Observing student behavior and understanding the underlying reasons for this behavior is an essential part of being a succesful teacher. We begin that process by first learning about the age-level characteristics of your students.
Please use this post to:
1. Identify the age level you are teaching
2. Summarize the text ideas for your age group around how children or adolescents are likely to think, feel, and behave at that age level.
3. Lastly, are the students you work with like this? How are similar and how are some different from the descriptions you are reading in the text?
1. Of the 15 characteristics referenced in the article “15 Characteristics of a 21st Century Teacher” I feel I definitely have room to improve. While I often ask students to use their phones to Google and research in class, oftentimes requesting a student look something up that we don’t know the answer to or incorporating smart phone usage into mini activities based in research, I feel using a classroom website and blog would greatly improve my environment. I have been doing cursory research on which website platforms and blogs would be best for mobile use, as most students rely primarily on smartphones over computers at home. I also hope to strengthen my project-based learning in the future, as I need to discover these technologies myself before I can present them to my students.
ReplyDelete2. My definition of a 21st century classroom mirrors many of the responses in the “How Do You Define 21st Century Teaching?” article. With focuses on student-based learning and engaging with real-world examples, utilizing smart phones and other technologies brings the real world into the classroom. Also, the article “What a 21st Century Classroom Looks Like” also expanded my definition: an environment where students feel comfortable to share, to develop agency, and to take ownership over their own ideas and creations is essential to bringing our teaching up to speed with the way other careers have adapted to the modern world.
3. The Khan Academy is the embodiment of 21st century learning. Sal Kahn has created a platform that, for math and science and coding, perfects scaffolding and differentiated learning and focuses entirely on student-based learning. And, more specifically, on mastery as opposed to a classroom that necessitates “moving on” to the next concept for the benefit of the class as a whole.
4. As an English teacher, I teach communication. I educate students on how to communicate their ideas, and how to understand the ideas of others. I have recently expanded my thinking on communication to using digital languages as well, and expanding communication to the virtual world. I am excited to create a digital classroom in the future and bring technology to the forefront of my teaching methods. I love the idea that my students will be working in fields that may not even exist yet and solving problems that haven’t arisen, so teaching skills and independent learning will be essential for preparing them for the future.
5. My biggest questions after reading and watching these articles and videos is how to most effectively implement these into my classroom. I understand the concept, but specifics on what will work best for English still elude me. However, I am researching other resources to assist me in creating a digital classroom and I feel experimentation and further research will help me make the best decisions for my students’ needs.
Nice job, Brittany! I love the thought about how kids today may be working in field not even known today. How true!
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ReplyDeletePart 1....(Sorry - had too many characters for one post)
ReplyDelete1. In “15 Characteristics of a 21st Century Teacher,” the author wonders what, exactly is 21st century teaching. After reflecting on my own teaching at the middle school level, I have determined that perhaps I am like a character in one of those time traveler shows – stuck between two worlds and two concepts.
I will start out by saying that I LOVE technology. I love everything about it – the instant power to learn about any idea, any time of the day or night. The external brain that keeps me organized and on schedule. The ability to connect to family and friends around the world, not just audibly, but visually as well. The instantaneous alert of danger. This convenience is now commonplace and my students have it at their fingertips.
On the other hand, there is nothing in the world that compares with sitting quietly with a book in my hands. The feel of it. The smell of it. Hearing the crisp pages turn. Somehow, for me, books are experienced. I firmly believe today’s students should experience this too.
Technology and all of its associated concepts (critical thinking, creativity, etc.) have a definite place in today’s classroom. However, basic concepts are covered in a more concrete, traditional way, with the belief that the students need to have some background or foundation in terms of concept, what to look for and how to apply the knowledge they learn. Then, they are given a technology-related task to reinforce the lesson and the leeway explore new concepts related to the original lesson.
Of the 15 concepts referenced in the article, two of the concepts that I hope to integrate into my teaching are more technology-related project-based learning and going global. The world really is at our fingertips with all of our integrated devices and my students need exposure to people and cultures outside of Buckhannon. In terms of technology-related projects, the opportunity for learning are endless. Technology-related projects fit any subject, and grade level and provide the students with the ability to complete learner-centered assignments.
2. My definition of 21st century teaching is not clear-cut, much like the guest contributors in the article “How Do You Define 21st Century Learning?”. After reading this article, peoples’ opinions were varied and wide-ranging. For example, I liked the ideas proposed by Diane Ravitch – that of a well-educated, well-rounded student that is savvy not only with technology, but also in development of traits like self-discipline, pursuit of goals, and ethical and moral character.
I my opinion, the definition of 21st century teaching will be to instill in my students the aforementioned traits, love of learning and the know-how to use technology to expand their endless horizons.
Carrie,
DeleteI love the idea of going global from our small, isolated Buckhannon! I agree that students are seldom exposed to different cultures and they need that experience to broaden their worldview. Great ideas!
Brittney
Part 2...
