presence in the classroom I was surprised by how comfortable I felt in front of the students. I also feel like I am strong at creating fun activities into my lessons that engage the students. I am also very organized and I think this has been a big benefit to me thus far.
– My main goals for the long practicum is to get to know the students in my classroom and to create a positive and engaging space. Another goal is to create lesson plans that have a rich variety of activities and assessments that allow students to be creative. I look forward to trying out new activities yet always a bit nervous trying new things in the classroom. I also think it I need to focus on the clarity of my instruction.
– I look forward to contributing more to the school community during my long practicum and getting involved in different ways.
– I really want to focus on asking really good open ended questions rather than simply asking a lot of questions
– I definitely realize that I need to know more history and become more familiar with historical thinking.
– During my long practicum I really need to focus more on modifications/ adaptions- I just forgot about these on my long practicum
– Best tip I learned over the practicum is to let students read over a test before they begin- get students to ask questions- then begin the test
November 13 2014
Should teachers be considered professional? They are part of the union does that change how I feel about it? If a profession is accessible to many, does it make it less professional? – “blue collar” workers enter have historically had access into the field. You must know why you are a teacher? There seems to be a two-tiered system existing within schools- some teachers leave at three while others take a lot of pride in their jobs and are very involved. What is my answer to why are you a teacher?
On another note this week has really made me grateful for cross discipline collaboration. I have spent the majority of my undergraduate in a very small and tight disciple with very specific ways of thinking and knowledge production I find it interesting being in a professional program where I am having to re-think/ re-examine what I know and how I know it. It has been a big privilege to work with people with varying perspectives and ways of imagining the world.
Brain- Based Presentation:
Introduction: This paradigm establishes connections between brain function and educational practice. “Brain-based” education emerged well over 20 years since this “connect the dots” approach began. In a nutshell, brain-based education says, “Everything we do uses our brain; let’s learn more about it and apply that knowledge.”
Educators should be able to support the use of a particular classroom strategy with a scientific reasoning or studies. Each educator ought to be professional enough to say, “Here’s why I do what I do.” I would ask: Is the person actually engaged in using what they know, or simply having knowledge about it, but not actually using it? Are they using strategies based on the science of how our brain works? Brain-based education is about the professionalism of knowing why one strategy is used over another. The science is based on what we know about how our brain works.
Her are some statements about brain based learning and practical educational applications. I want you to find your match- these will create groups. In your group read and discuss your strategy- draw a visual representation of your practical application. And summarize it one sentence.
Once groups have done that- each group will select one student to read out their statement.
1 A) Physical education, recess and movement are critical to learning.
1 b) Practical school applications: Support more, not less physical activity, recess and classroom movement. It raises the good chemicals for thinking, focus, learning and memory (noradrenaline, dopamine and cortisol). Students need 30-60 minutes per day to lower stress response, boost neurogenesis and boost learning. For the first few weeks of school, expose students to a variety of physical activities. Then, offer choice. That’s critical because voluntary activity does more good than forced activity, which may cause an overproduction of cortisol.
2 A) Social conditions influence our brain in multiple ways we never knew before. School behaviors are highly social experiences, which become encoded through our sense of reward, acceptance, pain, pleasure, coherence, affinity and stress. In fact, poor social conditions, isolation or social “defeat” are correlated with fewer brain cells.
2 b) Practical school application: Do not allow random social groupings for more than 10-20 percent of the school day. Use targeted, planned, diverse social groupings with mentoring, teams and buddy systems. Work to strengthen pro-social conditions. Teacher-to-student relationships matter, as do student-to-student relationships.
3 a) The brain changes! All educators should know the brain can and does change every day.
3 b) Practical school application: Give teachers a mandate of 30-90 minutes a day and 3-5 times per week to upgrade student skill sets. Teach attentional skills, memory skills and processing skills. Progress requires focus, “buy-in” and at least a half-hour a day.
4 a) Chronic stress is a very real issue at schools for both staff and students. Recent studies suggest 30-50 percent of all students feel moderately or greatly stressed every day
4 b) Practical school application: Teach students better coping skills, increase student perception of choice, build coping skills, strengthen arts, physical activity and mentoring. These activities increase sense of control over one’s life, which lowers stress. All of these can reduce the impact of stressors.
5 A) Schools are pushing differentiation as a strategy to deal with the differences in learners. That’s close, but not quite the truth. In fact, instead of there being mostly “typical” students with some with “differences” the brain research tells us the opposite.
5 b) Practical school application: Make differences the rule, not the exception at your school. Validate differences. Never expect all students (fourth-graders, for instance) to be on the same page in the same book on the same day. That runs counter to an extraordinary research databases that shows variations in maturation rates and other brain differences. Allow kids to celebrate diversity, unique abilities, talents and interests. Give them the skill sets, relationships and hope to succeed.
6 A) New evidence suggests the value of teaching content in even smaller chunk sizes. Why? The old thinking was that students could hold seven plus or minus chunks in the head as capacity for working memory. But that science is outdated. The new research says two to four chunks are more realistic.
6 B) Practical school application: Teachers should teach in small chunks, process the learning, and then rest the brain. Too much content taught in too small of a time span means the brain cannot process it, so we simply don’t learn it. Breaks, recess and downtime make more sense than content, content and more content. Here’s the guideline: the less background the learner has and the greater the complexity of the content, make the time chunk of content shorter (use 4-8 minutes). The greater the background knowledge, the less the complexity, the longer you can make the “input” stage (8-15 min. is acceptable). Under no condition, should there be more than 15 consecutive minutes of content input. Share this with your colleagues. But share it in a small chunk, and then allow time for processing it.
7A) the role of the arts in schools continues to be under great scrutiny. But five neuroscience departments at five universities (Oregon, Harvard, Michigan, Dartmouth and Stanford) have recently completed projects studying the impact of arts on the brain.
7 b) Practical school application: Make arts mandatory and give students the choice of several, and support with expert teachers and the time to excel at it. Right now, evidence suggests that you get the most value from 30 to 60 minutes a day, three to five days a week. Arts support the development of the brain’s academic operating systems in ways that provide many transferable life skills.
8A) Humans have the remarkable capacity to display many emotions, but only six of them are “hard wired,” or built in at birth. This is profound because it tells us that unless children get these emotional states taught to them early (ages 0-3), when they enter school, they’ll be emotionally narrow. Kids rarely ever get the emotional skills built in to be ready for school. This leads to more discipline problems and weakened cognitive skills in school. This means we’ll have kids at school who do not understand appropriate emotional responses (e.g. cooperation, trust, shame and humility) unless we teach them at school.
8B) Practical school application: This suggests two things. One, we must teach appropriate emotional states as life skills (e.g. honor, patience, forgiveness and empathy) and, second, it’s important to read and manage the other emotional states in the classroom. In good states, students learn well and behave better. Insist that teachers build social skills into every lesson. Ask that they use the social structures that are advocated in cooperative learning programs every day. The better the social skills, the better the academics. Many good programs are in books, workshops and online. Why put effort into this area? Kids who learn patience, attention, empathy and cooperation will be better students.
9A) There have been stunning strides in rehabilitation of brain-based disorders, including Asperger’s, learning delays, dyslexia and autism. The discovery that aggressive behavioral therapies, new drugs and revolutionary stem cell implantation can be used to influence, regulate and repair brain-based disorders has been amazing. Innovations suggest that special education students may be able to improve far more than we earlier thought.
9 b) Practical school application: Make sure all teachers (not just special ed) learn the latest in dealing with special education learning delay recovery. Most kids can be brought back into regular ed classes, but not with inclusion-only strategies. It takes consistent hour-a-day skill building or the student won’t change. Learn the right skills and go to it 3-5 days a week.
10 A) The recent brain/mind discovery that even memories are not fixed but, instead, are quite malleable is powerful. Every time you retrieve a memory, it goes into a volatile, flex state in which it is temporarily reorganized.
10 B) Practical school application: First, teachers should review the content halfway between the original learning and the test. If content is taught Monday and tested on Friday, then review should be on Wednesday. Second, teachers should mediate the review process with students through structured reviews such as written quizzes or group work that ensures quality control. Otherwise the material is more likely to get confused and test scores drop.
10 pieces of chart paper
10 markers
60 slips of paper
Inquiry Topic on Boarders: How are the boarders between social class reproduced under capitalism?
Sub Questions:
1) How does power influence economic, political and social structure within capitalism?
2) What are current barriers to entering a different social class; ethic, gender, religion, education, women’s rights, reproductive rights, social justice, technology, physical and mental disability, globalization …
3) How do we produce and reproduction our own daily life?
4) Is social class changing? Are boundaries becoming more fluid. How might be enter into a different social class today?
Where we want our conversation to go:
The practical everyday activity of wageworkers reproduces wage labor and capital. Through their daily activities, “modern” men, like tribesmen and slaves, reproduce the inhabitants, the social relations and the ideas of their society; they reproduce the social form of daily life. Like the tribe and the slave system, the capitalist system is neither the natural nor the final form of human society; like the earlier social forms, capitalism is a specific response to material and historical conditions.
Educational Theories
The Philosophy of Education in Finland
Finland does not implement standardized testing.
They have shorter school days: students spend less time in school.
Students in Finland have higher scores in Math and Science (world ranking)
Finland has a homogeneous population with a low poverty rate of 4%.
Reasons for Success
Great teachers with very low turnover.
Only 1 in 10 applicants are accepted into the Elementary Teacher Education Program.
To be qualified, all teachers need to have a Master’s degree.
Highly respected – like doctors or lawyers.
Finland has a framework of learning, but do not have a standard curriculum.
Lack of a top-down edict.
Mindshift Strategy
-Philosophy
· Carol Dweck, a psychology professor at Stanford University, claims that:
o Individuals have different views of their abilities and can be placed on a continuum
§ On one end of the continuum, individuals believe that their success comes from their fixed ability. (Fixed mindset)
§ On the other end of the continuum, individuals believe that their success comes from their developing abilities, which can be fostered through hard work, learning, and perseverance. (Growth mindset).
-key concepts
· Mindset = A mental attitude that affects how one will assess and react to situations
o Fixed Mindset = Intelligence is an unchangeable trait (Dweck, 2008)
o Growth Mindset = Intelligence is a trait that can be developed (Dweck, 2008)
-Strategies for developing Growth Mindset in the Classroom:
Step 1: Focus on learning, not performance
This may look like: rescheduling or rewriting exams or quizzes (Ask for other suggestions)
Step 2: Hard work is key
This may look like: flexible deadlines and teaching time management strategies (Ask for other suggestions)
Step 3: Confront difficulties and setbacks. Learn from mistakes
This may look like: Earning additional marks by doing corrections and handing them in to the teacher (Ask for other suggestions)
-Intention of use for learning
· In a growth mindset students realize that their talents can be improved through hard work and persistence.
