I think that making teacher expectations explicit is the key to a smooth functioning classroom. As my field instructor says, “how can you expect kids to do what you want them to do if you don’t tell them what it is?” My cooperating teacher puts his expectations, policies, and teaching philosophy on the syllabus. The syllabus must be signed by the students and their parents within a week of the beginning of class. Requiring that the students and their parents enter a “contractual agreement" to these expectations shows the students that these policies will be enforced. The expectation listed on the syllabus as “ Be respectful of yourself and others and yours, other’s school property” establishes clear standards of conduct. This expectation promotes a safe learning environment in which all students are expected to be treated fairly. The statement “Be prepared. Be in class on time everyday. Bring all necessary materials” not only establishes standards for conduct but also establishes a daily routine of being prepared and on time for class. I think that it is imperative that students understand that it is an expected student routine to walk into the classroom everyday with needed materials. These are a couple among many of the positive highlights of the syllabus.
I plan to use the syllabus in the same way as my cooperating teacher when I get my own classroom.
What do you think about this idea? What do you do to establish norms in your classroom? I look forward to hearing your ideas.
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Praise and Encouragement
I recently interviewed a teacher in Ann Arbor about praise and encouragement.
The teachers says that praise is good but he does not over do it. He compares over-praising students to an excessively doting aunt. After time, this praise appears to the student as disingenuous. His philosophy on excessive praise aligns with research. According to Margolis and McCabe, teachers should use “praise only when struggling learners have legitimately earned it; otherwise they may soon think it is insincere or perfunctory” (Margolis & McCabe, 2006, p. 224). In fact , Brophy (2003) asserts that “effective praise is delivered contingently, specifies accomplishments, is spontaneous, focuses attention on task-relevant behavior, and suggests competence” (Margolis & McCabe, 2006, p. 225). Task specific praise is a preventative measure against unearned praise, according to Margolis and McCabe.
The teacher also stated during the interview that public praise is not always the best choice. Some students like public praise and others do not. He suggests getting to know the students’ preferences before praising publicly. Good and Brophy (1987) suggest that teachers “praise students privately to avoid public embarrassment” ( Schunk, Pintrich, & Meece, 2008, p. 315). The interviewee also stated that praising students privately may mean more to certain students. Research about praise is important. However, this interview confirmed that research suggestions should not be followed rigidly. The suggestions can be modified depending on the personalities of the students.
How do you praise students in your classroom. How do you avoid overpraising and underpraising student efforts?
References
Margolis, H., & McCabe, P. (2006). What to do, What to say. Intervention in School and Clinic, 41(4), 218-227.
Schunk, D., Pintrich., P., & Meece, J. (2008). Motivation in education: Theory, Research and Applications. New Jersey. Pearson Education Inc.
The teachers says that praise is good but he does not over do it. He compares over-praising students to an excessively doting aunt. After time, this praise appears to the student as disingenuous. His philosophy on excessive praise aligns with research. According to Margolis and McCabe, teachers should use “praise only when struggling learners have legitimately earned it; otherwise they may soon think it is insincere or perfunctory” (Margolis & McCabe, 2006, p. 224). In fact , Brophy (2003) asserts that “effective praise is delivered contingently, specifies accomplishments, is spontaneous, focuses attention on task-relevant behavior, and suggests competence” (Margolis & McCabe, 2006, p. 225). Task specific praise is a preventative measure against unearned praise, according to Margolis and McCabe.
The teacher also stated during the interview that public praise is not always the best choice. Some students like public praise and others do not. He suggests getting to know the students’ preferences before praising publicly. Good and Brophy (1987) suggest that teachers “praise students privately to avoid public embarrassment” ( Schunk, Pintrich, & Meece, 2008, p. 315). The interviewee also stated that praising students privately may mean more to certain students. Research about praise is important. However, this interview confirmed that research suggestions should not be followed rigidly. The suggestions can be modified depending on the personalities of the students.
How do you praise students in your classroom. How do you avoid overpraising and underpraising student efforts?
References
Margolis, H., & McCabe, P. (2006). What to do, What to say. Intervention in School and Clinic, 41(4), 218-227.
Schunk, D., Pintrich., P., & Meece, J. (2008). Motivation in education: Theory, Research and Applications. New Jersey. Pearson Education Inc.
