Week 7: Tech Lab 4 - Ms. Mooney can PodCast!

       

   
   
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This article is an abridged version of Watson and Crick's classic 1953 article published in Nature magazine about the structure of DNA.  I imagine I could use this article in several ways through a podcast.  My first idea for an assignment would be to assign a homework or classwork task after teaching students have studied DNA's structure and function.  The article is quite technical and scientific, but also has a lot of information that students learn in Biology class about the structure of DNA (i.e. base pairing rules, double helical structure, purines are hydrogen bonded to pyrimidines, etc.)  Students could listen to the PodCast and list the aspects of DNA's structure that they have learned that are also present in Watson and Crick's piece.  I would listen to the article aloud with my students after they completed to assignment on their own to help scaffold and demonstrate where the things that they have already learned about DNA's structure are present in the paper.

I also could use the article as a writing prompt or opinion piece that gets students thinking about current ethical issues and debates surrounding DNA in today's day and age (i.e. genetic cloning, designer babies, etc.)  In particle, Watson and Crick's line, "It has not escaped our notice that the specific pairing we have postulated immediately suggests a copying mechanism for the genetic material," would be a great way to rope students in and get them to think about what Watson and Crick would think of today's biotechnology. 

I find this technology to be really useful and appropriate as well as culturally relevant for  communicating with students.  I could create review sessions that students could easily access from their ipods, and even teaching students to use it to communicate with me or the rest of the class.  This time around, I took advantage of the new version of GarageBand on my mac, and found it really simply to use to create an mp3 and upload it to PodBean.  I did, however, Google a podcast on how to record a podcast on GarageBand and export it as an mp3.  I myself am getting more resourceful.  Overall, this went over well. phewww.

Week 6: Schools Kill Creativity

I have seen this video several times before, and each time I am still floored by the points Robinson makes.  His criticizes are entirely true and seem almost commonsensical when he points them out, yet I have never considered them in my own reflections both about my current career as well as my own educational experiences.  Perhaps this is because I have become so normalized and accustomed to the ideology surrounding what traditional schooling should be.

"If you're not prepared to be wrong, you will never come up with anything original." It is by making mistakes that we learn new things.  By feeling comfortable to step out on a whim and try, we are able to come up with new things.  My boyfriend has a three-year-old at home who likes to "read" books.  I am constantly amazed by her ability to make up the story by looking at the pictures and drawing on what she remembers from having the story read to her in the past.  She "fills in the gaps" as Ken Robinson would say.  I agree that somewhere along the way, this willingness to innovate is lost in children.  I teach 10th and 12th grade, and regularly I experience students' unwillingness to be incorrect, to take a risk, or to make a mistake.

I agree that schools entirely stifle creativity, when they should be cultivating it.  As my prior blog entry points out, creativity is a skill essential for success in the 21st Century workplace.  As Robinson highlights, we value one type of thinking and one way of reasoning in schools, when we for all intents and purposes should be honoring diversity, multi-vocality, and different opinions in the classroom.  There is not one correct to solve a problem, therefore there should not be one way of learning and demonstrating that learning in the classroom.  It blows my mind to think about how many talented individuals have been stripped of their unique talents by the educational system.

I work in a magnet school for the Arts, so I can say that I have seen some of this creativity being celebrated and cultivated within the walls of my school.  However, it is not on the level as it should be.  I believe that teachers need to constantly tap in to their students own interests and what they are good at in order to best educate them.  We have to relate to our students on a personal level in order to determine the best way to help them learn.  In my own classroom, I could definitely take some of what Robinson points out and put it in to better practice.  I think that allowing students to have options in assignments is a good way to do this.  For example, I will give students a set of criteria for an assignment, but then allow them to choose how they would like to demonstrate their understanding.    Some of these options include allowing students to write, to demonstrate through a skit, to make a song or dance, or to give a presentation about the subject matter.