· Student with growth mindset are not afraid of failures (“risk-takers”) because they understand that they learn much from failure
· Thus, growth mindset helps a student to lead a more successful life
Students with a fixed mindset are complacent in believing that their levels of intelligence or talent are invariable, allowing themselves no room for development or improvement.
As educators we want to create a mind shift in our students from Fixed Mindset to Growth Mindset.
Students who develop a Growth Mindset think of learning and intelligence as a skill that develops through hard work.
We must help to develop a growth mindset within each of our students, not only as good practice for the development of education, but also to increase self-esteem and confidence in those who are especially lacking. Not only does this mind shift have to happen within our students but it is equally important to consider for ourselves, as teachers, as we must always strive to stay relevant and better our practice.
Concept-based Learning:
As well as a summary of our teaching strategy, which was concept-based teaching and learning:
Philosophy:
Concept-based learning focuses on the overall concept and has less focus on specific topics and skill, which can fail to engage the learners.
Key Concepts:
– Creating connection to learner’s experience
– Foster global thinking
– Good concepts are abstract, timeless and universal
– Concepts are transferable through different disciplines
Strategies:
– Transform topics like “Health Care” and connect it to scientific concepts like “order, system, and organism”, or social studies concepts like “population, change/continuity, and culture”.
Intention of use for learning:
– The intention is to show students that they can apply concepts learned to different subjects and topics. This way, they will see that what they learn are not just esoteric facts that have no application in real life, which in turn will help boost their motivation for learning.
IB handbook presentation:
Handbook A Section 7 and 8
7.1 Services Included within the annual fee (Lisa)
Public Website -provides information about the IB and has resources useful to teachers of the IB
IB store and publications
– are resources useful to students, teachers and candidates
-section covers publication licence and copyright issues
-available on the OCC of IB store
Online curriculum centre (OCC)
University recognition- http://www.ibo.org/recognition/ has information about universities recognizing IB courses as university credit
Unannounced inspections of examination arrangements -The IB can inspect schools examination practices at any time and declare examinations null and void or disqualify students participation in the program
7.2 Enquiry Upon Request (Brendan)
7.2.1 IB Coordinators can request:
category 1 re-mark: the re-mark of externally assessed material for an individual candidate
category 1 report: a report on a category 1 re-mark for an individual candidate
category 2A: the return of externally assessed material by component for all candidates
category 2B: the return of externally assessed material by subject/level for an individual candidate
category 3 re-moderation: the re-moderation of marks for internal assessment by subject/level.
The results are communicated to the coordinator. A fee is required for all enquiries except for Category 1. None of the categories can be requested more than once for the same subject/level.
Category 1: Re-Mark
Re-marking of externally assessed material for individual candidate. Does not apply for multiple choice of Group 4 subjects. Cannot be requested for individual components. Small subjects and those with few examiners will be re-marked by the same marker. Candidates’ grades may be raised or lowered. Coordinators need written consent of candidate’s guardians prior to request.
Category 1: Report
Information on how many points were awarded for a re-mark. The report won’t change the points awarded for a re-mark.
— Basically, information on re-marking, reporting, re-moderating or returning marked materials.
7.2.2
Legalization of IB documents. Schools in some countries require the IB diploma results to be legalized in Geneva.
7.2.3
Replacement of IB documents, in the event of loss or damage.
7.3 The IB Grant (Kathryn)
IB provides short-term grants for temporary financial support that are increasing access to IB program
7.3.1 Who can apply?
Temporary financial difficulties due to unpredictable circumferences beyond their control or widening IB related program
7.3.2 Nature of the grants
Grants are short-term, valid for one year with a possible extension to two years maximum. Grants will take the form of a credit to the school’s IB account.
Schools with overdue amounts owing to the IB are not eligible to apply for an IB grant.
7.3.3 Application
The due dates for receipt of applications in 2015 are still under consideration and will be announced to IB coordinators as a news item on IBIS.
7.4 (Meagan)
Universities have established policies for recognition of the IB program.
IB students gain admission to some of the best universities
8.1 Academic Honesty (Melanie)
8.1.1 Policy
Every IB World School that offers the DP must have a policy to promote academic honesty, ie: the authentic work of the candidates.
Schools are responsible for checking all candidates’ work prior to submission to the IB for assessment or moderation.
8.1.2 What constitutes academic misconduct?
-Lack of referencing (style left to discretion of the school)
-Too much assistance or collusion in assignment (teacher assistance and online websites)
-Other forms of misconduct: duplicates work to meet the requirements of more than one assessment component
fabricates data for an assignment
takes unauthorized material into an examination room
disrupts an examination by an act of misconduct, such as distracting another candidate or creating a disturbance
exchanges, supports, or attempts to support the passing on of information that is or could be related to the examination
fails to comply with the instructions of the invigilator or other member of the school’s staff responsible for the conduct of the examination
impersonates another candidate
steals examination papers
discloses or discusses the content of an examination paper with a person outside the immediate school community within 24 hours after the examination.
8.2 The Authentication of the Candidate’s Work (Mike)
This section provides guidelines for the step by step process that a students’ work must go through before assignments are submitted to IB for evaluation. It is important to note that if an assignment is submitted and is found to not be the work of the student, a school and teacher can be investigate for academic misconduct in addition to the student.
Summary:
Just as students have different learning levels, they also have different discipline levels and stages of morality and ethical reasoning. The rate of progression from one discipline stage to another varies between students. Therefore classroom management is more effective when it considers the different stages of discipline each student might have.
Stage 1: The power stage: Often refuse to follow direction, often defiant and requires alot of our attention. The imbalance of power may be effective to make them respond. An assertive teacher with a constant eye on these students will keep them in line.
Stage 2: The reward-punishment stage: Individualistic morality, self-centered, low self-discipline. These students behave if they know they will be rewarded for it or punished if they don’t behave. Assertive teachers do best with these students, need to do constant supervision. Might behave in class but then out of control in hallways.
Stage 3: The mutual interpersonal stage: Most students in MYP, they are developing a sense of discipline. They behave because you ask them. They care what others think and want the teacher to like them. They need less assertive discipline and more gentle reminders. Nurture good behaviour and remind that its important in all classes.
Stage 4: Self-Discipline Stage: Students behave because it is the right thing to do. Rarely get into trouble, understand right and wrong. These students do not appreciate assertive discipline. Respond well to cooperative learning activities.
As students grow up, they go through all these stages. It is important to know your students so you can guide them through the stages and also important to know that depending on personal situations they can regress to a lower stage.
Summary:
5 different strategies to help with classroom management.
Use your normal voice. Trying to use a raised voice burns out your voice after extended periods of time, and students will tend to match your speaking volume; if you speak loud, they’ll speak loud. Also vary your tone, use declarative tone for instructions, and an inviting tone to encourage discussion.
Wait time. Wait to speak until the students are quiet. You might be waiting longer than you feel comfortable, but students will eventually start shushing each other.
Use hand signals and non-verbal communication. Things like raising a hand for silence and waiting until all the students mirror you, flicking the lights on and off briefly, or clapping and having the students clap back.
Address behaviour issues quickly and wisely. Speak to students promptly if they are acting up, but don’t interrupt the instruction of a lesson to do so. Don’t accuse the student of wrongdoing, instead act as if you care and want to help them. If you have to address them during instruction, stay positive, ask “Do you have a question?” instead of calling out their behaviour.
Have well-designed lessons, and be prepared. The best form of classroom management is to have your students engaged in your lesson; if they are attentive and interested, they won’t be acting up and you won’t need to try to manage them.
Summary:
A 2006 survey of Pre-K through 12th grade teachers conducted by the American Psychological Association (APA), identified that classroom management was teachers top need and cited as one of the most prevalent reasons for job burnout and attrition of first-year teachers.
PBS teachers should do the following: develop caring, supportive relationships with and among students; organize and implement instruction in ways that optimize students’ access to learning; use group management methods that encourage student engagement with academic tasks; promote the development of student social skills and self-regulation; and use appropriate interventions to assist students who have behavior problems.
There are several established systems used by teachers- some include: SEL (social emotional learning), PBS (positive behavior support), CASEL, First step to Success
PBS involves both preventing behavior problems and dealing with disruptive behavior, called a multitiered approach-these approaches often work the best
Secondary teachers should adopt programs such as self-management programs, anger management programs, conflict resolution programs, mentoring programs, daily check in and check out procedures, specialized social skill instruction, brief and less-intense functional assessment and support plans, and establish family involvement in students educational plan.
Teachers should stay away from using vague rules or rules they are unwilling to enforce. They should not ignore student behaviors that violate school or classroom rules however they should not use overly harsh or embarrassing punishments or punishments delivered without accompanying support. Teachers must be consistent!
Students actually want classroom management- they like having clear expectations, clear instructions and a supportive environment
The best model for establishing an individual, classroom, or school-wide system of managing student behavior is a multi-tiered approach.
The classroom management strategies will manage your classroom with succeeds and reduces the stress and amount of times to deal with the students. It starts from the door and it is important to settle them down before they get into the class.
A first strategy is non-confrontational; it is reinforced the student with what we want to see. Reminding the students about what they are doing right and encouraging the students to do right things. For example, “thank you very much to being on time”.
Secondary, informal chit chat will help to form a social consensus with them. Then there will be reciprocal respect in class.
A Veteran Teacher turned coach shadows 2 students for two days. A Sobering lesson learned.
Students sit all day and sitting is exhausting.
Changes:
-halfway stretch every class
-basketball hoop on the back of door (couple minutes each class)
– move around activities
Students rarely spoke – sat passively absorbing information
Little autonomy
Changes:
-set and egg timer when speaking
-start each class by asking students to write down essential questions
Teachers have more empathy after having shadowed
Structure tests with a five minute reading period and no one can write until the reading period has finished.
*Backwards design
Creating a stable classroom culture is essential for students to feel safe, which encourages learning. Though the article uses interview with elementary and middle school teachers, the messages apply to teachers of all grade levels.
The classroom culture should be established on the first day of lessons as a positive environment under the control and guidance of the teacher. Teachers ought to clearly explain to students their expectations, whether this concerns the overall tone of the class or a specific activity. Teachers are the authority in the class and must be firm on only accepting behaviour they deem appropriate. Consistency is key. If a strategy, such as student numbers, grouping or attention-on-me word or action, is established by the teacher, the teacher ought to use it consistently. The use of these strategies allow students to know their role and responsibilities in the classroom and promote a safe environment for learning.
5 Tips for Classroom Management (Mike) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M_jQ81O0yzM
Noise Maker – use something that is slightly humorous – teacher provides example of bugle horn – think clown horn – as it takes the sting out of the use of the noise maker and is more effective and less demoralize than constant shouting
Routine – says that something like a hand up – word could also apply – or by assigning roles to a group of people as “shushers” – often it is best to select the ringleaders as people will follow their lead regardless so you fulfill their need to have attention and also have the quieting down process be a group dynamic – must be enough so as not to have it feel like it is a select few and everyone should have a role in the classroom so as not to exclude students
Visual Reminders – green – noise level is fine and students may continue working. Yellow – warning that things are getting a bit loud. Red – students need to bring down their noise level within 30 seconds. This can be used as an alternative to the voice.
