I'm swamped by 3 visitors here from Santiago this week, but so glad I read your posting without postponing longer. You've nailed it!! I won't try to comment at length now--hopefully we can discuss next week. You can find Sir Ken Robinson's 2006 talk on ted.com, it's very good (and funny!).
Perhaps many secondary teachers teach in less inspiring ways because it is such a huge challenge to try to regain lost creativity... The challenge is to pinpoint where the problem really becomes serious and try to intervene there.
Thanks for excellent reading, I look forward to talking in person!
Tom
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Monday, October 25, 2010
Memorize, memorize...
One of my students made a wonderful statement the other day. She was working on the review problems I had written for them, when she looked up at me and said, "I'm never going to be able to do Physics. I just can't memorize all the steps to solve a problem!"
She's an excellent student, who has the school game figured out. She has achieved straight A's in every subject... until Physics. She's stumped now because the method of learning that she has been taught for the last 13 years has completely failed her in this subject. Why do we wait until students reach Grade 11 to tell them that Science isn't about memorizing a whole bunch of facts and regurgitating them on a test? And now that she's learned for years to put away her creative mind, how do I teach her to put that creative thought in the drivers seat?
I remember when I met Physics in Grade 11. It was intimidating at first, and I didn't do so well at first (mainly due to my stubborn refusal to learn how to rearrange equations - a useless skill, or so I thought...), but it wasn't long before I fell in love with the subject the same way I already loved art. I fell in love because in Physics, there was finally more than one way to do things! The teacher no longer penalized me for inventing some ridiculous way of solving the problem rather than writing out all the steps they had shown me on the board. I was encouraged to look for more than one creative way to a solution, and it was so fun. But when I think about it, had I been a "good" student; had I listened to my math teachers when they just handed me formulas for permutation and combination, rather than spending hours and hours along with pages after pages of zero's and one's trying to work out those formulas on my own; had I spent my time doing all the assigned monotonous problems that were all the same and showed all those same steps for the same problems rather than writing some crazy poem; had I learned in the way we (for the most part) teach - would I have loved Physics? Or would it have been the same agony that it is for my top notch students right now?
I came across a great little video today that speaks about education and the arts, but it might as well be talking about Physics. It's here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDZFcDGpL4U&feature=player_embedded%EF%BB%BF. He says that we nearly ALL start with a huge capacity for divergent thinking, but that decreases as we age. And he argues that many of us are educated out of this remarkable creative possibility. It's a rather sad thought, especially for the creative subjects..... Wait - are there any non-creative subjects?!?
So the most important question is: What do I do now? I'm learning how to teach high school, not elementary school, which means that I have little control over the first 8-10 years of my future students' education. I need to take these students who tell me that they "never be able to do Physics", and show them the beautiful creative gifts they've had their whole lives, but simply haven't exercised often. And then we have to work through what may be a rather challenging process of getting those creative abilities back in shape together.
I'm a little scared. And I wish I had A LOT more time with my students. But I hope in this last week of October practicum, and when I come back in December, I'll be able to give them at least a glimpse of how much fun learning can be when you don't have to "memorize the steps" - when you think conceptually about a situation, make exciting connections to what you know (and what you want to know!), draw a few colourful, helpful and pretty pictures, and then invent "steps" (which may be entirely different from your classmates, but equally correct) so that you're solution actually works and makes sense in the real world rather than the abstract academic world. Whew. That's a big job for me. I think I'll start with working on my questioning skills, keep the discussion and POE's rolling, and we'll see where it goes from there.
She's an excellent student, who has the school game figured out. She has achieved straight A's in every subject... until Physics. She's stumped now because the method of learning that she has been taught for the last 13 years has completely failed her in this subject. Why do we wait until students reach Grade 11 to tell them that Science isn't about memorizing a whole bunch of facts and regurgitating them on a test? And now that she's learned for years to put away her creative mind, how do I teach her to put that creative thought in the drivers seat?
I remember when I met Physics in Grade 11. It was intimidating at first, and I didn't do so well at first (mainly due to my stubborn refusal to learn how to rearrange equations - a useless skill, or so I thought...), but it wasn't long before I fell in love with the subject the same way I already loved art. I fell in love because in Physics, there was finally more than one way to do things! The teacher no longer penalized me for inventing some ridiculous way of solving the problem rather than writing out all the steps they had shown me on the board. I was encouraged to look for more than one creative way to a solution, and it was so fun. But when I think about it, had I been a "good" student; had I listened to my math teachers when they just handed me formulas for permutation and combination, rather than spending hours and hours along with pages after pages of zero's and one's trying to work out those formulas on my own; had I spent my time doing all the assigned monotonous problems that were all the same and showed all those same steps for the same problems rather than writing some crazy poem; had I learned in the way we (for the most part) teach - would I have loved Physics? Or would it have been the same agony that it is for my top notch students right now?