When I went to school, there was one way of learning and demonstrating learning.  That was by sitting, listening and taking notes and then reproducing them on the chapter test.  In today's day and age, where content is instantly accessible at the click of a mouse, it is not entirely necessary nor helpful to know every step in the Kreb's Cycle of photosynthesis or to be able to do long division by hand.  Ken Robinson's challenge to teachers is one that I agree with and hope to honor throughout my career.  Cultivating creativity and ingenuity in our students and supporting them in what it is they are talented at is something that should be at the top of our list.

Week 6: A Philosophical Debate: 21st Century Skills

After reading the articles that shape this debate and mulling over how I feel about education and preparing today's students for the 21st century global workplace, I align my own views with the supporters of teaching 21st Century Skills.  I do not really see both sides of this debate as being in stark opposition to one another.  The critics of 21st Century Skills do not disregard the importance of equipping students with problem solving, communication, and critical thinking skills, nor do the supporters of 21st Century Skills disregard teaching content.  I believe that all authors agree that students today need to graduate high school knowing how to critically think, problem solve, and work collaboratively in order to be successful in the workplace.  The goals are the same. The rub arises in the different pathways that one can take to get to that same end.

Stacy Khadaros' article "Schools Tap 21st Century Skills", Maura Banta's article "The Value of Teaching 21st Century Skills," and Judy Salpeter's article entitled "21st Century Skills: Will Our Students Be Prepared?" all argue a point that I firmly agree based on my own personal experiences as well as in my career as an educator.  That point is that individuals learn best in situ.  I believe, like Stacy Khadaros, that not only do we learn by doing, but that we may learn best by doing.  She makes the point, as do all of the other supports, that learning content within and through the context of "acquiring and acquiring new skills" is truly the best way to master something.

A perfect example would be my own experiences learning to drive a manual car.  The process was explained to me by my father, I had been in a manual car with several drivers in the past, and  I read several articles online about how to drive a stick shift. It wasn't until I was on the road that I really learned to drive a stick.  Only by having the actual pedals under my feet, practicing how to slowly release the clutch and press on the gas pedal, and by staling out a couple thousand times (it was quite comical now that I look back), did I start to figure out how to manipulate the vehicle.  Another point that the supporters argue that I too can demonstrate through my example is that I learned to drive a stick out of necessity; because I had to.  I took a huge interest in learning to drive my car as it was my only means of transportation at the time and it mattered to me and my everyday life. This is the same as having students do meaningful work and solve real problems in the community.  As Judy Salpeter highlights at the end of her article in her anecdote about Marco Torres classroom, students want to learn and be in school when the work is challenging and meaningful to their lives.

Although my article highlights how I learned best in situ, that is not to discredit the knowledge I had to bring with me prior to getting behind the wheel.  As Daniel Willingham points out in the article "Flawed Assumptions Undergird the Program at the Partnership for 21st Century Skills", knowledge and skills cannot be teased out from one another.  It is difficult to critically think and problem solve without having some basic knowledge of the topic.  Diane Ravitch feels that "a great deal of knowledge is necessary before one can begin to reflect on its meaning and look for alternative explanations".  While I do not feel as extreme about content knowledge as Ravitch, I do agree that in order for me to get behind the wheel and learn to drive my manual car, I had to have the basic knowledge not only of how the car worked, but also of the basic rules and laws of driving.  Salpeter argues that "it is possible to learn the simple things in the process of addressing a complex problem."  While in some cases this may be true, in my car driving example, I do not think I would have been able to simultaneously learn the rules of driving alongside and within learning to drive a stick shift.

And so where does that leave my opinion at the end of the day?  I feel that learning by doing is the way to teach content and 21st Century Skills.  Neither should be taught as a monolith.  Rather, the best way to teach the two is in and through the other.  Content should be taught alongside technological literacy and problem solving.  I strongly support integrating 21st Century Skills as I feel not only are they essential for today's student, but they can also serve to rejuvenate and refresh students own curiosity and interest in learning. 