The Unexpected – guaranteed to get their attention – change up the routine with either a different layout, lighting, music, etc. This will have students asking what is going on and will allow you to tell them that they will be informed as soon as they quiet down
The Countdown – 54321 – explaining process of what you want and praising those that are following instructions – also this is a routine but is more explicit in the way that it is done.
Classroom Management Case Studies:
Case study: #I: Students grades dropping in your class compared to last year in this subject and compared to other subjects.
-Talk to student, talk to other teachers, talk to last year’s teacher in same subject. Find out from student how can you get better results.
#2: Student crying in class:
-Give student options, what is best for her? Talk to me, to counsellor, take a minute outside
#3: Student disrupting class for last hour and again during key point:
-There are hundreds of answers depending on who Aaron is. Better to go from happy to not happy, than happy to angry. Be direct but not embarrass the student. Change what you’re doing, i.e. from lecturing that’s not working to group work for example.
#4: Josephine treating her lab partner in an unkind way, bordering on bullying. When you approach, she is sweet as pie but when you aren’t vigilant, she goes back to her formal behaviour. What do you do?
-Have to separate them; student feelings of safety are paramount. Speak with them separately. Could also monitor them closely during that class, and then talk to them afterwards not to disrupt the class.
#5: Johnny is popular because of his athleticism. He is also known to be arrogant at times. If he were to arrive late and, when asked why, answered disrespectfully and walked past you to take his seat, how would you respond?
-Ask Johnny to talk after class. Or ask him to talk right away. Be careful to not escalate into a larger fight. If you “call them out” he may feel that he needs to prove himself in front of his peers.
History and geography are critical subjects that are already being reconceptualized and will continue to be adapted during my career to the changing needs of 21-century learners. I think the new BC curriculum strongly showcases these changing needs and highlights the different values of our world, from memory, classification, and facts to interconnections, implications and interactions. Access to technology has changed not only the face of education, but its actual core. As a 21st century educator I think it is pivotal to move away from tradition ways of thinking/ learning about social studies in the classroom by starting to interact with the vast amount of data at our finger tips using core concepts, themes and big ideas. On my practicum I attempted to do this in a number of ways including using technology in the classroom as a way to look up information to reduce focus on facts and memory, using backward design to formulate assessments and by engaging in the multi-disciplinary connections that become easier to identify using 21st century skills. Yet, I often found myself having to be reminded that memory of facts are not as important as they use to be. I think as new educators in 2015 we are in an interesting position where the education we received (even at the university level) will be very different from the education we will offer our students and I can imagine this at times will be very challenging. It is also a challenging time for educators (and was for me on my practicum) as an economic divide still exists between students with devices in the classroom as those without, however I assume this will lessen with time. Furthermore, geography is an exceptional discipline to tease out interdisciplinary connections, especially with access to the internet students are able to connect geography to biology, history, foods, psychology, physics….etc. I think this leaves social studies teachers in an excellent position to teacher 21 century skills, along with making their job more dynamic and engaging.
An area of my teaching that I would like to focus on is pacing. I think pacing of lessons was a challenge for me on my practicum because I was switching between IB DP and non-IB courses. Since I began with teaching non-IB courses first it took me a bit of adjusting to the faster, more rigorous pace of the IB curriculum. I believe growing in this area will be crucial to becoming a more successful teacher because IB students really need to have all the content and skills in order to be ready for their examinations, not covering a topic, skill or concept is a real disservice to them. I found this placed a lot of pressure on me, and made me feel a bit anxious. On the other hand, I equally think it is important to adjust back to a slower and through pace of learning in non-IB courses in order to give those students the best chance at success. During my practicum, I did one lesson that flopped because of pacing (it was my first IB lesson and very content and lecture heavy) and since then I have dedicated pacing as an area of growth for me. I think I was so affected by this poor lesson and the feedback I received from it by my SA because I wasn’t expecting, or conscious of the importance of appropriate pacing for all types of learners and all levels of students and was very focused on other elements of teaching.
Ways to develop better pacing:
1. Use formative assessment throughout the class using inquiry method
2. Encouraging students to provide feedback throughout the course
3. Reflection at the end of each lesson on pacing and what could be improved in the future
How was I influenced during this year? Inquiry and Risk-taking, Positivity and Reflection- August 6th
This year I learned a lot about the practice of inquiry. I learned how to talk about inquiry and the language that surrounds it for the first time, which somehow made it more real and tangible to me. I think I have always been an inquirer, I’ve always been curious since a child on the ways in which we come to live and be in the world, but I have never thought of it as a practice or as a skill before this program. That being said I was influenced this year to become a more confident risk-taker. I’m generally a quiet, reserved person and I found that I was stretched over the course of the year to take steps outside of my comfort zone. As I look back over the course of this year risk-taking as influenced me to expand myself to develop in skills like technology literacy and public speaking, along with expanding my confidence as a professional with a voice and competencies.
Another massive way I was influenced this year was by recognizing that the attitude in which you have will determined what and how much you get out of anything in life. I am more confident now than ever that positivity attracts positivity, while negativity does the same. There have been many times throughout the year that have been stressful during course work, or negative during practicum however being successful to me means being positive and enjoying the work and life that you have. I never quite understood how strongly negatively can affect me and I think over the course of this program I learned how to protect myself from this. This influence has also helped me to become better at receiving and accepting both positive and negative feedback as part of my professional practice, along with becoming reflective of my work and theories.
Reflection has never been a big part of my life until this program. I have never journaled, or kept recorders- even photographs are far and few between. However, developing my reflective skills has helped shape the way I think about my practices both inside or and outside of education. I have been continuously challenged by reflection all year long, never knowing whether I was saying or thinking the right thing, while questioning why I was always looking backward instead of forward. Yet, I have been influenced by the repetition of reflective practices so much of the program because I can see that it is a successful method of bettering who you are as a professional, alongside developing your own thoughts and opinions that you would typically not verbalize or even recognize. How can you successfully look forward without deeply thinking about where you are? I think the practice of reflection will help me find more enjoyment in the field of education while also helping me move from a good teacher to an excellent one.
TRB Professional Conduct/ Being a Professional- August 10th
It was unfortunate the I was unable to attend the TRB discussion last week, however I found the follow up discussion vey interesting, particularly since I experienced both urban and rural practicum placements over the course of the year, which seemingly had different regulations. It seemed to me that the TRB representative explained their position as advocating for the student above all else, since teachers are involved with vulnerable populations they are needed to protect and provide assistance to students and their families. I think their advice to protect yourself as a teacher is a smart and responsible thing to do. While I could never see myself up coming up against the TRB I do find it useful to remember the importance of appearances, and while events like driving a student home or sending them an email seem innocent to you, perceptions are important to consider.
Being a professional with particular regulations felt very different to me over the course of my two practicums, one being in Vancouver and the other being in Haida Gwaii. The TRB presentation seemed to focus on expectations and case studies from urban centers where typical professionalism applies (the normal role of the teacher). That is not to say that professionalism was all that different in Haida Gwaii but there was a very different sense of closeness to the community and to the students. Students would have dinner at their teacher’s houses, students would babysit the teacher’s kids and there would be parties on the weekend where teachers would have drinks with the student’s parents. The dynamic was different and the word professional was renegotiated in the small rural town. My two different experiences highlighted the fact that while the role of teacher carries the same weight and responsibility to protect students everywhere, day-to-day professional conduct is contextual. Therefore it would make sense to me that the TRB take context into consideration with hard and fast rules.
Lastly, it is interesting for me to discuss these topics and regulations because more than anything it reminds me of who we are working with and for. It reminds me that our students are children and need to be valued and protected as vulnerable people.
Professional Learning Communities and Process- Aug 11
Professional Learning Community: Mindfulness
Goals:
1. Define mindfulness
a. A practice at looking internally and taking inventory of ones emotions and thoughts at the current moment; being present in your body and space.
2. Purpose of mindfulness
a. To increase self awareness and self monitor/ self regulate
b. Helps to build an inclusive classroom community
c. Prepping and focusing students to be in a learning state
3. Explain its application in the classroom
a. Encouraging safe spaces
b. Encouraging reflection
c. Encouraging self-monitoring
4. Implementation strategies
a. Breathing techniques
b. Chime/ music calming practices
c. Stretches
d. Drawing
e. Free writing
f. Silent reading
5. Resistance to mindfulness
a. Yoga/ religion affliction
b. Time
c. Buy in
I really enjoyed participating in the PLC groups. I found that we really got into the subject matter of mindfulness and addressed the educational issue in a deep and meaningful way. I would definitely use this activity during professional development days, especially since I think it lends itself well to developments in cross-circular subject matters. I also think that there is huge benefit for teachers to continue to read and discuss new educational research and thought while they are working in the field.
What has inquiry got to do with teaching, learning and curriculum?
Inquiry is a teaching method that is considered best practice in teaching because it engages students to be active members of their classrooms and communities. By teaching through inquiry you are creating a space that is conversational, creative and challenging. Recall and memorization are not effective teaching methods long term, instead students need the opportunity to develop inquiry and problem solving skills that enable a student to further their own knowledge along with their self-confidence and positive learning attitudes. Though the process of inquiry teaching moves from teacher-centered to student- centered that inspires young people to take responsibility for their own learning.
The spiralling process of inquiry, especially in geography and history particularly addresses on the interconnections, interactions and implications of the dynamic processes that make up our society and environment. Inquiry is a lens in which you see the world, a lens that asks you to be critical, creative and above all problematize what seems simple, mundane or natural. Engaging in inquiry with your students means that they will gain the skills required for 21st century thinking and employment.
August 25 2014
What do you wonder about IB?
– Does it work for every student
– Can you transfer out of IB
– Do you still gradate high school if you don’t pass your diploma
– How are grade 10’s learning about IB
– Can you drop out after grade 11
– Is the program so standardized around the world is it hard for a teacher to add their own influence/ interests to the program
– Are the class sizes the same as regular studies
– Is geography more focused on physical or is there a human aspect too?
– How are parents informed about IB for their children- is IB common knowledge for parents?
– How do schools deal with a lot of interest in IB- is their level of grades that have to be reached by grade 10
– What role do IBDP teachers have in helping student manage stress from being in an accelerated program, is placing students (youth) under high stress an effective way to teach?
AUGUST 26 2014
1) What is the role of the educator?