I came across a great little video today that speaks about education and the arts, but it might as well be talking about Physics. It's here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDZFcDGpL4U&feature=player_embedded%EF%BB%BF. He says that we nearly ALL start with a huge capacity for divergent thinking, but that decreases as we age. And he argues that many of us are educated out of this remarkable creative possibility. It's a rather sad thought, especially for the creative subjects..... Wait - are there any non-creative subjects?!?
So the most important question is: What do I do now? I'm learning how to teach high school, not elementary school, which means that I have little control over the first 8-10 years of my future students' education. I need to take these students who tell me that they "never be able to do Physics", and show them the beautiful creative gifts they've had their whole lives, but simply haven't exercised often. And then we have to work through what may be a rather challenging process of getting those creative abilities back in shape together.
I'm a little scared. And I wish I had A LOT more time with my students. But I hope in this last week of October practicum, and when I come back in December, I'll be able to give them at least a glimpse of how much fun learning can be when you don't have to "memorize the steps" - when you think conceptually about a situation, make exciting connections to what you know (and what you want to know!), draw a few colourful, helpful and pretty pictures, and then invent "steps" (which may be entirely different from your classmates, but equally correct) so that you're solution actually works and makes sense in the real world rather than the abstract academic world. Whew. That's a big job for me. I think I'll start with working on my questioning skills, keep the discussion and POE's rolling, and we'll see where it goes from there.
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Thanks for the nudge!
Hi Anneke,
Broad spectrum seems to put it mildly--what an exciting range of student behaviours and attitudes! Nice work getting the students doing pushes and pulls! feeling is believing??? Being nervous is part of being shy??
It's been so long since I've drawn on an overhead that I'm sure I too would find it much harder than the board, though there were years when I used an overhead a lot. EVERYTHING takes practice??!!
Well done on doing a POE and getting some correct predictions AND explanations. How did the attempt to "discover" F=ma go? Don't forget the idea of a=F/m as a way of putting the equation that comes closer to experience! Where did you get edible chalk?
You really are having a good time and it sounds like you are doing quite well. I really appreciate all the detail in your account, and I'm glad you've recorded it for revisiting. Things will look so different after another 2 weeks.
Have a great week!
Tom
Broad spectrum seems to put it mildly--what an exciting range of student behaviours and attitudes! Nice work getting the students doing pushes and pulls! feeling is believing??? Being nervous is part of being shy??
It's been so long since I've drawn on an overhead that I'm sure I too would find it much harder than the board, though there were years when I used an overhead a lot. EVERYTHING takes practice??!!
Well done on doing a POE and getting some correct predictions AND explanations. How did the attempt to "discover" F=ma go? Don't forget the idea of a=F/m as a way of putting the equation that comes closer to experience! Where did you get edible chalk?
You really are having a good time and it sounds like you are doing quite well. I really appreciate all the detail in your account, and I'm glad you've recorded it for revisiting. Things will look so different after another 2 weeks.
Have a great week!
Tom
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Teaching and Learning
The students in my grade 11 Physics class are just great. They are all so different - one is a perfectionist who is more concerned with grades than learning, while another couldn't care less about grades, but told me he is in the course to learn how to accurately predict where his bullet will land for the upcoming hunting season. One student has an amazing creative innovative mind but struggles with the math to move from ideas to real solutions, while another is great at the math but has trouble understanding concepts. One answers all my questions, even if he knows his answers are wildly wrong, while another barely opens her mouth even when she's quite sure of her answer. For a class of only 6 students, there couldn't be a broader spectrum of students. And they are so much fun to teach.
Today was the second day of our forces unit, so we spent the class learning about free-body diagrams. We acted out the freebody diagram of a "system" (one student) experiencing an applied force from the "environment" (various combinations of students pulling and pushing on the poor "system"). It was fun for the kinesthetic learners in the group to move around and be the free-body diagram, but the more shy students were a little nervous about the activity. It's a challenge to think of ways to engage such a small class with so many different learning styles.
After acting out each free-body diagram, we drew the corresponding free-body diagrams and calculated the net force in a chart using the overhead projector. I had no idea drawing on overheads was so difficult! I thought it would be far easier than using the blackboard, but not at all. I definitely need some more practice with that!