Derivative Lesson Idea
I am always looking for great math lesson ideas. You'll be surprised at the great ideas that you can find on the internet. I stumbled upon a blog by Steven Strogatz ( an opinionator for the NY Times, http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/category/steven-strogatz/). He describes Michael Jordan dunks using the idea of derivatives. I would love to do this with my students.
Strogatz states, "Just after lift-off, his vertical velocity (the rate at which his elevation changes in time, and thus, another derivative) is positive, because he’s going up. His elevation is increasing. On the way down, this derivative is negative. And at the highest point of his jump, where he seems to hang in the air, his elevation is momentarily unchanging and his derivative is zero. In that sense he truly is hanging."
I think this is a fun and interesting way to look at derivatives. I could even have the kids trace out the path of Michael Jordan so that they can get a clearer picture.
Do you have any ideas of how to teach dervatives in a fun way?
Strogatz states, "Just after lift-off, his vertical velocity (the rate at which his elevation changes in time, and thus, another derivative) is positive, because he’s going up. His elevation is increasing. On the way down, this derivative is negative. And at the highest point of his jump, where he seems to hang in the air, his elevation is momentarily unchanging and his derivative is zero. In that sense he truly is hanging."
I think this is a fun and interesting way to look at derivatives. I could even have the kids trace out the path of Michael Jordan so that they can get a clearer picture.
Do you have any ideas of how to teach dervatives in a fun way?
Competition in the Classroom
Recently, I prepared a review activity for my Algebra 2 students in the form of the game Bingo. The purpose of the activity was for the students to prepare for a test on exponential and logarithmic functions. I organized the desks in pairs so that students could collaborate on 25 review problems. My mentor and I walked around the room to help individual pairs of students. The students were motivated to complete these review problems in a timely manner because they would need these answers to fill out their bingo card. Every pair of students had a different bingo card with the numbers 1 -25 pre-written in different locations in the 5 X 5 grid. Students were instructed to place their answers to the problems in the corresponding grid cell for that problem number. At the end of class, I called out the answers to the 25 problems in random order. The students crossed out answers on their bingo card as they were called. Approximately 4 pairs won bingo and I gave out candy as a prize.
The activity went very well. The majority of the student pairs were having rich conversations about the mathematics. I witnessed many “aha moments” when a student understood a concept after their partner explained it to him or her. I also witnessed student pairs constructing meaning and figuring out problems together. I believe that many of the students would not have done so well on the worksheet if it were not for the collective scaffolding that this activity provided. I also provided assistance to many student pairs. I was careful not to give the answer but to guide the students' thinking.
In this case, my competitive activity (Bingo) motivated my students and worked well.
What do you think about competition in the classroom? What are some important features of competitive activities that foster learning without undermining the teacher's efforts to build a safe learning community?
The activity went very well. The majority of the student pairs were having rich conversations about the mathematics. I witnessed many “aha moments” when a student understood a concept after their partner explained it to him or her. I also witnessed student pairs constructing meaning and figuring out problems together. I believe that many of the students would not have done so well on the worksheet if it were not for the collective scaffolding that this activity provided. I also provided assistance to many student pairs. I was careful not to give the answer but to guide the students' thinking.
In this case, my competitive activity (Bingo) motivated my students and worked well.
What do you think about competition in the classroom? What are some important features of competitive activities that foster learning without undermining the teacher's efforts to build a safe learning community?
Friday, March 12, 2010
Friday, December 11, 2009
Does Global Connect lead to Personal Disconnect?
Recently, I was introduced to a site of a great edublogger, Vicki Davis. If you would like to visit her blog, go to:
http://coolcatteacher.blogspot.com/
In one of her posts entitled "Globally connected... Personally disconnected?" she addresses the issue that as a teacher use more and more websites and web tools to communicate with others and teach, he or she can feel personally disconnected.
Vicki states that being a teacher is becoming less about a stack of papers to grade. She is now concerned with email assignments and updating wikis and web pages.
Her advice to those who feel globally connected and personally disconnected is as follows:
"It is OK to feel personally disconnected sometimes, particularly when that means you are creating rich, vibrant, deep learning experiences for students.....
Just keep perspective and don't beat yourself up too much about how often you've blogged or tweeted. If you've got something to share, share it any way you can with the time you have and just don't sweat it."