The role of the educator is to act as a guide and an ambassador to a student’s learning. The role includes being an impassioned leader that enables and inspires a student to desire to be a life-long learner. To me, being an educator means empowering people to seek new understanding through collaboration, to acknowledge difference by dialoguing with others and to encourage individual passions. Furthermore, it is important as an educator to understand that the role is fluid, shifting from student to educator constantly as we demonstrate life-long learning. An educator’s role also includes a willingness to adapt in a forever changing society with new beliefs.
2) What is the role of the student?
The role of the student is to have an open mind to learning new skills and concepts that will enable them to become a life-long learn that strives to better understand the world they are apart of. A student’s role includes inquiry, active participation in collaborating with others, and attempting to seek a deeper new understanding of the world they are apart of.
3) What is the significance of IBDP to the teacher?
The IBDP program is significant to the teacher because it allows them to work extensively with the same group of students for two years, allowing the teacher to be witness to the development of the student for an extended time. It is significant to the teacher because it provides the opportunity to enable a student to grow in a well-rounded way. Also, it is significant that an IBDP teacher gets to address global concerns and issues in meaningful ways with students.
– To the Student?
The IBDP program is significant to the student because it gives them the best practices in education that are available. The IBDP program is seen as the ‘gold standard’ of education and it allows the student to have the best chance at succeeding at the university level. It also is significant for the student because it prepares them for the stressors that come along with university life through the rigorous assessment of the program. Furthermore, IB students are encouraged to be well-rounded and active participants in their communities.
August 27 2014
I think that the beauty of inquiry as a method teaches students the skills and concepts to ask questions that enable them to be full participates in a democratic society. Students who inquire are open to asking questions about politics, religion, economics, and different ways of ways of life. I believe that through the practice of inquiry we are closer to finding best practice for teaching students to be ready for life after high school. I feel like I still have many inquiries into IB such as:
– Can you transfer out of IB?
– -Does it work for every student?
– Do you still gradate high school if you don’t pass your diploma?
– How is grade 10’s learning about IB?
o What does this out reach look like
o Are you be selected by your teachers
– Can you drop out after grade 11?
– Is the program so standardized around the world is it hard for a teacher to add their own influence/ interests to the program?
– are the class sizes the same as regular studies?
– is geography more focused on physical or is there a human aspect too?
– How do schools deal with a lot of interest in IB- is their level of grades that have to be reached by grade 10?
– What does the external marking process look like?
On another note, I found the different methods of teaching repetition today particularly interesting- examples of repetition without the student knowing (or being bored) was very helpful. I have been appreciating the practical in-class tips that are offered though out this week.
August 28, 2014: Field Trip Reflection:
1. What is art?
Art is define by the dictionary as “the expression or application of human creative skill and imagination, typically in a visual form such as painting or sculpture, producing works to be appreciated primarily for their beauty or emotional power”. I see art as anything that is created by someone who deems it art or others who see it who deem it art. Art is art if we believe it to be because it has reached an audience (even if it is just the artist) in some way. Usually art offers a perspective or interpretation on some aspect of life.
2. If an artist calls a piece of work art, is it therefore art?
Yes. I believe if someone believes something to be art, it becomes that to them. To me, the decision of whether the piece is art or not is in the eye of the beholder.
3. Are there any rules that must be followed to have a piece classified as art?
No, not whether it is art as a whole. I think creating rules for classifying whether something is art would hinder the creative process and nature of art. However, I believe there are many rules as to how a piece of art is classified within different categories of art.
4. Consider two pieces of work at the institute… one you liked and one you did not. Discuss why you chose those pieces.
The piece of art I disliked from the Rennie Museum was the “Oak Trees Red Bluff” by Rodney Graham. When I first put my bag away for the tour I noticed this black and white piece and loved it ascetically. I think this artwork by Rodney is visually beautiful and I probably would have concluded it as my favorite if I had not attended the guided tour. However, the explanation of the 8-piece set did not resonate with me. I could see the obvious effect of positioning the trees upside down created the appearance of the branches as roots, yet beyond this take on the North American landscape I did not find the piece particularly thought provoking. On the other hand, the piece of art I most liked was “The Gifted Amateur”, a backlit wall-size piece of the artist creating a painting. ‘The Gifted Amateur’ was inspired by a work done by Lewis Morris who created simplistic style pieces from which Rodney found humorous because people look at it and believe anyone (“even I”) could create it as if it didn’t involve much talent. In this cinematic art piece by Graham, the wealthy old man is creating a simplistic piece of art with a very nonchalant attitude (there is many cigarettes, his facial expression, cereal bowls…) however that image is contrasted to the many art books strew about the room suggesting that this artist has potentially researched and thought about this art work more than the art itself lets on. I think this is a clever piece that is witty and plays on real dialogue of contemporary art viewers. Overall, I found myself more drawn to the meaning of the art, rather than its initial ascetic appeal.
It was interesting today to go over the ways of knowing (language, reason, sense perception and emotion) in the context of Theory of Knowledge. I was unaware of TOK when I enrolled in IB and find it fascinating that there is a class that is devoted to tackling big issues and thinking about them through different ways of knowing and engaging through the method of inquiry. I think it will become very important to address how we come to our own situated knowledge with the students and to acknowledge our position in society as we discuss these big concepts. I think that by incorporating the lenses in which we view the world is as important as the topic itself (why might I have the opinion that I do? Do I come from a place of privilege or disadvantage?). It will also give students the opportunity to imagine how their race, gender, ethnicity, sexuality…etc has come to shape how their opinions are formed. In the TOK classroom I think it will become very important to develop a common non- discriminatory language that focuses on inclusivity. TOK seems like an awesome place to come together to not only challenge big topics but to also question how we might see these topics as individual members in a diverse world.
August 31 2014- First analysis of an Inquiry Question
What role do IBDP teachers have in helping student manage stress from being in an accelerated program, is placing students (youth) under high stress an effective way to teach?
As a future IB teacher I am worried that I will be in positions of dealing with students who are under immense pressure and therefore suffer negative psychological affects. I wonder, as IB teachers are there ways to negate the negative effects of a stressful program by adopting specific teaching strategies to help offset the stresses of demand.
According to a study in the Journal of Advanced Academics regarding IB and AP students’ stress, students in the accelerated programs did experience higher levels of stress and pressure compared to standard high school students, however the stress did not correlate to negative mental health outcomes. The same University of South Florida study suggests that the IB and AP students did not have more psychological issues and sleeping problems due to stress because they have better and more sophisticated means of coping with the pressures attached to IB. Some of the methods of dealing with stress this study mentions are “attachment to their teachers and school, as well as feelings of pride in what they were accomplishing in mastering their subject areas, motivated by their academic achievement and their hard work…by efficient time and task management along with turning to their families, to study groups and to their friends for support, when needed”.
What I noticed from these findings is that teachers in these programs must be creating learning environments that are supportive to stress and are balancing students stress with effective means of coping with it. How might I as an IB teacher adopt these strategies?
From a quick look at high school IB program webpages I found that the most common stressors on students come from large school projects, multiple tests/assignments due same day, heavy amount of homework, and feeling like there is not enough time. In dealing with these stressors teachers seem to encourage the students to do the following:
– Getting students to write everything down- Agendas/ day planners
– Helping students prioritize- writing down what’s due in order on the board
– Encouraging study methods like flash cards
– Getting students to work in groups and collaborate
– Creating a positive environment through the teacher’s attitude and encouragement
– Class rules developed by the class
I think that the following could also be helpful coping methods that could be adopted into the classroom
– Breathe work- taking a moment to relax the brain for learning and to clear it of negative thoughts
– Playing a quick game to get students to laugh
– A brisk walk
– Posting all the benefits of IB around the classroom for a reminder of why they are working so hard.
It seems the accelerated program does not hinder the student’s emotional and psychological well being. The students that par-take in IB thrive in the rigorous academic environment because they may learn and adopt coping methods quicker that standard students. However I wonder if these results are the same across schools that exclusively offer IB at the secondary level or schools that offer it as a choice program? Are all students ready to be part of this program; should there always be a choice in the school?
September 2 2014
What has inquiry got to do with teaching, learning and curriculum?
Inquiry is a teaching method that is considered best practice in teaching because it engages students to be active members of their classrooms and communities. By teaching through inquiry you are creating a space that is conversational, creative and challenging. Recall and memorization are not effective teaching methods long term, instead students need the opportunity to develop inquiry and problem solving skills that enable a student to further their own knowledge along with their self-confidence and positive learning attitudes. Though the process of inquiry teaching moves from teacher-centered to student- centered that inspires young people to take responsibility for their own learning. Today when I presented my inquiry question, I did not use inquiry methods- instead I rushed though my question and answer. I learned by teaching using inquiry the teacher needs to slow down, feel confident and open up the floor by engaging the classroom all throughout the lesson- not just at the end. Watching Josh today was inspiring because I can see how he really incorporated inquiry as much as he could while still getting though a lot of material. His presentation stood out above those who didn’t engage as much, like myself. My one concern with inquiry is how much longer it takes to get through the material. IB has high-stake tests and I wonder if it is a challenge balancing inquiry methods into all lessons when there is extensive material for the teacher to relay- I am interested to see how the teachers in our placements do this.
-What do I know about inquiry methods- asking questions, activities, small groups, and presentations.
I really like lessons that are activity based. I think it forces me to think creatively and gives me a chance to try out some ideas. I definitely like the idea of doing more than one activity in a class. It is easy to disengage if one activity doesn’t grab you, but having two or more (if timing allows) offers different ways for students to participate and acknowledge how they relate to the topic. Being a new teacher I am interested in trying out new activity based lessons because I imagine my expectations for my planned activities will be changed and challenged.
September 4 2014
The tea presentations in today’s class were very interesting to me because of the different levels of inquiry techniques used by each group. Groups that used maximum level of engagement throughout the whole presentation were far more interesting and engaging than other groups. However, they were also much longer. The purpose of the assignment was collaboration- which always presents challenges ex. Getting everyone to participate and making sure everyone gets heard. I focused on what Isobel was doing by walking around the class answering questions and redirecting some groups. I think the presence of having the teacher nearby is comforting for students in collaborative work, especially if there are group conflicts or inconsistent opinions. I liked the fact that at the beginning of the assignment we were told that we were going to have to present- I think it gave a sense of purpose and urgency to the goals of the project, I would make sure I gave the task a purpose if I were to do this in a high school classroom.
In the second half of the class, marking the essay was extremely difficult. The process is a subjective and emotional task. I found it stressful that there were big differences between us. I am interested in talking about this paper further because I am concerned with the topic the student chose- why would their advisor let them chose such a topic and why were they not directed to have more scientific reasoning and logic incorporated into their paper? To me the paper seemed to be a failure on the behalf of the advisor. I am now much more interested in the role of the advisor and to the extent of advice they are allowed to offer an IB student.
