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Microteaching Analysis, EDUC 315 Debrief, & Henderson Discussion: Upadte for Monday, 31 October 2011

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Here’s all the news that fit to print about today’s class:

Microteaching Analysis

Dave and I want you to complete the analysis task in a partnership.  Please watch the video of your lesson with the following analysis questions in mind:

Your answers to these questions can be a part of any end product that you desire.  The key is that you cover all the questions thoughtfully and that your responses are clear to the reader.  For instance, if you were to create a collage, you would need to include a one-pager of writing explaining how the collected images represent answers to the analysis questions.

This task is due on Monday, 7 November 2011.  Please submit it to the instructor who saw your original presentation on the 24th.  Remember that Dave was in room 204 and I was in room 207.

EDUC 315 Debrief

We started by asking you to complete a 3-2-1 on your practicum experience to this point.  We took some time to discuss the 3-2-1 results, and then touched on the following Tuesdays Practicum items:

– Timetable: Please submit your teaching timetable to your FA ASAP

– EDUC 315 Lesson You’ll Teach:  Please submit a lesson plan to your SA and FA at least 24 hours in advance of the plan’s implementation.

You may use whatever planning outline/format you would like but make sure you have included all of the components of effective lesson design.

The one non-negotiable for your lesson plans is this – you must include a “Teacher” and “Student” column for each stage/component of the lesson.  This will help you to avoid long spells of student (relative) inactivity that may not be obvious if your plan focuses simply on what the teacher is doing.

– Classroom Observation Task: Please continue to gather data to support the completion of this assignment.  It’s due on Monday, 14 November and can take the form of an end product of your choosing.  Please submit your task to your FA.

– Unit Plan Topic for the January Prac:  Please talk with your SA about the subject and topic you’ll be teaching during your Two-Week Prac in January.  This unit plan will be a sequence of 6-10 lessons and it should focus on one or two PLOs.  I suggest you and your SA nail down which specific PLOs you should cover ASAP.  The more clarity you have about your objectives, the easier the planning process becomes.  Trust me on this one.

Henderson Article Discussion

Now I realize most of you weren’t born when Paul Henderson scored this 1972 Summit Series winning goal against the USSR in Moscow on 28 September 1972 (Heck, I was only 2!) but I’m sure you’ve all seen the iconic photo above and heard Foster Hewitt’s famous call of the goal.  What’s that?  You’re not familiar.  Well, click below to hear all about it:

Oh, and I mocked Bob Cole while I praised Foster Hewitt.  Colesy did have his day.  Check out this collection of clips for some great calls:

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=npkQlbPOJbM[/youtube]

Oh, were was I?  Yes, the article.  We focused on the four problem solving approaches outlined in Chapter 4:

  • Academic Problem Solving
  • Empirically Sound Problem Solving
  • Intuitive Problem Solving
  • Historically Aware Problem Solving

After giving you some time in a small group to refresh your memory on a particular P.S. stance, we asked you to consider the problems presented in a case study – Kelsey Cheats – from the perspective of that particular stance.

Then, you had a chance to role play a team meeting at which solutions to the problems of Sonja – the teacher in the case study – were discussed.  Feedback from the Henderson Exit Slips indicated that the role plays were an effective way to consider different approaches to solving a common problem.

Reading #3: Article of Choice

For Tuesday, 1 November 2011, please use the Vista site to post an entrance slip with some thoughts on one of the inquiry projects posted on one of these sites:

Due Date Rundown:

Here’s an image of the upcoming due dates that we presented in class:

– Lawrence

 

 

 

EDUC 315 Info, S.S.C., Instructor Think Aloud, Henderson Discussion, and Unit Planning Preview: Update for Wednesday, 10 November 2010

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EDUC 315 Info

– Lesson Plan and Reflection: Please provide a copy of a lesson plan you formally teach and your reflection on the lesson to me, your SA, and your FA (if I’m not your FA).  For lessons taught in weeks 5 or 6 of the Tuesdays prac, the plan should be delivered a minimum of 24 hours in advance of its implementation.  The reflection should follow shortly after the teaching and, again,  should be delivered to me, your SA and your FA (if I’m not your FA).  If you’v already taught a formal lesson and won’t be doing another one, please send the plan you taught from and your reflection on how it went.