Next, we did our first POE (Predict, Observe, Explain) of the Forces unit! It was a fun one, and I think the students were interested and engaged. I showed the students how I could hang two spring scales side-by-side and suspended a mass from both spring scales. Then I showed them how I could hang one spring scale above the other, with the mass hanging from the lower spring scale. The students had to decide how the force shown on the spring scales would differ between the two situations. I was so impressed! Even with only one day of studying forces under their belt, several of the students could accurately predict that the side-by-side springs should read half the force of the springs hung in series, and give me a clear explanation (without all the correct terms, but the right concepts) for why. Yet other students questioned them, and didn't quite believe it until they saw it, which was a great eye opener for them. I'll definitely use that POE again.
We ended the class with some practice free-body diagrams of the students in the class riding horses or parachuting, and preparation for a formative lab tomorrow. I'm quite excited for the lab - we'll be investigating the relationship between force, mass and acceleration by pulling students on a cart through the cafeteria. It looks like it'll be a lot of fun, and hopefully by the end of the day we will have discovered F = ma!
The best part of the day today, however, was actually just the very start of class. Yesterday, I had the students share their hobbies with me (so that I can make them the main characters in the problems I assign), tell me a few aspects of forces they want to especially study (this seems to be an astrophysics group!), and share with me what they believe makes a great Physics teacher. The responses for what makes a great teacher were varied and all very helpful, but the last one made me smile - one student simply wrote "insanity". So when I was chatting with the students at the start of class about how I'll be working to live up to these expectations, I strolled over to the chalk board, picked up a conveniently place piece of chalk and popped it in my mouth. It was of course edible chalk, but it was a really fun moment to laugh with the students before we dove into free-body diagrams today.
So all in all, I was happy with how today's class went. The students seemed to be interested in the material, and they're beginning to grasp the concepts. I need to work on my note writing skills for sure, and I ran out of time to finish everything I hoped to finish, but that's what learning is for.
Today was the second day of our forces unit, so we spent the class learning about free-body diagrams. We acted out the freebody diagram of a "system" (one student) experiencing an applied force from the "environment" (various combinations of students pulling and pushing on the poor "system"). It was fun for the kinesthetic learners in the group to move around and be the free-body diagram, but the more shy students were a little nervous about the activity. It's a challenge to think of ways to engage such a small class with so many different learning styles.
After acting out each free-body diagram, we drew the corresponding free-body diagrams and calculated the net force in a chart using the overhead projector. I had no idea drawing on overheads was so difficult! I thought it would be far easier than using the blackboard, but not at all. I definitely need some more practice with that!
Next, we did our first POE (Predict, Observe, Explain) of the Forces unit! It was a fun one, and I think the students were interested and engaged. I showed the students how I could hang two spring scales side-by-side and suspended a mass from both spring scales. Then I showed them how I could hang one spring scale above the other, with the mass hanging from the lower spring scale. The students had to decide how the force shown on the spring scales would differ between the two situations. I was so impressed! Even with only one day of studying forces under their belt, several of the students could accurately predict that the side-by-side springs should read half the force of the springs hung in series, and give me a clear explanation (without all the correct terms, but the right concepts) for why. Yet other students questioned them, and didn't quite believe it until they saw it, which was a great eye opener for them. I'll definitely use that POE again.
We ended the class with some practice free-body diagrams of the students in the class riding horses or parachuting, and preparation for a formative lab tomorrow. I'm quite excited for the lab - we'll be investigating the relationship between force, mass and acceleration by pulling students on a cart through the cafeteria. It looks like it'll be a lot of fun, and hopefully by the end of the day we will have discovered F = ma!
The best part of the day today, however, was actually just the very start of class. Yesterday, I had the students share their hobbies with me (so that I can make them the main characters in the problems I assign), tell me a few aspects of forces they want to especially study (this seems to be an astrophysics group!), and share with me what they believe makes a great Physics teacher. The responses for what makes a great teacher were varied and all very helpful, but the last one made me smile - one student simply wrote "insanity". So when I was chatting with the students at the start of class about how I'll be working to live up to these expectations, I strolled over to the chalk board, picked up a conveniently place piece of chalk and popped it in my mouth. It was of course edible chalk, but it was a really fun moment to laugh with the students before we dove into free-body diagrams today.
So all in all, I was happy with how today's class went. The students seemed to be interested in the material, and they're beginning to grasp the concepts. I need to work on my note writing skills for sure, and I ran out of time to finish everything I hoped to finish, but that's what learning is for.
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Wanna Draw?
My first placement is in Physics, but I was chatting with the art teacher who I'll be working with next semester while the school was doing a colour house competition. Of course it was the usual affair - around one quarter of the school actively engaged in the activity, one half passively and obediently watching and one quarter heading back inside for free time at their lockers and in the cafeteria.