September 11 2014
I enjoyed watching Steven and Irit present today- however I found that the rubric provided had way too many categories to critique on. I could not watch the presentation and think about that many elements (authenticity, academic rigor, assessment, beyond the school, appropriate use of technology, active exploration, connecting with expertise and elaborated communication) to provide feedback on at once. I think a more concise set of criteria on the rubric would allow me to think more thoroughly about the presentation and provide more meaningful and focused feedback. As a teacher watching multiple oral presentations on the same day I think having less criteria in your rubric would be even more important and helpful, otherwise I get lost in it. This is obviously different if you are providing an evaluation on a paper or written assignment. For both Steven and Irit’s lesson plan presentations I gave them overall scores of developing. I believe, based on the criteria, that the presentations both met most of the developing category on the rubric. Watching their presentations made me go back and revise my presentation because I got the chance to view the rubric while watching their presentations before I preform. This reinforced to me how essential it is to always provide our students with rubrics before they present because it really does affect they way they build the assignment. Communication becomes much clearer.
October 7 2014 First School Visit- Mulgrave School
-one to one interactions
-Better able to gear your instruction for your students- a personalization of learning which seemed to make less intimidating for students to talk in front of the class
-Praised in public- need to work up to knowing your students before you point them out individually before their class
-Ms. Morgan- very engaging and made the students think outside of the box, encouraged everyone but in a genuine way. Ms. Morgan is very inspiring- the students were very drawn to her
-the cross collaboration meetings created a sense of community- especially in the MYP program, in the DP program the subjects are a bit more separated
-TOK class with Brad- had specific roles for each student- a lot of technology which I found somewhat distracting to the interesting conversation he was having.
-Inquiry is only a part of concept-based learning
-Definitely need to build up to a classroom “feel”, the teachers knew their students well
-I felt the note taking through twitter was distracting and I’m not sure that all the technology in Brad’s TOK lesson was necessary.
-Small class sizes were so nice
– There was a community through the whole school
-I really liked the newspaper events, the teacher expected a lot from the students- they needed to field 3 questions about the article.
-I felt a bit under prepared in terms of knowing the IB syllabus.
Michele Sims examines the question why do middle school students with average intelligence struggle with comprehension in reading? She conducted a self, teacher research project with a student in her class. She found her questions evolved throughout the process into “how can I meet the needs of my more quiet students while productive channeling the energy of my more aggressive students. With the student she worked with she found that he was excited about learning but was afraid to be wrong and because of this missed more and more in class and found he struggled more comprehension. As an educator asking questions and constantly examining your teaching is imperative. Also the article shows to not make assumptions about intelligence and interest it may be linked to broader considerations or issues.
October 16 2014
DON’T SAY YOU GUYS! – On another note, Today we went over the learner profile- Wow repetition and collaboration need to be fun- way more successful this way!
I have been interested this week in ESL learners and standardized test. One question that I have been thinking about was sparked by the quote “the gravest error that universities make is to assume that a certain TOEFL score, say 550, is equated to the ability to comprehend text in a particular academic area, even though the TOEFL is used by almost all English-speaking college and university faculties to judge students’ preparation for studies”. I find it so interesting that there has not been more conversation about this ineffective testing, how can we make this testing better, or improve the system so that students are set up for success in their to universities pursuits?
October 23 2014
I think it would be really helpful to get a basic overview of the expectations different cultures have on the educator and education system, albeit I know what can be offered is only a very narrow widow onto the topic. I think it is really interesting that there is an assumption that the classroom, and the school itself is a neutral, politics-free environment. This assumption has been addressed in nearly every one of my classes this term, most often discussing that the classroom is a small, but relatively accurate representation of what happens in society at large. Moreover, teachers are likely to teach to the dominant or mainstream perspective that center around European values and beliefs. I find this fascinating that this steadfast white- western ideology is as present as it is considering the diversity of the lower-mainland in BC. I am excited to be in the school system over my practicum and bear witness to what is being said, and how teachers, students and parents address cultural goals and expectation of education in the school setting. Until I am in a classroom I don’t think I will fully be able to understand what it means to be a teacher in relation to the cultural complexities of the classroom. However, I do have a bit of anxiety around culturally sensitive approaches I have heard about especially those focused on having a male speak on behalf of a women teacher in need be, I wonder if this is common and to what extent. Although being culturally sensitive it is not something I feel uncomfortable with.
There will undoubtedly be many cultures present in our classrooms all of the time and that “culture” means different things to different people, even people within the same culture. Teachers need to respect that there is a large variety of backgrounds within their classrooms and understand their own position within such a setting- as someone who can, but doesn’t have to, reproduce the dominate/ mainstream political systems of domination. Social studies and geography are subjects that are particularly vulnerable to holding tightly to dominate European ideals because the objectives of the discipline are closely tied to Canadian notions of what is means to be a ‘good citizen’. I look forward to classes that offer a wide and diverse student body and considering my own role in creating a classroom that is unapologetically a political space.
November 7 2014
Management Strategies I observed over the course of my practicum included
• Silence- waiting
• Moving students to separate them
• Proximity of teacher to the students
• Constant, clear, instructions- not too many at once
• Setting up a respectful classrooms- raising your hand, or writing hands on the board, or the student talking gets to pick the next student to talk
• Being respectful to them- treating them positively, kind, with dignity
• Don’t smile until Christmas
• Using humor
• Assign marks for participation
• Don’t let them sit without talking for too long- mix up the assignments
• Cell phone policy- no cell in the classroom at all
I really enjoyed the IB Conference for Churchill Students today- I was so inspired by the program and so happy to see the pride the students felt to the event. Days like to today really make me “buy-in” to an IB education.
Understanding Norway’s terrorism:
This article points out the obvious hypocrisy of those who would state that Muslim terrorists represent islam, while european or american terrorists do not represent their culture. The example given is that Christian terrorists known as “Christian Warriors” or Hutaree have been labeled as “not real Christians.” I’m not really sure that this article provides any new insights or is representative of how the majority of people think. He presents the opinions of Glenn Beck and Ann coulter and then tears them right down again. People like this make for highly flammable straw-men.
EdTech Reflections for preservice teachers:
This article talks about the use of technology in the classroom. It mentions using tools as a means of achieving specified educational goals, I.e. As educators we need to think about the skills and learning the student has to master and then choose the right tools for the task. It is important to choose the right technology for the right reasons rather than choosing a technological tool then teaching through it. The article also mentions how students do not really care about the technology used in the class but just need effective means of learning and making a difference around them. They do not need to be taught how to use a piece or tool of technology – students are curious and explorative to figure things out on their own. They will learn more about the technology if given the opportunity to explore on their own. The final point the article talks about is that what is available today may not really be available/accessible/free tomorrow. Hence we need to keep evolving and adapting. If things do not work out, servers are down, or things go wrong, we need to be flexible educators. Keep in mind the amount of funding a school has.
Discipline By Design: Stages of Discipline
Every student performs differently and functions at different levels in various subject areas, similarly, they also function at different levels when it comes to discipline. This article looks at the work of Lawrence Kohlberg who:
“studied stages of moral and ethical reasoning in youngsters from the United States, Taiwan, Mexico, Turkey, and Yucatan. One important fact that surfaced in his research is that everyone, regardless of culture, race, or sex, goes through these stages. Although the progression from stage to stage is the same, the rate varies from person to person. It is for this reason that we need to be prepared to address discipline in our classrooms at different levels.”
Stage 1: Recalcitrant Behavior
The Power Stage: Might Makes Right!
lowest stage
ages less than 5 mostly, but few older students still function at this level
students refuse to follow directions
students are defiant, require a lot of attention
have few personal rules, follow the rules of others, little concern for the feeling of others
seek extension of power: pencils, scissors, rulers become weapons
power stage: imbalance of power between the child and the person in authority; e.g. child and parent when the child is young, but diminishes as the child grows up.
need assertive teachers with a constant eye on these students to keep them in line
Stage 2: Self-Serving Behavior
The Reward/Punishment Stage: “What’s in It for Me?”
students with individualistic morality – self centered
reward and punishment stage: students behave because they expect to be rewarded for good behaviour, or because they fear punishment.
very little sense of self-discipline. need constant supervision.
Stage 3: Interpersonal Discipline
The Mutual Interpersonal Stage: “How Can I Please You?”
most of the youngsters in middle and junior high
start to develop a sense of discipline
they care what others think of them and want you to like them.
need gentle reminders
Commonalities amongst teaching theories:
Creativity-Innovation (Number one trend in education)
Personalisation-Differentiation (students progress at their own rates, different levels of instruction in one class)
Higher level learning
Student centered
Application of understanding
Synthesis of information
Teamwork
Communication skills
Problem solving
Peer-to-peer learning
Teacher acts as a facilitator of learning
Development of research skills
Critical thinking and problem solving
Technology and flipped learning
Collaboration for student success
Empowering students
Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation
Encouraging students to want to continue to learn
Backward design
Scaffolding
Assignment Expectations:
1. What is the purpose of assignments? Gain and demonstrate knowledge. Assessment. Evaluate progress. Build your skills set (ex: presentations). Self-learning and applying knowledge. Engage different learning styles.
2. How are types of assignments chosen? Depends on the skills you are looking to develop. Depends on the content. Depends on the goal of the assessment (formative or summative). To reach different types of learners. Change the rhythm with a variety.
3. Are most open-ended questions? Yes, in IB. Best is to scaffold. Challenge critical thinking with open-ended but then also need more specific questions to achieve a specific goal so having a mix is good. A more fact-based knowledge foundation is important to start with. Inquiry assignment can take longer so if short on time might not be the best option. Small groups of inquiry may be better to avoid passive learners. Depends on subject (ex: inquiry can be more difficult in math).
4. What outcomes are expected? As a student, what you did has to be relevant. You achieve knowledge and understanding of the subject. Applying knowledge gained. Evaluating and interpreting knowledge.
5. Types of feedback: Positive vs negative. Written comments, oral reinforcement, scaffolding (guiding learning vs perfect!), peer-review, ask to elaborate or give more detail, self-evaluation
PRACTICUM REFLECTION:
– I observed many different classrooms for the majority of the first week. These classes included a Spanish, film, drama, English, PE, math, socials and along with multiple TOK classes. During the majority of my second week I spent most of my time involved in the classes of my school advisor. Along with observations in the second week, I was privileged in teaching 3 different lessons, twice each. My lessons included map scales, map legends and primary/ secondary sources. Outside of the classroom I observed a Remembrance Day ceremony, a staff meeting, a Halloween dance, staff collaboration time and students auditions for the school play.
– I believe I have a good presence in the classroom I was surprised by how comfortable I felt in front of the students. I also feel like I am strong at creating fun activities into my lessons that engage the students. I am also very organized and I think this has been a big benefit to me thus far.
– My main goals for the long practicum is to get to know the students in my classroom and to create a positive and engaging space. Another goal is to create lesson plans that have a rich variety of activities and assessments that allow students to be creative. I look forward to trying out new activities yet always a bit nervous trying new things in the classroom. I also think it I need to focus on the clarity of my instruction.