– Teacher Timetable Hand In: Thanks to those who delivered me a hard copy or emailed an electronic copy of your timetable.  If you’ve yet to do so, please send it to me by Wednesday, 17 November.  Thanks.

– 2-Week Prac Unit Planning Topic: Be sure to sort out with your SA what topic you will be teaching during the Short Practicum in January.  The sooner you know, the sooner you can get started on considering your desired results and gathering resources.

Stop. Start. Continue.

In an effort to make EDUC 310/316 classes as beneficial for you as possible, I’ve created a survey to get your input on what is working and what’s not thus far.

Here’s a link to the survey:

It will probably take you about five minutes to answer the three questions (anonymously).  When the results are in, I will report out the findings… and take action!

I appreciate your support in my efforts to improve my teaching practice.

Instructor Think Aloud

I expressed my frustration at what I perceive as having too much to do and too little time to do it.  I noted that this was a feeling common to all the instructors/FAs in my office, as we were all struggling with how to address all the material we want to explore with you in rich and meaningful ways given the time constraints we’re working under.  For instance, the irony of presenting you a unit planning structure promoting deep engagement with ideas in a rushed and superficial way isn’t lost on me.

I aim to make all my decisions with respect to what happens in class based on what you need.  Then, after asking for your input on what topic you would like to explore in class today – microteaching or unit planning – and getting your input, we promptly ran out of time to get to the unit planing piece in any meaningful way.  The tension between breadth and depth continues.

(Not Paul) Henderson [Foster Hewitt’s “Henderson” Goal Call] Articles Discussion


– Mental Set: What questions about teaching and learning have you been thinking about while on practicum?

– Objective:

  1. To play with a discussion strategy – Socratic Seminar – that you can use in your classroom
  2. Studying these articles will lay the theoretical framework to help you understand the practice of teacher inquiry so you can thoughtfully engage with an inquiry question during Term 2 in POT/COM class.  The EDUC 310 Course outline describes the intentions, rationale, and evaluation of this task in some detail.  Here’s the outline:

– Input/Modeling: I mentioned that we would be using Socratic Seminar to discuss the ideas in the Henderson articles.  I showed you a video clip on SS and asked a few TCs who had done it about how SS worked.  The video showed an SS in action and that was the (brief) modeling piece.  Here’s the video:

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vCpBTf7ib0o[/youtube]

– C4U: With a quick show of thumbs, I sought information about the degree to which everyone knew what to do in the SS.  I supervised the conversations as they went on to make sure they were working.

– Practice: You broke into two groups and, with exit slips in hand, shared your thoughts on the articles with the help of our facilitators – Sarah and Miguel.  Each groups process was overseen by two observers in an outside circle.  In fact, I blended SS with Fishbowl, to some degree.

– Closure:  As the time ran out, I asked the groups to end the discussion.  Observers were asked to share what they heard in the discussion and to mention what they noticed about the group dynamic.  Jennifer noted that the conversation would likely have had more active participation by all if seated in a circle, a more inclusive arrangement that the boardroom table set up we used.  Aaron noted that the conversation started with one word answers and then picked up as time went on.  A cautionary tale for all teachers about the need for wait time to let student thoughts develop and conversations deepen before intervening.

Finally, I asked you to write down on your entrance slip one take away idea from today’s SS discussion.  You handed me your entrance/exit slip at the end of class.  Thanks.

If you’re interested in Socratic Seminar as a teaching strategy, there is lots of info about it on the interwebs,  Check out these sites:

Also, here’s a PPT slideshow that breaks down the basics for you:

Unit Planning Preview

If you can, please bring one or two of the really important PLOs that you will be building your 2-week practicum unit around.  In Wednesday, 17 November’s class we will be unpacking those PLOs and looking at what understandings, essential questions, knowledge, and skills flow from those outcomes.  Also, we may consider what assessment evidence will allow to to determine the degree to which the students are developing understanding of your desired results.

Here’s the template we’ll use to unpack the outcomes:

Microteaching

Please check the schedule (on the blog) to see when you present.  Also, review the rubric and bring your flash drive to class so you’re fully ready to go.  I’m looking forward to seeing some engaging lessons on Monday.

Phew!  That’s a long post for a short class.

