What differences are you noticing with your students?

It’s much easier to spot differences when you’re comparing two like things, I find. That being said, I have definitely noticed differences with my grade 8 textiles blocks. As I’ve mentioned in a previous post, one group is more academically inclined and more well behaved. They also happen to be the morning block, where you can argue that students are either more tired or are more likely to pay attention. The second group is the last block of the day and the rowdier of the two blocks. There are definitely students who are motivated to do well, but the greater majority of the class is harder to handle. The two differences in the two blocks were much more glaring when I first picked up the two classes: Most of what we were doing involved lots of worksheets and required a very structured class. Now that we have started the final projects and both classes are sewing for almost the entire class, they have become more pleasant to teach. I treat both classes the same in the way I get their attention. I think I’ve become better in my wait time, in that that I’m no longer impatient and jump the gun when it comes to getting their attention. I am able to wait for as long as I need to until I have everyone’s attention, and it surprisingly works with both periods (though one period takes longer than the other). In terms of planning, I plan the lessons the same for both classes. I tend to make the changes as I see fit during the class. For example, I have found I have done fewer demonstrations for the more academic class. They seem to be more capable in following and understanding the written directions. I still offer to do the demonstration, but I am not forcing everyone to attend it if they feel like they can continue without them. I am having to do at least two demonstrations for the second block. I have tried to do what I do with the first block with the second group, however I can see some students are falling behind, so I will probably have all students watch demonstrations for every step.

As for the 12s, I don’t have another similar group to compare them to. In comparison to the 8s, however, they are much more laid back. The major differences would be that Baking is an elective they want to take and not forced to take, and they are more concerned with their academics than their electives. So far, the only change I’ve made to that class, along with my 8s, is to keep their phones away, but it’s not working. I may actually have to modify and change the rule so that phones are still kept away during labs, but when they’re completely done phones are allowed.

3 things I learned during Pro-D

1. It’s definitely a time of collaboration with those in and outside of your subject area. I actually had 2 Pro-Ds last week, one specifically for teacher candidates. This session was great because we were able to discuss issues that may have arisen with our fellow colleagues. In the district wide Pro-D, many different workshops were held by teachers in the district, which any subject area could attend. It’s a time to hear many different perspectives on the same subject or issue.

2. It’s an opportunity to learn what the district values. Two themes that arose during the Pro-Ds were the recognition of aboriginal youth in education and how we can adapt our teaching to the culture, and thinking classrooms. It’s good to see if my values match those of the district.

3. Home Economics Pro-Ds are really fun! The Home Economics Pro-D in Burnaby was a tour of the Arts Institute, and a workshop on how to make gum paste flowers. The tour actually helps us plan how to meet one of the PLOs for senior foods classes. The workshop gave everyone ideas how to implement this into the classroom (in fact, my SA already does something similar with molding chocolate instead of gum paste). It was also a time for me to get to know some of the Home Economics teachers in the district.