Why I Encourage All Teachers to Blog

There are three levels of  participation in the digital world. The first is primarily consumer. We view, we play, we share, we purchase online.  I equate this to the lowest levels of thinking: retelling, making inferences and connecting ideas.  The second is the level  at which we want our students to be working: using digital media to evaluate, analyze, create and then connect to the global community.  This requires higher levels of thinking and is transformative for teacher and student. (The third is programming, developing programs that we then use to create videos, webpages etc. and not the focus of this blog.)

When I first began to explore blogs, I created accounts for my students on Litcircuits and then left them to figure out what to do.  I was not an active creator.  I viewed my students' blogs in order to monitor appropriate use; however, I did not really understand how to teach blogging.  How could I teach them to develop their blogs, build an audience and establish global connections  when I hadn't done it myself?  How could I teach them to add features, gadgets and widgets, links, upload video and slide shows that they have created when I hadn't done this myself?  Practical knowledge is required if you are to be an effective teacher in the 21st century.

I know how to teach story writing because I've written stories.  Teachers must develop this same comfort level with digital media.

Could our 21st Century Classrooms Grind to a Halt?

There is a groundswell of protest in Canada over the CRTC's decision to allow usage fees for the internet.

http://www.vancouversun.com/technology/Consumer+backlash+grows+over+usage+billing/4186889/story.html

Essentially, time online will be metered. Those who use more bandwidth will pay accordingly.  For educators who continuously scour the internet looking for resources or complete report cards at home online this decision has enormous financial consequences.  For low-income students, access to information has suddenly become a luxury. Internet use in the classroom becomes limited due to financial constraints.  Fortunately, social media has risen to the occasion and outrage is heating up our keyboards.  I've added my voice to the protest.

So, How Do You Teach Critical Viewing?

My students at 11 years of age are spending 3-6 hours per day online. For some, they spend more hours online than they do in the classroom. As an educator, I have a responsibility to teach critical viewing.

Once again, I taught a lesson where content was secondary to critical thinking.  As an introduction to First Nations, we have been viewing Ice Age Columbus. (If you decide to use this film, please preview it carefully. Not all scenes are suitable for a younger audience). The documentary is current and gripping.  I can't thank my board enough for allowing access to You Tube.  I've been following a discussion group on Classroom 2.0 and was surprised  to see how many districts have blocked access to valuable information.

After watching the first 2 clips, we watched the third with this question in mind:   How can we trust the validity of  what we are viewing?

My Students Need Me After All

My students no longer need me to teach content.  Everything they might wish to learn is freely available on the internet. Even MIT provides free and open access to all lectures online.  What then is my role?

My job is to teach thinking.

My job is to help them learn to think critically about the information they are encountering.
My job is to teach them to check the credentials of media producers to determine the validity of the information they are viewing.
My job is to help them recognize the impact and consequences of decisions in this rapidly changing world.
My job is to help them articulate ideas fluently so they can be effective participants in this global conversation.
My job is to help them learn to use modern forms of communication - search engines, databases, blogs, videos, webpages, social media, Web 2.0 and the rapidly evolving 3.0.
My job is to ask probing questions that require them to think deeply about important ideas and develop a personal critical stance.
My job is to help them recognize bias, to see how social media is structured to promote certain behaviours, to recognize when and how they are being manipulated.
My job is to ensure

The Kids Get It

I had an interesting discussion with my grade 6's this week.  One of them mentioned that he had taught himself to play a new song on guitar via You Tube. Another piped up, "I've done that with piano.  I find the songs on You Tube and learn to play them before my piano lesson. My piano teacher now thinks I'm amazing!" We laughed at that and then I did a quick survey. It turns out over 70% of my students are using You Tube for personal learning.

