If I live through this class I'll be surprised. Right now I'm about to completely unravel. Whatever made me think I could have this many "irons in the fire"? I must be out of my mind!
Sunday, October 4, 2009
It's getting late, I'm tired and this techy stuff, although cool, has about worn out its welcome for today. The dogs are barking and hopefully the bear isn't back
Actually all of the topics and concepts that have been covered while in classes at Full Sail are about to come into use on a larger scale. This has been triggered by the action research project because to do what I want to I will have to have the ability to put as much of the technology I’m learning into practice in my classroom. To do that I have to have access to many resources that the school district IT people have blocked. Because I’m the type who can’t keep my big mouth shut when I see the students, in our district in general and the students in my classroom in particular, being shortchanged on the education field I am going before the school board to present them with the research to support the lifting of the blocks on technology.
Multiple intelligence theory and brain-based education are not new ideas to me as we utilized these heavily 12 years ago while I was at an inner-city school district in Phoenix AZ. Not being an auditory learner myself I have not relied on the traditional lecture type instruction. Add to that the fact that I started my teaching career later in life so many of the intelligences I rely on were further developed in a very practical manner. When in college earning a BS in Science I discovered my learning strengths. Could assisting high school students in the discovery of their learning strengths and their intelligences help motivate them because they will have a better understanding of themselves be a step in the right direction?
When I look at the amount of time required to be successful in my classes at Full Sail I doubt that the majority of my high school students have matured to that point. Is that to say I think online education of high school age students would not work? Absolutely not! What I think the best scenario would be would include the components of the brick and mortar model as well as the online component. I’ve been polling my students as to how much of their current education they feel they could do online. Most feel they could accomplish a minimum of 60% online. Science and art classes, they feel, would require more “in class” time because it’s not possible to get the same experience from a virtual lab showing a student how to throw a clay pot or build an electric producing wind generator.
Taking Gardner’s multiple intelligence theory into account the possibilities to address each of the intelligences is far more flexible in online learning. As Gardner mentions the first two - linguistic and logical-mathematical - are the ones that have typically been valued in school and students who are strong in those intelligences usually prosper. With the wide possibilities available in online instruction all of the intelligences have the ability to show what they know and take ownership of their own learning because it’s relevant.
A growing concern to parents and students alike, as mentioned in “Brain-Based Learning” by Eric Jensen, is stress and threat. The instance of bullying in schools is so much of a concern, even in small rural schools, it has caused most districts to teach classes in Character Ed. Students who feel threatened are less likely to try or to make themselves a target by appearing smart. Online classes address this issue nicely. Without the peer pressure a student is more likely to let their learning happen in the relaxed, threatless environment.
All of this information will be used in my presentation to the school board this month. Without all the cutting-edge knowledge I’ve gained from my classes at Full Sail I would still be stuck in the industrial age way of thinking and boring my students to tears.
When I read the article on “Anti-Teaching: Confronting the Crisis of Significance” I wanted to jump up and cheer because it deals with exactly the dilemma I face daily in the classroom. Students are not attentive because they genuinely see no significance in what is being taught to their own lives. This was really brought to light this past week for me for several reasons. First, this year our school district has adopted a no homework policy which has been met with a variety of reactions. Students of course love the idea as do some parents. Other parents and some of the teachers however are vehemently opposed to the policy. Me, I rarely assign homework anyway unless it’s to read a lab ahead of time. I asked my husband, also a teacher, why he thought students didn’t do homework. He thought it was because of a lack of relevance to their life but then he asked our daughter, a 14 year old, why she didn’t do her homework. Her answer, “Because it’s just repetition of what we did at school and I don’t feel I learn anything from it.” Hum-m-m? This leads to the real eye-opener for me. Two weeks ago I had tried to get all my classes set up with gmail accounts so we could start incorporating more technology into the classroom. First two classes went well but then the “red flags” must have popped up and our IT people shut it down. I was so frustrated I stormed into the office, yelled at the principal, yelled at our guidance counselor and gave our IT person what-for. Last week I discovered a window of opportunity to get back into gmail so I asked my 5th hour students, “who still needs to set up a gmail account?”. I was astounded by the response. Not one student did because they had gone home and done it and they told me that any technology they needed to learn and use they would do at home if they couldn’t at school. So, to this same group of students, I presented the idea of PLEs. Now, as the article mentioned, one of the downsides to this might be the time involved to give self-directed learning time to mature. I agree but I have the luxury of having had these students with me for going on three years. They are excited about the whole idea of taking charge of their own learning but that’s because I’ve done similar activities with them on a smaller scale since their 7th grade year. Their freshman now and they want to know, they want to do, they want to think. Now I guess my biggest challenge is how to set up a CMS given the technology I have to work with. I have students who are willing to give it a try. My experience with the courses I’ve been in so far at Full Sail have all been positive, frustrating at times, but positive and I have learned and it’s relevant to what I do everyday. I have also learned to depend on my classmates for help when I hit a technology issue although without FSO support I’d be dead in the water. As the idea of what action research really is evolves in my thinking I’m working through making changes as I look at MY improvement as a teacher, MY effectiveness as a teacher and My new role as a teacher.
