Reading Reflection 6- Yvette Givens: Change Agent

In the current state of the economy and the effects it's having on the education system, I can not help but acknowledge how important it is for teachers to speak out. Taking into consideration my own personality, I acknowledge I still have growth in this area. Many times I struggle to articulate my inner voice. This has proven to be somewhat of a short coming in that many times I remain quiet when silence is the last thing anyone needs. As a tecaher it is my responsibility to speak out on behalf of myself, my students and the parents of my students. Even if the only ears I have are the parents of my students I need to become comfortable speaking out. Parents can be some of the most uninformed people when it comes to their child's education and the effect the budget crisis is having on it. In my mind parents are the biggest change agents government can face, and as the educator of their children I will work towards being their eyes and ears and informing them of what stands before their children and their children's children if things don't change.

The section in our reading titled, "Reflection In, On and About Action" is also a way in which I will work toward becoming a change agent.CSUSM's College of Education embraces this whole ideal of being a reflective practitioner, and this is something I see a lot of value in. Evoking a positive personal image, reading professional publications and then engaging in professional dialogue about those readings are also valuable in so much as staying attune to what's going on in eduation. There's nothing like being left in the dark. The only thing constant in this world is change, and staying up-to-date is a valuable way to effect change given the appropriate research of how the change effects one's classroom, school, and community.

EDSS530 Final Exam: An Agenda for Action

Key Components of My Personal Vision:

In referencing the key components of my personal vision for Secondary Schooling in the 21st Century, I’d like to respond to bell hooks quote that “teachers need to conceptualize themselves as ‘transgressive,’ to see their role as part of larger social movements, and explicitly attempt to create conditions for young people to become active participants in a changing society.” As I have experienced this Single Subject Credential Program I have gained a wealth of insight in some aspects as to what innovation will be necessary on my part in order to affect the lives of my students in the capacity I desire. In conceptualizing myself as transgressive I realize I am going to have to stretch myself beyond my own comfort level in order to provide innovative methods of learning math. In all honesty, many of the math classrooms I have observed have been ridiculously similar and traditional in nature in that the teacher holds the wealth of knowledge and the students are empty vessels soaking in all they can. One discussion we had in methods that was very powerful for me was the difference between being a tutor and a teacher. I consider myself to be closer to the role of a tutor than I am to a teacher right now and my desire is to transgress beyond that and into a role that will have a greater impact on the learning of my students. I see this as taking a lot of additional work on my part in the form of attending professional development workshops, doing research, etc. Many teachers have so much to do within the normal responsibilities of their classroom, so that the extra time it would take to conceptualize themselves as transgressive would not seem possible and many times unwanted so we’ve fallen into what works.

There is a social movement taking place in which young people need to be taught how to think. Within the context of the math classroom, I consider this to be a huge feat in that a major reason I desire to teach students math is because I believe the lessons to be learned extend beyond the content into things like problem solving. The only thing constant in this world is change and if we do not teach our students how to be active participants in this world we are doing them a huge disservice. So I do support the idea of creating a classroom of active learners in which I do not hold all the knowledge, but my students do. I do not yet know exactly what this looks like, but I have made a commitment to being a life-long learner myself in which I will research innovation within a math classroom, or attend workshops with the utmost excitement, etc.

Next Semester…

In one of the courses I will be teaching this semester it appears as though after the students have taken the state exams there is sort of free reign concerning what’s on the learning agenda. I have not yet found an exact activity, but I thought I might consider finding something related to Geometry in which the students will get to explore a Problem of the Week style assignments. Throughout the course of the semester I will definitely facilitate opportunities for cooperative learning and for students to develop their own understandings, but I’d like to really “play” with how this might look more so at the end of the semester when there is less pressure on me.

My First Two Years…

In listening to the Principal’s Panel last week, I heard a lot of affirmation toward “know the culture, be the culture, change the culture.” It was pretty much a consensus the principals appreciate innovation, but in the first years of our teaching to be less innovative and more of a team player. Within my first two years of teaching I’d like to focus on being a team player, but a valuable member to the team in which I speak up when appropriate. In my CPI I found many of the things they had developed were as a result of them knowing the students they teach. I believe a lot can be learned from sitting back within that first year and developing an understanding for why things are they way they are. At the same time, I believe I have the responsibility to challenge anything I believe needs challenging. This will, of course, be done in a respectful manner only when I deem it appropriate.

Within these first two years I also will seek opportunities for professional development. Every once in a while I may use my prep period to observe another teacher at whatever school I am working in teach their class, whether it be in the same content area or a different one. Within the first five years my teaching style is constantly being molded and it is my responsibility to seek those molding opportunities, even if I am finding things I do not want to do in my classroom.