I asked them what was available for learning on You Tube. Their response - EVERYTHING. So then I asked, "If everything is available for you to learn, when you want to learn it, do you still need me - a teacher in front of the class, teaching?"  The class went silent. It was a long pause as they pondered this question.
And then, one of them hesistantly offered, "No, not really."
"What will be the role then of a teacher in a 21st century classroom?" I asked.
"You'll be like a ... helper ... helping us when we can't figure something out on our own."
And there you have it, 21st century learners. Directing their own learning using the technology available, seeking assistance when necessary.

Managing Flexible Groups

Flexible groups are actually quite simple. Each Friday I skim through student work to look for common weaknesses. This week I found:

1. a group that needed to improve understanding of the conventions for writing dialogue

2. a group that was having difficulty determining what a question was asking

3. a group that could determine what a higher level question was asking, that knew the answer, that could find suitable evidence to support the answer, that could discuss the validity of the evidence,  BUT was having difficulty putting all of this together in writing

4. a group that needed to further develop their discussion skills

I then planned based on their needs. Teaching is coordinated with the Learning Resource and Literacy Improvement teachers. While I'm working with small groups, the rest of the class is working on long-term activities: independent reading, reading logs, their current writing project, Social Studies or French or ...

Students record feedback and learning goals on sticky notes and then place them in their Next Steps folders.  They refer to them frequently to monitor their own learning. I am still refining this process, but for the most part it works well. Below is a slide show of how I co-ordinate the groups.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m64QvGKaqlE

Paperless Classroom

Congratulations Mike Hiltz in the IT department at the Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board for winning the Run Smarter award for our board. I was thrilled to read that we are heading towards a paperless classroom!
http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/press/run-smarter-award-winner,1620450.html

Flexible Grouping: Today I Finally Got Why!!!!

The Ministry of Education in Ontario is committed to implementing research-based best practices.  Hence the endless in-services and training.  One of the new expectations that we (ok I mean I) squawked indignantly about was something called Flexible Grouping.  When it was first presented I just didn't get it. Flexible groups are groups that change constantly depending on a diagnosed similar need. We are expected to spend a large chunk of our time working with small groups and these groups must change constantly. I had no idea how I was going to manage this. But after a great deal of experimentation I have developed an effective system and am in the process of filming how this works in my classroom.  It will be uploaded soon.

This is not what I wanted to share right now though. What I am sharing with you today is how a student experienced a shift in self-perception because of flexible groups and it is something from which we all need to learn.  At the end of the day I discussed with my students what the groups would be for tomorrow, which teachers they'd be working with and what the activities would be.  After I had dismissed the class, one boy stayed back to discuss the groups.
"I just don't get these groups."
"Why not?"
"Well they keep changing."
"That's because each week I see who needs to work on a particular skill and then I form the groups."
"Well, which group is the low group?"
"There is no low group."
"Which group is the high group?"
"There is no high group." he stared at me confused so I tried to explain,

I Know What I'm Teaching but When are They Learning?

Just because I'm teaching doesn't mean my students are actually learning anything.  That is somewhat humbling.  Have you ever thought to ask your students to consider when they are actually learning?  Michael Wesch, cultural anthropologist extraordinaire has.  He is currently conducting a global study asking students to create a two minute video revealing moments in the day when they are actually learning. There is one caveat. None of the moments can take place at school. For more information or to participate in this global research project visit  http://mediatedcultures.net/ksudigg/?p=276. Videos must be submitted by Feb 15.

"http://player.vimeo.com/video/16020048

Why the Word Wall had to Go

What???!!!! My word wall has to go?????!!!!!!!
After having been asked to make many changes to our teaching practice, this fall we were asked to take down our word walls. None of us could understand why. For those who don't know, word walls are walls of words that students can refer to. They can be words from the current unit of study. My main word wall listed commonly mispelled words;  I had a second word wall that would change as our units changed. We were very attached to our word walls and had worked very hard on them.  And now, we had to take them down.  Why? Because research shows that when students create their own vocabulary lists,  vocabulary recall is higher.