ReplyDelete3. The Khan Academy stands at the forefront of 21st century learning. I believe their mission statement says it all: “You Can Learning Anything.” More impressive, however, is that their content is offered for free. They largely use the You Tube platform to host a wide array of lectures. Their philosophy is that their lessons enrich and expand education to millions of people who would not be able to afford or attend school.
Does this platform equal a full, formal education? In my opinion, probably not. Attending school leaves out many components of formally taught lessons and it is very difficult to have the direct mentorship that having an “in person” education affords.
4. Twenty first century teaching ideas are endless, however, I am excited by two main ideas. The first is that 21st century teaching places ideas, concepts, and technology into students’ hands that may otherwise fall behind in their educational endeavors. Young women in STEM, poor children in very rural areas, and diverse ethnic groups now have the opportunity to be exposed to 21st century teaching and technology. In turn, this will create a group of thinkers, doers, and world-changers.
The second 21st century teaching idea that I am excited by is that of change. Twenty first century educators need to be able to teach change, expose their students to change and mentor them through changes. The technology that accompanies learning is ever-changing and both teachers and students alike need to be able to keep pace. The society in which we live changes second by second. Successful students and teachers of the 21st century will need to anticipate, know and welcome change.
5. After studying the materials for this lesson, there are two components of 21st century learning that I am not sure about. The first is the ability to teach “teachable” students. With exposure to a constant, non-stop stream of information, blurbs of opinion, and social media, children become numb to human – to – human interaction. They are so intensely focused on the next tweet, Instagram post or snapchat that finding a way to connect to classroom content proves very difficult. Many are uncomfortable having full face-to-face conversations and are terrified of giving presentations.
The other component of 21st century teaching that I am unsure about is this question: Is all of this technology a good thing? I have to admit that I am not sure. Kids need to be taught basics – for example, the simple and complex parts of writing, the ability to use reasoning when solving problems. I think kids need to learn that a little struggle is ok in pursuit of finding an answer and that instant ‘ping’ of acceptance is not always a great thing. The “instant gratification” of technology may not allow kids to have the necessary time to work toward discovery and therefore, self-discovery.
After reviewing the Introduction to Lesson Planning from Edutopia and New Teacher Videos on YouTube, I am happy to learn that there are so many resources for newbies like me! I really found a lot of value in the Introduction to Lesson Planning article because I always viewed lesson planning a a very structured and 'you have to plan into the future and stick to it" kind of thing. I really liked the author's concept of allowing your planning to be flexible and reactive. I believe this flexibility, along with varied lesson plans will help students stay engaged and moving forward in their learning path. I plan to take this advice to heart moving forward in my teaching career.
ReplyDeleteI appreciated the listing of all of the resources for educational planning provided by Dr. Jones. As a new teacher, so many things have been going through my mind...are the lessons I am teaching on target, conveying the appropriate information, meeting the state standard? Are my lessons varied enough, interesting enough and thoroughly thought out in terms of time and supplies?
ReplyDeleteTwo of the resources, Lesson Plans: Read, Write, Think and Lesson Plans: Hot Chalk provided me with a wealth of ideas. I particularly liked these resources because their web sites were clear, easy to navigate and well-organized. A couple of the other sites were terribly "busy" with ads and were much harder to find items that pertained to what I was searching for. I really liked that the Read, Write, Think resource and the HotChalk resource had the theory related to practice for the lesson and each contained the associated state standard.
These resources will be very valuable to me in my teaching to help me make sure objectives, materials, procedures and assessments are compiled correctly for each day. I am the type of person who tends to "get in a rut," often doing the same things over and over. These resources will help me make sure I keep things fresh and engaging.
I love the new teacher channels on YouTube! With coaching tennis I haven't had time to watch many, but I see myself getting lost in these this summer as I begin planning and referring back to them as I think ahead. I also loved Matt Ray's idea of lesson planning in a reactive fashion. Many of my colleagues lesson plan weeks in advance and I just do not think that way, as I feel having a rigid schedule stresses me out as students bump along without checking in regularly. One class is far ahead of another, one class had an early out for a snow day, another is way more advanced, and they're all English 9. I thought I was simply a bad planner, but this gave me hope that I'm planning as I go for good reason.
ReplyDeleteWhile browsing for lesson plans to introduce me to teaching I actually stumbled upon these lesson plans prior to this course, particularly the Scholastic and Read, Write, Think plans. I have even utilized a couple that I adapted to my current topic long before this certification course! While I am much more likely to simply grab a few ideas and make my own lesson with just one portion of someone else's lesson, it is nice to know that there are resources out there to help. I especially like seeing how the lessons relate to assessments, as that is something I struggle with. Referring back to Matt Ray's blog, "data" is an essential part of teaching and collecting it is something I need help improving on.
ReplyDeleteI have heard great things about Teachers Pay Teachers as well - several of my teacher friends either make lesson plans for the site or have used them before, and really appreciate the high quality plans that come out. It is also a great way to support our professional partners who have put their heart and soul into these plans for the sake of the kids.