Vicki expressed that she feels personally disconnected at times. It is evident from exploration of her blog that she uses technology ALOT in her classroom.
Do you think that there is a such thing as using too many websites and webtools in teaching? Do you think that global connect can lead to a personal disconnect? If so, how do you find the right balance?
http://coolcatteacher.blogspot.com/
In one of her posts entitled "Globally connected... Personally disconnected?" she addresses the issue that as a teacher use more and more websites and web tools to communicate with others and teach, he or she can feel personally disconnected.
Vicki states that being a teacher is becoming less about a stack of papers to grade. She is now concerned with email assignments and updating wikis and web pages.
Her advice to those who feel globally connected and personally disconnected is as follows:
"It is OK to feel personally disconnected sometimes, particularly when that means you are creating rich, vibrant, deep learning experiences for students.....
Just keep perspective and don't beat yourself up too much about how often you've blogged or tweeted. If you've got something to share, share it any way you can with the time you have and just don't sweat it."
Vicki expressed that she feels personally disconnected at times. It is evident from exploration of her blog that she uses technology ALOT in her classroom.
Do you think that there is a such thing as using too many websites and webtools in teaching? Do you think that global connect can lead to a personal disconnect? If so, how do you find the right balance?
How do we get kids to ask questions?
As a pre-service teacher, I often think about what I can do to get kids to ask questions. I noticed that at the beginning of the year, many kids in the Algebra class that I am observing did not ask questions. My cooperating teacher tells the kids all of the time that he wants them to ask questions and thanks them when they do. He always states that he cares about their learning and he makes himself available before school, during lunch, and after school. Over time, kids that never asked questions started to ask questions. However, there is still a large number of students that do not ask questions.
Some additional ideas that I have to get kids to ask questions are:
*Have students write their questions anonymously on index card.
*Give students points for writing questions on their homework when they don't understand.
*Make participation points apart of the class grade.
What are some methods that you would use to get kids to ask questions?
Some additional ideas that I have to get kids to ask questions are:
*Have students write their questions anonymously on index card.
*Give students points for writing questions on their homework when they don't understand.
*Make participation points apart of the class grade.
What are some methods that you would use to get kids to ask questions?
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Sunday, October 25, 2009
PowerPoint in a Math Classroom
I have always been a fan of PowerPoint and I have seen its use in many non-math classes. However, I never considered its use in a math classroom until recently. For one of my classes, I did a group presentation about the disadvantages and advantages about PowerPoint. During my research for this presentation, I came across an article entitled "Life after death by PowerPoint" by Jenni Ingram. According to Ingram, PowerPoint can be used in math in the following ways:
1) Various colors can be used to show the difference in steps, parts of a drawing, etc.
2) Animation can be used to show the progression of mathematical thought.
3) Hyperlinks can be used to access interactive websites and even other PowerPoint slides that contain alternate explanations for a math problem.
One of my classmates created a color coded geometry proof in PowerPoint that I believe would be very useful in a geometry classroom.
I am now convinced that PowerPoint is a great tool to use in a mathematics classroom.
post script
According to a recent personal communication with a special education specialist, a simple PowerPoint slide or two in a math classroom displaying directions or relevant information to the day's lesson can be very helpful for students with learning disabilities.
What are your thoughts about PowerPoint in a math classroom?
1) Various colors can be used to show the difference in steps, parts of a drawing, etc.
2) Animation can be used to show the progression of mathematical thought.
3) Hyperlinks can be used to access interactive websites and even other PowerPoint slides that contain alternate explanations for a math problem.
One of my classmates created a color coded geometry proof in PowerPoint that I believe would be very useful in a geometry classroom.
I am now convinced that PowerPoint is a great tool to use in a mathematics classroom.
post script
According to a recent personal communication with a special education specialist, a simple PowerPoint slide or two in a math classroom displaying directions or relevant information to the day's lesson can be very helpful for students with learning disabilities.
What are your thoughts about PowerPoint in a math classroom?
Mandatory Make-up Tests
At my placement, the math department has a no-fail policy. All students must score an 80% or above on all tests in order to receive full credit for a class. The tests are usually sectioned in to 2-3 parts with similar questions so that the student does not have to re-take the entire test but only the parts that they did not master 80% of the questions. The students can come after school, during lunch, or go to the school's testing center to retake tests.