– I look forward to contributing more to the school community during my long practicum and getting involved in different ways.
– I really want to focus on asking really good open ended questions rather than simply asking a lot of questions
– I definitely realize that I need to know more history and become more familiar with historical thinking.
– During my long practicum I really need to focus more on modifications/ adaptions- I just forgot about these on my long practicum
– Best tip I learned over the practicum is to let students read over a test before they begin- get students to ask questions- then begin the test
November 13 2014
Should teachers be considered professional? They are part of the union does that change how I feel about it? If a profession is accessible to many, does it make it less professional? – “blue collar” workers enter have historically had access into the field. You must know why you are a teacher? There seems to be a two-tiered system existing within schools- some teachers leave at three while others take a lot of pride in their jobs and are very involved. What is my answer to why are you a teacher?
On another note this week has really made me grateful for cross discipline collaboration. I have spent the majority of my undergraduate in a very small and tight disciple with very specific ways of thinking and knowledge production I find it interesting being in a professional program where I am having to re-think/ re-examine what I know and how I know it. It has been a big privilege to work with people with varying perspectives and ways of imagining the world.
Brain- Based Presentation:
Introduction: This paradigm establishes connections between brain function and educational practice. “Brain-based” education emerged well over 20 years since this “connect the dots” approach began. In a nutshell, brain-based education says, “Everything we do uses our brain; let’s learn more about it and apply that knowledge.”
Educators should be able to support the use of a particular classroom strategy with a scientific reasoning or studies. Each educator ought to be professional enough to say, “Here’s why I do what I do.” I would ask: Is the person actually engaged in using what they know, or simply having knowledge about it, but not actually using it? Are they using strategies based on the science of how our brain works? Brain-based education is about the professionalism of knowing why one strategy is used over another. The science is based on what we know about how our brain works.
Her are some statements about brain based learning and practical educational applications. I want you to find your match- these will create groups. In your group read and discuss your strategy- draw a visual representation of your practical application. And summarize it one sentence.
Once groups have done that- each group will select one student to read out their statement.
1 A) Physical education, recess and movement are critical to learning.
1 b) Practical school applications: Support more, not less physical activity, recess and classroom movement. It raises the good chemicals for thinking, focus, learning and memory (noradrenaline, dopamine and cortisol). Students need 30-60 minutes per day to lower stress response, boost neurogenesis and boost learning. For the first few weeks of school, expose students to a variety of physical activities. Then, offer choice. That’s critical because voluntary activity does more good than forced activity, which may cause an overproduction of cortisol.
2 A) Social conditions influence our brain in multiple ways we never knew before. School behaviors are highly social experiences, which become encoded through our sense of reward, acceptance, pain, pleasure, coherence, affinity and stress. In fact, poor social conditions, isolation or social “defeat” are correlated with fewer brain cells.
2 b) Practical school application: Do not allow random social groupings for more than 10-20 percent of the school day. Use targeted, planned, diverse social groupings with mentoring, teams and buddy systems. Work to strengthen pro-social conditions. Teacher-to-student relationships matter, as do student-to-student relationships.
3 a) The brain changes! All educators should know the brain can and does change every day.
3 b) Practical school application: Give teachers a mandate of 30-90 minutes a day and 3-5 times per week to upgrade student skill sets. Teach attentional skills, memory skills and processing skills. Progress requires focus, “buy-in” and at least a half-hour a day.
4 a) Chronic stress is a very real issue at schools for both staff and students. Recent studies suggest 30-50 percent of all students feel moderately or greatly stressed every day
4 b) Practical school application: Teach students better coping skills, increase student perception of choice, build coping skills, strengthen arts, physical activity and mentoring. These activities increase sense of control over one’s life, which lowers stress. All of these can reduce the impact of stressors.
5 A) Schools are pushing differentiation as a strategy to deal with the differences in learners. That’s close, but not quite the truth. In fact, instead of there being mostly “typical” students with some with “differences” the brain research tells us the opposite.
5 b) Practical school application: Make differences the rule, not the exception at your school. Validate differences. Never expect all students (fourth-graders, for instance) to be on the same page in the same book on the same day. That runs counter to an extraordinary research databases that shows variations in maturation rates and other brain differences. Allow kids to celebrate diversity, unique abilities, talents and interests. Give them the skill sets, relationships and hope to succeed.
6 A) New evidence suggests the value of teaching content in even smaller chunk sizes. Why? The old thinking was that students could hold seven plus or minus chunks in the head as capacity for working memory. But that science is outdated. The new research says two to four chunks are more realistic.
6 B) Practical school application: Teachers should teach in small chunks, process the learning, and then rest the brain. Too much content taught in too small of a time span means the brain cannot process it, so we simply don’t learn it. Breaks, recess and downtime make more sense than content, content and more content. Here’s the guideline: the less background the learner has and the greater the complexity of the content, make the time chunk of content shorter (use 4-8 minutes). The greater the background knowledge, the less the complexity, the longer you can make the “input” stage (8-15 min. is acceptable). Under no condition, should there be more than 15 consecutive minutes of content input. Share this with your colleagues. But share it in a small chunk, and then allow time for processing it.
7A) the role of the arts in schools continues to be under great scrutiny. But five neuroscience departments at five universities (Oregon, Harvard, Michigan, Dartmouth and Stanford) have recently completed projects studying the impact of arts on the brain.
7 b) Practical school application: Make arts mandatory and give students the choice of several, and support with expert teachers and the time to excel at it. Right now, evidence suggests that you get the most value from 30 to 60 minutes a day, three to five days a week. Arts support the development of the brain’s academic operating systems in ways that provide many transferable life skills.
8A) Humans have the remarkable capacity to display many emotions, but only six of them are “hard wired,” or built in at birth. This is profound because it tells us that unless children get these emotional states taught to them early (ages 0-3), when they enter school, they’ll be emotionally narrow. Kids rarely ever get the emotional skills built in to be ready for school. This leads to more discipline problems and weakened cognitive skills in school. This means we’ll have kids at school who do not understand appropriate emotional responses (e.g. cooperation, trust, shame and humility) unless we teach them at school.
8B) Practical school application: This suggests two things. One, we must teach appropriate emotional states as life skills (e.g. honor, patience, forgiveness and empathy) and, second, it’s important to read and manage the other emotional states in the classroom. In good states, students learn well and behave better. Insist that teachers build social skills into every lesson. Ask that they use the social structures that are advocated in cooperative learning programs every day. The better the social skills, the better the academics. Many good programs are in books, workshops and online. Why put effort into this area? Kids who learn patience, attention, empathy and cooperation will be better students.
9A) There have been stunning strides in rehabilitation of brain-based disorders, including Asperger’s, learning delays, dyslexia and autism. The discovery that aggressive behavioral therapies, new drugs and revolutionary stem cell implantation can be used to influence, regulate and repair brain-based disorders has been amazing. Innovations suggest that special education students may be able to improve far more than we earlier thought.
9 b) Practical school application: Make sure all teachers (not just special ed) learn the latest in dealing with special education learning delay recovery. Most kids can be brought back into regular ed classes, but not with inclusion-only strategies. It takes consistent hour-a-day skill building or the student won’t change. Learn the right skills and go to it 3-5 days a week.
10 A) The recent brain/mind discovery that even memories are not fixed but, instead, are quite malleable is powerful. Every time you retrieve a memory, it goes into a volatile, flex state in which it is temporarily reorganized.
10 B) Practical school application: First, teachers should review the content halfway between the original learning and the test. If content is taught Monday and tested on Friday, then review should be on Wednesday. Second, teachers should mediate the review process with students through structured reviews such as written quizzes or group work that ensures quality control. Otherwise the material is more likely to get confused and test scores drop.
10 pieces of chart paper
10 markers
60 slips of paper
Inquiry Topic on Boarders: How are the boarders between social class reproduced under capitalism?
Sub Questions:
1) How does power influence economic, political and social structure within capitalism?
2) What are current barriers to entering a different social class; ethic, gender, religion, education, women’s rights, reproductive rights, social justice, technology, physical and mental disability, globalization …
3) How do we produce and reproduction our own daily life?
4) Is social class changing? Are boundaries becoming more fluid. How might be enter into a different social class today?
Where we want our conversation to go:
The practical everyday activity of wageworkers reproduces wage labor and capital. Through their daily activities, “modern” men, like tribesmen and slaves, reproduce the inhabitants, the social relations and the ideas of their society; they reproduce the social form of daily life. Like the tribe and the slave system, the capitalist system is neither the natural nor the final form of human society; like the earlier social forms, capitalism is a specific response to material and historical conditions.
Educational Theories
The Philosophy of Education in Finland
Finland does not implement standardized testing.
They have shorter school days: students spend less time in school.
Students in Finland have higher scores in Math and Science (world ranking)
Finland has a homogeneous population with a low poverty rate of 4%.
Reasons for Success
Great teachers with very low turnover.
Only 1 in 10 applicants are accepted into the Elementary Teacher Education Program.
To be qualified, all teachers need to have a Master’s degree.
Highly respected – like doctors or lawyers.
Finland has a framework of learning, but do not have a standard curriculum.
Lack of a top-down edict.
Mindshift Strategy
-Philosophy
· Carol Dweck, a psychology professor at Stanford University, claims that:
o Individuals have different views of their abilities and can be placed on a continuum
§ On one end of the continuum, individuals believe that their success comes from their fixed ability. (Fixed mindset)
§ On the other end of the continuum, individuals believe that their success comes from their developing abilities, which can be fostered through hard work, learning, and perseverance. (Growth mindset).
-key concepts
· Mindset = A mental attitude that affects how one will assess and react to situations
o Fixed Mindset = Intelligence is an unchangeable trait (Dweck, 2008)
o Growth Mindset = Intelligence is a trait that can be developed (Dweck, 2008)
-Strategies for developing Growth Mindset in the Classroom:
Step 1: Focus on learning, not performance
This may look like: rescheduling or rewriting exams or quizzes (Ask for other suggestions)
Step 2: Hard work is key
This may look like: flexible deadlines and teaching time management strategies (Ask for other suggestions)
Step 3: Confront difficulties and setbacks. Learn from mistakes
This may look like: Earning additional marks by doing corrections and handing them in to the teacher (Ask for other suggestions)
-Intention of use for learning
· In a growth mindset students realize that their talents can be improved through hard work and persistence.
· Student with growth mindset are not afraid of failures (“risk-takers”) because they understand that they learn much from failure
· Thus, growth mindset helps a student to lead a more successful life
Students with a fixed mindset are complacent in believing that their levels of intelligence or talent are invariable, allowing themselves no room for development or improvement.
As educators we want to create a mind shift in our students from Fixed Mindset to Growth Mindset.
Students who develop a Growth Mindset think of learning and intelligence as a skill that develops through hard work.