Later In My Career…

I’d like to stretch myself beyond the four walls of my classroom and come to the realization I am teaching in the 21st century. There are so many different things going on in technology that I believe should be implemented within my instruction in order to move students toward becoming active participants in a changing society. In addition, I believe the implementation of ITUs are important for student learning, and I will work toward seeking opportunities to implement such a curriculum even if it just begins within my own classroom.

Position…

In the completion of our Ethnography, one of the administrators we interviewed suggested now was a viable time for our education system as it is to be blown up. I am not completely opposed to that idea in that it seems all of the following need to be taken into consideration:

1. Creating new curriculum paths
2. New Professional Roles
3. Restructuring Schools
4. Powerful Teaching
5. Comprehensive Support for all students
6. Comprehensive Accountability & Assessment

When we do begin to be mindful of the needs within each of the six reform areas listed above we will have a more effective system in which we creating a learning environment for our students to experience/learn what it means to be an active participant in a changing society. I struggle to explicitly say what my agenda for action is because I still struggle to see clearly what this all looks like, but I can say the biggest agenda action for change is to be a life-long learner in which I am exploring all the innovations currently being discussed as well as taking into consideration all that has worked in the past.

Reading Reflection 5- I'm Thinking...

...it's going to be quite the task to have the students do more and for me to do less. I feel as though at the end of Clinical Practice 1 I was just beginning to practice this. Last semester I found myself modeling the teaching structure of my teacher so much so I did not allow too much exploration of who I want to be as a teacher. At one point last semester I came to the conclusion I was doing too much and my students were doing too little, and so I designed tasks that were centered around group work more so in the fashion of partnerships. Given the degree of work I've been assigned in my own educational experience this semester it is becoming overwhelmingly clear to me giving everyone a part is important. This can be done by the teacher as well as the students. In my experience when it is done by the students it is more so done in a manner that permits group members to get the task done independent of each other. In reading these chapters I see the value in the teacher developing relevant tasks and then assigning roles that do not permit for students to complete an assignment independent of each other.

It's interesting because as we begin to think about classroom management I can see group work being a whole other version of classroom management if done right. Also, in developing group work I think it would be best to have some sort of insight to who my students are in order to determine how to facilitate group work within the classroom so that it's productive. I'm excited about exploring the process of designing group work this semester. I know that at least one of my cooperating teachers will support me in this exploration. Both my classrooms are structured in such a way that permits anywhere from 2-4 students collaborating together, so I think that's a great start. I say this because last semester the set up of the classroom did not really permit for convenient collaboration experiences among the students.

CP2 Website

Please check out the following link: https://sites.google.com/site/givensechs/home

This will be my "web-presence" for Clinical Practice II. Please keep in mind that the website is still under construction, and will most likely be a work in progress throughout the course of the semester. Please enjoy, and feel free to write any comments of advice on what you think I could do to enhance the website. Thanks!!!

Reading Reflection 4- Groupwork Chapters 4- 5

Prevention of Dominance:

In order to prevent dominance within group work assignments/activities it is essential to create a classroom norm in which the students understand every member/s input is important. In order to facilitate the grasping of such a norm, Chapter 4 suggests a survival problem that is designed to allow all students within a group to offer their own ideas, listen to the ideas of others, ask questions and give rationales behind individual ideas in order to make an informed decision as a whole group (P. 53). In math this would be a very valuable norm. Actually, at my current school site my CT allows opportunities for partner quizzes. I had the opportunity to witness one the week before last and the conversations that were taking place were indicative of being able to listen, ask questions and present rationales and then move on from there. There was one group in particular who was working on one of the problems and each member had different ideas of how to solve it. It was interesting to watch the student who knew what he was talking about because he got really frustrated but quickly figured out that was not getting him anywhere. Once the student with the correct method of solving the problem listened to the student and identified the root of his partner’s misunderstanding, he was able to proceed in a productive manner on their partner quiz.

It’s interesting because I can see myself as a dominating presence within groups, but at the same time I am often relieved when I find myself in a group where someone else can play that role. I can see, though, how this can roll over into my teaching. The norms described in this particular section of the reading are especially valuable in a math class, and as the manager of my students’ learning I must model these norms.

Reading Reflection 3- Groupwork Chapters 1-3

Chapter One:

Cohen provides us with a working definition of group work as "students working together in a group small enough so that everyone can participate on a task that has been clearly assigned" (P. 1). In using group work as a strategy the teacher must consider themself an educational engineer in order to design the perfect task in which authority is delegated and each member is needed in order to complete a particular task. Upon reflection of the Broken Circles activity, I can see how it is valuable for every student to feel needed in completing a task because it provides an opportunity for every student to have some sort of investment in the task while at the same time facilitating student engagement whether the students realize it or not. Given Cohen's definition of group work I also find it particularly important to be conscientious of the group size when creating particular tasks. I have worked in groups of three on assignment and I have worked in groups of six; when deciding the number of students that would be appropriate for a task that can be very important in ensuring the effectiveness of group work.