Take care,

– Lawrence

EDUC 315 Info, POT/COM Calendar, and UBD Unit Planning: Update for Wednesday, 3 November 2010

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EDUC 315 Information

– Anecdotal Observation Forms:  I handed out a few triplicate observation forms for use by your SA as she or he observes your lessons.  Most SAs prefer to write up their notes on the computer as the lesson progresses but some observations – namely movement around the classroom – lend themselves almost exclusively to writing by hand.  Please deliver these forms to your SA and, if they want more, let me know so I can deliver them.

– Computer Passwords: You will need an SD43 or SD40 username and password to access district email and other online resources.  The sooner you can get these, the better.  To do so, please see the secretaries in the office.  One of them may be able to do this for you or, at the very least, they will be able to give you the name of the school’s computer site contact.  The site contact should be able to make the request for your usernames and passwords.   Let me know if you run into a snag here.

– Overhead Transparencies: [NOTE: This suggestion was given to my by Jan, the lead secretary at Minnekhada, and I’m passing it on to you at her request.] Unfortunately, acetate sheets used to make overhead transparencies have a bad habit of getting stuck in photocopiers and melting on the machine’s rollers.  This can put a copier out of commission for days.  So, before you attempt to make an overhead, I recommend requesting a quick tutorial.

– Yellow “Preparing For Success in Your Initial Practica” Handout: I urged you to take a look at this document that I passed out during our Pre-Practicum Preparation Seminar in September and make note of what you have already accomplished and what’s left to do.  You needn’t do everything on the list but it does give you a good idea of activites to engage in as the 2nd half of the Tuesdays prac kicks in.

Here’s a copy if yours has gone walkabout:

– End of Practicum Paperwork: You’re keeping informal reflections and your SA is taking informal notes on the lesson(s) you are delivering at this point.  The only formal paperwork that needs to be taken care of is this one-pager to be completed just before the final Tuesday on 23 November.  I recommend bringing a printed copy to school on that day so you can discuss your completed form with your SA.  Your SA should return the favour.  For easy reference, here are the forms.  By the way, they both gather the same information, but the TC one is in the first person:

POT/COM Calendar

There are a few out of the ordinary things taking place over the next few days so I wanted you to have the heads up.  Here goes:

Monday, 8 November 2010

  • 9:30 – 11:00: Communication Needs of Aboriginal Children and Families Lecture – First Nations House of Learning
  • 11:10 – 12:00: eFolio Presentation from eCoaches in SCARFE 1007 – Computer Lab
  • 12:00 – 12:30: Microteaching Preparation Time

Wednesday, 10 November 2010

  • 10:00 – 11:00 – Working with UBD Stage 1 – Desired Results & Discussing the Henderson article (Be sure to have your entrance slip ready to go)

NOTE: Bonus points to anyone who says the author’s name with the same flair as Foster Hewitt does while making this classic call from 1972:

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lMf2fAXPS1Q[/youtube]

UBD Unit Planning

In preparation for today’s look at UBD unit planning, I had you read the article “Put Understanding First” by UBD creators Jay McTighe and Grant Wiggins.  I then had you pull three key words from your entrance slip and write those words down on a slip of paper.  Here’s the list of words that the class wrote down:

impacting challenging exciting transfer cross-curriculum questions scaffolding critical thinking frustration first rung public syllabus meaningful sequence rethink meaningful practical regurgitate meaning purposeful untraditional order focus facilitator meaningful opportunity practice understanding transfer meaning boring stimuli meaningful-sequence questioning political agora transfer meaning acquisition understanding strategies different approaches application-task guided-transfer pressured meaning connections critical thinking unclear-goals make-meaning transfer-learning transfer-ability life-skills connect-to-practical transfer boring captivate connection application inquiry

Amanda kindly entered all these words into the Create page of Wordle.net and we created this image:

According to the website:

“Wordle is a toy for generating “word clouds” from text that you provide. The clouds give greater prominence to words that appear more frequently in the source text. You can tweak your clouds with different fonts, layouts, and color schemes. The images you create with Wordle are yours to use however you like. You can print them out, or save them to the Wordle gallery to share with your friends.”

Wordles have many applications in a classroom setting.  I urge you to think about how you can use this software in the work you do with your students on practicum.

The Wordle highlighted several key ideas promoted by McTighe and Wiggins in their UBD unit planning model.  I elaborated on this model in my PPT presentation and we will continue to look at unit planning in subsequent lessons.  Here’s my slideshow:

‘Til Monday.

– Lawrence