We must help to develop a growth mindset within each of our students, not only as good practice for the development of education, but also to increase self-esteem and confidence in those who are especially lacking. Not only does this mind shift have to happen within our students but it is equally important to consider for ourselves, as teachers, as we must always strive to stay relevant and better our practice.
Concept-based Learning:
As well as a summary of our teaching strategy, which was concept-based teaching and learning:
Philosophy:
Concept-based learning focuses on the overall concept and has less focus on specific topics and skill, which can fail to engage the learners.
Key Concepts:
– Creating connection to learner’s experience
– Foster global thinking
– Good concepts are abstract, timeless and universal
– Concepts are transferable through different disciplines
Strategies:
– Transform topics like “Health Care” and connect it to scientific concepts like “order, system, and organism”, or social studies concepts like “population, change/continuity, and culture”.
Intention of use for learning:
– The intention is to show students that they can apply concepts learned to different subjects and topics. This way, they will see that what they learn are not just esoteric facts that have no application in real life, which in turn will help boost their motivation for learning.
Penta C’s of IB education:
– Concepts (interdisciplinary, inquiry, project-based learning, universal principles, democratic discourse)
– Collaboration
– Communication
– Creativity
– Cognitive development (brain-based learning, social & emotional learning, multiple intelligence, modes of learning)
IB handbook presentation:
Handbook A Section 7 and 8
7.1 Services Included within the annual fee (Lisa)
Public Website -provides information about the IB and has resources useful to teachers of the IB
IB store and publications
– are resources useful to students, teachers and candidates
-section covers publication licence and copyright issues
-available on the OCC of IB store
Online curriculum centre (OCC)
University recognition- http://www.ibo.org/recognition/ has information about universities recognizing IB courses as university credit
Unannounced inspections of examination arrangements -The IB can inspect schools examination practices at any time and declare examinations null and void or disqualify students participation in the program
7.2 Enquiry Upon Request (Brendan)
7.2.1 IB Coordinators can request:
category 1 re-mark: the re-mark of externally assessed material for an individual candidate
category 1 report: a report on a category 1 re-mark for an individual candidate
category 2A: the return of externally assessed material by component for all candidates
category 2B: the return of externally assessed material by subject/level for an individual candidate
category 3 re-moderation: the re-moderation of marks for internal assessment by subject/level.
The results are communicated to the coordinator. A fee is required for all enquiries except for Category 1. None of the categories can be requested more than once for the same subject/level.
Category 1: Re-Mark
Re-marking of externally assessed material for individual candidate. Does not apply for multiple choice of Group 4 subjects. Cannot be requested for individual components. Small subjects and those with few examiners will be re-marked by the same marker. Candidates’ grades may be raised or lowered. Coordinators need written consent of candidate’s guardians prior to request.
Category 1: Report
Information on how many points were awarded for a re-mark. The report won’t change the points awarded for a re-mark.
— Basically, information on re-marking, reporting, re-moderating or returning marked materials.
7.2.2
Legalization of IB documents. Schools in some countries require the IB diploma results to be legalized in Geneva.
7.2.3
Replacement of IB documents, in the event of loss or damage.
7.3 The IB Grant (Kathryn)
IB provides short-term grants for temporary financial support that are increasing access to IB program
7.3.1 Who can apply?
Temporary financial difficulties due to unpredictable circumferences beyond their control or widening IB related program
7.3.2 Nature of the grants
Grants are short-term, valid for one year with a possible extension to two years maximum. Grants will take the form of a credit to the school’s IB account.
Schools with overdue amounts owing to the IB are not eligible to apply for an IB grant.
7.3.3 Application
The due dates for receipt of applications in 2015 are still under consideration and will be announced to IB coordinators as a news item on IBIS.
7.4 (Meagan)
Universities have established policies for recognition of the IB program.
IB students gain admission to some of the best universities
8.1 Academic Honesty (Melanie)
8.1.1 Policy
Every IB World School that offers the DP must have a policy to promote academic honesty, ie: the authentic work of the candidates.
Schools are responsible for checking all candidates’ work prior to submission to the IB for assessment or moderation.
8.1.2 What constitutes academic misconduct?
-Lack of referencing (style left to discretion of the school)
-Too much assistance or collusion in assignment (teacher assistance and online websites)
-Other forms of misconduct: duplicates work to meet the requirements of more than one assessment component
fabricates data for an assignment
takes unauthorized material into an examination room
disrupts an examination by an act of misconduct, such as distracting another candidate or creating a disturbance
exchanges, supports, or attempts to support the passing on of information that is or could be related to the examination
fails to comply with the instructions of the invigilator or other member of the school’s staff responsible for the conduct of the examination
impersonates another candidate
steals examination papers
discloses or discusses the content of an examination paper with a person outside the immediate school community within 24 hours after the examination.
8.2 The Authentication of the Candidate’s Work (Mike)
This section provides guidelines for the step by step process that a students’ work must go through before assignments are submitted to IB for evaluation. It is important to note that if an assignment is submitted and is found to not be the work of the student, a school and teacher can be investigate for academic misconduct in addition to the student.
Classroom Management:
1. Classroom Management: Discipline by Design (Melanie)
http://www.honorlevel.com/x45.xml
Summary:
Just as students have different learning levels, they also have different discipline levels and stages of morality and ethical reasoning. The rate of progression from one discipline stage to another varies between students. Therefore classroom management is more effective when it considers the different stages of discipline each student might have.
Stage 1: The power stage: Often refuse to follow direction, often defiant and requires alot of our attention. The imbalance of power may be effective to make them respond. An assertive teacher with a constant eye on these students will keep them in line.
Stage 2: The reward-punishment stage: Individualistic morality, self-centered, low self-discipline. These students behave if they know they will be rewarded for it or punished if they don’t behave. Assertive teachers do best with these students, need to do constant supervision. Might behave in class but then out of control in hallways.
Stage 3: The mutual interpersonal stage: Most students in MYP, they are developing a sense of discipline. They behave because you ask them. They care what others think and want the teacher to like them. They need less assertive discipline and more gentle reminders. Nurture good behaviour and remind that its important in all classes.
Stage 4: Self-Discipline Stage: Students behave because it is the right thing to do. Rarely get into trouble, understand right and wrong. These students do not appreciate assertive discipline. Respond well to cooperative learning activities.
As students grow up, they go through all these stages. It is important to know your students so you can guide them through the stages and also important to know that depending on personal situations they can regress to a lower stage.
2. Edutopia Classroom Management (Brendan)
http://www.edutopia.org/blog/classroom-management-tips-novice-teachers-rebecca-alber
Summary:
5 different strategies to help with classroom management.
Use your normal voice. Trying to use a raised voice burns out your voice after extended periods of time, and students will tend to match your speaking volume; if you speak loud, they’ll speak loud. Also vary your tone, use declarative tone for instructions, and an inviting tone to encourage discussion.
Wait time. Wait to speak until the students are quiet. You might be waiting longer than you feel comfortable, but students will eventually start shushing each other.
Use hand signals and non-verbal communication. Things like raising a hand for silence and waiting until all the students mirror you, flicking the lights on and off briefly, or clapping and having the students clap back.
Address behaviour issues quickly and wisely. Speak to students promptly if they are acting up, but don’t interrupt the instruction of a lesson to do so. Don’t accuse the student of wrongdoing, instead act as if you care and want to help them. If you have to address them during instruction, stay positive, ask “Do you have a question?” instead of calling out their behaviour.
Have well-designed lessons, and be prepared. The best form of classroom management is to have your students engaged in your lesson; if they are attentive and interested, they won’t be acting up and you won’t need to try to manage them.
3. American Psychology Association Classroom Management (Kathryn)
http://www.apa.org/education/k12/classroom-mgmt.aspx
Summary:
A 2006 survey of Pre-K through 12th grade teachers conducted by the American Psychological Association (APA), identified that classroom management was teachers top need and cited as one of the most prevalent reasons for job burnout and attrition of first-year teachers.
PBS teachers should do the following: develop caring, supportive relationships with and among students; organize and implement instruction in ways that optimize students’ access to learning; use group management methods that encourage student engagement with academic tasks; promote the development of student social skills and self-regulation; and use appropriate interventions to assist students who have behavior problems.
There are several established systems used by teachers- some include: SEL (social emotional learning), PBS (positive behavior support), CASEL, First step to Success
PBS involves both preventing behavior problems and dealing with disruptive behavior, called a multitiered approach-these approaches often work the best
Secondary teachers should adopt programs such as self-management programs, anger management programs, conflict resolution programs, mentoring programs, daily check in and check out procedures, specialized social skill instruction, brief and less-intense functional assessment and support plans, and establish family involvement in students educational plan.
Teachers should stay away from using vague rules or rules they are unwilling to enforce. They should not ignore student behaviors that violate school or classroom rules however they should not use overly harsh or embarrassing punishments or punishments delivered without accompanying support. Teachers must be consistent!
Students actually want classroom management- they like having clear expectations, clear instructions and a supportive environment
The best model for establishing an individual, classroom, or school-wide system of managing student behavior is a multi-tiered approach.
4. You tube Take control of the noisy classroom (Hyo Sun)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u086rr7SRso
The classroom management strategies will manage your classroom with succeeds and reduces the stress and amount of times to deal with the students. It starts from the door and it is important to settle them down before they get into the class.
A first strategy is non-confrontational; it is reinforced the student with what we want to see. Reminding the students about what they are doing right and encouraging the students to do right things. For example, “thank you very much to being on time”.
Secondary, informal chit chat will help to form a social consensus with them. Then there will be reciprocal respect in class.
5. Coaching Teachers (Meagan)
http://grantwiggins.wordpress.com/2014/10/10/a-veteran-teacher-turned-coach-shadows-2-students-for-2-days-a-sobering-lesson-learned/
A Veteran Teacher turned coach shadows 2 students for two days. A Sobering lesson learned.
Students sit all day and sitting is exhausting.
Changes:
-halfway stretch every class
-basketball hoop on the back of door (couple minutes each class)
– move around activities
Students rarely spoke – sat passively absorbing information
Little autonomy
Changes:
-set and egg timer when speaking
-start each class by asking students to write down essential questions
Teachers have more empathy after having shadowed
Structure tests with a five minute reading period and no one can write until the reading period has finished.
*Backwards design
6. 9 Strategies for effective management of classrooms (Lisa)
https://www.teachingchannel.org/blog/2014/01/24/video-playlist-classroom-management/?utm_source=Teaching+Channel+Newsletter&utm_campaign=8d78f69227-Newsletter_July_12_2014&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_23c3feb22a-8d78f69227-290933285
Creating a stable classroom culture is essential for students to feel safe, which encourages learning. Though the article uses interview with elementary and middle school teachers, the messages apply to teachers of all grade levels.