The art teacher noticed this and found me some pads of newsprint, conte, and oil pastels, and suggested I encourage the students who weren't participating to draw. I didn't really expect anyone to want to draw - when I was a student, I was terrified of those other kids who seemed disinterested in school. I'd never dream of inviting them to draw with me - they'd tell me to F-off or something, wouldn't they? But I tried it. And I am so disappointed in myself for underestimating those students. They didn't even think twice. "Sure, I'll draw something" "I don't know what I'd draw, but why not - I can try." Soon there was two tables full of students drawing in the cafeteria! They kept drawing right into lunch, and drew some really great stuff. Many thanks to the art teacher for encouraging me to just ask people to draw with me!
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Practicum Goals
I can hardly believe October is here! Monday is my first day of my teaching placement, and I'm very excited! There are so many things I'm hoping to observe, practice and learn over the four weeks that I am in the school, but I'll try to narrow this down to the ones I intend to work on first. These are:
1. I plan to develop my ability to motivate my students to strive to do their very best in both academics and personal character. It's a big goal I know, but I think intrinsic motivation in these two areas is very important, so I hope to make as many strides in this direction over the next four weeks as possible. Practically, I intend to nurture this self-motivation by establishing a positive rapport with the students, so that they know I am on their side, helping them achieve their goals rather than forcing them to learn what I tell them to learn. I hope to make those connections through extracurriculars, simply chatting before and after class, engaging them respectfully during class, and connecting the classroom to their world - be it farming, skateboarding, etc. I want to foster an environment where we take time in class to discuss or (for shyer students) write anonymously about specific ways that we have shown or will show good character growth, and encourage each other in that. I want to provide my students with a glimpse of how amazing and beautiful Physics is through POE's, connections to the arts and creative writing, and other engaging activities so that my students will have the opportunity to fall in love with Physics.
2. Hand in hand with developing intrinsic motivation to learn academics and strong character, is of course providing the environment in which the now motivated students (hopefully) can learn and practice these things. I want to work on my communication skills, so that I can explain and facilitate the discovery of Physics in a way that is easily accessible to students. I want to help my students set realistic and specific goals for themselves in terms of what aspects of their character they want to further develop. I hope that since I have such a small class (only 7 students!), it will be easier to work with each student on his/her personal learning goals.
3. I intend to make as much use as possible of the expertise of those around me. Even in brief conversations with teachers, I've learned a lot from them. So I can't wait to see what I can learn when I'm in a staff room of experienced teachers, discussing ideas with my associate, and commuting 2-3 hours everyday with other teacher candidates who are also bubbling with ideas.
There are so so many things to learn, but I do hope to make the a good sized dent in the mountain of learning over the next four weeks. I can't wait to meet the students and teachers on monday!
1. I plan to develop my ability to motivate my students to strive to do their very best in both academics and personal character. It's a big goal I know, but I think intrinsic motivation in these two areas is very important, so I hope to make as many strides in this direction over the next four weeks as possible. Practically, I intend to nurture this self-motivation by establishing a positive rapport with the students, so that they know I am on their side, helping them achieve their goals rather than forcing them to learn what I tell them to learn. I hope to make those connections through extracurriculars, simply chatting before and after class, engaging them respectfully during class, and connecting the classroom to their world - be it farming, skateboarding, etc. I want to foster an environment where we take time in class to discuss or (for shyer students) write anonymously about specific ways that we have shown or will show good character growth, and encourage each other in that. I want to provide my students with a glimpse of how amazing and beautiful Physics is through POE's, connections to the arts and creative writing, and other engaging activities so that my students will have the opportunity to fall in love with Physics.
2. Hand in hand with developing intrinsic motivation to learn academics and strong character, is of course providing the environment in which the now motivated students (hopefully) can learn and practice these things. I want to work on my communication skills, so that I can explain and facilitate the discovery of Physics in a way that is easily accessible to students. I want to help my students set realistic and specific goals for themselves in terms of what aspects of their character they want to further develop. I hope that since I have such a small class (only 7 students!), it will be easier to work with each student on his/her personal learning goals.
3. I intend to make as much use as possible of the expertise of those around me. Even in brief conversations with teachers, I've learned a lot from them. So I can't wait to see what I can learn when I'm in a staff room of experienced teachers, discussing ideas with my associate, and commuting 2-3 hours everyday with other teacher candidates who are also bubbling with ideas.
There are so so many things to learn, but I do hope to make the a good sized dent in the mountain of learning over the next four weeks. I can't wait to meet the students and teachers on monday!
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