Actually all of the topics and concepts that have been covered while in classes at Full Sail are about to come into use on a larger scale. This has been triggered by the action research project because to do what I want to I will have to have the ability to put as much of the technology I’m learning into practice in my classroom. To do that I have to have access to many resources that the school district IT people have blocked. Because I’m the type who can’t keep my big mouth shut when I see the students, in our district in general and the students in my classroom in particular, being shortchanged on the education field I am going before the school board to present them with the research to support the lifting of the blocks on technology.
ReplyDeleteMultiple intelligence theory and brain-based education are not new ideas to me as we utilized these heavily 12 years ago while I was at an inner-city school district in Phoenix AZ. Not being an auditory learner myself I have not relied on the traditional lecture type instruction. Add to that the fact that I started my teaching career later in life so many of the intelligences I rely on were further developed in a very practical manner. When in college earning a BS in Science I discovered my learning strengths. Could assisting high school students in the discovery of their learning strengths and their intelligences help motivate them because they will have a better understanding of themselves be a step in the right direction?
When I look at the amount of time required to be successful in my classes at Full Sail I doubt that the majority of my high school students have matured to that point. Is that to say I think online education of high school age students would not work? Absolutely not! What I think the best scenario would be would include the components of the brick and mortar model as well as the online component. I’ve been polling my students as to how much of their current education they feel they could do online. Most feel they could accomplish a minimum of 60% online. Science and art classes, they feel, would require more “in class” time because it’s not possible to get the same experience from a virtual lab showing a student how to throw a clay pot or build an electric producing wind generator.
Taking Gardner’s multiple intelligence theory into account the possibilities to address each of the intelligences is far more flexible in online learning. As Gardner mentions the first two - linguistic and logical-mathematical - are the ones that have typically been valued in school and students who are strong in those intelligences usually prosper. With the wide possibilities available in online instruction all of the intelligences have the ability to show what they know and take ownership of their own learning because it’s relevant.
A growing concern to parents and students alike, as mentioned in “Brain-Based Learning” by Eric Jensen, is stress and threat. The instance of bullying in schools is so much of a concern, even in small rural schools, it has caused most districts to teach classes in Character Ed. Students who feel threatened are less likely to try or to make themselves a target by appearing smart. Online classes address this issue nicely. Without the peer pressure a student is more likely to let their learning happen in the relaxed, threatless environment.
All of this information will be used in my presentation to the school board this month. Without all the cutting-edge knowledge I’ve gained from my classes at Full Sail I would still be stuck in the industrial age way of thinking and boring my students to tears.
When I read the article on “Anti-Teaching: Confronting the Crisis of Significance” I wanted to jump up and cheer because it deals with exactly the dilemma I face daily in the classroom. Students are not attentive because they genuinely see no significance in what is being taught to their own lives. This was really brought to light this past week for me for several reasons. First, this year our school district has adopted a no homework policy which has been met with a variety of reactions. Students of course love the idea as do some parents. Other parents and some of the teachers however are vehemently opposed to the policy. Me, I rarely assign homework anyway unless it’s to read a lab ahead of time. I asked my husband, also a teacher, why he thought students didn’t do homework. He thought it was because of a lack of relevance to their life but then he asked our daughter, a 14 year old, why she didn’t do her homework. Her answer, “Because it’s just repetition of what we did at school and I don’t feel I learn anything from it.” Hum-m-m? This leads to the real eye-opener for me. Two weeks ago I had tried to get all my classes set up with gmail accounts so we could start incorporating more technology into the classroom. First two classes went well but then the “red flags” must have popped up and our IT people shut it down. I was so frustrated I stormed into the office, yelled at the principal, yelled at our guidance counselor and gave our IT person what-for. Last week I discovered a window of opportunity to get back into gmail so I asked my 5th hour students, “who still needs to set up a gmail account?”. I was astounded by the response. Not one student did because they had gone home and done it and they told me that any technology they needed to learn and use they would do at home if they couldn’t at school. So, to this same group of students, I presented the idea of PLEs. Now, as the article mentioned, one of the downsides to this might be the time involved to give self-directed learning time to mature. I agree but I have the luxury of having had these students with me for going on three years. They are excited about the whole idea of taking charge of their own learning but that’s because I’ve done similar activities with them on a smaller scale since their 7th grade year. Their freshman now and they want to know, they want to do, they want to think. Now I guess my biggest challenge is how to set up a CMS given the technology I have to work with. I have students who are willing to give it a try. My experience with the courses I’ve been in so far at Full Sail have all been positive, frustrating at times, but positive and I have learned and it’s relevant to what I do everyday. I have also learned to depend on my classmates for help when I hit a technology issue although without FSO support I’d be dead in the water.
ReplyDeleteAs the idea of what action research really is evolves in my thinking I’m working through making changes as I look at MY improvement as a teacher, MY effectiveness as a teacher and My new role as a teacher.