The classroom culture should be established on the first day of lessons as a positive environment under the control and guidance of the teacher. Teachers ought to clearly explain to students their expectations, whether this concerns the overall tone of the class or a specific activity. Teachers are the authority in the class and must be firm on only accepting behaviour they deem appropriate. Consistency is key. If a strategy, such as student numbers, grouping or attention-on-me word or action, is established by the teacher, the teacher ought to use it consistently. The use of these strategies allow students to know their role and responsibilities in the classroom and promote a safe environment for learning.
5 Tips for Classroom Management (Mike)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M_jQ81O0yzM
Noise Maker – use something that is slightly humorous – teacher provides example of bugle horn – think clown horn – as it takes the sting out of the use of the noise maker and is more effective and less demoralize than constant shouting
Routine – says that something like a hand up – word could also apply – or by assigning roles to a group of people as “shushers” – often it is best to select the ringleaders as people will follow their lead regardless so you fulfill their need to have attention and also have the quieting down process be a group dynamic – must be enough so as not to have it feel like it is a select few and everyone should have a role in the classroom so as not to exclude students
Visual Reminders – green – noise level is fine and students may continue working. Yellow – warning that things are getting a bit loud. Red – students need to bring down their noise level within 30 seconds. This can be used as an alternative to the voice.
The Unexpected – guaranteed to get their attention – change up the routine with either a different layout, lighting, music, etc. This will have students asking what is going on and will allow you to tell them that they will be informed as soon as they quiet down
The Countdown – 54321 – explaining process of what you want and praising those that are following instructions – also this is a routine but is more explicit in the way that it is done.
Classroom Management Case Studies:
Case study: #I: Students grades dropping in your class compared to last year in this subject and compared to other subjects.
-Talk to student, talk to other teachers, talk to last year’s teacher in same subject. Find out from student how can you get better results.
#2: Student crying in class:
-Give student options, what is best for her? Talk to me, to counsellor, take a minute outside
#3: Student disrupting class for last hour and again during key point:
-There are hundreds of answers depending on who Aaron is. Better to go from happy to not happy, than happy to angry. Be direct but not embarrass the student. Change what you’re doing, i.e. from lecturing that’s not working to group work for example.
#4: Josephine treating her lab partner in an unkind way, bordering on bullying. When you approach, she is sweet as pie but when you aren’t vigilant, she goes back to her formal behaviour. What do you do?
-Have to separate them; student feelings of safety are paramount. Speak with them separately. Could also monitor them closely during that class, and then talk to them afterwards not to disrupt the class.
#5: Johnny is popular because of his athleticism. He is also known to be arrogant at times. If he were to arrive late and, when asked why, answered disrespectfully and walked past you to take his seat, how would you respond?
-Ask Johnny to talk after class. Or ask him to talk right away. Be careful to not escalate into a larger fight. If you “call them out” he may feel that he needs to prove himself in front of his peers.
Reflection on the future of teaching- July 27th
History and geography are critical subjects that are already being reconceptualized and will continue to be adapted during my career to the changing needs of 21-century learners. I think the new BC curriculum strongly showcases these changing needs and highlights the different values of our world, from memory, classification, and facts to interconnections, implications and interactions. Access to technology has changed not only the face of education, but its actual core. As a 21st century educator I think it is pivotal to move away from tradition ways of thinking/ learning about social studies in the classroom by starting to interact with the vast amount of data at our finger tips using core concepts, themes and big ideas. On my practicum I attempted to do this in a number of ways including using technology in the classroom as a way to look up information to reduce focus on facts and memory, using backward design to formulate assessments and by engaging in the multi-disciplinary connections that become easier to identify using 21st century skills. Yet, I often found myself having to be reminded that memory of facts are not as important as they use to be. I think as new educators in 2015 we are in an interesting position where the education we received (even at the university level) will be very different from the education we will offer our students and I can imagine this at times will be very challenging. It is also a challenging time for educators (and was for me on my practicum) as an economic divide still exists between students with devices in the classroom as those without, however I assume this will lessen with time. Furthermore, geography is an exceptional discipline to tease out interdisciplinary connections, especially with access to the internet students are able to connect geography to biology, history, foods, psychology, physics….etc. I think this leaves social studies teachers in an excellent position to teacher 21 century skills, along with making their job more dynamic and engaging.
Reflection on an area of growth- July 29th
An area of my teaching that I would like to focus on is pacing. I think pacing of lessons was a challenge for me on my practicum because I was switching between IB DP and non-IB courses. Since I began with teaching non-IB courses first it took me a bit of adjusting to the faster, more rigorous pace of the IB curriculum. I believe growing in this area will be crucial to becoming a more successful teacher because IB students really need to have all the content and skills in order to be ready for their examinations, not covering a topic, skill or concept is a real disservice to them. I found this placed a lot of pressure on me, and made me feel a bit anxious. On the other hand, I equally think it is important to adjust back to a slower and through pace of learning in non-IB courses in order to give those students the best chance at success. During my practicum, I did one lesson that flopped because of pacing (it was my first IB lesson and very content and lecture heavy) and since then I have dedicated pacing as an area of growth for me. I think I was so affected by this poor lesson and the feedback I received from it by my SA because I wasn’t expecting, or conscious of the importance of appropriate pacing for all types of learners and all levels of students and was very focused on other elements of teaching.
Ways to develop better pacing:
1. Use formative assessment throughout the class using inquiry method
2. Encouraging students to provide feedback throughout the course
3. Reflection at the end of each lesson on pacing and what could be improved in the future
How was I influenced during this year? Inquiry and Risk-taking, Positivity and Reflection- August 6th
This year I learned a lot about the practice of inquiry. I learned how to talk about inquiry and the language that surrounds it for the first time, which somehow made it more real and tangible to me. I think I have always been an inquirer, I’ve always been curious since a child on the ways in which we come to live and be in the world, but I have never thought of it as a practice or as a skill before this program. That being said I was influenced this year to become a more confident risk-taker. I’m generally a quiet, reserved person and I found that I was stretched over the course of the year to take steps outside of my comfort zone. As I look back over the course of this year risk-taking as influenced me to expand myself to develop in skills like technology literacy and public speaking, along with expanding my confidence as a professional with a voice and competencies.
Another massive way I was influenced this year was by recognizing that the attitude in which you have will determined what and how much you get out of anything in life. I am more confident now than ever that positivity attracts positivity, while negativity does the same. There have been many times throughout the year that have been stressful during course work, or negative during practicum however being successful to me means being positive and enjoying the work and life that you have. I never quite understood how strongly negatively can affect me and I think over the course of this program I learned how to protect myself from this. This influence has also helped me to become better at receiving and accepting both positive and negative feedback as part of my professional practice, along with becoming reflective of my work and theories.
Reflection has never been a big part of my life until this program. I have never journaled, or kept recorders- even photographs are far and few between. However, developing my reflective skills has helped shape the way I think about my practices both inside or and outside of education. I have been continuously challenged by reflection all year long, never knowing whether I was saying or thinking the right thing, while questioning why I was always looking backward instead of forward. Yet, I have been influenced by the repetition of reflective practices so much of the program because I can see that it is a successful method of bettering who you are as a professional, alongside developing your own thoughts and opinions that you would typically not verbalize or even recognize. How can you successfully look forward without deeply thinking about where you are? I think the practice of reflection will help me find more enjoyment in the field of education while also helping me move from a good teacher to an excellent one.
TRB Professional Conduct/ Being a Professional- August 10th
It was unfortunate the I was unable to attend the TRB discussion last week, however I found the follow up discussion vey interesting, particularly since I experienced both urban and rural practicum placements over the course of the year, which seemingly had different regulations. It seemed to me that the TRB representative explained their position as advocating for the student above all else, since teachers are involved with vulnerable populations they are needed to protect and provide assistance to students and their families. I think their advice to protect yourself as a teacher is a smart and responsible thing to do. While I could never see myself up coming up against the TRB I do find it useful to remember the importance of appearances, and while events like driving a student home or sending them an email seem innocent to you, perceptions are important to consider.
Being a professional with particular regulations felt very different to me over the course of my two practicums, one being in Vancouver and the other being in Haida Gwaii. The TRB presentation seemed to focus on expectations and case studies from urban centers where typical professionalism applies (the normal role of the teacher). That is not to say that professionalism was all that different in Haida Gwaii but there was a very different sense of closeness to the community and to the students. Students would have dinner at their teacher’s houses, students would babysit the teacher’s kids and there would be parties on the weekend where teachers would have drinks with the student’s parents. The dynamic was different and the word professional was renegotiated in the small rural town. My two different experiences highlighted the fact that while the role of teacher carries the same weight and responsibility to protect students everywhere, day-to-day professional conduct is contextual. Therefore it would make sense to me that the TRB take context into consideration with hard and fast rules.
Lastly, it is interesting for me to discuss these topics and regulations because more than anything it reminds me of who we are working with and for. It reminds me that our students are children and need to be valued and protected as vulnerable people.
Professional Learning Communities and Process- Aug 11
Professional Learning Community: Mindfulness
Goals:
1. Define mindfulness
a. A practice at looking internally and taking inventory of ones emotions and thoughts at the current moment; being present in your body and space.
2. Purpose of mindfulness
a. To increase self awareness and self monitor/ self regulate
b. Helps to build an inclusive classroom community
c. Prepping and focusing students to be in a learning state
3. Explain its application in the classroom
a. Encouraging safe spaces
b. Encouraging reflection
c. Encouraging self-monitoring
4. Implementation strategies
a. Breathing techniques
b. Chime/ music calming practices
c. Stretches
d. Drawing
e. Free writing
f. Silent reading
5. Resistance to mindfulness
a. Yoga/ religion affliction
b. Time
c. Buy in
I really enjoyed participating in the PLC groups. I found that we really got into the subject matter of mindfulness and addressed the educational issue in a deep and meaningful way. I would definitely use this activity during professional development days, especially since I think it lends itself well to developments in cross-circular subject matters. I also think that there is huge benefit for teachers to continue to read and discuss new educational research and thought while they are working in the field.
Education- August 13
What has inquiry got to do with teaching, learning and curriculum?
Inquiry is a teaching method that is considered best practice in teaching because it engages students to be active members of their classrooms and communities. By teaching through inquiry you are creating a space that is conversational, creative and challenging. Recall and memorization are not effective teaching methods long term, instead students need the opportunity to develop inquiry and problem solving skills that enable a student to further their own knowledge along with their self-confidence and positive learning attitudes. Though the process of inquiry teaching moves from teacher-centered to student- centered that inspires young people to take responsibility for their own learning.
The spiralling process of inquiry, especially in geography and history particularly addresses on the interconnections, interactions and implications of the dynamic processes that make up our society and environment. Inquiry is a lens in which you see the world, a lens that asks you to be critical, creative and above all problematize what seems simple, mundane or natural. Engaging in inquiry with your students means that they will gain the skills required for 21st century thinking and employment.