I decided to put this to the test in my French class. Our topic of study was winter. Normally, I would create vocabulary charts and flashcards of winter words.  We would practise them, use them in skits, read stories, answer questions, play games etc. This time I let the students do the work. If we're learning about winter what will we need?  They knew - vocabulary.  I informed them that they would be creating their own lists for the unit and that everyone would end up with a different list. The students stared at me somewhat puzzled, but set to work. Normally, I would expect my students to have learned 20 new words over a two week period. It turns out I've been sorely underestimating their potential. Almost all students had the minimum: 20 words.  Many students had over 40 words on their lists. Some had pages of words that they wanted to know. The longest list had 280 words.  What was truly remarkable was the excitement and focus during this process.  Most of all, they KNEW those words.  If someone needed a word, I frequently heard someone else call out, "I've got that one! It's ...."

Students had three days to complete their lists.  We then met and generated a common class list. Now that we had our words, I had to figure out what to do with them.  I wondered,  if they could generate the vocabulary, could they also design the unit? The students knew I expected them to have mastered 20 words. Did it really matter how they learned them. No. The class agreed that they would learn the words based on their learning styles. We listed options: create a power point, draw a labelled picture, write and perform a skit, write a story. They decided that every day they would spend 5 minutes reviewing the 20 words from their lists that they truly wished to master. After that, they would continue working on the activity they had chosen. Once they felt that they knew their words (within the two-week time limit) I would test them on them.  As this was our first time working this way, we decided to go for a straight forward oral quiz.  Students who performed poorly on the quiz would have the option of going back to their lists until they had learned all of their words.

And I have to say what happened next was remarkable.

Give Them a Problem to Solve

In our Canada's Links to the World text there is a section on Canadian inventions. It lists about 50 different inventions, with a brief explanation for each.  I had asked the students to read the text and select what they thought was the most important invention.  Students read quietly. It was almost the end of the day and most were reading because they had to.  One student selected the chocolate bar.
"Really? You honestly think the chocolate bar is Canada's greatest invention?" I asked in disbelief.
"Well, to a kid, yeah" was his reply.
By then it was the end of the day.  The bell rang and we abandoned the discussion.
I went home and thought, a lot. Point of view is everything.

The next day I went back into class and apologized to the student. As a class we redesigned the activity. Different inventions will be significant depending on one's point of view.  We listed 10 different occupations and decided to see if we could find 2 important inventions for each.  This became a challenge for the class.  They were free to work independently, with a partner or in a small group.  These formed spontaneously and they set to work.

I observed a great deal.  Again, because it had become a problem to be solved, the level of interest and engagement was much higher.  This time, the students were actively reading and  DISCUSSING the information as they read.  Two groups set challenges for themselves. One wanted to see if they could find an invention that would be important to all 10 occupations.  Another's goal was to not repeat an invention.  Groups began sharing what they were reading with other groups.  It was fun!

Why was this now a 21st century lesson?
1.  It was collaborative.
2.  It required students to solve a problem.
3.  Students participated in designing the activity.
4.  Higher level thinking and discussion took place.
5.  All students were fully engaged.
6.  Learning content, although this occurred, was not the primary goal.

It's not that I haven't done activities like this in the past; however,  I don't think that I have reflected deeply upon what made certain activities so successful.  Now I know.

A Simple Example of How I Turned a Traditional Lesson into a 21st Century Learning Experience

For a lesson to meet the 21^st century literacy goals, it must be structured to meet certain criteria, some of which are:

Critical thinking must be paramount.

Collaboration between peers must occur.

Engaged, on-task, thoughtful discussion must take place.

In grade 6 one of the topics we addressed this year was child labour. Our text has a section with a series of captioned pictures presenting different points of view on Child Labour - everything from, “I pick garbage all day,” “I get beaten if I cry,” to “I like the skills that I’ve learned. I am helping to feed my family” to “Our factory was closed down, now I have no job” to “If I didn’t employ child labour, my factory could not survive”.

