For our final observation at CF High school we were asked to take part in what is known as an IWalk. Normally teachers would use IPads and an app specifically designed to gather generic data about classroom management within the high school. We were given paper copies of the information being asked for and sent to 5 classrooms to observe for up to 5 minutes. In that time we were able to collect information such as how the seating is arranged, what level of Bloom's Taxonomy is being facilitated, whether the students are working in groups, what percentage of students are engaged, as well as what the teacher is engaged in. The application also includes subject specific information regarding literary strategies, math concepts, etc.
The information could be used to loo at what's going on in the school as a whole, or could be concentrated by grade level, or department. The information seemed too generic for me at first. I wondered about gathering information that is to unbiased. With students in ESL, Special Education and then Mainstream, how could they all be grouped in and filtered through the same questions? When we tallied some of the information I was still skeptical. the commendations that we had made for the department we observed were looking like they would be moved to recommendations because the other departments had opposite findings. After learning that the data could be separated by department, and grade I felt like the app could definitely be used to help get a good picture of what is happening in the school, but I still feel like it's something that should be monitored closely. Different classrooms, have different looks and the expectations should always be high, but do the same questions always apply to each classroom. Of that I'm unsure.
The one thing that I am sure of is that student's are learning at CF. One impressive piece of information we gathered was that they were all learning at higher levels of Blooms taxonomy and that there were high level of engagement by the students. Seeing the students participate and just being able to go into the classrooms and see what was happening seemed like a worthwhile activity for a teacher. If gathering data in the process is being done, overall I think it's a great idea. Seeing other classrooms engaged is most likely a motivating activity for a teacher stuck in a rut! So I have become a fan of the Iwalk App!
Thursday, May 8, 2014
A Half-Circle
I remember sitting through my first high school observation. It was in an ESL classroom in an inner-city school. I was startled by how closely it resembled the stereotype of a high school class. The students were throwing paper airplanes and had no work to do for the most part. The teacher sat back and conversed with me and when she decided to ask for their attention she used comments, like "Do you want to work at McDonald's for the rest of your life?!" to try and motivate them. I was appalled but I didn't feel like there was anything I could do. I was just an observer, from a community college, with no degree and it was obvious she had no lesson plan to help them herself. So what could I do? The one rule was that Spanish could not be spoken. I let the teacher know that I could speak Spanish so she informed me of the rule but commented that "all they do is speak Spanish and talk about me I'm sure!" (She spoke no Spanish). In the end it was true, the students, not unlike any other high school students, talked about the teacher, but on my last day I was also able to help her understand that most of the time the student who knew more Spanish were helping their peers who were less familiar with English to complete the worksheets. After that experience I wasn't 100% sure I wanted to become a teacher. I had lost a lot of my excitement, wondering what kind of environment I would spend my time in and how much I would really be able to help.
On March 19th I attended a lecture by Anna Cano-Morales and my positive expectations for teaching have been renewed. Ms. Cano-Morales is chair for the Central Falls School Board of Trustees and she spoke about the significant achievement gaps in ELLs compared to other students in testing and attributes that to a lack of understanding by the educational systems on how to best teach English Language Learners. She gave many recommendations that will mean restructuring the way English is taught to Ells and how the overall process is approached. Most of her lecture was concerned with looking at the statistics but she also talked about valuing the culture and helping the students to realize success.
I really enjoyed her lecture because it made me realize that I wasn't wrong for feeling discouraged after my experience. All of the things I experienced as in observer in that class years ago, are still taking place. It is a reality in many schools. Knowing that she was invited to speak on the subject means that it is beginning to be addressed. Her lecture also made me sad. The experience I had was more than a few years ago. The fact that this portion of the education system has gone unchanged is absurd. The reality is that I saw that it needed to change and I wasn't educated enough or motivated enough at the time to do something about it myself. My circumstances are changing and my motivation has been kick started. I look forward to becoming an ESL teacher who is innovative and interested in getting to know how to teach each student I have, as well as encouraging my colleagues to do the same. I also look forward to getting to know the different cultures of the students and making sure that their backgrounds are all valued. Learning about their language will be important to me in order to help their initial transition into English Learners more fluid and recognize cognates that I can stress, as they begin to master the language. NO matter what subject we are teaching, this lecture reminded me that we need to value where our students are coming from. When they ESL students are mainstreamed, their background is still the same, so our motivations should not change either. We always need to value where our students came from and what their goals for the future are.
People always talk about experiences coming full circle. It seemed that's what happened in this situation. However, I don't think that is true. When I finish school and am finally a teacher, the day I sit down and research the background and culture of one of me students to better assist their learning, and then put that information to use in the class... I will think back on my observational experience, the lecture I attended and then, I will have come full circle. So today I guess I'll call it a half circle.
On March 19th I attended a lecture by Anna Cano-Morales and my positive expectations for teaching have been renewed. Ms. Cano-Morales is chair for the Central Falls School Board of Trustees and she spoke about the significant achievement gaps in ELLs compared to other students in testing and attributes that to a lack of understanding by the educational systems on how to best teach English Language Learners. She gave many recommendations that will mean restructuring the way English is taught to Ells and how the overall process is approached. Most of her lecture was concerned with looking at the statistics but she also talked about valuing the culture and helping the students to realize success.
I really enjoyed her lecture because it made me realize that I wasn't wrong for feeling discouraged after my experience. All of the things I experienced as in observer in that class years ago, are still taking place. It is a reality in many schools. Knowing that she was invited to speak on the subject means that it is beginning to be addressed. Her lecture also made me sad. The experience I had was more than a few years ago. The fact that this portion of the education system has gone unchanged is absurd. The reality is that I saw that it needed to change and I wasn't educated enough or motivated enough at the time to do something about it myself. My circumstances are changing and my motivation has been kick started. I look forward to becoming an ESL teacher who is innovative and interested in getting to know how to teach each student I have, as well as encouraging my colleagues to do the same. I also look forward to getting to know the different cultures of the students and making sure that their backgrounds are all valued. Learning about their language will be important to me in order to help their initial transition into English Learners more fluid and recognize cognates that I can stress, as they begin to master the language. NO matter what subject we are teaching, this lecture reminded me that we need to value where our students are coming from. When they ESL students are mainstreamed, their background is still the same, so our motivations should not change either. We always need to value where our students came from and what their goals for the future are.
People always talk about experiences coming full circle. It seemed that's what happened in this situation. However, I don't think that is true. When I finish school and am finally a teacher, the day I sit down and research the background and culture of one of me students to better assist their learning, and then put that information to use in the class... I will think back on my observational experience, the lecture I attended and then, I will have come full circle. So today I guess I'll call it a half circle.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)