Week 5: Slidecasting

Ms mooney back to school

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The fact that audio can be linked to a PowerPoint presentation is not something I have ever given thought to, but it makes perfect sense and can allow students to access classroom content asynchronously from home. One way I feel this would be a great tool is to give students review assignments over the weekend to complete in preparation for a test.  Perhaps on Sunday, or the night before students are taking the test, you could make a PowerPoint going over the answers to the review activity so that students will have an opportunity to check their own understandings or misunderstandings before the assessment.  Students who are struggling but do not have time to meet with the teacher prior to the assessment could possibly benefit from this type of review presentation. Also this tool could be used for students who are sick or absent from school so that they could catch up on the material with the rest of the class.  Often when students are out of my class I do not have the time to sit and go through the lesson with them as I did my students whom were in school; its just not feasible due to time constraints.  This type of presentation is an alternative.

Like Mark Isseks points out in his article entitled "How PowerPoint is Killing Education", PowerPoint presentations are in a lot of ways one-sided and do not promote critical thinking or even "thinking at all" on the part of the learner.  Therefore, it is important when making a PowerPoint to make it your own and use it as a teaching resource rather than an encyclopedia of bulleted truths about content.  PowerPoint can be a good teaching tool if it makes its subjects think by asking them questions and engaging them, rather than just having them copy information apathetically.  I think that minimizing an entire topic or content area into a set of bullet points takes all of the creativity, passion, and excitement out of learning something new.

Lastly, I found Don McMillan's comedic sketch about "Life After Death by PowerPoint" entertaining and comedic because I can relate to all of the different PowerPoint criticisms that he mentions in his presentation.  I have sat through a presentation that showed graph, upon graph, upon upside-down graph, and I've been the student struggling to copy down all 500 words on each slide of a cramped, wordy PowerPoint presentation.  McMillan highlights the fact that using technology just to use technology really defeats the purpose.  PowerPoint is supposed to enhance teaching by clearly organizing information and making it accessible to different learners in the class, but when used improperly can be confusing, boring, and excessive.  I believe that teachers need to find the right balance in integrating technology in the classroom, and only use it when it is appropriate and implemented correctly from both a pedagogical as well as a common sense perspective.

Week 4: Back to School Night

How awesome is Google docs!  I am really impressed with the user-friendliness of Google docs as well as the fact that it is free.  I keep thinking back to when I was in school and was required to do a group project.  This meant having to find time after school or on the weekend when all group members were free.  To be honest, I avoided working in groups for this very reason.  I am the type of person that likes to do my work on my own time, without having to depend on anyone else.  With Google Docs collaboration is much easier in that group members can edit and complete their collaborative tasks asynchronously.   Also, the fact that the document is automatically saved on your account and can therefore be accessed from any computer is extremely convenient.  

Week 3: Task 2 - Technology Standard Evaluation

For my evaluation, I chose the strand 8.1.12.B.1 - "The use of digital tools and media rich resources enhances creativity and the construction of knowledge". ( The New Jersey Core Curriculum Content Standards)  The cumulative progress indicator (CPI) for this strand says that students will be able to "design and pilot a digital learning game to demonstrate knowledge and skills related to one or more content areas or a real world situation".

The expectation at this point, is that students have already had extensive exposure and experience using different medias and are now at the point where they can actual create their own forms of media.  Students are expected to have already analyzed and critiqued different media as well as have learned the legal and ethical issues that surround the use of that media form.  Creating something, according to the 2001 revised version of Bloom's taxonomy (see link for more info!) is at the top of the cognitive domain.  Students are also expected, based on the 21st Century Skills framework that shaped the technology standards, be able to choose the appropriate media and use it effectively.  The learner is expected to have already analyzed and critiqued different media types,  as well  learned the legal and ethical issues that surround the use of that media form.

In my Biology and Anatomy and Physiology classroom, I am constantly trying to expose, integrate, and implement technology into my own pedagogy as well as into the work of my students.  I do have a Smart Board in my room that I use on a daily basis.  An activity I have brainstormed that aligns itself with this standard would be to have students design a review game for their next test in Anatomy and Physiology (Ch. 5 The Skeletal System).  The students would work collaboratively and use the Smart technology and Smart Board for their game.  Each person in each group would have a designated role, and the group would be responsible as part of the evaluative rubric for dividing the work equally and appropriate, and letting the class know the process by which they made their game.  A part of the rubric would also score the students on their participation and role as a respectful audience member for their peers' presentations.