Typically, I would have read the text with the class and discussed the various points of view. Essentially, this approach addressed the lowest levels of thinking – summarize, make connections, make inferences.  My primary goal was to have them understand the impact of child labour and various points of view around child labour. 

This year, I took a different approach.

              1.  I did not worry about the content.

              2.  I designed the lesson so that it became a collaborative problem to be solved.

Part 1:  As a class we identified who the stakeholders in child labour are and how they gain and lose from child labour.  The students read the text with this in mind and were easily able to figure out stakeholders as well as how each benefited and lost from child labour. This required them to make inferences. They came up with: children, families, factory owners, governments, consumers.

Part 2: Assess the impact on each stakeholder if child labour was suddenly ended. Students were able to see that simply banning child labour was not an acceptable solution. Many children would suffer if this occurred.

Part 3: Solve a problem. Find a solution to child labour so that the interests of each stakeholder is addressed.

Students were placed in groups of 4, given chart paper and set to work. I was amazed by the level of engagement of my students.

1.  Intense discussion took place.

2.  All students were fully engaged at a much higher level than I had seen in the past.

3.  The students understood that there are no easy solutions. Life is complex.

4. Content was learned through the process of solving the problem.

5. As different groups shared their ideas, other groups revised their own ideas.

4.  A light bulb went off in my head.  Problem-based learning allows deep thinking to occur.

My first considerations now when I plan lessons are:

1. How can I turn this into a problem to be solved?

2. How can I make this collaborative?                       

3. Are students engaged in high-level thinking in this activity?

The nice thing about this model is that it doesn’t require any technology. It is an approach – a way of viewing learning.

Assessment occurred through observation and anecdotal comments.

Exciting!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Are you interested in throwing away every preconceived notion you have about education?
Project Dreamschool may be for you!
150 of the world's leading thinkers from a variety of fields and backgrounds are in the process of designing a school in Holland.
They are looking for contributions from anyone who has a good idea.
This is an amazing visionary project. 


http://liftconference.com/news/lift11-talk-marcel-kampman-project-dreamschool

Why Do I Need to Change My Teaching Practice?

There is consensus beginning to emerge about how 21st century schools should function.  Having spent a great deal of time reading and searching the internet for this information, I present you with the common threads that I have found and consider to be essential to my understanding of how my teaching practice needs to be shaped as well as the foundation upon which it should lie.


1.  The world has changed. Schools need to change. Nobody explains this better than Sir Ken Robinson.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDZFcDGpL4U


2.  Teaching needs to be conducted in a way that matches how the brain learns.  A great deal of progress has been made in this area.  A good place to start exploring this topic  is at the following website: Brain Rules.  The videos from Brain Rules are entertaining, easy to understand and practical.  I do recommend purchasing the book for a more comprehensive understanding of the topic.  I will say this: if your students are sitting .... by  themselves ... at a desk ... or on the carpet ... most of the day... completing an assignment ... that you devised,  you may need to change your practice.

Brain Rule #1: Exercise            http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ck-tQt0S0Os


3. Children are hardwired to learn. Are you a facilitator of deep, rich learning or a bottle neck in the process? Sugata Mitra from India has made some startling discoveries. Watch his TED talk. His work is important.  http://www.ted.com/talks/sugata_mitra_the_child_driven_education.html


4.  "Who truly understands how a 21st century classroom should function?  Where is the visionary work taking place? Where can I see it happening?  The following sites offer a view into 21st century education in action.

This video presents a kindergarten school engaged in project-based, child-driven learning.
http://www.edutopia.org/kindergarten-project-based-learning-video

Prototype of a middle school classroom.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DQ6hVTQCQZs

The School of One was a 6 week pilot project.
http://vimeo.com/7964251

Teachers share how they use technology.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B4g5M06YyVw


Great site.
http://www.21stcenturyschools.com/What_is_21st_Century_Education.htm

I hope this helps to develop a common understanding of the direction in which the world is moving.
Happy New Year!
Heidi