The school year has begun and in the lead up to September I have been thinking about what I've learned over the past two years and how I might more deliberately build a collaborative thinking classroom.
I am working with three premises.
1. Students need many opportunities to practise critical thinking skills.
2. Students need many opportunities to develop oral communication skills where they can fully develop, articulate and clarify their thoughts before writing.
3 Collaborative skills need to be taught and practised.
My focus for the beginning of this year then is to lay the foundation for learning in a way that I haven't done previously. I am taking my time to carefully set the stage so that when we begin PBL certain habits are in place.
With my grade 7's we began our first foundation lesson to develop collaborative skills.
1. We generated a list of what typically goes wrong in groups. Things such as:
-one person doing all the work
-one person dominating
-off-task
-arguing
2. I then created random groups of 3 or 4 and asked these groups to anticipate 3 things that might go wrong and how they would deal with them.
1. What will you do to ensure that every person has a turn to speak?
2. What will you do if someone begins to dominate the discussion?
3. What will you do if you get off-task?
I also pointed out that their groups needed to look like groups. Physical placement is part of successful collaborative work. A few groups shuffled to new spots or adjusted their seating to be more inclusive.
Once the groups had determined their "Rules of Engagement", I gave them a discussion topic:
Is it ever right to do the wrong thing?
As I wandered the class, I was very pleased with the level of discussion.
One group finished a little early, but had only touched upon minor issues. I threw them the most serious one I could think of: murder. That caused them to enter into a much deeper and more passionate level of discussion.
We came together as a class and a few students shared what they had discussed. I then asked them to think about what they had learned from this exercise. Some responses related to group skills; some to moral choices.
Finally, they responded to the question in writing. One thing I've learned: if you give students the opportunity to discuss a meaty topic, when it comes time to write, they have something substantial to say. I was not disappointed.
I am working with three premises.
1. Students need many opportunities to practise critical thinking skills.
2. Students need many opportunities to develop oral communication skills where they can fully develop, articulate and clarify their thoughts before writing.
3 Collaborative skills need to be taught and practised.
My focus for the beginning of this year then is to lay the foundation for learning in a way that I haven't done previously. I am taking my time to carefully set the stage so that when we begin PBL certain habits are in place.
With my grade 7's we began our first foundation lesson to develop collaborative skills.
1. We generated a list of what typically goes wrong in groups. Things such as:
-one person doing all the work
-one person dominating
-off-task
-arguing
2. I then created random groups of 3 or 4 and asked these groups to anticipate 3 things that might go wrong and how they would deal with them.
1. What will you do to ensure that every person has a turn to speak?
2. What will you do if someone begins to dominate the discussion?
3. What will you do if you get off-task?
I also pointed out that their groups needed to look like groups. Physical placement is part of successful collaborative work. A few groups shuffled to new spots or adjusted their seating to be more inclusive.
Once the groups had determined their "Rules of Engagement", I gave them a discussion topic:
Is it ever right to do the wrong thing?
As I wandered the class, I was very pleased with the level of discussion.
One group finished a little early, but had only touched upon minor issues. I threw them the most serious one I could think of: murder. That caused them to enter into a much deeper and more passionate level of discussion.
We came together as a class and a few students shared what they had discussed. I then asked them to think about what they had learned from this exercise. Some responses related to group skills; some to moral choices.
Finally, they responded to the question in writing. One thing I've learned: if you give students the opportunity to discuss a meaty topic, when it comes time to write, they have something substantial to say. I was not disappointed.
Hi Ms. Siwak! I'm Stephanie Gomillion, I'm an elementary education major at the University of South Alabama in Mobile, AL. My EDM 310 class requires us to comment on teacher's blogs and then to summarize our visits in our own blogs and post those blogs.
ReplyDeleteI admire your creativity on teaching young children to critically think. As a future teacher I'm constantly looking for new ways to keep things interesting while my students are not only learning academics but life lessons as well.
You mentioned that a group needs to look physically like a group in order for them to fully function together. I don't think that's ever crossed my mind but since you've pointed it out I see your meaning. It would be difficult for everyone to be engaged if a few are sitting abstract or fiddling with random objects.
As for your last paragraph, I could not agree with you more! I always loved when a teacher of mine would ask us to write about something that was typically a tender subject or a subject that we really had an opinion on. Those are the most intriguing essays to write because not only is a student able to express their self but they're able to better their communication skills with an expanding vocabulary. Thank you for sharing your experience! Here is a link to my blog http://gomillionstephanieedm310.blogspot.com/ and also a link to our class blog http://edm310.blogspot.com/
Hi Stephanie,
DeleteHow nice to "meet" another student from EDM 310! I've glad that you found this post useful. The ideas here come from collaboration amongst many educators and non-educators who cause me to think about thinking and learning. Good luck with your studies.
Thank you for commenting back Ms. Siwak! It was good to meet you too and thank you for wishing me luck! I really enjoy reading your posts!
DeleteHi Heidi, I love to hear stories of teachers "jumping right in" on the first day. I think, sometimes, that this surprises students who are accustomed a"hand-out-supplies-and-talk-about-the-rules" approach. Yours seems like a much more engaging way to start!
ReplyDeleteI'm wondering what might happen if your opening question were "flipped". Would the effect and responses have been the same if you had asked about their experiences of group work that has "gone right". I have found that, in working with adults, using an Appreciative Inquiry approach has changed the whole tone of the conversation...right from the start.
Do you think that asking students to remember a time when group work was really effective might change the conversation? Just curious!
Looking forward to hearing more as you move through the year. I'll be watching from a distance!
Hi Stephen,
DeleteI just saw this today. (Sept 18) Thanks for taking the time to comment and for your thoughts around Appreciative Inquiry. Interestingly enough, I tried both approaches today when discussing: What makes writing "good"? and: What Makes Writing "bad"? The students could identify many reasons for what makes writing bad (boring, confusing, plot wanders ...) but far fewer for good writing. Their ideas on good writing were quite vague. I was somewhat taken aback and realized that for them to become better writers, they will need to develop a vocabulary for describing good writing.