Chapter Two:

In designing group work, Cohen offers two categories of goals: intellectual and social. The intellectual goals include:

• Conceptual Learning
• Groupwork & Creative Problem Solving
• Developing Higher Order Thinking Skills
• Information, Retention, and Improvement of Basic Skills
• Group Work and Oral Language Proficiency

The social goals included:

• Positive Intergroup Relations
• Socializing students for adult roles

I can't help but think back to the times I alloted for group work in Clinical Practice I. I observed many of the goals being met as I monitored student progress. In fact, the days I had the students engaged in group work were my favorite days because of the types of mathematical conversations taking placeand the light bulbs I saw going off. The students really seemed to develop a certain level of accountability for each other's learning because they never knew which group member was going to be called on to share. I also noticed a great deal of creativity in the explanations of mathematical concepts by students. I heard my students accurately explaining concepts to their peers I hadn't thought of myself and often stole to use later. In delegating the responsibility of the teacher to group work I believe we are allowing students to really develop that higher order thinking and even practice social roles they'd have to carry out in adulthood.

Chapter Three:

Ms. Todd's classroom represents one I have been in plenty of times as a student and as a substitute teacher. Normally when students are given a task and asked to find the answers to a series of questions it is easy for one or two individuals to complete the task and write everyone else's name on it as if they contributed. These types of settings provide no opportunity for the intellectual goals mentioned above nor the societal goals given the students were allowed to choose their groups. Status ordering ("an agreed-upon social ranking where everyone feels it is better to have a high rank within the status order than a low rank") is a term I was not familiar with before reading this chapter, but has also been something I have seen throughout my schooling experience. The issue of status is posed as the most poignant dilemma of group work, but it would seem almost impossbile to create an environment in which this would not arise. One way to lessen the occurrence, for the lack of a better phrase, is to build community within one's classroom. This is definitely something that takes work on the part of the educator but I believe any powerful teaching must be able to incorporate such.

Closing:

This past week provided me with the opportunity to observe my Cooperating Teacher facilitate a quiz. For his class he allows the students to work in partnerships. I thought maybe this was the case only this particular instance, but this is something the students get to do every time they have a quiz. As I observed the interactions among the students I really paid attention to how much each group was contributing to the completion of the quiz. Students really did seem to contribute at an equal amount. For the most part, I noticed students either really felt comfortable with a concept and wanted to complete that portion of the quiz or they weren't. Many times I overheard students asking questions of their partners and maybe even arguing over a certain way to do a particular problem, both students having the goal of doing well on their minds. It was a very interesting thing to see. As we continue to discuss group work, though, I wonder would working with a partner be classified as group work?

School Reform at Lunch...

New Village Leadership Academy

The following is a link to NVLA in which you can find out more about their non-traditional school structure: http://www.nvlacademy.org/.

The following are unigue qualities as described by the academy's website. Make sure to click on the link to find out more...

• High priority on academics above all.
• Individualized reading programs. Rather than all children at a given grade level reading the same material at once, our children move forward as quickly as they like.
• Tailored mathematics programs. Children in the same grade have many different levels of math, and extra help or new challenges are provided by additional faculty members.
• Mix of traditional and progressive teaching methodologies. Some subjects at NVLA are taught traditionally with tried and true methodologies whereas other subjects involve open-ended inquiry, projects and multi-media.
• Technology skills and applications are incorporated into the school day in a one-to-one student to laptop program.
• Students are required to demonstrate 100% mastery of a skill before they move on.
• Testing is done in a separate classroom. If a student has not achieved mastery, he or she is gently re-taught until he is ready to move on.
• Mastery can be tested traditionally with pen and paper, but often we prefer to have children demonstrate their understanding by creating models and by applying their knowledge to a real world problem or situation.
• Purpose and Application of knowledge is stressed. We ask, “How would you use what you just read in your life?” We do not ask children to memorize and regurgitate.
  We teach children how to study and how to recognize in themselves when they aren’t learning and how to get back on track.
• We emphasize that children look up the words they don’t know in the dictionary. They then learn exactly what words mean as opposed to “sort of” what words mean.
• We teach children concepts whenever possible with the actual object – right there to see and touch. If this is not possible we use other visuals.
• Both high performance and creativity are encouraged and nurtured.
• Students have Physical Education daily in a vigorous and fun program that develops strength, flexibility and balance along with sports.
• Students take the CTP-4 standardized test (from the Educational Records Bureau and designed to be used in private schools) in the spring for curriculum development and program refinement.
• There is a low-sugar policy at the school.