I think this is a great idea because it gives the students extra chances to master the material. It sends the message that every student is capable of mastering the material by holding them to a high standard. Consequently, the teachers teach each lesson for mastery learning. Some have criticized this policy because some students can choose to not study for a test because he or she knows that it can be made up later. However, I think that the positives outweigh the negatives. Even if the school that I teach for next year does not have this policy (and there are no policies in place to discourage this practice), I think I will implement this in my own classroom. It seems to motivate students and it is a way to convey high teacher expectations.
What do you think? Would you implement this policy in your own classroom?
I think this is a great idea because it gives the students extra chances to master the material. It sends the message that every student is capable of mastering the material by holding them to a high standard. Consequently, the teachers teach each lesson for mastery learning. Some have criticized this policy because some students can choose to not study for a test because he or she knows that it can be made up later. However, I think that the positives outweigh the negatives. Even if the school that I teach for next year does not have this policy (and there are no policies in place to discourage this practice), I think I will implement this in my own classroom. It seems to motivate students and it is a way to convey high teacher expectations.
What do you think? Would you implement this policy in your own classroom?
Friday, July 31, 2009
Can a Socratic Seminar be used in a mathematics classroom? PartII
The idea that Socratic seminar is more applicable to english, social studies, and history classrooms derives from our understanding of what learning looks like in these particular classrooms. We would agree that an engaging discussion that represents two different viewpoints could occur in this context. One might say that you cannot have a Socratic seminar in a math class because there is always one correct answer and an incorrect answer can not be argued effectively. I believe that it would be counter productive to have a discussion in a math classroom that leads the students to accept wrong answers. What I am proposing is that there are MANY different ways to arrive at the same answer in mathematics. These different ways of reasoning would be the content of a mathematical Socratic seminar. A Socratic seminar would be a great way to get the students to analyze math logic. Students would not only learn from correct answers but also be able to discern between correct and incorrect steps that lead to wrong answers. I assert that a Socratic seminar would facilitate high order thinking in a math classroom.
Friday, July 24, 2009
Can a Socratic Seminar be used in a mathematics classroom?
I think that the idea of a Socratic seminar is powerful. It gives license to students to create knowledge and understanding. It also contradicts the notion of a teacher as sole knowledge giver. Several readings have demonstrated the effectiveness of the Socratic seminar in non-science classrooms. However, can we really use this with math? I think the answer to this question is YES. Think of the book Teaching Problems and the Problems of Teaching by Magdalene Lampert. Her method of teaching allows students to present different points about math problems like a Socratic seminar. The moral of the story is: We should not underestimate the applicability of great teaching techniques to mathematics.
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Debate: Technology in the Classroom
Technology in the classroom is a great idea and almost essential for our children to meet the demands of the 21st century. However, when is technology inappropriate in the classroom? There are free online polls that can be utilized in a classroom via text messaging. Twitter has also been used in educational settings. This sounds positive. However, this type of technology usage can open up a can of worms in the form of learning distractions. Internet in the classroom can result in children surfing the internet in class or playing online games. Cell phone usage in the classroom could result in children texting messages to their friends during class time. There are many schools that prohibit the use of cell phones during school hours. By doing so, are these schools missing out on an untapped educational resource? Where do you stand on this issue?
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Resources in My Future Classroom
As a future mathematics teacher, there are certain resources that I would like to have in my classroom. I would like to have a laptop for myself and all of my students. I would also like to have mathematical software. I would also like a rolling white board, black board, projector, sound system, microphone, wireless internet, and a laser pointer. I want my students to be technologically knowledgeable because we are entering a new era of advanced developments. I also want students to be engaged in mathematics. I believe that presenting class material to my students in multiple forms will help to differentiate my instruction effectively. However, I know that my list of resources is very optimistic. This is impossible for many inner city schools to accomplish. I think that my first priority as a teacher will be to make sure that my students have basic resources such as good textbooks, writing utensils, etc. before trying to obtain some of high tech resources that I would prefer.
Friday, June 26, 2009
My First Post
This page is dedicated to exploring mathematics education and education in general. I will be posting my thoughts and comments about education issues that are relevant in today's society.
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