Students would be given many other media forms to use for the game.  Rather then use computer generated or text book images of skeletons, students could use a digital camera to capture themselves posing as the skeleton or pointing to different bones on their own bodies.  Students could use video to capture different skeletal movements, for example, a dancer (I teach at a High School for the Arts), and integrate it into their review game questions.  Students could create a skit, make a song, etc. and incorporate it into their game.  Although I would leave the specifics of the game, i.e. the format, questions, media types used, etc. I would require them to use at least two different forms of media in their presentation.  I would also give them suggestions, show them examples, and encourage their own personal creativity. 

I am continuously impressed with my students' creativity, and this type of assignment would really showcase their talents and ingenuity.  I believe this type of activity would allow students autonomy and the opportunity to make the assignment their own while also requiring them to engage with the content and the big ideas of the chapter.  Each groups' presentation of their games would serve as a review and study session for the entire class.  Talk about killing two birds with one stone!  The process by which each group creates their game and engages with the technology and other medias improves both their knowledge of the content and their technological literacy.

Week 3: Task 1 - Aligning Pedagogy with Curriculum

As a current teacher, I have had some experience in using the standards designated by the state to guide my pedagogy.  I believe the standards are extremely helpful in that they keep me focused during my lesson planning, providing me with a clear goal for what I want my students to take in terms of content from my lessons, units, etc. By having an end point in mind, I am able to work backwards and really think creatively about how I am going to get my students to that point intellectually while also keeping them motivated and engaged in the classroom.

  Often I hear teachers complain that the standards are limiting and force teachers to teach the same material year after year.  While the content across years does not change significantly (a criticism of mine that I will save for another time!), teaching should change substantially as each year educators have a new set of unique students. By being reflective, trying new ideas, implement new technologies, and improving their own pedagogy over time, the teacher does not have to sacrifice creativity and engaging, student-driven activities in the name of following a set of state standards.

After watching the "Hydrology" video with the teacher from Catalina High School and upon reflecting how I personally feel about the state standards that I am required to use in my lesson planning, I immediately thought of the constructivist theory of learning promoted by John Dewey.  In his famous 1902 work, The Child and the Curriculum, Dewey likens the curriculum to a finished map, and equates the learning process of the child to a mapmaker's arduous journey of trekking through and taking notes on a new, unexplored territory.  Although the map is well organized, structures, and will help others to better navigate their way Dewey warns that "the map is not a substitute for a personal experience".   I agree with Dewey in that although we may have facts or a body of knowledge (i.e. a curriculum, a set of standards) it is the process of exploring, engaging with, and uncovering that body of knowledge that helps students make deep connection.

  At the Catalina school, although the teacher is required to teach Geology, nothing in the standards says that he must have students sit in a classroom and copy notes in a traditional fashion.  Rather, this teacher has students activitely engage with the content in ways that are meaningful to them because they are actually dealing with actual issues that are a part of their lives and their school.   By having students partake in real, meaningful activities, not only is the teacher showing the students that he has high standards and believes that the kids are capable, but he is also following the guidelines and standards set by the state to which he must ascribe.  Students are excited about their own learning and about getting involved in their own communities.

I would love to teach science in Catalina High School and the video has sparked new ideas in my head about how I can implement some of the teaching styles that this teacher uses into my own classroom.  What was most refreshing about this school is that it seems to value making connections between content areas and stresses how disciplines are interrelated, for example geology, mathematics, data analysis, etc.  No content area exists in a box seperate from the rest of the world's knowledge, yet we teach it as if it is so.  In order to prepare students to be more equipped for the world they will be living in, it is essential that they make connections and link information to other information.

Personally, I find the standards helpful in that they keep me guided and on track as a practitioner. It is a way for me to be sure that the activities and components to my lesson are aligned with the underlying big idea I am trying to teach.  My issue arises with the excessive testing that is not only mandated by the state but also seems to plague my district.  Testing students via a traditional, chapter test is only one way of assessing their knowledge and only certain students skilled at taking these types of tests are able to demonstrate their knowledge and understanding.