Question...

Can an aha moment be something I merely take note of? Because one thing that I have noticed in class was that the notion of the Washington State standards are always mentioned during class to the students. For example a statement like, "the state standards require that students be able to do____ fluently which means you guys should be able to do this math quickly and accurately..." would often be mentioned to students. By mentioning the requirements of state standards repeatedly, does this make a difference in how students may approach studying math? Could there be an age where this repetitive statement may be most effective in contributing to motivation?

Classroom Organization

Some of the greatest classroom management techniques I have found to be during my alternative experience. In the front of the classroom there are two trays where extra handouts are sorted according to grade level and beside those trays are charts on the wall that lists the daily assignments also for each grade level. If a handout was given on a particular day that a student was absent, that student can find all the assignments on this chart and handouts. This method helps assist students become responsible for their own work. I also like that if this management tool is implemented right at the beginning of the school year, students only need to be reminded to look at the assignment chart, thus eliminating the amount of the time it may have taken to look for the worksheets and the assignments given for the day.

"AHA" Moment #1

Monday was the first day in the alternative level experience and I was placed in a middle school in the north end. I have never to been to this school and in fact it was the first time I have ever heard of the district however, right away I was taken aback by the technology that was used in the classroom! In the current classroom that I am in technology is used on a daily basis, the ActivBoard practically replaces the entire white board and the majority of instruction is planned on a flip chart. I always hear about how technology can be integrated into the classroom, but I couldn't look past the possibilities of merely the doc cam and the graphing calculator.

What this instructor does is have all her lessons prepared ahead of time and writes on her slides while in front of the class. But as she is up there it's like she has a magic wand and she can flip through pages, add shapes, write in different colors and highlight when necessary. Today I had the privilege of seeing the use of E-clickers (not sure if that is the correct terminology) but it was used today as a tool for formative assessment. Problems were given on the board and students has to submit their answers, A, B, or C using the E-clickers. By using these E-clickers, the teacher was able to get a better understanding of the level of understanding that students in each class has on the current lesson.

One word....marvelous!

Field Observations

For my field observation, I focused on two students who I concluded had very different demeanors while in class. Whether or not they learn the content is still not completely clear however, I feel that deductions can be made. One of two students always stays on task during class hours, during PAWS (a 30 minute period during the day where students are able to seek help from a teacher from another class, work on homework from another class or silently read) I see that Esteban* works on assignments due for the current class or reads silently. Overall, Esteban has not spoken outloud during class, he does not volunteer answers but will answer if spoken to. Typically he works by himself and does not ask for assistance on his work. If asked about his progress, he quickly shows his work as evidence and states that he's doing just fine. The assignments given to students are clearly stated each day and therefore each student are expected to complete each task and therefore hopefully "learn" the material. For Esteban, the eye contact he makes with the instructor and also the notes he takes during class are evidence to me that he his learning. However, if that is not enough, his quiz scores also reflect some kind of knowledge absorption. Yet, the material so far could have been prior knowledge for Esteban and therefore would explain his success on the quiz and would not correctly assess whether or not he has learned anything "new".

The second student I observed has quite the opposite demeanor than Esteban. ChiChi hardly pays attention during class, in fact she talks quite a bit even during lectures. She writes down everything written on the board but hardly maintains eye contact with the instructor. When she asks for help, she needs to be led and she continues to have repeating questions. She makes conversation with the people around her and heckles other students who are across the room. I can't be certian that ChiChi has not learned anything in the class because I have seen her complete some of her assignments and also help her friend with some of the material presented in class however, her quiz scores reflect otherwise. If she is not chatting, I see her eyes wondering through out the room. I feel that she has the ability to complete all the assignments however, it appears that she may lack enthusiasm or motivation for the subject. (This is not an observation, merely an opinion in this case.)

FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL!

On the first day of school, I came into the classroom not knowing what I was in for. I was uncertain of what my clear role was going to be for these first few days in class--was I to be involved? If I was supposed to be involved, how was I to incorporate myself without feeling like I was intruding? Or am I to just speak when I was spoken to? Either way, I spent my first day of school sitting at a desk taking notes....for...all...5...classes! Might I say that they are some detailed notes! However, since I'm in two PreCalculus classes and three Algebra 1 classes, my notes became very repetitious which in the end makes sense since the material and lesson plans for each class should be the same. I saw how the dynamics of each class differed as each class period changed. Many freshman and a few sophomores are in the Algebra 1 classes and those classes tended to need the most reminders for the noise level while the PreCalculus class that consisting mostly of juniors also had a few volume adjustments but overall were easier to get back on the listening track.

My cooperating teacher did so kindly introduced me as the student intern to all his classes made them aware that I would be teaching some of the classes later on. I really do appreciate this introduction, my only fear is that students won't ask me for help because "it's not my turn" to be teacher but that is why I declare that tomorrow I will be a little bit more assertive in my intern role. It's not my cooperating teacher's responsibility to tell me what to do in class but to guide me and he is very willing and open to the suggestions that I have, it is my own assertiveness that I need to check.

Today I will continue to take very detailed notes, but I think as the day progresses I will have to put the pen down and start moving around the classroom because I'm really getting tired of writing. Tomorrow we have planned for me to take attendance to help me start memorizing the students' names and I'm excited!

Weekly Blog 12/3/09 - 12/8/09

1. The most significant thing I learned this week was about Astrobiology. I find the subjust facinating however its a subject that one can get easily lost in the jargon.

2. I would like to learn more about the kind of facts that astrobiology have discovered or on the verge of discovering.

3. This intro to the course is a great way to show students that we can have different backgrounds and that shouldn't limit us in what kind of field we would like to take up.

Weekly Blog 11/26/09 - 12/1/09

1. The most significant thing that I learned this week was how difficult it is to agree on how or what to teach. I found this from doing our digital story, it basically took us most of the class period to only narrow down what subject we wanted to talk about and then go over some animations that we would like to include.

2. I would love to work on more collaborative work, it helps to practice communication skills.

3. I can see how learning to work with other teachers can help support my own teachings. It helps me view my subject area in different perspectives.